Bluewater Sailboat Shopping

[laSailer]

I am getting ready for retirement, and I would like to buy a used sailboat in the 45 to 50ish range that has a good reputation for durability and comfort. I would like to sail to Belize, Panama, Costa Rica, and possibly up the west coast. My brother is continously pushing the Gulfstar(this is due to him living on one for 10 years). Admittedly, I loved his 37' Gulfstar myself. I talked him in to buying the boat in the first place, and I sailed her almost as much as my Bro. And I was impressed how well it fared through Katrina. A 36' or 38' Hunter broke loose in the marina which scraped up his port side, and was found sunk. A bit of damage to his bow sprit due to some old lines that gave way and that was it.

Just looking over all the boats on line, I keep falling in love with The Fomosa, and the Vagabond. I realize the wood decks require extra up keep, but they are sooo beautiful.

I welcome anyone with experence with these or other makes to share their wisdom to guide me toward my dream boat. Prose, and cons?

Thanks.

[Amapola]

I had a Tayana 37 for years and loved it. She had beautiful classic lines and was blue water seaworthy. I did remove the teak decks though as they were very hot.

[TFrere]

Are you in Louisiana? If so, this boat may interest you. A bit smaller than you are looking for but they certainly are nice boats.
Whelton Marine Brokerage (Mandeville, LA)&

[Richard Jordan]

Welcome aboard IaSailer. I like the Gulfstar 37.

[laSailer]

Just a little smaller than I need. Looks great for some coastal sailing. I'm new to this forum. I thought I had in my signiture my location. la=Lower Alabama, sailer=sailor with a southern accent

[Richard Jordan]

Originally Posted by laSailer

Just a little smaller than I need. Looks great for some coastal sailing. I'm new to this forum. I thought I had in my signiture my location. la=Lower Alabama, sailer=sailor with a southern accent

Well ya ain't got to look too far. How 'bout other Gulfstars like the 39 SM, 40 Hood, 44 CC, 45 Hirsh? Yeehaw 'n welcome to the forum 'bama sailer.

[cburger]

Originally Posted by laSailer

I welcome anyone with experence with these or other makes to share their wisdom to guide me toward my dream boat. Prose, and cons?

Thanks.

CHRYSALIS - W43

[James S]

Welcome to the forum LaSailer.

[svBeBe]

We own the ugly boat -- an Amel, a 2003 model Super Maramu 2000. But we wouldn't have any other boat for living aboard full-time in comfort and for safety and proven record of crossing oceans. We shopped for years and always came back to the Amel. There are too many features to list; the engine room alone is the primary selling point. All that wood on traditional boats is pretty when newly varnished but such a constant maintenance nightmare. Our beautiful wood is the interior of our boat. Have not seen any other boat with such beautiful interior joinery

Enjoy shopping. FWIW, there is no perfect boat. Each is a compromise in some way.

Judy
S/V BeBe

[laSailer]

Thank you all for your in put. I have started changing my priorities, and adding to my want list. I have found myself lost in time reading the post here in CF. Great group! I guess it is one of the reason I love being on the water-the people I have met on the water are always the best!(I haven't met any pirates yet).
And, if you haven't read the tread-Where's MarkJ, it is a must read in CF. Funny!

Thank's again. I hope to meet some of you on the water soon.
Gary

[s/v Moondancer]

Any old boat (over 10 yrs old) with a teak deck is a financial disaster waiting to happen.

Some like my Tayana can be re-laid but some have screws into the balsa core and the damage from the leaks can be very expensive to fix.

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha,
Having had boats larger and sailed on all sizes I prefer nothing more than 36 for cost, for maintenance, for mooring and ease of handling.
No teak decks for me.
Good luck in your search. Now is a buyers market.
kind regards,

[Dhillen]

laSailer,
If you haven't found it already, spend some serious time on Boats for Sale, New and Used Boats and Yachts - YachtWorld.com This is a great resource for boat shopping all around the globe. You can set your own parameters and discover where the boats are that you like - and more importantly what the asking prices are. I would spend 6 months looking at the site everyday (it's easy to do and I have no affiliation to YW whatsoever) until you can guess within 10% what the asking prices are for the boats you are interested in. Then you will know with confidence what the market is.
Boat shopping is great fun. Enjoy.
Dhillen

[Curmudgeon]

You haven't told us how much money you want to spend. If you have 500K you have a far wider range of choices than if your budget is 75K. For example, if your budget is under 300K you can probably forget about an Amel Maramu.

[terra57]

I am with you on beautiful boats, Bama Sailer! Hey I even spent a summer sailing around Pensacola/ Mobile Bay. Great place to sail!
Fall in love with the Vagabond and Formosa, if you like, but you do have to enjoy wood work. I know everybody slams having wood on deck but it is beautiful and once it is sanded and revarnished, (not a job for the faint hearted), twice yearly maintenance is all it needs. I spend about 4 days a year now on upkeep. Upkeep is the key.
Now for teak decks, I don't have them. Where you are they would be hard to keep up. I am in the Med and lots of boats have teak decks. But these days they no longer screw them into the deck (which creates a huge leaking problem) rather they are glued down and there is a new great looking fake teak out there that is the rage for decks. You might go broke installing it.
So there is hope for your beautiful boat. On the other hand, you may be just as happy with a beautifully crafted teak interior and a few teak hand rails on deck.
Best of luck on your boat search.