Townson 28

[DrWatson 375]

Can anyone tell me how well the Townson 28s go?

 

Like this one?

 

http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/boats-m ... 054743.htm

 

There always seem to be one or two for sale, and they seem to be quite a lot of boat for the price.

 

Do they go up wind as nicely as a 32?

 

R

[Guest]

Watching with interest this Thread would love a 32 but what a big price jump the 4 extra feet cost though about $10 000 per foot.

[johnmac 3]

Can anyone tell me how well the Townson 28s go?

Do they go up wind as nicely as a 32?

R

From racing against them in the Townson Owners regatta, the short answer is no. Most of that is due to the shorter waterline length of the T28, but some will be due to the T28's hard chine hull having a fractionally higher hull resistance than a round bilge T32.

 

I'd choose a T32 over the T28. The T32 is dd kauri, and will hold its value better than a plywood T28 (right or wrong, that's the market perception), so although a T32 costs more to buy, long term its better value. The extra length makes a big difference in handling a Gulf chop. Whether you choose a T32 Moonlight, Starlight or Twilight model doesn't make much difference, they're all magic upwind in a breeze.

[tuffyluffy 76]

There's a neglected Townson (32 i think, maybe 34) at the end of C pier, Westpark Marina.

It hasnt been touched in a long, long time and the owners might be interested in selling it for a good price. It would be worth some investigation if you are serious. The marina office might be able to put you in touch

[John B 106]

The T28 still strikes me as remarkably undervalued. The only real grizzle I've heard over the years is they are short on headroom. I spose the'yre getting on a bit now for ply, there's going to be some rough ones out there just like the Piedies, but that loved one on trade me,... cheap!

[raz88 96]

That 28 definitely looks a bargain, looks super tidy from the pics and sounds like it's had some money spent lately with new rigging etc. As said above a different boat from the 32 and being shorter don't have the performance of the 32 on the wind, I remember sailing past a few of them in my fathers twilight without difficulty. Never really seen one off the wind, but some of the hard chined townsons can be pretty quick downwind if they're light enough.

 

There are a couple of cheap 32's on trademe at the moment too, have seen the one asking 39k down in Westhaven and it looks pretty tidy, although it has teak decks that look as if they will need some attention. And another asking 30k, although looks to need a fair bit doing to it.

[Guest]

Brother had a t28

 

Awesome boats. They can handle anything and quite fast

 

Not good for head room but sail well

 

10g gotta be better than a tracker

[Guest]

Is there a decent double up front? They always seemed like good bang for the buck to me too.

Probably a better comparison would be a Davidson 28?

[DrWatson 375]

As far as I can see only a single in the forepeak.

 

From looking at the lines they seem to have a decent amount of rocker, which might make them a little harder to get up and plane - But I could be wrong on that.

 

Do the Piedys have a flatter run? Also, the Piedys have more sail (respectively) thanks to Young - I think - or I may be wrong. So although they superficially resemble a bigger Piedy, I think the similarities might end there.

 

I myself just bought new plans to start my cruising boat, So I'm not going to rush out and buy a T32 (as nice as they are) but I had considered going parts in a NZ based boat that I can use while down under.

[GregW 28]

As far as I can see only a single in the forepeak.

 

From looking at the lines they seem to have a decent amount of rocker, which might make them a little harder to get up and plane - But I could be wrong on that.

 

Do the Piedys have a flatter run? Also, the Piedys have more sail (respectively) thanks to Young - I think - or I may be wrong. So although they superficially resemble a bigger Piedy, I think the similarities might end there.

 

I myself just bought new plans to start my cruising boat, So I'm not going to rush out and buy a T32 (as nice as they are) but I had considered going parts in a NZ based boat that I can use while down under.

 

What are you building??

 

The T28 on TM has a stern extension which makes it look a bit more modern. Seems a lot of boat for the money. I remember Theme back in the day (IIRC it raced with Bucks) seemed to go really well in a breeze.