Sadler 29

[doug748]

I'm thinking about having a look at one of these. There is a good amount of info on line concerning the construction etc but I am more interested in how she sails.

Specifically does she seem planted on the water and feel directionally stable. Can you "hands off" the helm and see her lose direction quietly or does she shear off quickly? Do they lose grip when over pressed or hang on with a heavy helm
Does she feel steady under power or have a heavy pull or kick in forward or astern?

I am not particularly interested in speed or boats that are faster or better. Thanks.

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[johnalison]

I'm thinking about having a look at one of these. There is a good amount of info on line concerning the construction etc but I am more interested in how she sails.

Specifically does she seem planted on the water and feel directionally stable. Can you "hands off" the helm and see her lose direction quietly or does she shear off quickly? Do they lose grip when over pressed or hang on with a heavy helm
Does she feel steady under power or have a heavy pull or kick in forward or astern?

I am not particularly interested in speed or boats that are faster or better. Thanks.

.

I think there is some different between fin and bilge keels. I did a test sail on one with bilge keels and thought it so-so but my fin-keeled one was very nice to sail, and I think that this fits with its reputation.

In terms of steadiness, I would say that it was much as you’d expect, not overly lively but not a hands-off boat in the Vertue style, but made up for by being light on the helm. We sailed a lot in company with a 32 and were nearly comparable in cruising speed, but definitely had to reef earlier, as you would expect from the slab sides. If overpressed she would complain but I am a bit hazy about what it was like. She wasn’t particularly liable to broach or misbehave, but I have been rather spoiled by having a larger and well-designed boat since. 29s have done Channel crossings in quite heavy weather and although we never did any heroics as a family crew I was happy enough to go out with at least a F6

Although we kept the boat for twelve years, this was some time ago and I am relying on memory, but so far as I recall she was fairly predictable under power. There was some prop walk of course, but much what you would expect. On the whole I would say she was pretty handy to manoeuvre in harbour.

There are compromises in the accommodation of course. The berths and saloon are comfortable at the cost of a small galley, though this works well enough. The companionway is a bit odd, but you soon get used to it and it is safer than some. Stowage for a dinghy under the cockpit sole is a plus point.

 

[TSB240]

Practical Boat Owner

Recent article for you.

 

[Goldie]

A good friend of mine (no longer with us sadly) completed the ARC on his Sadler 29, double-handed. See World Cruising Club

He had previously cruised the length of the Med’ before bringing it back to U.K. for a pre-ARC refit and was certainly very happy with the boat.

 

[Kwik Decision]

Our previous boat was a bilge keel Sadler 29 which did the ARC in '93. We weren't nearly that adventurous, but she did get us safely round England, Wales and the southern half of Scotland in 2015.
For an older 29 footer, she sailed well. One of the improvements we made was getting a 110% Genoa, to complement the standard 150% one which came with the boat. This made sailing into wind much better, as the big one needed furling as soon as you were towards the top of F4, with subsequent loss of pointing ability. As a bonus, it was higher cut (to get the sheeting angles right) and so forward visibility improved as well.

 

[hurley]

I have an s29 fin for two years now and would concur with @johnalison who describes the boat very well. Lovely boat to sail and very well balanced and yhe small skeg means she has minimal weather helm which is corrected by reefing. She holds a very good account of herself against other boats especially when the wind and waves pick up. No problems drying out against the posts for scruns and easy to maintain and store on the hard. The interior holds up well due to the inner moulding and the wood and fabric seems to last well possibly because of the extra insulation which helps keep it dry and quiet. I still have the original volvo 2002 which has so been very reliable but many have been reengined. The later ones, from about 1988 onwards have an extra window and the bulkheads above the sink and nav station are angled which makes it a bit easier in the galley and around the nav station. I haven't had any regrets and have certainly enjoyed the performance of the fin. We've been out in some windy and
rough conditions without any problems.
The owners association has a good FB group that would be worth joining (there are two, one being an unofficial group.

 

[johnalison]

I have an s29 fin for two years now and would concur with @johnalison who describes the boat very well. Lovely boat to sail and very well balanced and yhe small skeg means she has minimal weather helm which is corrected by reefing. She holds a very good account of herself against other boats especially when the wind and waves pick up. No problems drying out against the posts for scruns and easy to maintain and store on the hard. The interior holds up well due to the inner moulding and the wood and fabric seems to last well possibly because of the extra insulation which helps keep it dry and quiet. I still have the original volvo 2002 which has so been very reliable but many have been reengined. The later ones, from about 1988 onwards have an extra window and the bulkheads above the sink and nav station are angled which makes it a bit easier in the galley and around the nav station. I haven't had any regrets and have certainly enjoyed the performance of the fin. We've been out in some windy and
rough conditions without any problems.
The owners association has a good FB group that would be worth joining (there are two, one being an unofficial group.

I think it was only the prototype that had a vertical bulkhead aft of the galley. I first saw the 29 at a boat show and I think this was the feature that put me off, although I wasn’t actually looking to buy at that time. The quarter berth is especially generous, an I used to sleep quite happily there with a folding bike pushed down to the end. When we ordered ours new we took the advice of the agent and had fabric upholstery in the saloon, but vinyl in the quarter berth, making it immune to wet oilies when working at the chart table. It also meant that we could put our bikes on folded rugs which could easily be slid back and forth.

There is more standing room in the heads than in the 32, though I did read one story about a gentleman who was doing his business while standing there and got thrown backwards, ending up wedged in the cave locker opposite, from where he had to be rescued.

 

[Kwik Decision]

I think it was only the prototype that had a vertical bulkhead aft of the galley.

Ours was an 84 model, and had vertical bulkheads at the galley and behind the chart table. These were a little annoying but we lived with them for 9 years. It wasn't until 85 or 86 that they changed to sloping ones. The third window on each side came later than that.
If you're looking to buy, the later models will be more desirable for these reasons, although condition is always the main consideration when looking at older boats.

 

[johnalison]

Ours was an 84 model, and had vertical bulkheads at the galley and behind the chart table. These were a little annoying but we lived with them for 9 years. It wasn't until 85 or 86 that they changed to sloping ones. The third window on each side came later than that.
If you're looking to buy, the later models will be more desirable for these reasons, although condition is always the main consideration when looking at older boats.

OK. Mine was ‘87. Although the three windows looks a bit smarter, I don’t think there is a significant functional difference.

 

[nestawayboats]

I have a Sadler 29 with the deeper of the two fin keel options, I think they were referred to as "fin" or "shallow fin" but that distinction may have been lost over the years - be aware of it. As such she definitely outsails the bilge keel ones that I have knowingly sailed against, by quite a lot I'd say. The PBO/David Harding review mentions this difference.

She also sails well compared to boats of similar size and seems to do better than many slightly larger "modern" boats, particularly in a Solent chop to windward. One never knows how well individual boats are being sailed of course, but this is a fairly consistent finding. Boats that we closely cross tacks with end up quite a long way behind us after another couple of miles, to a pleasing extent. I usually conclude it's as much to do with leeway as speed.

We are pretty careful about weight in the bow though. I read somewhere that they can hobby horse so we tend to keep the water tank (forward end of V-berth on ours, not sure if that's standard) much less than full - definitely helps - and might yet move its location to under one of the saloon berths. I do keep the anchor on the bow for convenience though.

Sail-wise we have a fairly high-cut, fairly new genoa of about 115-120%, and a fully-battened mainsail that's in pretty good shape. Occasionally would like more genoa than that but mostly that's when we're off the wind and can set cruising chute if we get the inclination.

You can "hands off" the helm to windward if you trim the sails right. She'll chug along nicely for several minutes at a time with very little if any helm input. We always reef the mainsail first to get rid of weather helm, and are usually down to two reefs in main before rolling any genoa, but that might be to do with having a smaller genoa than some of them. I don't think she's ever broached, yes she "hangs on" well.

Under power ours is not standard any more, standard being a slightly offset shaft and two-bladed prop. We now have a centreline electric pod motor... but before installing that she definitely had quite a lot of kick in astern, useful if you wanted to moor port side to as I recall.

 

[johnalison]

I have a Sadler 29 with the deeper of the two fin keel options, I think they were referred to as "fin" or "shallow fin" but that distinction may have been lost over the years - be aware of it. As such she definitely outsails the bilge keel ones that I have knowingly sailed against, by quite a lot I'd say. The PBO/David Harding review mentions this difference.

She also sails well compared to boats of similar size and seems to do better than many slightly larger "modern" boats, particularly in a Solent chop to windward. One never knows how well individual boats are being sailed of course, but this is a fairly consistent finding. Boats that we closely cross tacks with end up quite a long way behind us after another couple of miles, to a pleasing extent. I usually conclude it's as much to do with leeway as speed.

We are pretty careful about weight in the bow though. I read somewhere that they can hobby horse so we tend to keep the water tank (forward end of V-berth on ours, not sure if that's standard) much less than full - definitely helps - and might yet move its location to under one of the saloon berths. I do keep the anchor on the bow for convenience though.

Sail-wise we have a fairly high-cut, fairly new genoa of about 115-120%, and a fully-battened mainsail that's in pretty good shape. Occasionally would like more genoa than that but mostly that's when we're off the wind and can set cruising chute if we get the inclination.

You can "hands off" the helm to windward if you trim the sails right. She'll chug along nicely for several minutes at a time with very little if any helm input. We always reef the mainsail first to get rid of weather helm, and are usually down to two reefs in main before rolling any genoa, but that might be to do with having a smaller genoa than some of them. I don't think she's ever broached, yes she "hangs on" well.

Under power ours is not standard any more, standard being a slightly offset shaft and two-bladed prop. We now have a centreline electric pod motor... but before installing that she definitely had quite a lot of kick in astern, useful if you wanted to moor port side to as I recall.

I know that the 32 had a shallow fin option but I don’t remember it being offered on the 29. The shallow fin 32 was markedly inferior and on a par with the bilge keel version, while the lifting keel 32 was nearly as good as the deep fin.

Our Genoa was larger than yours, so it would have been reef main, take 4 rolls in the genny, 2nd reef main etc, though we also carried a No2 Genoa.

The 32 had an offset prop shaft but my 29 certainly didn’t, and I’m pretty sure that you are incorrect in saying that it was standard. I had a 2-bladed fixed prop but I would love to try one with a folding prop, something that we didn’t think of in the ‘80s. I think you are right that the prop kick was to port when going astern, the reverse of my current boat. With a transom-hung rudder, you could put the helm right across if desired.

 

[nestawayboats]

I know that the 32 had a shallow fin option but I don’t remember it being offered on the 29. The shallow fin 32 was markedly inferior and on a par with the bilge keel version, while the lifting keel 32 was nearly as good as the deep fin.

Our Genoa was larger than yours, so it would have been reef main, take 4 rolls in the genny, 2nd reef main etc, though we also carried a No2 Genoa.

The 32 had an offset prop shaft but my 29 certainly didn’t, and I’m pretty sure that you are incorrect in saying that it was standard. I had a 2-bladed fixed prop but I would love to try one with a folding prop, something that we didn’t think of in the ‘80s. I think you are right that the prop kick was to port when going astern, the reverse of my current boat. With a transom-hung rudder, you could put the helm right across if desired.

There was definitely a shallow fin option on the 29, drawing 1.2m instead of 1.5m for the "deep fin" and 1.1m for the bilge keel model. When buying mine via Mike Lucas I decided against an otherwise quite good example because it had a shallow fin.

Interesting re the prop shaft, ours (built 1983) was offset to port and I've definitely seen another with same... maybe this changed over the years. I assumed it was so you could get the prop shaft in/out without hitting the skeg (or taking engine out).

 

[johnalison]

There was definitely a shallow fin option on the 29, drawing 1.2m instead of 1.5m for the "deep fin" and 1.1m for the bilge keel model. When buying mine via Mike Lucas I decided against an otherwise quite good example because it had a shallow fin.

Interesting re the prop shaft, ours (built 1983) was offset to port and I've definitely seen another with same... maybe this changed over the years. I assumed it was so you could get the prop shaft in/out without hitting the skeg (or taking engine out).

As I said, I didn’t remember the shallow option, but I think there must have been rather few of them. There was a charter 32 shallow fin that was very slow that I used to see occasionally as we swanned past in our 29. I’m surprised about the offset prop. Perhaps they borrowed the idea from the earlier 32 before realising that it wasn’t necessary. Mine was late ‘87.

I got the impression that the reason for the offset was to counter prop walk rather than for servicing. It nearly spelled disaster for a friend who bought a 2nd hand 32. They were sailing across the mouth of the Seine where by chance we saw them in the distance in what was for us pre-VHF days, when they heard a clonk which turned out to be the prop shaft parting from the engine and the prop hitting the skeg. Luckily for them the prop was sufficiently rotated not to pass the skeg and cause the whole caboodle to disappear and risk a major inrush of water. Later, they fitted a stopper on the shaft.

 

[hurley]

There was definitely a shallow fin option on the 29, drawing 1.2m instead of 1.5m for the "deep fin" and 1.1m for the bilge keel model. When buying mine via Mike Lucas I decided against an otherwise quite good example because it had a shallow fin.

Interesting re the prop shaft, ours (built 1983) was offset to port and I've definitely seen another with same... maybe this changed over the years. I assumed it was so you could get the prop shaft in/out without hitting the skeg (or taking engine out).

Very slightly offset...enough to allow me to take the propshaft off past the skeg. Mine is a later 3 window 1988 model.

 

[Kwik Decision]

Interesting re the prop shaft, ours (built 1983) was offset to port and I've definitely seen another with same... maybe this changed over the years. I assumed it was so you could get the prop shaft in/out without hitting the skeg (or taking engine out).

Our 84 boat had a slightly offset prop shaft, which made changing the stern gland really quite straightforward. There was some prop walk to port in reverse, both with the original bukh and fixed 3 blade prop, and with the new beta and featherstream prop. This was enough to be useful, but you could easily work against it if required.

 

[Wandering Star]

The 1986 Sadler 29 Ive just purchased has the backstay offset from the centreline of the boat - is this usual and what’s the reason for it? And whilst asking, if I don’t race (never have & never will!) could I remove the backstay tensioner and fit a full length backstay instead?

Anyone have a Sadler 29 sprayhood they want to sell me - absolutely any condition?

 

[Kwik Decision]

The 1986 Sadler 29 Ive just purchased has the backstay offset from the centreline of the boat - is this usual and what’s the reason for it? And whilst asking, if I don’t race (never have & never will!) could I remove the backstay tensioner and fit a full length backstay instead.

That's normal, certainly how ours was set up. It's so the backstay doesn't foul the tiller, coming from the transom hung rudder.
Ours also had a full length backstay, with no tensioner (other than the bottle screw), so no harm in getting rid of your tensioner, if that's what you want to do.

 

[johnalison]

I’m not really sure why you would want to remove the tensioner. Ours came with a pair of handles that folded away upwards and were never in the way. We never raced seriously but it was helpful to keep the option of increasing the tension or vice versa if one wanted to.