Which boat - Trailer Sailer or Bilge keel

[Resail]

Bare Bones

Well we have some bare bones, but we really need to talk ballpark budget, becuase there are hundreds of choices.

Also, how tall are you?

And how DIY?

I won a fiver off another forumite for correctly predicting he would be looking for a mooring before a single season was out.

I am becoming convinced that Bilge Keel is the way to go, really not to sure about lifting keels, in my experience they leak. So we need to pick a bilger with good sea manners and best ability to point to wind ward (Having been a cat owner, I know all about not sailing to wind!)

Budget. Toughie that! From what I have seen over the years boat values fall faster than the shuttle. However a point must come when the sum of the parts has a real worth. The trick would appear to be avoiding those that haven't been properly cared for. So a realistic starting point would be £10k, but I have expectations significantly below that given the current market.

Height: 5'10 ish

DIY: Very; built a car and my first sailing dinghy. Kept a Yachting World catamaran for 10 years; so I feel I am quite competent. Having said that I do not want a love affair with a scraper and a tin of varnish, so a big 'no' to all wood construction. I think it will have to be plastic, which raises the vexed question of osmosis.

 

[Athene V30]

Lots of boats out there for less than £10k. Ignore the asking price most owners have an over inflated view of their boats value and are expecting to drop 10 to 15%. Go for somethinng needing a bit of TLC and you can get a bargain. I know, I just have done it!

Have a look at boats & outboards http://www.boatsandoutboards.com/view/BSE226
http://www.boatsandoutboards.com/view/BSE262

 

[FullCircle]

I am becoming convinced that Bilge Keel is the way to go, really not to sure about lifting keels, in my experience they leak. So we need to pick a bilger with good sea manners and best ability to point to wind ward (Having been a cat owner, I know all about not sailing to wind!)

Budget. Toughie that! From what I have seen over the years boat values fall faster than the shuttle. However a point must come when the sum of the parts has a real worth. The trick would appear to be avoiding those that haven't been properly cared for. So a realistic starting point would be £10k, but I have expectations significantly below that given the current market.

Height: 5'10 ish

DIY: Very; built a car and my first sailing dinghy. Kept a Yachting World catamaran for 10 years; so I feel I am quite competent. Having said that I do not want a love affair with a scraper and a tin of varnish, so a big 'no' to all wood construction. I think it will have to be plastic, which raises the vexed question of osmosis.

I have had lifting keels:
Limbo 6.6
Evolution 25
Seal 22.
Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 35
Nothing wrong with them, much to commend them indeed.

So 5'10" - Easy most 26 footers do that.
Like the Cobra 750 in karouise's link,
Like Sadler 25 but short on headroom, but lots of look back when you are rowing away from it.
10k might get you a Sadler 26 after haggling, better all round.
Any Hunter goes well, but most were home built so you get what you get on the interior. May just be outside what you want to spend.
Jaguar 25 or 27 are not bad either. In your price, again, a tad short on headroom.

My outside shot? A Salty Dog 27.

 

[Wunja]

I have had lifting keels:
Jaguar 25 or 27 are not bad either. In your price, again, a tad short on headroom.

I would recommend the Jaguar 27 for the sailing (biased, moi?) - There is 6' of headroom. However it is a fin keel which will limit the mooring and seems to be one of the selection criteria.