What is this boat?

[swingnamiss]

November issue of SAIL magazine, page 27 there is a ad for Honda outboards. The picture in the ad is a view is from high on the mast so all you see is the deck. I can''t tell what kind of boat this is but it appears to have a lot of the features I''m looking for. Anybody know?

Thanks in advance!

Chris

[Jeff_H]

That appears to be a Hunter 23.5, which is a water ballasted trailerable. Very common boats that can typically for somewhere in the $7500 to 12K range. (What features were you looking for that appear in that picture?)

Jeff

[swingnamiss]

Thanks for that information Jeff. I guess I was attracted to the larger cockpit, fairly wide beam, and relatively modern looks (it didn''t look like a 70''s or 80''s vintage), and the lenghth--22 to 24 feet. The pricing information you''ve provided is in my budget but, based on what I''ve heard, Hunter is a kin to Bayliner on the powerboat side (high-volume, lower quality manufacturer, decks that buckle, lower resale, etc, etc.) Resale is important to me. In my powerboat days, I owned SeaRay''s because I always knew they would hold their value decent and, should I wish to get out from under them, there was always a used market for them. I''d like the same for a sailboat. I''m not necessarily looking for a Cadillac but a solid Chevy if I may use a Detroit analogy. Because I will do a lot of Michigan inland lake sailing, I''ve been looking for a boat with a shallow draft utilizing a lifting keel or centerboard. I''ve heard many good things about the S2''s (6.7/6.9) but those are getting a little long in the tooth plus the manufacture is out of business. Catalina is a fair option but, unfortuntately, they only offer fixed keeled models that I''m aware of. I guess the bottom-line is that I''m still looking.
I respect your opinion.....Any additional thoughts you have on the matter would be appreciated.

Best Regards,

Chris

[Quida123]

Chris,

I think the Catalina 22 MKII has a retractable keel. They are very popular with a strong association so I bet resale would be decent.

Take a look here http://www.catalinayachts.com/c22_spec.phtml

And there is a Cruising world reveiw here http://www.catalinayachts.com/reviews.phtml?model=C22II

[Jeff_H]

Actually the Hunter may be slightly better built than the Catalina. I have not been impressed with Catalina build quality in recent years. Another neat boat in this size range is a Beneteau First 235. These are really nice all around boats.

Jeff