In love with Cornish Crabbers!

Zagato

Zagato

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I am spending half the weeks at the moment berthed in Chichester Marina on my Drascombe Drifter - I'm having having a great time sailing every day and I've even got over my sea sickness problem.

The Drifter is a great boat for my needs BUT I have fallen in love with Crabber 24's. There are 3 near me and the heart starts pounding when ever I walk up to one - I NEED one!!!

The Crabber 26 looks a superb bit of kit but having only just come out in 2010for about 80K they won't be coming into my price bracket for a while. Just wondered what peoples experiences of the 24 are, quality, history, suitability for single handed sailing, handling, how they sail etc - I'm not bothered about getting anywhere quick, beautiful looks and a well designed practical layout are more important to me...

A near future house move might free up necessary funds or I'll just live in it!!!
 
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Fire99 said:
Very pretty but very expensive, IMO. :)
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Yea, I looked at a Shrimper for a bit of fun, but they seem slightly bonkers money. Then my eye drifted over to the Crabber..HOW MUCH? Even second hand. No wonder they went bust (or whatever it was)
 
In comparison a new 22' Drascombe Drifter is around 40K with trailer etc but in many terms it's half the boat although a very good well thought out boat and worth the money in my opinion if you were buying new. Although not trailer-able I think 30K should get quite a nice Crabber and would be a good buy if they hold their value well!
 
I sail a Cornish Yawl, which is similar to a Crabber 24 (same hull moulding, I believe, different deck).

No problem at all for single-handing. Handling has no obvious vices although being a long keel she doesn't tack on a sixpence and while going astern under power the tiller is merely ornamental :). Quality, well I'm not sure how you judge that but I have no complaints. Sailing - she's fast for her size on a reach, with four sails on a 35-foot sailplan (over a 24-foot hull) all drawing like horses. On a run, slower as some sails blanket others but still not bad. Upwind is where mine really suffers, possibly down to a very baggy old mainsail, but ultimately a gaff yawl with a relatively shallow long keel isn't going to win any prizes to windard whatever you hang on her.

Comfort below is pretty good; "lustyd" of these forums came on board for a drink last month and couldn't believe she was only 24 foot.

Pete
 
prv said:
I sail a Cornish Yawl, which is similar to a Crabber 24 (same hull moulding, I believe, different deck).

No problem at all for single-handing. Handling has no obvious vices although being a long keel she doesn't tack on a sixpence and while going astern under power the tiller is merely ornamental :). Quality, well I'm not sure how you judge that but I have no complaints. Sailing - she's fast for her size on a reach, with four sails on a 35-foot sailplan (over a 24-foot hull) all drawing like horses. On a run, slower as some sails blanket others but still not bad. Upwind is where mine really suffers, possibly down to a very baggy old mainsail, but ultimately a gaff yawl with a relatively shallow long keel isn't going to win any prizes to windard whatever you hang on her.

Comfort below is pretty good; "lustyd" of these forums came on board for a drink last month and couldn't believe she was only 24 foot.

Pete
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Tis true, the headroom was better than some 30 footers I've been on and the layout makes a lot of sense with a decent table in the middle. That said all the rope looks scary :D
 
Hi Zagato,

As a former Shrimper owner and now a Crabber Mk1 owner I understand your passion :)
Old Mk1 crabbers go for much more realistic prices, but will probably need some TLC.

To fuel your passion take a look at the url's at the bottom of my post.
Also even as a non-owner you can join the Cornish Crabber club for free at http://cornishcrabbersclub.ning.com

Is one of the Crabbers you see Equinox? If so the owner is Simon. Ask him nicely and he may take you for a sail. Tell him David H. sent you.

Regards,
David H.
 
lustyd said:
Tis true, the headroom was better than some 30 footers I've been on and the layout makes a lot of sense with a decent table in the middle. That said all the rope looks scary :D
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Actually there's only standing headroom between the chart table and the cooker - it slopes downwards forward of that but you don't notice because you're already bending to sit. That's why it works so well. The table is a non-standard one made by yours truly. And as for the rope - I sailed on William and Stavros before we ever got KS and they have about 200 pieces of running rigging :)

Pete
 
Have you considered a Cape Cutter 19 as an alternative?

http://www.honnormarine.co.uk/CapeCutter19/CapeCutter19Options.htm

CC_anchor_shllow_water.jpg
cc19%20brooke1.jpg
 
Rum_Pirate said:
Have you considered a Cape Cutter 19 as an alternative?
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I had been waiting for that one, if your not limited to trailers (which for crabber 24 I think you are?).

There are plently of other less traditional classics around Trident 24 (Mine is sold before any shouts foul play), snap dragons, little westerlies, super seals, Anderson 22 (Just for you seajet), can all go for considerable less money.

Cornish type boats strike me as over priced for what they are, I used to say the same about westerlies but they have come down to reasonable IMO
 
I think i am about to get in trouble here...

What (and I am genuinely asking) is the point of these boats? If i wanted a traditional boat I would want it for the nostalgia and history that came with it. Which would mean a nice old wooden gaffer.

If i wanted something I could sail and then forget about I would get a fiberglass trailer sailor (seal 22 or similar). The crabbers don't look like wood in the way the heards etc do, They are covered with cheap plastic blocks and badly varnished wood.

Seems like you end up with a plastic fantastic which is more work for less performance. For a very hefty price tag.
 
Did someone post saying crabbers/ shrimpers are a bit pointless? I think thats a useful definition of sailing and why its a delight. As we all know, we love the boats we love because we simply do. It's aesthetic, not practical for most of us non off shore lot. Whatever you sail it takes a lot of your time. Love your boat.
 
Those Cape Cutters are nice, was drooling over one in Lowestoft Harbour the other day. I'm not in the market but if I were then a Cape Cutter would be a very serious contender for my dosh.
 
wklein said:
I think i am about to get in trouble here...

What (and I am genuinely asking) is the point of these boats? If i wanted a traditional boat I would want it for the nostalgia and history that came with it. Which would mean a nice old wooden gaffer.

If i wanted something I could sail and then forget about I would get a fiberglass trailer sailor (seal 22 or similar). The crabbers don't look like wood in the way the heards etc do, They are covered with cheap plastic blocks and badly varnished wood.

Seems like you end up with a plastic fantastic which is more work for less performance. For a very hefty price tag.
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Yes, I think you are... getting into trouble. You may not see the point, but clearly many people do as evidenced by the large numbers sold and high prices they command.

Suggest you pop into the Royal Motor Yacht Club in Poole to meet the various owners of the large fleet of Shrimpers which cruise and race regularly. Mostly mature and experienced people who could afford to own and often have owned substantial cruising boats, but find the Shrimpers give them great pleasure.
 
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