Hardy Mariner 25? I think that’s a stern driven boat (maybe wrong) or a trusty, I know there displacement boats so probably won’t get the speed but they have bilge keels so if you dried out the boat would be upright.
sailing yacht to floating motorhome?
- Thread starter Birdseye
- Start date
Blue Sunray
Well-Known Member
Quite possibly the chap who started this thread.
Elessar
Well-Known Member
Sorry, couldnt resist but age and creakiness means we are coming to the end of our sailing, and to fend off any daft ideas SWMBO might have about caravans etc, I am contemplating buying a small stink boat. But I know absolutely sod all about them so I need advice.
We are based at Cardiff and sail the Bristol Channel which has few marinas and rather more harbours drying either to soft mud or to hard sand - so I would like a boat that can dry out. Its not an area for outboards IMO ( been there) - what is needed is a reliable diesel. 20kn max would be acceptable. Maybe 26ft or thereabouts with a couple of cabins , a toilet, heads, cooker fridge . No flybridge but an aft area that is a bit like a patio because in reality I suspect it wont go very far and will mostly be a floating caravan.
Budget? I would like to be below £50k because thats what my yacht is likely to fetch. Suggests something older. Pal has a 26ft or thereabouts Sealine from the 90s which looks like a possible.
It’s a shame about some of the hostility you received.
Anyway I’m assuming you’ll keep the boat floating in Cardiff bay somewhere and want to visit places like watchet.
An out drive boat if you want a diesel will serve you well. A sea line S28 or, if you can afford it, an S34 would be a good place to start looking.
An outdrive has the engine in the boat and the outdrive is like the bottom half of an outboard and sticks out of the back of the boat.
Outdrive pros for you.
Low fuel burn (but it will seem huge to you anyway)
Ability to raise the leg and reduce draft if it’s very shallow.
Ability to raise leg and dry out. You’ll be level on mud and lean a bit on sand but just pretend it’s a beam reach. (You could get short legs to stay level if you regularly dry on sand and it annoys you.)
Kicks up if you hit the bottom so hopefully little damage.
Ability to raise the legs and reach the props to keep them clean or remove rope fouling etc. Clean props make a HUGE difference on a mobo.
Much more fun and engaging to drive than a shaft boat.
Cons of an outdrive.
Regular maintenance is absolutely vital or they’ll bite you in the wallet.
Servicing more expensive than shafts.
Good specialist survey and or full history vital on purchase.
Some people say they are harder to handle Than shafts but this isn’t true. They are however very different to shaft drive and you need a lesson from someone who knows outdrives.
Start a new thread when you find a boat to look at and hopefully it will be better received.
The S28 will involve turning the dinette into a double plus an aft cabin the S34 has 2 separate cabins plus the saloon. It’s a lot more boat but will be more money.
Good luck.
Megs20Burt!
Well-Known Member
Agree with the level of hostility, can’t understand it??
Anyway, some good advice from this poster. The smaller Sealines are very good boats, we are surrounded by S28 & 34’s where we are and all of the owners are very happy with them. Some are getting on a bit, but they really are good boats. The S34 is an excellent size and would manage most things thrown at it.
let us know how you get on??
Oscar24
Well-Known Member
Or alternatively don't start a thread of by insulting the people you want advice from.
longjohnsilver
Well-Known Member
All good choices, I’ve owned a CI32 and loved it. And we have an AquaStar as our dive boat, again a good boat. And Nelson have a superb reputation, but tend to provide less living space due to their narrow beam.Coming over to the dark side, H?It does sound like what you need is a boat specifically designed to take the ground which immediately disqualifies most planing boats. If you really want to stay upright on a drying mooring, you'll need a boat with a keel and possibly drying out legs fitted to stop the thing falling over.
The kind of boats that immediately come to mind are Aquastars
Aquastar 33 Used Boat for Sale 1992(SOLD) | TheYachtMarket
Channel Islands
1990 Channel Island 32 Power New and Used Boats for Sale -
Nelson
1984 Nelson 820 Power New and Used Boats for Sale - www.yachtworld.co.uk
Out Aquastar has beaching legs, but if using them regularly you’ll soon get fed up of the hassle in setting them up. There are a few displacement mobos with bilge keels,but they will be slow. And rolly, but slightly less so than a centre keeled boat. So then it’s back to an outdrive powered boat. The pros and cons of which have already been discussed.
stelican
Well-Known Member
Is that an enclosed flybridge model.
sarabande
Well-Known Member
Then would it not be helpful and generous to have made your point, and then not repeat it ?
Birdseye is a known raggy contributor and for him to make a genuine appeal (albeit a bit sardonic) for help from the mobo community must have taken hours of fasting and prayer. I am glad to see the great majority have responded positively and with helpful technical advice.
Elessar
Well-Known Member
I didn't take it as insulting I took it as tongue in cheek humour.
The world is a much nicer place when you give people the benefit of the doubt.
SimonD
Well-Known Member
As someone who recently converted from sail to power (after many years of the former) I would advise you to be prepared to kick yourself for not doing it sooner!
I can't advise on suitable boat models, and I wouldn't push a Sealine even though I own one. However, in their favour, the Sealine forum is a huge benefit in getting friendly help and advice on all things Sealine. Also, the smaller Sealines seems to be incredibly popular, the S24 and S28 in particular. That must say something about them.
I can't advise on suitable boat models, and I wouldn't push a Sealine even though I own one. However, in their favour, the Sealine forum is a huge benefit in getting friendly help and advice on all things Sealine. Also, the smaller Sealines seems to be incredibly popular, the S24 and S28 in particular. That must say something about them.
gordmac
Well-Known Member
First thing to appreciate is your nose will not bleed if you exceed the dizzy heights of six knots!
For those taking offence at the op, chill and look for your sense of humour.
I suspect you will need a bigger boat for what you are looking for and maybe a bigger budget. Is Broom not the normal make recommended to raggies seeing the light?
SD on a prop may be able to dry out ok but some have exposed prop and rudder. A sports boat may be the cheapest way to get more or less the space at more or less the budget. Will use a lot less fuel too. For a lot more money a Botnia Targa 30 upwards (and similar) will give two cabins with a lot of deck space.
For those taking offence at the op, chill and look for your sense of humour.
I suspect you will need a bigger boat for what you are looking for and maybe a bigger budget. Is Broom not the normal make recommended to raggies seeing the light?
SD on a prop may be able to dry out ok but some have exposed prop and rudder. A sports boat may be the cheapest way to get more or less the space at more or less the budget. Will use a lot less fuel too. For a lot more money a Botnia Targa 30 upwards (and similar) will give two cabins with a lot of deck space.
Elessar
Well-Known Member
A smaller botnia is indeed an excellent choice and worth considering.
Not a broom if the OP wants to dry out.
Ferris
Well-Known Member
Perfect (apart from the price). Twin diesel, semi-d with twin skegs.
2005 Kent 33 Power New and Used Boats for Sale - www.yachtworld.co.uk
2005 Kent 33 Power New and Used Boats for Sale - www.yachtworld.co.uk
RupertW
Well-Known Member
I will now forever have a vivid image of what a group of motorboaters look like when gathered in a bar.
Birdseye
Well-Known Member
Been there, done that. Admittedly it was a Prout which is a good boat but really a motor sailer, and a boat where you put on the autopilot passing through the harbour entrance.
Its a thought though.
cherod
N/A
You are not going to get a lot with the budget restraints , Prouts perhaps , good livesboards , dont need to use the sails ?
Birdseye
Well-Known Member
Thanks Bruce. I am marina based but who wants to stay in the base all the time. Trouble with the B C is that there are only 2 decent marinas between Cardiff and Lands end - Swansea and Portishead. True there is a silted up one at Watchet and a tiny one I have yet to visit at Porthcawl plus there is Milford haven. But there are lots of nice little drying harbours thast I visited when I had a cat and a bilgie and would like to visit again.
Your comment is interesting though. How bad are growths on a mobo? On my yacht, the weed I get on coppercoat takes maybe half a knot off the speed. Is it much more serious on a mobo?
Birdseye
Well-Known Member
Gosh, you lot are sensitive. I'll have you know that some of my best friends drive stink boats.
Others are WAFIs.Thanks Ferris. Being a bit more serious, those are a bit more "Nelson" than I was thinking. The mobo that an ex sailing pal has just bought ( same reason as me)) has a much more protected cockpit for SWMBO to sit out in.
ZBM2
Member
Gosh, you lot are sensitive. I'll have you know that some of my best friends drive stink boats.
Thanks Ferris. Being a bit more serious, those are a bit more "Nelson" than I was thinking. The mobo that an ex sailing pal has just bought ( same reason as me)) has a much more protected cockpit for SWMBO to sit out in.
Weak attempt at a wind up, you can toddle off now sailor boy.
ProDave
Well-Known Member
Macgregor 26M
Leave the water ballast tanks empty and put a big enough OB on the back and they will do 20 knots.
You can still play with some flappy things as well if you want to.
You might end up as Billy No Mates as mention them on Scuttlebut and you will be black balled.
Leave the water ballast tanks empty and put a big enough OB on the back and they will do 20 knots.
You can still play with some flappy things as well if you want to.
You might end up as Billy No Mates as mention them on Scuttlebut and you will be black balled.
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