I have a plan! Which boat? 35' to 40' Cruiser

[Iain]

Hello! I have been following/reading and searching this and many other forums for years(I usually do more reading than posting) but I might as well ask the question "which boat"?

Here is my(our) short story:
I am 20ish and recently married(5 months). The Wife and I have put our current boat on the market(sabre 28), we will be selling our house in just over a year(hopefully) and moving aboard a larger "bluewater" boat. We will live be liveaboards for another year or so and then leave our careers and sail to the Caribbean and maybe beyond.

We need to find the boat that will best suit our budget and needs. We want to spend less than 75K(including refit for offshore sailing).

I know there are many good boats out there and I have come up with a few guidelines:

Modern design(hopefully 80's)
Fin Keel or (similar)
Skeg hung rudder
wheel steering
aft cockpit
Min 6' 2" standing headroom I am 6'2-1/2"
decent fuel and water tankage
relatively easy to single hand
Cutter rig

I have been looking at the Tartan 37(non-centerboard), Morgan 383-4, Wauquiez P 35, and the Valiant Esprit 37.

Am I headed in the right direction? I have been trying to look only at boats that are actually available to me. Currently on the market and within relatively easy travel. I am in NC so I have been looking at boats from FL to Maine.

Any boat sugestions would be greatly appriciated!

Thanks!
Iain

[Livia]

For the first time I am going to recommend against a Pretorien!

You will have a hard time standing upright inside if you are over 6' because of the relatively flush deck (which we love).
Also, I don't know what you mean by decent fuel tankage but that is a weak area of the boat as well (25 gallons unless modified).

We love ours. Happy to answer any other questions.

[Iain]

Thanks for the advise. Some specs I have seen have said that the Pretorien's have 6'2". Is this true? or is it even less?

I was thinking that good tankage would mean somthing like 40Gal Fuel and 100Gal Water. I know the Pretorien's are lacking in this area but everything is a compromise!

[gonesail]

the morgan 38 would be great but it may require a year of rehabs and getting ready .. things like plastic ports and rigging and interior stuff would need to be addressed. to me this is a classic design that will serve you well between Florida and the Caribbean .. nice live aboard for 2 people. not a huge interior but it is all teak. the morgan is much bigger and heavier than a sabre 28 so it would take a while for you to learn how to handle the 38. also it is tougher to work on a boat if you live on the boat as well.

[ejjawhite5]

Try seeing if there is a CAL 35 around ( Mark II series 1979-1983)... It is about the only one in its size range that has tons of storage, a larger separate shower, 100 gal of water and 33 gal fuel tank. it would accommodate a larger tank if necessary. All the tanks are easily removed.. Plenty of head room as well..

Ed
CAL 35
Caliente

[slap]

Originally Posted by Iain

Thanks for the advise. Some specs I have seen have said that the Pretorien's have 6'2". Is this true? or is it even less?

I was thinking that good tankage would mean somthing like 40Gal Fuel and 100Gal Water. I know the Pretorien's are lacking in this area but everything is a compromise!

I'm 6"-0", and it was cramped sitting at the nav station on the Pretorien - no room for my knees.

[Livia]

Originally Posted by Iain

Thanks for the advise. Some specs I have seen have said that the Pretorien's have 6'2". Is this true? or is it even less?

I was thinking that good tankage would mean somthing like 40Gal Fuel and 100Gal Water. I know the Pretorien's are lacking in this area but everything is a compromise!

We're standing in ours right now and it looks 6'2" at the high point but it is more like 6' under our dome light on the main walkway in the salon. Not every Pretorien has the same interior lighting configuration but I would think someone 6' tall would have to duck every time they walked foreward.

Again we love our boat but I'm 5'8" and my husband is 5'10".

[Heart of Gold]

I have 2 friends with Valiant 40's. You should research the blister years, but these cutters are beautiful world cruisers and have the head room. One friend found his in. California for 59k

[Iain]

Thank you for the full headroom description on the Pretorian. It sounds like the Pretorien's are not going to be a good option. Especially for the liveabord part of or plan... too bad. I really like the fuctional and simple layout. I am realizing we were realitively spoiled with headroom on our Sabre.
We have been on a Morgan 38 and it seemed very roomy(without shoes). With shoes on I could not stand strait up.

I think in general the Valiant 40' are out of my price range but maybe i should do some more searching. There is a Vailiant Esprit 37 on yachtworld that has caught my attention. thoughts? This particular 37 has had a full blister job and looks to be in pretty good shape.

[Heart of Gold]

Apparently the blisters never go away but are not an issue as far as structural. They are caused by a reaction of a fire retardant mixed into the resin at time of construction at least this is what I have come to understand so it is diligent up keep to keep them looking good. I think that this is why my buddy got his for 59k. But this only happened for a few years. The other boat I know has no blisters at all! That Esprit sure looks nice alright. All I know about these boats is what my friends have told me and some sailing on them at our club so I can't comment on the esprit. Happy boat hunting.

[Sandero]

I own a contest 36s and it meets your general specs. I cruised and lived on comfortable (2 of us) in the Caribe and NE. Great cockpit, huge salon lots of headroom... huge galley.. separate aft cabin (hardly and stand up room but you can sleep either fore and aft or athwartship. Flush deck.. good anchor roller. Lots of headroom in the entire boat to the V berth... no stooping in the standing areas at all anywhere up to 6'4".

I've looked at a Pretorian recently with a friend who was looking for a yacht... We both agreed it was a great boat but the salon settee and head room were issues. He passed on it. He's 6'1". The nav station is a bit small and much smaller than the 36s.

[Play Actor]

Take a look at the Baba's. Our 35 has 6'4" headroom. We've been cruising on her for over 20 years, the last 11 full time. I think even the Baba 30 would meet your headroom requirement. Certainly the 35 would. I'm not sure what they're selling for these days, but you never know what you may find.

Don't be put off by the full keel -- read some of the reviews on line, as opposed to the speculation you usually find on this topic in the forums. Speed is respectable, and she's very sea kindly. 120 to 150 mile days in blue water are pretty common for the 35.