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Ideas on a first cruiser


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Hi All have just joined this cool forum I'm amazed by the wealth of info here.

I'm wanting some advice on a first yacht to learn sail on and eventually use as a coastal cruiser. I know this has been done to death, I'v read what post I can find on here and else where

I'm not totally new to sailing growing up sailing lasers and hobby cats and then spent a few years wind surfing.

I'm based in Christchurch so the yachts on offer are limited. my thoughts so far have been an H28 even though every one says they are slow the sound like a good place to start, option 2 would be a Nova 28 or Cav 30 or whiting 29.

I'm hoping for info on what to look for and and what to stay away from, not interested in a wooden Hull and don't want to buy cheap and have to spend thousands doing a fix up.

Any advice and thoughts would be greatly appreciated :D

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Welcome to crew.org :D

 

I assume you are after a keel boat. All the ones on your list are great boats. H28s are very popular so that must mean something. I think they are great value for money and very safe boats

 

Fiberglass is great as long as there is no osmosis. Get a good marine survey before you buy

 

If you stick with a good kiwi designed glass boat you can't really go wrong

 

Best of luck :)

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Welcome to crew.org :D

 

I assume you are after a keel boat. All the ones on your list are great boats. H28s are very popular so that must mean something. I think they are great value for money and very safe boats

 

Fiberglass is great as long as there is no osmosis. Get a good marine survey before you buy

 

If you stick with a good kiwi designed glass boat you can't really go wrong

 

Best of luck :)

Hi Royale - yes looking for a Keel boat - don't want a yacht in my back yard and don't really like the idea of towing a large boat around.

Sounds like a good survey is a must, I'm want a yacht to escape from work hence not wanting a doer-uper, apart from the obvious annual up keep :thumbup:

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There are many kiwi boats that would suit your purpose. A Cav 32 would still be forgiving like the H28 but perform better. In Christchurch the only safe convenient place to keep a keeler is the inner harbor pile moorings which is impossible to get a spot unless you buy a boat that is already there. Other than that Diamond Harbour is a good spot that has pile moorings for $450 per year, you just have to catch the ferry across.

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Two yacht designs you could consider are a Davidson28 or a Marauder.

 

Both of them sail well and are cruising friendly.

 

a.f.u

yeah I do like the look of the D28 the marauder looks to be a bit more expensive, I'm unsure if I want a full Keel or a fin Keel, as I'm wanting a sea kindly yacht that will take me up and down the east coast comfortably, and maybe further once I have a little more experience :thumbup:

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not interested in a wooden Hull

Out of interest, why not a wooden hull?

To be honest I love the idea of wood other then the fact I am lead to believe they do require more work to maintain, and being a tradesmen the last thing I want to spend my weekends doing more work on a yacht.

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IMO a wooden hull like double diagonal kauri glassed is no more work than a old glass hull and a bonus it doesn't get osmosis. The wooden deck attached to the wooden hull is where I see most people working, especially if it has old teak!

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Hi there all the boats mentioned are good boats its really going to come down to budget. H28 have a good reputation but for me they are too slow and unrewarding to sail.

Weather windows in NZ tend to be short so to me part of a good sea boat is one that can arrive in port before the southerly arrives at you. I would pick a cav32 over a h28 every day of the week.

I look at it like this

Cav32 chico30 pretty similar go anywhere boats with okish boat speed.

Dav28 Whiting 29 much of a muchness different versions of the same great theme. Bit faster than chico/cav but a bit less solid for coastal (although plenty have done coastal)

Maurauder the most spacious and fastest but the most expensive and probably a tad bouncer for coastal than the lot but still perfectly capable.

 

Full keelboats arent my cup of tea. Thyre hard to park in a mariner slow they dont point aswell require more antifoul etc

Wood always feels damp to me.Timber tops dnt have the soft curves that glass boats have. MY pic day sails over night etc Maurauder, coastal and cook strait cav32.

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some really good advice thanks all - anyone got thoughts on the cav 30 - are they fairly easy to sail and are they capable

as far as coastal cruising goes, I have read somewhere on here

they are a bit if a handful down wind.

sow1id - I like your comment about being able to make good time, makes perfect sense with the ever changing winds here in NZ. does the cav 30 fall into this hull shape ? I like the look of the cav 32 but they to are getting into the top end of my price range, and I want to have some coin left over for any extras I might need fitting it out and tidying a yacht up.

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IMO a wooden hull like double diagonal kauri glassed is no more work than a old glass hull and a bonus it doesn't get osmosis. The wooden deck attached to the wooden hull is where I see most people working, especially if it has old teak!

Couldn't agree more. When I went into buying my first boat, I also had the "definitely NOT wood" opinion, but have since completely changed my mind on the subject.

 

Wood seems to get a bad rep for, as far as I can see, absolutely no reason at all. I think it's just one of those things that people who know next-to-nothing about boats seem to parrot, because it's an easy bit of advice to give. And it's total BS. My triple skin kauri hull requires no more maintenance than a glass hull, and in fact probably less, because I'm not worrying about osmosis treatment every few years.

 

A good survey will tell you whether the hull is sound - whether it's wood or glass (or any other construction for that matter). As long as there are no issues - which you always have a chance of with both wood and glass - then you should have no excessive maintenance to worry about.

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My recommendation would be a Chico 30 which I owned for several years. Raced successfully and cruised around the Pacific. Hove-to very (make that relatively!) comfortably for two days en route Fiji to NZ

 

More volume than a Cav 32 or Cav 30. (Chico 30 is really a Ranger 33 with it's bum chopped off)

Bigger cockpit than both.

Just as weatherly and faster on all points of sailing than both (longer LWL)

More easily controlled than either off the wind.

Moderate displacement by modern standards and therefore a good load carrier (Modern light displacement boats become pigs when loaded with cruising gear).

 

Another possibility, on a similar theme, is one of the Lidgard 30 footers.

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Im probably not the best person to ask about the Cav30 as ive owned a cav26, currently own the cav36, and have done thousands of miles on my parents cav36 so Im biased hehe.

Bang for buck cav30 would be hard to beat. Upwind they excel & would probably be the quickest of the lot. Downwind thyre docile a long as you arent running a big kite dead downhill in 25knots(who does that cruising anyway). The Maurauder dav28 chico would probably have the boat speed edge downwind

lots of volume in the cav30 good boat speed in the light due to their big headsails but the only thing i don't like is they don't have a double bed upfront.

All these boats are great boats and none are bad. Id say look at as many as you can. You'll get a feel for what u like :)

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Chico 30 is also a good boat but maybe out of his price range. They are mostly glass hull and timber top, some are all timber.

 

This can vouch for this boat http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/boats-m ... 980202.htm Quicker than a Cav30, and a brand new 20hp engine is a big bonus for coastal crusing. And maybe Bimini Babe might be convinced to deliver it :P ?

 

Re-the Cav 30, probably a pretty good boat, The one for sale in Christchurch seems a bit pricey but that is just my opinion, no furler, old engine? And be careful to check for osmosis.

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This can vouch for this boat http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/boats-m ... 980202.htm Quicker than a Cav30, and a brand new 20hp engine is a big bonus for coastal crusing. And maybe Bimini Babe might be convinced to deliver it :P ?

 

Re-the Cav 30, probably a pretty good boat, The one for sale in Christchurch seems a bit pricey but that is just my opinion, no furler, old engine? And be careful to check for osmosis.

 

Wow that's one well laid out boat very tidy indeed $30 k almost seems to cheap -

One of the reasons I was steering away from wood was also the fact that insurance can be more difficult to get, and it's not easy in christchurch full stop.

I have looked at the Cav 30 in Christchurch and agree it's a bit on the high side price wise and looks like it needs a wee bit of TLC, and I really want a roller furler just for ease of use, I'm hoping to do a bit of single handed sailing from time to time.

 

Thanks for all the great advice folks, I think I have all but been talked out of a floating caravan (H28) Still think they are a wonderful looking yacht all the same.

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One of the reasons I was steering away from wood was also the fact that insurance can be more difficult to get, and it's not easy in christchurch full stop.

.

 

I have never hear of insurance being hard to get on wooden boats.

Ferro or very old boats can be harder

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timber boats are a mixed bag depending on builder, quality of materials, glass layup and skill of builder.

 

Triple diag done properly is best. Double OK. But issues around water ingress in skin fittings, and poorly sealed-glassed areas will result in soft areas an glass delamination.

 

Unglassed timbers is just work and $$$ for no real advantage of fun.

 

The biggest problem is fresh water ingress around deck cabin and even topsides.

 

Most timber will not suffer from rot with salt water ingress but fresh water ingress will happen at some stage.

 

GRP is the best. And Osmosis is not a big issue and has never ever been a problem that has compromised a hulls strength in NZ.

 

If you like to worry and like hard work and spending $$$ Then go wood.

 

Remember most wooden boats in NZ are over 30 years old and in need of time work.

 

Strip plank ceder is problematic too.

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shanson ("crew" memeber here) has a Cascade 36 for sale at a very attractive price. A good cruiser which was sailed down here from the US. Lots of room for 36ft and easy to sail. Gets along very nicely.

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