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Looking for some opinions on our shortlist of boats!

8K views 29 replies 14 participants last post by  goat 
#1 ·
Hi all,
The wife and I are looking for some recommendations/opinions for a larger boat for cruising/living aboard with our new family. We currently have a Tanzer 8.5 (28 feet). We’ve discovered after taking a 23 day, 500ish nautical mile coastal trip from Halifax to the Bras D’Ors Lakes and back with our 2 month old son that 28 feet is a bit snug for our needs. This has helped us to identify some features we’d like to have.

We ran through a pile of boats on Yachtworld yesterday, and made a bit of a shortlist of boats we like, which are listed below. We’re coastal cruisers (so far). Realistically, the longest trips we would plan on taking would be down the coast to US, Bahamas, that sort of thing.

As for dreaming, well, I have sisters in Australia, so you never know!

Given the following list of things that are important to us, can anyone offer comments to recommend or weed out boats on our list? Or perhaps suggest something else?

• Sailing ability of the boat. We hate running the engine, so something that actually points is very important.
• Shallow draft. (Shallow enough for ICW should be the benchmark)
• Decent family accommodations for Wife, myself, our son, and potential second child should we go that route. We’ve liked the layouts of the three cabin boats we’ve seen, but also noted the sacrifices in areas such as the galley size, or size of the head. I imagine there are other sacrifices with regards to storage space, etc, when squeezing two aft cabins into a sub-40ft boat.
• Less than $100k for the purchase price of boat. (Less $ is better, IMO, as the more expensive the boat, the more money we'll have to make before we can cast off)
• 40’ maximum size. Smaller is better.

And now for the list!

Tanzer 10.5

Tartan 37-2 (Wife’s dream boat.)

Endeavour 40CC/38CC

O’Day 39

Omega 36 TriCabin


Thanks in advance for your thoughts!

-Adrian
 
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#2 · (Edited)
Your wife has good taste. ;-) Of your list the Tartan 37-2 catches my eye as a classic. And that O'Day 39 is a heck of a boat (and has a PHRF of 114). Much more "European" of design than the Tartan and of your list the one I would take if they were just giving them away and the condition of each were relatively equal. But that would be for my boat needs - not necessarily yours.

In your neck of the world C&C 36 or 38 would be something to keep an eye out for. The keel/CB model would be great for poking around the ICW.

Also the CS 36, though that's 6'5" fin and the reason we walked away from a well kept honey that was on Ontario.

Though I must say the boat I'd want for the ICW is a much different boat than I'd want to take to Australia. You need to list and prioritize the weekend vs. weeks long w/stops vs. passage-making needs of you and THEN find the sailboat that fits.

My wife & I found a 34 footer suited us very well (no kids) but we had no plans of ocean voyages. Bigger boats often need bigger muscles. Most of the time we owned the boat we spent the nights in protected anchorages or transient slips and it was still handy enough for daysailing and weekend overnights. We went with a wing keel because our closest waters are the Finger Lakes and while they are 400 to 600 ft deep a LOT of the places to tie up or pump out have 5ft silt shoals at the entrances.

And you mention sailing ability - but in what weather? The Tartan 37 will do great in 10 mph winds and point well; but it will have a LOT less interior volume than a modern wide beam 39 or 40 footer.
 
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#5 ·
Also the CS 36, though that's 6'5" fin and the reason we walked away from a well kept honey that was on Ontario.
The CS 36 also has a shoal draft version that draws 4'11. Their prices have become very affordable over the last decade. We liked the layout but wanted more storage space for extended liveaboard. Met a family who took a kid or two to the Bahamas in the 33' version.

Assuming you're Canadian, watch out for duties if you look at European built boats even if they're in the US. It can be almost as much as HST. Coupled with the current exchange rate that'll really hurt :(

At $20k I'd look at the Tartan 33 in Halifax. Even just to get a feeling for the difference in size between that and your Tanzer. Then look at a few around 36 & 40, even if the draft is too deep or whatever. Then talk yourself back down from 40 if you can. Really consider if you need that 3rd aft cabin or if it's something else in those layouts that you want.
 
#3 ·
If you can find one, the Omega 36 is a far superior boat in all ways over the others on your list (except maybe draft). These are exceptionally well built boats that also sail exceptionally well on all points of sail, and which should also be the easiest to sail short-handed. Very impressive boats all around.

I would probably place the Tartan 37 a distant second. I don't have any first hand experience with the Tanzer 10.6 so I won't comment on it. My family had two different model Endeavours in it including a 40. Build quality on these boats was really poor. The 38 was one of the last of the Endeavour models and it reportedly has a better build quality placing it as perhaps a tie for second. I would place the other two as a very far distant tie for last on all counts.

None of these boats are a particularly good choice for a voyage to Australia, but the same order would apply of that is your goal.

Jeff
 
#4 ·
Hey,

In general, I would say that any common production boat from 35-40' would work for you. That includes Hunter, Catalina, Beneteau. The late model Hunter 36 boats (model year 2000+) are in your price range and have some very nice features. The nice thing about new(er) boats is that the engine, transmission, rigging, etc are still new and serviceable. They will have modern features like a separate, stand up shower stall, refrigeration, etc.

Specifically, I would look for an O'day 40 over the 39. The 40 replaced the 39 in 1986 and has a nice sugar scoop transom with swim platform.

Good luck,
Barry
 
#7 ·
You mentioned sailing ability - here's a PHRF site that gives a relative standing: PHRF New England - Handicapping - Base Handicaps

Obviously it is only one in the series of "abilities" for a sailboat but gives an indication of the pointing ability you were concerned with. THE ADMIRAL and I started with racing dinghys so we're a LOT more tolerant of a sprightly hull shape than our friends who started on a 36 footer. They thought our Pearson 31-2 was "alarmingly tender" and the wife would gasp when we caught a gust and surged after a bit of heel. I just thought it was a good performer that took 15° of heel to wake up.
 
#12 ·
Not to burst your bubble but you might want to hold off on your upgrade until you see how well you deal with having an older child aboard and how well your son takes to sailing as he gets older before jumping into the $100K boat. We upgraded to our 40 footer before having our daughter with similar thoughts of cruising but now that she’s approaching toddlerhood our priorities are rapidly shifting. At 2 months she was mostly content to stay below and sleep while underway but now she hates being confined below and wants to be up and playing/interacting most of the day, which becomes very difficult when trying to skipper the boat at the same time. I can also tell that even at her age she gets bored if we don’t get off the boat every second day. There’s also the practical matter of the amount of laundry becoming immense once they start eating solids. We’ve put the long term cruising plans on hold at least until she’s out of diapers and we’re actually considering downsizing back to something in the 28-32 foot range.

As for boat choices, I agree with those who say the boat for cruising the ICW and Bahamas is a very different boat than I’d take to Australia. For coastal cruising my preference is for a more modern design with beam carried aft and a walk-through transom. After having a walk-through for a few years I’d never want to go back as it makes swimming and dinghy boarding 100x easier. I’m even becoming increasingly convinced that for ICW and the Bahamas a catamaran would be an even better choice due to the reduced draft and increased interior volume. It’s just a much more livable platform for a trip that mostly involves motoring and swinging at anchor. I know some will disagree, but my preference is to own the boat that meets my needs on the 0-5 year time horizon and not to buy something for a “maybe someday” kind of plan.
 
#14 ·
You seem to have priorities that conflict or at least make it difficult to find one boat that works. If you really want decent performance then something like a J37c makes sense (5' draft). They are much more expensive than many of the boats on your list, but well under $100k.
 
#15 ·
You know, we live in a log home and after a while being surrounded by wood can make a nice, light interior like was the Kaiser of that era seem bright and airy. Easy to clean, too.
 

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#22 ·
At the higher end of your budget/length spectrum, C&C 37/39+ Plus. Best sailing boat mentioned so far, best interior layout C&C ever made IMHO, and they even came with a sub 6' wing keel that isn't a total crab catcher.

There are three different models on the same hull, the R & XL were racers, the Plus models had the cruiser interior, even a separate shower stall. A couple have even sailed to Australia :D
 
#23 · (Edited)
I've always liked the look of the 37+, but I don't know how anyone lives with that sort of companionway on a cruising boat... That would definitely be a deal-breaker, for me, and I would think it could also constitute a real hazard for anyone cruising with young children aboard...



Consider the gymnastics it might require simply to pass a mug of hot chocolate up to the helmsperson, without dumping it...

;-)

 
#24 ·
Hey,

Before you go any further, you need to determine your REALISTIC budget. Make sure you understand how much mooring, dockage, haulout costs, etc will cost as well.

The market for 30-50K boats is very different than the market for 50-75, or 75-100K boats.

Barry
 
#28 ·
I owned a Tanzer 10.5 for a few years. She was a great sailing boat and perfect for the PNW coast (Vancouver Island and north). Needs a bit of wind to get going but has a long enough water line to provide good speed. Extremely well laid out for a couple with one or two kids. Head and galley right at the bottom of the companionway, rear cabin was nice and provided a great sundeck above. However, not the boat I would recommend for your plans, the things that made it perfect for the north; pilot house, lots of natural light, etc. will be cooking you once you head south. You'll need to install A/C and use it. A lot.

I found I very seldom used the inside helm even though the bulk of my sailing was during winter, so for fair weather sailing, even stormy weather, I'd prefer not to have the extra complexities. Snow and slush made the inside helm and Espar heater handy but, once again, you're heading south.

Really did like that boat though.

goat
 

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#29 ·
Goat, looks like she was quite the boat. I'm guessing the in-mast furling was an addition, and not a factory option?

I hadn't given too much thought to the pilothouse serving as a sweltering greenhouse in the tropics, but that's why I ask these questions. Thanks!

We're going to go take a look at a couple of C&C 38 landfalls in the area, get a feel for what those would be like.
 
#30 ·
Came from the factory with in-mast. Made sailing like hitting the 'easy' button at Staples. Though it was one of most hated boat in the marina because of it, when the wind blew just right she'd howl like a banshee. Fine at anchor as the wind wouldn't blow crosswise. Apparently there's "anti flute" device you can pull up the mast in the slot to stop it, but if I was sleeping on the boat it was anchored. Show's my level of compassion doesn't it? :^)


goat
 
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