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What size boat to learn to sail solo?

6K views 35 replies 15 participants last post by  jwing 
#1 · (Edited)
I am currently looking for a boat to liveaboard and learn to sail here in hawaii. I will be sailing alone. What is a good size boat for both cost of maintenance and ease of learning?

Currently can't post links for another 5 posts, but there are a few listed that might be in my price range

30' Catalina Cruiser 1980, $24,000
33' Cape Dory 1987 $29,000
33' Bluewater Offshore Cruiser 1979 $15,000
38' Atkins Ingrid 1972 39,000

All of these are listed under ala wai yachts boats for sale.
 
#2 ·
before you worry about a boat you need to have a live a board slip. They are hard to come by in the islands . not many marinas allow them and the ones that do have a very long waiting list as in years long. I think they are only available on Oahu. They may also have a minimum size limit on the boat. the other problem is the crime rate in the marina that have live boards is out of control. also not known for being a safe place after dark. I would go down to the marina and talk to them direct. calling on the phone will most likely just get you a big no.
 
#3 ·
Yipes, Hawaii doesn't sound like a pleasant place to live aboard.

For one person learning to sail I would aim to keep your boat size small. Aside from the reasons above, I can't think of any reason somebody would want to learn to single hand on a boat much over 30'.
 
#22 ·
Says the guy who has lived aboard in an environment many would consider a hostile one.

I am going to guess that any place where the weather is conducive to living aboard and the cost of living on land is high, will have restrictions on it. If you choose to live on a boat in a climate that will force you to shovel snow to use the head on land for a few months a year, might have less competition for available berths.

Sent from my SM-T560NU using Tapatalk
 
#6 ·
Yeah I guess at Rainbow Bay they rent out 19' boats for like $5-10 an hour from what I heard, but you have to stay in the harbor. So regardless of when I buy a boat to live on, I plan on taking an ASA 101 class and then renting at Rainbow Bay until I get very comfortable.
 
#7 ·
But to answer the question about size and single handing, once the logic and mechanics of sailing rigging lines blocks winches etc are understood, most people should be able t ok S H almost any size boat up to about ,Oh about 45'
 
#8 ·
Rainbow Bay is where I learned to sail!

It was just Navy Special Services then. I could rent a Rhodes 19 for $3 an hour and they were on the bike path to my apt. in Pearl City.

Is the marina on the Hickham side still there? They had better access to blue water. Back in the day, it was $5 an hour to rent an R19 there, but the boats were newer and you could go out. At Rainbow Bay we had to stay inside Center Loch.

No advice, any info I have is 30 years old.

Thanks for the memory dump!

Ken
 
#9 ·
Another thing to consider is slip fees - anything over 33' usually goes up dramatically in price.

For the pacific passage you are looking to do, I would think the Cape Dory 33 would fit the bill nicely. I would scratch the Catalina 30 off the list for a Hawaii-Cal passage.
I'd still suggest looking at that Albin Singoalla - it is a rare larger version of an Albin Vega - very well respected singlehander offshore boats. For the price, you could put $20k
into it, and still be in your budget with new rigging, etc - at at the end of the day would have a better boat that those you listed, IMHO.
 
#10 ·
Slip fees don't look too bad maybe 600-700. That plus the boat payment will still be considerably cheaper than my rent now. I will save $6-7k alone on rent in a year which I wouldn't feel bad at all putting into the boat.

Lazerbrains, I will definitely take a look at it. Im not limiting my option to what I listed; just trying to get a better feel for what kind of boat to look for.
 
#12 ·
That Ingrid 38 is a big, heavy, full keeler that is not going to be easy to maneuver, especially docking, for a novice. Start small and step up to something like that. But, on the other hand, it would be very capable of the trip across the pacific if well found.
 
#13 ·
33' Cape Dory 1987 $29,000
That would be my choice from boats on your list and all else (conditions and equipment) being equal. CD33 is a very solid boat with much better than average resale value and this asking price is very reasonable.
For a novice solo sailor in your part of the world I would not dream of a bigger boat for what you want to do.
 
#14 ·
After reviewing more pictures, the Cape Dory's engine looks terrible and has over 1000 hours. The owner said it was just recently refurbished by someone from A1 motors so ill get more information.

However I also found this Cape Dory 28' 1975 for about the same price, a little cheaper, has a 2004 Yanmar 18hp with 130 hours.
 
#17 · (Edited)


A few other boats ive found online

28' Cape Dory
https://www.popyachts.com/sloop-sailboats-for-sale/cape-dory-28-in-ewa-beach-hawaii-117394

S&S 34
Used Sparkman & Stephens 34 for Sale | Yachts For Sale | Yachthub

33' Newport sloop
https://rainbowyachts.com/sailboats/1984-newport-33-sloop/

I need to find a boat that doesn't need a major repair right away. I plan on getting a 10-15 year loan so that I can save about $10k each year for maintenance costs.

The owner of the CD33 said that the engine is being worked on now; said that it started up after sitting for 3 years. He has someone replacing the water pump and removing corrosion. So i might go look at it, see how bad it is in person
 
#28 ·
I need to find a boat that doesn't need a major repair right away. I plan on getting a 10-15 year loan...
I highly doubt that you will get a bank loan for the type of boat you are looking for (older, used, and 'diamond in the rough').

An older boat really is worthless to anyone but the owner and prospective buyer.

To put the shoe on the other foot, imagine if someone wanted you to loan them money for a horse. It might be an expensive and very nice horse, but if they stop paying and you get the horse... what then?

Good luck!

Ken
 
#18 ·
As amwbox said, 1000 hours for a diesel is not bad but CD28 might be easier to sail solo and it has a tiller which is a big plus in smaller boats IMO. However, that is a lot of money for a CD28 built before they were re-designed a bit and improved in 1979. These are both narrow boats so CD33 would be a better choice for a live aboard.
 
#21 ·
You don't use all these sails at the same time. They are used in different situations and different wind conditions. Smaller sails are used when winds are strong. It is good to have extra sails, even if just as a backup. Sails are also very expensive, so 14 sails is a value added item on a boat.
 
#24 · (Edited)
Its a masthead sloop. You'll be operating two sails a time.

You should get a book, man. Sit down and read about the basics. Learn what a sloop is, as opposed to a cutter, ketch, yawl, schooner, etc. Learn about different hull configurations, keel types, rudder types. Learn about ballast ratio, points of sail, boat terminology. Then take a basic keelboat course. THEN go shopping.

But if you can snap up a S&S 34 in good shape, great. Wonderful boat. Was a record setting world cruiser in its day.
 
#26 ·
I've sailed larger-than-30' boats from Key West to Grenada. However, when I decided to learn to become a good sailor and learn how to own and maintain a sailboat, I chose a 19'-er.

With that background, my advice is: for learning to sail, start with a boat that is too small to live-aboard. To live on a boat, buy the biggest one that you can afford to purchase and maintain. Oh, and maintenance costs way more that you think it will.
 
#27 · (Edited)
I don't think you should start learning to sail solo on a boat over 60 feet.

I would also suggest no planing boats over 30 feet, so not Open 60's for the first few months.

Nothing with Hyrofoils for 6 months either.


A 40 to 50 foot production boat would be good to learn on if tgats what you wish to sail permanently.
 
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