How to learn about different boat types ?

ijonas

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Hi,

I'm fairly new to all the whole sailing scene. I used to sail a bit when I was younger but never paid much attention to boat types because I was never in the market for buying one.

I'm going to spend quite a bit of time sailing this year and I'm thinking of buying a 25ft-30ft boat next year.

So I understand the differences between sloops and cutters, etc. but delving further where can I learn about what makes a "family yacht", what makes a "fast boat", what determines a boat's steadyness and its behaviour through the water ? What are the trade-offs between the different boat types ? E.g. If I was buying a car I'd want to find out that sports cars typically have 2 seats, getting a 4-seater performance car is possible, but the trade-off being price.

Are there any books or online resources that you can point me to ?

Many thanks,
ijonas.
 

JasB

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The first thing I did was decide what I wanted to do with the thing. In my case I wanted a floating caravan as short as possible (marina fees) and only the one mast because that is what I knew. With those criterea I ended up with quite a healthy choice of 1970's boats to choose from...westerly centaurs, mackwesters and of course Snapdragons and a few more.
After I had the list whittled down to a reasonable size, I looked at things such as the heads and where they were placed (some under the forepeak berths which made me a bit uneasy) and bilge keels for beaching and mud berths. I think I ended up with a shortlist of about 4 types of boat, that is when I trawled the internet for "fan" sites, and club sites for info. And finally, when you have chosen the type of vessel you want, forget about it because a cheap bargain suddenly comes along and you like the colour...or some other irrational reason.
 

Norman_E

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Welcome to the forum.
I think you have the key to this already, in that you are going to do some sailing this year, which will give you a chance to find out what you really enjoy. You need to decide what sort of sailing you want to do with your own boat.
There are differences in the type of boat in the 25 - 30 foot size range between what you might want for racing, day sailing, or cruising for longer distances. I suggest you read the magazines and look at boat tests. Once you have decided what type of sailing you want to do you will find plenty of advice here on the suitability of different designs.
 

Channel Ribs

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Hi and welcome,

You have come to the right place /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I spent 18 months looking for a bilge keeler and ended up with a single fin, so I will sit back and wait for people who are better at boat buying than I.

One thing to remember is the concept that a small boat that you can sail single handed will get a lot more use than a bigger one - even if the bigger one does have palatial guest cabins and en suit heads all round. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 

oldharry

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[ QUOTE ]

buy something that is easy to sell, just in case you get it wrong first time

[/ QUOTE ]

Isnt that why most second hand boats are up for sale - its not quite right for what the previous owner wants. Too short, too long, too slow, too fast, too cramped, too heavy, too wet, not enough sail, too much sail, cutter rigged, not cutter rigged, too new, too old....

Just a few of the reasons for wanting to change in the search for the 'ideal' boat - which will have just as many compromises as the old one. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 

ijonas

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I'm in Glasgow, so most likely will go shopping around the Firth of Clyde.

On first pass, a 25ft-30ft sloop, 4-5 berths for long weekends cruising up the West Coast of Scotland seems to be what I'll be looking for.
 
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