Back to Sailing

[Harryup]

Hi sailors; I’d like to get back into sailing and because of that I just joined the forum to see if I can have some opinions from you.
I’m approaching retirement and my plan is to go cruising when it comes. I haven’t sailed in over 25 years, last time I did was on a Pearson 36…something in the Chesapeake Bay. It’s been so long that I’ll have to re-learn all the names of the stuff on the boat. It is likely that I’ll buy something by next summer and spend a year around the bay getting the boat, my wife and myself ready for some cruising, coastal, the Caribbean, I don’t know exactly, but I want a capable sailboat, and after reading these forums for some time, I realized that most boats are capable and comes down to personal preference, so I narrowed my search to the 35/40 ft range and I have some questions for you.
Beyond the obvious and the layout bellow, are there any real differences between a center cockpit and an after cockpit? I mean in terms of safety, ease of handling, comfort, etc. Do you get the feeling of being in a fly bridge?
I would like opinions on O’Day 37 CC, and Watkins 36 CC if anybody knows them. Years ago I sailed a Watkins 27 or 29 around Puerto Rico and I remember it to be pretty roomy for the size, but I don’t know anything about this boats, including the O’Day.
Is there a guess of how much could be to refit a boat that size for cruising? Hardware only no electronic or engine. Most of the mechanical work I can do myself, and I will be very picky with a survey about moisture in the hull, deck and leaks, I never did any work with fiberglass and I don’t know how to check it.
Also, a draft in the 6/7 ft range is it too deep to be safe around the Caribbean Islands? Or I better don’t go more than 5 and a half?
I will appreciate all the comments you may offer, and I thank you for all the entertaining reading I been doing in these forums for the last month or two.

Harry

[simonmd]

Hi and welcome.

No, a center cockpit won't give you the 'flybridge feeling' as they're usually at the same level that you'd expect an aft cockpit to be. You still need to be under the boom after all. The main advantage with a CC is you will get far better headroom in the aft master cabin. Another thing that springs to mind is that it will be a bit more comfortable at sea due to you not having so much pitching action, being nearer the center of the boat and safety would be better as you can't fall off the back on a CC boat.

The only disadvantage I can think of is you wont have a walk through transom/bathing platform, which is a fasionable feature on modern boats and if you go anywhere that it's common to more up 'stern too', like here in the Med', then you're a bit further away from the rear cleats, etc.