What's better than an Achilles 24?

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Austerby

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I've had an Achilles 24 for several years now and have been very happy with her. I mostly sail single-handed, which I enjoy, and my cruising areas are the Medway, Thames Estuary and up as far as the Essex and Suffolk coasts. I'm not planning on changing my sailing much but am thinking a slightly larger boat would be more comfortable. I do a little club racing but it'd be mainly for solo cruising, occasionally with crew, possibly a dog.

I'm thinking of a Sadler 25 or a Centaur or even a Contessa 26, though I'd rather have bilge keels. Budget is £10kish and I'm not good at fixing up boats.

Would they offer much more than the Achilles and what else should be on the list?
 
What a diverse range of boats on a short list before you have looked at any.

There is a huge range of mid 20 ft cruising boats available for that budget, just about all of which will get recommendations from somebody, particularly satisfied owners.

However if you want to spend you money wisely look at boats that meet your general requirements that are on the market and buy the best condition and equipment you can. don't get too hung up on specific designs.
 
Austerby said:
I've had an Achilles 24 for several years now and have been very happy with her. I mostly sail single-handed, which I enjoy, and my cruising areas are the Medway, Thames Estuary and up as far as the Essex and Suffolk coasts. I'm not planning on changing my sailing much but am thinking a slightly larger boat would be more comfortable. I do a little club racing but it'd be mainly for solo cruising, occasionally with crew, possibly a dog.

I'm thinking of a Sadler 25 or a Centaur or even a Contessa 26, though I'd rather have bilge keels. Budget is £10kish and I'm not good at fixing up boats.

Would they offer much more than the Achilles and what else should be on the list?
Click to expand...

Increase the budget a little and look for a good Sadler 26. You can get bilge keels and will allegedly sail as well as the fin keel It'll run rings around a Centaur!
Ticks all your boxes.
Looks good too.

http://s50.photobucket.com/user/Vic43/slideshow/Sadler 26
 
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What do you consider the drawbacks of the Achilles? Identifying these will help to select a replacement. I found the lack of headroom too much after ten years of ownership.
 
I loved my Achilles 24 and was sad to see her go. However we found having standing headroom below decks to be a revelation - having been storm bound at anchor for 4 days and unable to get out and stretch without getting wet. For improvement of the cruising experience we wanted standing headroom and an inboard diesel. Not many will make way under sail in such light winds as the A24.
Just keep looking and the right boat will appear...
 
If the bilge keels are only a nice to have then you could trade up to an Achilles 9mtr. Single handing not a problem at all and draft not really an issue on East Coast. Sails very well, standing headroom and well within your budget.
 
When we sold our Achilles 24 we bought a Trapper 300, reasons were head room and space, proper head, more speed and comfort. It was bought new for £5k and fitted out, though that only involved screwing on winches etc. Reasonable racing performance as a quarter tonner. and still trailable for winter sailing inland. We fitted a small inboard after a few years humping the outboard from under the cockpit.
Downsides, mainly discovered after sailing for a while, very narrow after cockpit aft was uncomfortable for the helmsman on long races, bit tippy under spinnaker ( we had several courses of bricks laid dry under the cockpit) and while not a problem for us in the west, fin keel with deeper draught.
So obviously not a recommendation for you. I decided that a Hydro or an Impala might have been a better choice, but she served us well racing and cruising with two small kids.
If I had to go back to one or the other now it would be the Achilles.
 
I agree about the Sadler 26, though I am less optimistic about its performance with bilge keels. Others to consider might be a Tomahawk, or better still, a Cutlass if you can manage with a fin.
 
Sadler 26's are pricey for what they are.
And the bilge keeler might sail well, but the fin keeler will be faster. (As they always are)

The Sadler 25 is prettier, but also older and less likely to be in great condition.,
 
Ceirwan said:
Sadler 26's are pricey for what they are.
And the bilge keeler might sail well, but the fin keeler will be faster. (As they always are)

The Sadler 25 is prettier, but also older and less likely to be in great condition.,
Click to expand...

I'd agree - there is a significant premium for the 26 over the 25, for a little bit more internal space and the double skin. I've never been on an Achilles 24, but I'm not certain you'd get much more room in one of the Sadlers. Good sailing boats, though!
 
"What's better than an Achilles 24?"

Not much really. As boats get heavier and porky you tend to lose the dinghy feel.

But I know what you mean. The internal arrangements were snug in an age of snugness, so even a few inches here and there are welcome. The Sadler 25 would give you a bit more elbow room and they are grand boats to sail but with some prices drifting down towards 5k perhaps you could afford to go a little bigger. As the others have said the 26 might cost you double which is really out of the question - especially as you are not keen on DIY which is what you would probably be landed with, in buying a cheaper example. I once saw a 26 moored alongside a 25 and the difference was striking. Anyway, of the two I would pick the 25.

The big step is standing headroom (I agree with Jonas) which in anything below 28ft is a bit of a strain. An Albin Ballad would give you the sprightly performance and in these straitened times are coming into your price range:

http://www.yachtworld.co.uk/boats/1976/Albin-Ballad-2914853/United-Kingdom#.VwQRFMv2ZpM

The accommodation would be a Huge improvement but again they have been hard sailed and DIY rears it's head, it's almost always better to buy on condition. You may not wish to go that long, but you could....OTOH if you did want to stick to twin keels Simonpk's suggestion was a good un and there are lots of Griffons to choose from.

So I have added little really, except to say that 10grand goes further than it used to
 
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The Sadler 25 may not have true standing headroom but would be palatial compared to the Achilles 24; until I went on an A24 I didn't realise how tiny they are inside, both narrow and low, rather tunnel-like.

I'd expect the Sadler 25 or 26 to perform pretty well even to windward; remember the Achilles 24 drying version is a triple keel but still goes jolly well, could be said a descendant of the Hunter Europa which sails beautifully but has an interior suitable for fit youngster heroes rather than families.
 
Selling prices for sub 30 foot boats are crazy low, for your £10k budget you'll be able to buy two nice ones. Asking prices are another ball game, sadly far removed from actual selling prices. But the trick will be finding an older sub 30 that feels anything like the Achillies to sail.
 
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