OK, I'm just window-shopping. I do that every few years anyway, thinking
that I might get a boat. As it happens, I just got back from a nice trip
on my cousin's Islander ketch down from San Francisco to Monterey and back
again. That puts me back into the maybe-a-boat mode ....

If I got one, I think it would be to go out and spend some winter weekdays
on uncrowded Catalina moorings, and to go out at some point and do all the
channel island anchorages. I was reading a coast guide on the trip ...
this one:

The Cruising Guide to Central and Southern California: Golden Gate to
Ensenada, Mexico, Including the Offshore Islands
by Brian M. Fagan

and it made it all look pretty good. Now, I've started reading "Good
Old Boat", and pricing the local Sailing Clubs, so I'd probably sail more
and do research before buying ... but I can't help but ask anyway:

What do you all think are good old boats for such a plan? I'm thinking
sub-30 feet to keep slips and aux expenses down.

Thanks.

Lefty wrote:
I was reading a coast guide on the trip ...
this one:

The Cruising Guide to Central and Southern California: Golden Gate to
Ensenada, Mexico, Including the Offshore Islands
by Brian M. Fagan

A good book, I've used it till mine is falling apart - may have to get a
new one. Brian Fagan is also an interesting guy. I enjoyed some
classes I took from him back when I was a student at UCSB in the early '70s.

What do you all think are good old boats for such a plan? I'm thinking
sub-30 feet to keep slips and aux expenses down.

Any number of them. To keep it chea... er, uh, as inexpensive as
possible (which the tenor of your note seems to indicate is a priority),
you'll be looking at boats from the 70's. By definition, these are
going to be rather high milage boats.

That's not inherently bad.

It just means that you're gonna have to look even more carefully at the
condition of the individual boat than you might otherwise. There's
prolly gonna be lots of PO (Previous Owner) upgrades and modifications.
The quality of this work will be all over the map.

Once you find some candidates whose layout works for you and are in
acceptable condition, it would be a big help if you could find a friend
who is knowledgeble about boats in this size range and have him look at
them looking for any problems (basically looking for the same things a
surveyor would). When they pass his check, you can then ask about known
problems that people might be aware of with specific make/models.

Pretty much any of the 27' - 30' production boats from that era will be
great for channel island trips. I'm partial to the Catalinas, probably
because I used to own a C30 and it worked great for my family of 4, but
at this stage, I wouldn't start looking for a specific make/model.
Instead, check out what's on the market in your area and see which ones
seem to work for you.

Good luck, and let us know how it goes - Dan

Dan Best wrote:
Lefty wrote:

What do you all think are good old boats for such a plan? I'm
thinking sub-30 feet to keep slips and aux expenses down.

Any number of them. To keep it chea... er, uh, as inexpensive as
possible (which the tenor of your note seems to indicate is a
priority), you'll be looking at boats from the 70's. By definition,
these are going to be rather high milage boats.

It's not so much a case of "as inexpensive as possible!", as finding out
"how inexpensive is possible?" :-) For a good boat, not something tired,
broken, hacked, or sad.

Maybe I could spend more, but if there are good boats that are "underpriced"
on the market, that would be good to know. That kind of thing.

That last issue of Good Old Boat had a bit on the Sabre 28 (I think that's
right, I don't have it handy) being inducted into some kind of design Hall
of Fame. As I window shop stuff like that is fun to know.

Speaking of Catalinas, there seem to be a lot of them around in So Cal, and
at first sight prices seem to be driven down by the supply ... yes?

Catalina is one of the few manufacturers from that era still in
business. It's not that they made/make especially great boats, but they
make good ones for a competetive price that fit a broad market well. I
think of them as the Chevy of boats. Their primary design purpose is
day sailing and weekends or perhaps week long trips. Perfect for
cruising the channel islands. They are very forgiving, easy to sail
boats with lots of reserve. There is another recent thread you might
want to read in which I relate my experience in a 40 kt gale while
crossing the Sea of Cortez. I think the subject is "Catalina 30".

Speaking of Catalinas, there seem to be a lot of them around in So
Cal, and
at first sight prices seem to be driven down by the supply ... yes?

I'm not sure I'd say that. Boat prices in general are pretty depressed
right now. The fact that there are a lot of them around is a plus. It
means that there are a lot of people out there with type specific
knowledge.

This can be an incredible resource.

Comparing the experiances of my friend with his Mason and me with my
Tayana 37 (two substantially similar vessels), using other peoples
expertice is a wonderful thing. I recently had to replace my 100 gal
water tank in the bilge. Before I even started, I had a set of photos
in my hand (taken of the internet) of someone doing exactly the same
thing, along with a dialog of what to watch out for.

My case was exceptional, but selling mine couldn't have been easier. A
couple of days after I bought the Tayana, I got a phone call from an
acquaintence who had recently sold his boat and was sorta familiar with
Still Clueless (my Catalina) and what I had done with it. "Hey Dan, I
here you got a new boat. Wanna sell your old one?" We came up with a
price we could both agree on and that was it! I didn't even have to
freshen the varnish on the teak.

Especially as a first boat, an older used one makes a lot of sense.
It's already depreciated all it's going to, it's cheap enough so that
when you make your mistakes, it's not going to cost too much.

One piece of advice I offer people is that the time to fall in love with
a boat is AFTER you own it. Doing so while you are shopping for a boat
can blind you to their faults and make you pay WAAAAYYY too much.
Always be prepared to walk away from the deal. Especially in this
market, there are lots of others out there.

Good luck - Dan

Lefty wrote:
Dan Best wrote:

Lefty wrote:


What do you all think are good old boats for such a plan? I'm
thinking sub-30 feet to keep slips and aux expenses down.

Any number of them. To keep it chea... er, uh, as inexpensive as
possible (which the tenor of your note seems to indicate is a
priority), you'll be looking at boats from the 70's. By definition,
these are going to be rather high milage boats.


It's not so much a case of "as inexpensive as possible!", as finding out
"how inexpensive is possible?" :-) For a good boat, not something tired,
broken, hacked, or sad.

Maybe I could spend more, but if there are good boats that are "underpriced"
on the market, that would be good to know. That kind of thing.

That last issue of Good Old Boat had a bit on the Sabre 28 (I think that's
right, I don't have it handy) being inducted into some kind of design Hall
of Fame. As I window shop stuff like that is fun to know.

Speaking of Catalinas, there seem to be a lot of them around in So Cal, and
at first sight prices seem to be driven down by the supply ... yes?

In article ,
"Lefty" wrote:

OK, I'm just window-shopping. I do that every few years anyway, thinking
that I might get a boat. As it happens, I just got back from a nice trip
on my cousin's Islander ketch down from San Francisco to Monterey and back
again. That puts me back into the maybe-a-boat mode ....

If I got one, I think it would be to go out and spend some winter weekdays
on uncrowded Catalina moorings,

It is very nice... that is if the Santa Ana's aren't blowing.. If they
are you won't find any peace at either Avalon or the Isthmus, and its 2
more hours by sail to Cat Harbor (very protected).

This summer season there wasn't a single day that they weren't sold out
at Avalon... "I went for a mooring and got a hook." At the
Isthmus mooring space can be found most every day.

jay
Fri, Sep 12, 2003




and to go out at some point and do all the
channel island anchorages. I was reading a coast guide on the trip ...
this one:

The Cruising Guide to Central and Southern California: Golden Gate to
Ensenada, Mexico, Including the Offshore Islands
by Brian M. Fagan

and it made it all look pretty good. Now, I've started reading "Good
Old Boat", and pricing the local Sailing Clubs, so I'd probably sail more
and do research before buying ... but I can't help but ask anyway:

What do you all think are good old boats for such a plan? I'm thinking
sub-30 feet to keep slips and aux expenses down.

Thanks.






--

Legend insists that as he finished his abject...
Galileo muttered under his breath: "Nevertheless, it does move."

Lefty,

I just went through the exact same "search for answers" as you are
doing now. Ended up with a VERY capable boat [Islander 29] that is
[was] a circumnavigation veteran [including a Cape Horn passage] for
very little money. My point is that you don't have to spend the big
bucks to get a good boat, but you have to know how and where to look
[NEVER go to a yacht broker]. If you're in Southern California drop
me an "e" ] and I'll give you some insight.

Cheers,
Trent Sanders
S/V Cimba
Marina Del Rey

"Lefty" wrote in message . net...
OK, I'm just window-shopping. I do that every few years anyway, thinking
that I might get a boat. As it happens, I just got back from a nice trip
on my cousin's Islander ketch down from San Francisco to Monterey and back
again. That puts me back into the maybe-a-boat mode ....

If I got one, I think it would be to go out and spend some winter weekdays
on uncrowded Catalina moorings, and to go out at some point and do all the
channel island anchorages. I was reading a coast guide on the trip ...
this one:

The Cruising Guide to Central and Southern California: Golden Gate to
Ensenada, Mexico, Including the Offshore Islands
by Brian M. Fagan

and it made it all look pretty good. Now, I've started reading "Good
Old Boat", and pricing the local Sailing Clubs, so I'd probably sail more
and do research before buying ... but I can't help but ask anyway:

What do you all think are good old boats for such a plan? I'm thinking
sub-30 feet to keep slips and aux expenses down.

Thanks.