san juan 23

[anson]

I just bought a san juan 23 on ebay. It hasn't been delivered yet and I cant wait to put it in the water.
In the meantime, can anyone tell me about them? speed, performance, tips, things to watch out for?
thanks,
anson

[sailingdog]

Ummm... I hope it was local... or that you used a major credit card... many of the boats for sale on e-bay are, ummm how should I put it, not in quite the advertised condition... and many aren't even owned by the people posting the ads for them.... so if you do get your boat, I'd be fairly surprised.

Good luck, and I hope you do actually get it...and that it is in the shape they said it would be.... I am guessing that you didn't survey the boat...and I sincerely hope you didn't get a wreck of a boat.... which could easily happen.

[Andyman]

Originally Posted by anson

I just bought a san juan 23 on ebay. It hasn't been delivered yet and I cant wait to put it in the water.
In the meantime, can anyone tell me about them? speed, performance, tips, things to watch out for?
thanks,
anson

Go to Google and enter the term "San Jaun 23" without the quotes and you'll get so much info that you'll be busy for months!

[bobmcgov]

I just bought the little brother, the SJ21. Built by Clark from early 70s to mid 80s. The boats share many traits: quick rather than fast, though still competitive in their class, a blast on a reach or run (planing hulls) but not the greatest pointers, decent build quality, good for protected waters or inland lakes. Trailerable, easy setup, very low-cost to maintain. Tender: the small SJs have a reputation for being tippy, but forgiving. Ve vill learn rounding-oop!

Rigging is simple on these boats, but they have been much-modified by their owners and can often benefit from updates and rationalizing. Biggest problems are osmosis blisters if the boat was in salt water; and rot in the balsa cores. Check for sponginess around the mast step, front hatch, pulpit, and chainstays. The hardware was not well-bedded and SJs often exhibit wet balsa around the fasteners. Fixing it can be a minor -- or a major -- project.

The SJ23 has active owners' groups and a Yahoo page. Tends not to make fleet numbers at one-design races, but lots of people sail them in PHRF or Beer Can regattas. You can read owner reviews on SailNet here.

Hope you got a good 'un, and keep us updated!