Boat thoughts?

[lima33]

OK as things stand right now these are the 5 boats on my short list. I feel they have the sailing quality’s I like for a cruiser with off shore potential. All are similar and will cost and need about the same type of upgrades and maintenance.


Bristol 29.9
Tartan 30
islander 32-2
Ranger 33
tartan 33


I like the tartan 33 a lot but find the center board a bit for a complication, so over all for sailing I see a lot going for the Ranger.
But the second part to cruising is the time spent at the place you go to. So now I am starting to evaluate the at rest comfort of these boats
I know a larger boat may be more comfortable, but 30 to 34 seems the right size to single hand and maintain a reasonable boat budget. 35 to 40 might be a nice size to live on the costs would start to go up fast in this range.
As to what I am planning to do with said sailboat..... west coast exploring And a Ca. To Hi run. I like to dream of bigger and better things but will play it by ear.
So the question.... Thoughts on these boats?

[Mimsy]

The Tartan 33 to me, is the prettiest of the bunch but if I were going to part with money, I would choose the Bristol. My reasons for doing so are out of the boats you have selected, Bristol has the best build quality. Tartan would be my second choice for this reason and I would not even consider the Ranger. I have seen several and they just do not seem to be well built.

We can argue the finer points of sail plans, pointing ability, etc but for me I can put up with just about anything so long as the boat is built well. Others will value other facets but for me, for an older boat its all about the construction.

[Capt Phil]

Perhaps I'm a bit biased but a number of years ago, I raced a Ranger 33 in Bellingham Bay and was really impressed with her performance, so much so, I used to drive down from Vancouver, BC every week just to crew on the boat. Finally got to be the steady driver for about a year and a half and we won the season. Airs were pretty light as I recall but the owner ended up taking the boat to Mexico with no problem. Was SOLAS equipped so lots of extra gear. I gave him a hand getting her as far a Crescent City in Northern CA and she performed well offshore. Fast, tight and dry but never got into a bad blow. I imagine she would perform well if properly managed. Good Luck in your search. Phil

[Cheechako]

I like the Ranger 33 and Tartan 33. The Tartan has 2.5 ft more waterline and a lot more beam. Both should be great sailors. The Bristol is a lot smaller/ narrower boat and has almost 7 ft less waterline than the Tartan! I also raced againt the Ranger 29 and 33's. Great sailing boats. Another possible option in that era production boat is the Yankee 30.

[lima33]

What a dork.... I am! Not ""tartan33"" meant ""tartan34C"" the Yankee is fine its a tartan30 more or less as far as I know.

[sailorboy1]

from my memory, which is always suspect, be sure that the head in the Tartan 34 works for you far as knee room etc

[SkiprJohn]

I think any one of them would be an ok choice. The age of the boats would determine that it is more their condition and care that would make one a better choice over the other. Reliable diesel power would be another consideration.

I'd spend a couple hours aboard each and see which one made me feel the best. When I was living aboard I did not spend that much time inside the boat, mostly somewhere else exploring or topside doing maintenance or fiddling with this and that.

Good luck in your choice.

[JPA Cate]

Lima 33,
Jim and I sailed a Yankee 30 to Hawaii and back in 1983. It is a Sparkman & Stevens design, and was a good "all around" boat. We did a lot of coastal cruising in her, as vacations permitted, taking her to the Channel Is. from San Francisco a few times. Jim raced her singlehanded, and often had better times than the fully crewed Yankees of the day. It's a small boat in todays' terms, and initially tender; but a good light air performer, too.

Subsequently, we bought a PJ Standfast 36 which had more room, and we lived aboard and cruised her for 18 yrs.

If you go look at the Bristol, do check the access to the stuffing box, because friends who had one had to pull the engine to get at it. Way too dangerous for my taste!

Ann

[zeehag]

bristol -- always a good choice in cruisers
islander -- good boat. i almost bought one in 2001.
tartan--i have not experience with these, but friends cruising them swear by , not at, them
good boat, no specific order. ranger is better for the la to catalina run.

sail them all and make your mind up on your experiences. we could all be lying to ye.