Hi! Bought a sailboat without knowing how to sail..

[Racecase]

Hi there, I new to boating in general and very new to sailing (ive only sailed a sunfish.) But I purchased my first boat just last week and love it so far. Its a 1983 25ft Watkins fixed keel. She has a few minor deck leaks and a clogged head, but other than that she is ready to sail. Im a design engineer by trade so I plan on doing all the work myself such as redoing the entire wiring harness, rebedding and fixing the deck leaks, and maybe even fixing that clogged head. Id like to get her in prestine condition and doing some weekend cruises to the bahamas before potentially upgrading to someting bigger that could be a livaboard.

[smackdaddy]

Hey Rac - welcome to SN dude. You'll learn a lot here.

[steve77]

Originally Posted by smackdaddy

Hey Rac - welcome to SN dude. You'll learn a lot here.

And some of it might even be about sailing!

(Welcome Racecase)

[CalebD]

If you've sailed a Sunfish you know something about sailing.

Here are the sailing mumbo-jumbo specs on your boat: WATKINS 25 sailboat specifications and details on sailboatdata.com

Good luck fixing up your new baby and welcome to the asylum.

[deltaten]

Welcome Aboard, Racecase.. and welcome to the Watkins family!

Quite handy indeed, is the Watkins sub-heading near the bottom of the main page in boat-specific forums.
If you have any Watkins specific problems or questions, feel free to reference the Watkins Owners page at :
www.http://watkinsowners.com/
or join other Watkins owners at:
watkins : watkinssailboats


Best to ya,
Paul... another Watkins [soon-to-be] sailor

[Minnewaska]

Welcome aboard. Sounds like you have the basic of sailing down, but might consider a week long liveaboard sailing course. It would really tune you up and expose you to the knowledge of cruising a keel boat.

Your goal of making her pristine has taken down more than one sailor. Keep in mind that boats are continually exposed to a harsh evironment and while you are completing one thing on your list, another is likely to be added.

Just be sure to maintain a healthy balance between maintenance and sailing. Pursuit of the perfect boat with nothing on the to-do list is the holy grail and no one has found it yet.

Good luck.

[Lake Superior Sailor]

Welcome , Nice to see new people around here!...Dale

[DonScribner]

Race,

Welcome. You've already won half the battle since you've sailed before. The Watkins is bigger and far less likely to flip. But . . . the hull speed for a displacement hull is less than a planing hull. Your 25 will max out around 6 knots. So, if you plan on the Bahamas, factor the speed (or lack there of) into the mix. Other than that, take a course on Sailing and Seamanship thru your local Power Squadron. Lots to know or at least have a clue about, OK, know how to look up.

[mikecoder3]

Welcome aboard. Glad to see you took the bull by the horns. You are more experienced than I so hats off to you. I did the same thing and purchased my boat without any sailing experience.

I have a product I am going to use on my deck to prevent leaking. I cannot post the link yet as I have to have a few more posts under my belt before I can copy and paste a link in the forum, but the product is called Poly Coat and is used in commercial applications for patio's and decks in high rises for total leak proof decking. It can be used on fiberglass and wood. I will share the website with you when Imam able.

Good luck with your project and welcome !!!!!!

[mikecoder3]

Originally Posted by DonScribner

Race,

Welcome. You've already won half the battle since you've sailed before. The Watkins is bigger and far less likely to flip. But . . . the hull speed for a displacement hull is less than a planing hull. Your 25 will max out around 6 knots. So, if you plan on the Bahamas, factor the speed (or lack there of) into the mix. Other than that, take a course on Sailing and Seamanship thru your local Power Squadron. Lots to know or at least have a clue about, OK, know how to look up.

Don that is great advice, I will do the same and look for a course in Sailing and Seamanship as well as lessons !!!!!