The perfect 26 footer?

Dyflin

Dyflin

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After having a look at a cobra 850 with a view to buying, we've decided to scale down our requirements a bit and are looking for the "best" all rounder in terms of compromise with sailing ability and room below for 2/3 people.

We're after a 25-26 footer (must be under 8m for marina berth), good day sailing around the bay but suitable for up to a week afloat for a couple (i.e. me & SWMBO) in the Irish sea. Fin keel, boat not older than 1980(ish) and less than £15k. Plus decent size cockpit for four people (Cobra wasn't great in that regard).

Any thoughts?
 
Good morning, Dyflin.

I sail a Samphire 26 in the Irish Sea out of Anglesey. The only parameter that falls out of your specification is that it is long-keeled. Samphires are built like the proverbial stone outhouses and most were first launched in the late seventies. There's plenty of space for four in the cockpit but I regularly sail mine single-handed.

They are heavy displacement boats (c. 3.4 tons) and track well in all sorts of seas - ideal for the Irish Sea. They now come in at £14-15,000 and are never on the market for very long.

There's another chap in Holyhead with the same boat and neither of us would change.

Good luck. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
I can't recommend a 26 footer, but my Galion 22 meets all of your criteria. Room for four in the 'pit and regularly sleeps two plus a junior bilge monkey, very easy to sail single handed; fin keel too and good value.

I am sure Ian Hannay did a 26 foot boat that was in the same school, but it escapes me at the moment.

Good luck in the search, it sounds like you have all the right boxes to tick. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
Nic 26 (I admit I'm biased). Long deep keel, sails like a witch, standing headroom for a six footer and can handle itself better in weather than I can. Still a little tight below decks 'cos she's as slim as Victoria Beckham and a small cockpit. I reckon she's fine for two, OK for three if you're good friends but if you must go to sea with four of you, it has to be familly. Yanmar 1GM10 drives her at 6 knots.

SWMBO is less enamoured as she's built for sailing, not as marina queen. If you need/want more room below, try a Moody 27 fin keeler. Francis and Victoria 26's are even more cramped.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Generally acknowledged that the Contessa 26 is THE perfect 26 footer. Long keel and a bit cramped below, but a brilliant little boat.

[/ QUOTE ]Its all a matter of opinion!!

Contessa 26's are great boats - very seaworthy and sail very well. But as you admit, they are cramped down below.

I also think that they go to windward like a submarine. They are very 'wet' boats to sail in any sort of seaway with the wind forward of the beam.

I think one might argue that Sadler 26's sail just as well and are roomier and dryer. They don't track quite as well as a long keel, but that also means they are much easier to park!

However having had a Sadler 25, I couldn't see what all the extra money was getting you when you bought a 26!
 
Hi Dyflin,
We have a Sadler 26 bilge keeler in Poolebeg. They are a lovely boat. 7.8m long. Ideal for that part of the world. I dont have much experience of other boats but if I had a tenner for every one that has come up to complement her in the past 2 years I'd be even happier. We have gone out in some smelly onshore weather in the bay with that short ugly chop you can get and shes been fine charging along. We give up long before she does as is the norm I spose. We plan to take her round to Cork for the summer. The bilge keelers seem to go for more money. Its should be possible to get a fin for that. But it might need sails etc

Mike

Mike
 
There are some really lovely Centaurs around, well cared-for. Bilge keel but you'd be surprised at the performance to windward; we used to beat quite a few boats outside our class in mock races from the Manacles to Falmouth - and I am really not an expert when it comes to trimming sails. Very comfortable, heavy and warm in winter, cool in summer. Very safe and stable - we used to sail from Falmouth to the Channel Islands and Brittany every summer, just the two of us, no problems in all weathers (with radar).

Check out the Westerly Owners' Association - very large and active owners' group.
 
Thanks for the reply lads, the sadler 26 is a lovely boat but not within budget... I did a week on a sadler 32 a few years ago and while it's a grand boat I was a bit disappointed with the internal volume etc. (Compared to other 32 footers). Sadler 25 may well be within budget though.

What about a Hunter Horizon 26? (Too light?)
Trapper 300 (too small bellow?)
jag 25?

Long keelers are (generally) a pig for marina use and trailer sailers mean I have to find a home for the trailer...

I have a Leisure 23 at the moment and a spoiled for room (relatively speaking) down below but she has no side decks to speak of and is too slow on fine summer evenings with little wind. Plus she's a bit long in the tooth.
 
In that case, a Sadler 25 might be perfect. We sailed ours from the Scillies to Channel Islands, France and all the South Coast from Solent to Falmouth. I am 6'2" and there isn't standing headroom for someone my size, but its not that bad.

You should find a nice one for about £10k?
 
Gibsea 76, way too dear

Contessa 26, do you seriously think my better half would live aboard for a week on a contessa? /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Centaur's just don't inspire me, plus they're getting very long in the tooth too.
 
OK what about this, as about as new and as big as you can within spec....


Pegasus 800

There is no specification with this ad but if you look they are about 40% weight ratio so should be seaworthy. I have no knowledge of them as boats, perhaps someone can tell us.
 
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