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Adbru

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Hi,
Looking for my first sailboat in the 'up to 26foot' range.
May be viewing a boat which needs some tlc...
Can anyone give me a ballpark figure of how much to replace standing rigging on a 24 foot loop?
I don't know the model yet as its being sold by a third party on behalf of someone.
A bit vague but thanks in advance for any help 😊
 
Adbru said:
Hi,
Looking for my first sailboat in the 'up to 26foot' range.
May be viewing a boat which needs some tlc...
Can anyone give me a ballpark figure of how much to replace standing rigging on a 24 foot loop?
I don't know the model yet as its being sold by a third party on behalf of someone.
A bit vague but thanks in advance for any help 😊
Click to expand...
If you figure around £2k for someone to do it you won’t be far wrong. Much less if you do it yourself. It’s a buyer’s market for 26 foot sailing boats, so do take your time and you may find one that’s ready to sail. There’s no such thing as a bargain boat, after all. 🙂
 
My numbers are hugely out of date but in 2010 I replaced all the standing rigging on a 27ft boat, inc turnbuckles, for £450.

If you know the make and model, email ZSpars for a quote.
 
As suggested it depends on how much work you do yourself. a rigger doing the whole l0t - unstepping, making new stays, dressing the mast restepping and setting up would be in the range of £2.5k+. The stays and new turrnbuckles would be £1k+. While the mast is down you will almost certainly want to look at maybe replacing the wiring for the lights and even the lights themselves plus the antenna which will add another £3-500
 
Welcome to the forum - lots to read here - Costs may depend on where you are - my rigging was just over 1K professional fit including lifts but excluding winter storage - full insurance will want a professional sign off - Boat may be absolutely right for you, but think what you want to do with the boat - floating beach hut - good sleeping accommodation? - day sailing in sheltered water with others nearby - racing? - Mooring? - leads to best keel type for you - lots of different types of 24-26 footer but all are compromises - would you like toilet in it own compartment like a Horizon with still good sailing performance - standing headroom? - Need to get someone to look at the boat, mast, sails, running rigging, engine, keels, rudder, everything - does it have a saildrive needing a quite expensive new rubber seal - think about one with an outboard in a well - same cost to get new complete motor - identify if there are any other issues so you have a good idea of costs to get sailing - and annual costs thereafter.
 
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Adbru said:
Hi,
Looking for my first sailboat in the 'up to 26foot' range.
May be viewing a boat which needs some tlc...
Can anyone give me a ballpark figure of how much to replace standing rigging on a 24 foot loop?
I don't know the model yet as its being sold by a third party on behalf of someone.
A bit vague but thanks in advance for any help 😊
Click to expand...
There are loads of good 24’ boats for sale that don’t need big spends like new rigging, sails or engines, and the top end of the market is realistically about £5k.
It is uneconomical to buy a project boat in that size, just look around until you find one that just needs a few new bits of electronics, standing rigging, engine service and a good power wash.
You might even drop lucky and find one with at least one of the big three ticket items of engine, sails or standing rigging already recently replaced. At this end of the market, any one of those items cost about the same as a different boat.

I spent £3.5k on a 24’ boat, and in stages over 4 years replaced the sails (for performance) at £1.5k and the standing rigging (for peace of mind, without new bottle screws which were vgc) at £1k for my personal pleasure not necessity, but I was able to sail it from day one, decidedly not a project.
It is in commission and sailed all year around West Wales, so it works hard for a 50year old cheap boat.

New sails were definitely the best improvement, but not essential.
 
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Any boat more than a few years old will need some TLC; constant maintenance is part of owning a boat.

There are loads of good 24’ boats for sale that don’t need big spends like new rigging, sails or engines,
This is good advice. As a first boat, the last thing you need is a project. Don't set your heart on a particular model, the right boat that you can use straight away and fettle at leisure is far more important than the right model When you go to look at a possibility, I wouldn't bother with a survey in that price range, but take someone with you who knows boats.

A few things to think about:

What do you plan to do with the boat? Racing or weekend pottering? If the former, a lighter boat, probably with a fin keel, would be better, and an outboard engine might be fine. For the latter, especially if you want to take your partner along, a tubby little cruiser with a proper heads compartment might fit the bill better, and - a personal opinion - an inboard diesel would be desirable. Madame and I had a Snapdragon 24 for years, and she suited us fine. Off the wind, she could surprise other boats; as for going to windward, that's what the engine was for.

Where are you going to keep her? You need to sort that out before you part with your money. You do see that sort of bat in marinas, but you're likely to spend a good proportion of the value of the boat every year. A swinging mooring would be a much cheaper option, You'll need a dinghy to get from shore to boat and, possibly, an outboard - more cost, but I'd want one for exploring anyway. Tidal or drying moorings tend to be more expensive than deep water ones but, unless they're on deep, soft mud, they're only suitable for twin/bilge keels. Cheapest of all would be a club mooring, but there'll most probably be a waiting list. If your clubs are anything like mine, you join because it's a sociable place with useful facilities, put your name down on the waiting list for a mooring and hope you live long enough to get one.
 
Hi Folks,
All good advice, many thanks.
I had a look at the boat today and it is far too big a project for me.

I don't mind some work but I want to be sailing rather than a large refit/resto.
I plan to do day sails initially then hopefully some coastal trips, I'm currently near Inverness but would love to explore the west coast as my experience/skill level improves. Not really interested in racing (that's what dinghies are for ;-) )
:)
I do have a provisional berth arranged for next year in a drying harbour at a reasonable price so that dictates a bilge keel.
There are lots of boats for sale but not a huge amount this far north, however I'm not in a rush so can wait till something comes up.
Lots of good info on the forum so I'll keep reading.

Thanks again.
 
Adbru said:
Hi,
Looking for my first sailboat in the 'up to 26foot' range.
May be viewing a boat which needs some tlc...
Can anyone give me a ballpark figure of how much to replace standing rigging on a 24 foot loop?
I don't know the model yet as its being sold by a third party on behalf of someone.
A bit vague but thanks in advance for any help 😊
Click to expand...
You may be able to get a competitive price from a company that does industrial/commercial type rigging.
Mainco, a family firm near to me in Redditch, were helpful and offer marine grade.
 
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