nanda k 0 Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 Is there any for sale ,I haven't seen any advertised lately? Link to post Share on other sites
khayyam 68 Posted February 14, 2011 Share Posted February 14, 2011 my 2c: variants seem like nice boats, though i know nothing about the southerly. get the fin keel. $500/year for incidentals is too low. i'd call it at least $1000 if you don't want to be too disappointed. it's a boat... things break... and they're expensive to fix. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 Cost for keeping 23 ft keeler would be somewhere between 2500 ~ 3000? Wow that's more than half of the cost of the boat. One of my colleagues told me that if you wouldn't have time to sail quite often, it is better to go with charter. There are some good ones around NZ and if you are looking at 25ft or less, you expect $300/day during peak season to $150 for off peak season. I would like to own a nice small keeler but it's gonna be difficult to justify the costs at the moment. Some might say go for trailer boat, but, my current circumstance would not allow it because lack of storage area. Apart from costs, does anyone have sailed to Great Barrier Island on Variant or Southerly? how did you get there? Non-stop or few stops on the way? How long would lit take to get you there? What was the ocean like? Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 Mate and I had a week off and sailed from Pine Harbour to the Barrier overnite left about 5pm and arrived Fitzroy mid morning the following day , no wind..flat sea, spent acouple of days at Fitzroy and sailed to Te Kouma harbour Coromandel , wind was 20 odd knots 1 metre choppy swell, full main and no 2, the Variant handled well. following day sailed to Pine Harbour (Whitford creek actually) 25-30knts Reefed main and No 2 ..boat just loved it. Buy a Variant.. you wont regret it Link to post Share on other sites
Atom Ant 0 Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 Hey HeyEmlo. A small boat does often have a higher cost against its purchase price. That's because no matter what the price to buy the boat, there is a minimum cost to boat ownership. So whatever you think it is going to cost you - it will cost 3 times as much! You buy your nice Varient for say $3,000 and if the engine craps out then a new one is maybe $1500! It's the way it is. If you need to "justify" boat ownership then maybe it's not for you, because there is no equation which determines if it is worth doing. Great Barrier? Depends where you're sailing from. But let's say it's Auckland somewhere. If you are near the city it will take you a whole day to get there in a Varient if you go there direct - but how long is a whole day is going to depend on the wind direction and wind strength. You could sail via Kawau and stop for the night and then it is not as far to go after that. Great Barrier is roughly 50 nautical miles from Auckland, approximately 40 nautical miles from Whangaparaoa and around 35 nautical miles form Kawau. You could hop across to the Coromandel Peninsula and enjoy a few stops up there and then it is only a short hop across the Colville Channel to Tryphena and from there up the Island to Whangaparapara and Fitzroy etc. Don't forget to stop at Bowling Alley bay but only if it's a settled NorthEaster as it gets a bit rolly in there otherwise. There, that should get you started. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 I am so excited just reading your stories on Variant. I am not sure my heart can handle the thrill of sailing on one. Yes, I agree all you said about my ignorant idea of matching money with the joy and experience you can get out from sailing. However, I do not take sailing as one of those leisure sports. I think there's philosophy and wisdom. I am keeping my eye on Variant in trademe. Is trademe the best place and only place to search? Can some one advise me areas that I should look into when inspect the boat? Common problem areas with Variant etc. Thank you. Link to post Share on other sites
Atom Ant 0 Posted February 15, 2011 Share Posted February 15, 2011 It sounds like you need a mate who is a boat builder... Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 Is there any for sale ,I haven't seen any advertised lately? I think there are 2 or 3 Variants for sale at the moment. I've been keeping an eye on a few models, and there are usually a couple of Southerly or Variant for sale. Some of them have been for sale for a few months. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 A small boat does often have a higher cost against its purchase price. That's because no matter what the price to buy the boat, there is a minimum cost to boat ownership. Would it be reasonable to say that the minimum cost of boat ownership is around $2500 to $3000 annually for keeler $15k and under? Boats like Variant, Southerly 23, Tracker 7.7, Raven 26, Reactor 25, S&S 24, etc. Link to post Share on other sites
rigger 47 Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 A small boat does often have a higher cost against its purchase price. That's because no matter what the price to buy the boat, there is a minimum cost to boat ownership. Would it be reasonable to say that the minimum cost of boat ownership is around $2500 to $3000 annually for keeler $15k and under? Boats like Variant, Southerly 23, Tracker 7.7, Raven 26, Reactor 25, S&S 24, etc. depends upon where you will be keeping the boat, if in a Marina berth you would need to add a few thousand more to your estimate. My 22ft keeler cost me approx $13000 over 2years. I had her on a berth as I had a lot of work to do on her. That included insurance and a fair bit on materials as well as new rigging wire and fittings. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted February 27, 2011 Share Posted February 27, 2011 Minimum cost, so definitely swing mooring, not a berth. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Variant, fin option. No question. I just got in from another great sail here in the BOI. The fin keeler version sails as well, better even, than any of my 5 previous yachts ( which were mainly long keel cruisers ) , and is particularly easy to handle alone. I have rigged mine to be easy to reef and have set up a tiller pilot, as I am often sailing solo. I can tack with just the headsail set if I need to, and even under the main alone in a slight sea. She will heave to nicely with the helm lashed so I can go forard to hand the main or whatever. Hey theres one for sail on Trade Me right now for a silly price!! Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted April 27, 2012 Share Posted April 27, 2012 I feel obliged to wrap this discussion up. Firstly, I really appreciate all of you who shared their experiences and valuable knowledge with me (and everyone). It was really helpful for deciding the first sailing boat. Although my decision ended up a bit of impulsive one. I got the boat at a reasonable value but the aftermath of the entire cost so far, it is a bit more than what I was initially thought. I'd say almost double of the purchased price. But no regret at all. I've earned so much from sailing. It has such healing and meditating effect which anyone living in a highly stressful modern way of living desperately needs one. At some point of the searching, I looked at trailer sailor but I am so glad that I've gone with the keeler. It's far more safer and whole lot less hassle. I wouldn't enjoy towing and remast everytime I go out. Many experienced sailor will agree on this. But there are always some exceptions, such as Hartely 16 and some others, but please do consider keeler as your first option. Not Varient or Southerly but I ended up getting SS24 falcon. One of the later design. I am very happy with my decision but I must admit I would be happy with any of the boats mentioned in the article: http://www.tradeaboat.co.nz/ArticleDeta ... tem=20&N=0 -Variant (Varient) - Farr 727 - Raven 26 - Reactor 25 - etc... I would like to recommend you to pay a good money upfront for a well looked after boat. You don't usually get this until you get your first boat. You can learn the lesson hard way or if you want to be a bit clever, ask anyone with a good knowledge when choosing your first boat. It will give you hassle free boating. But if you are a kind of person who wouldn't mind a troublesome kid and looking after it to be a good girl. Just go for it, you will learn more about boating. There's nothing free in this world. For the cost in general, I would put simply that if you can cope with an extra car for your family, you should be able to keep a yacht. Summary of the annual cost would be as follow: - Insurance $500~600 - Swing Mooring $450 = $200 coucil & $250 maintenace (broken down for every 3rd year service cost ($600~800)) - Annual maintenance $700 (haulout & paint etc) - Annual upgrade/enhancement $500 (optional) Total: $2400 (roughly 20% value of the boat) I think it sounds about right. But I can assure you that actual cost would be a lot more as you will spend little bits and pieces through out the year. But it's far better money spent than smoking/drinking and junk food. It's matter of setting a right value for your life. If you are worrying about the money, I'd say don't worry too much about it. It will come naturally if you create the situation for an extra money demanding life style. I work harder than before to become more valuable and get my pay raised in the future. It's all positive thing I hope this helped for someone buying their first boat. Just Do It! Link to post Share on other sites
Atom Ant 0 Posted April 27, 2012 Share Posted April 27, 2012 Hey Emlo, well done, congratulations and thanks for the wrap up. I was watching this forum with interest as it is always positive when first time buyers have a good outcome. SS24's are good boats, so yes good choice. Enjoy Link to post Share on other sites
w44vi 17 Posted April 27, 2012 Share Posted April 27, 2012 I always like the "look" of the falcon's well done and congratulations on your new purchase Link to post Share on other sites
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