Benjie

Some general advice for a new boat from a Cav 28 owner

* Good on you for your ambition - you will get a lot of advice, much of it confusing, however, don't let it stop you getting out on the water
* Talk to as many people as you can, and get out on their boats as much as you can. The information you get from this will be much better than a forum chat. Listen to the folks at the boat clubs, marinas and ramps - most boats will be known to the "regulars", who can usually tell which boats have been looked after well, and which have not
* Boat prices are inflated at present
* Get a professional survey - a half slip and survey will cost around $1000, but it will be money well spent.
* Either the Cav 32 and Phantom 32 is a nice boat. You'll get plenty of comments here about why you should prefer one over the other. However, no two will be the same. After 30 to 40 years of the previous owners' attentions (some of it applied well, and some not) you'll be hard pressed to find two that are the same.
* If you have narrowed your search to these models, get the one in the best condition. Do not get a project. It will be more expensive, but it is a case of pay once and weep once.
* Be prepared for time and money fixing the stuff you didn't know needed to be fixed at purchase (say, 20% of the purchase price). If you live aboard, its the seemingly small stuff, like a leaky window, that will consume your time and budget.

When I was in your position a couple of years back (after owning a trailer-sailer) I followed the advice at the boat club about my current boat, which was well known by the folks there and was smaller than what I thought I needed, but worked out well. I've been wrangling an annoying drip from the Diesel engine for several weeks. Everything takes way longer than you'd think.

Can not go wrong with a Cav 32. For cruising a wheel is probably better in the long term. The CAV 28 is a good boat, but that extra 4 feet does make A difference. CAV 32's had no major problems. They tend to wander around going down wind but that is topical of most boats of that era . Most had Bukh diesels which are pretty Bulletproof. The CAV 32 sails good in all conditions including light airs and are very good to windward. As an all round older boat they would be very hard to go past.

Forget osmosis. Boats that age if they had osmosis it would have been rectified by now.

I would suggest concentrating a search on yachthub in the 30 to 36 range. Use the Contessa 32 as the benchmark, it's the Rolls Royce of cruiser racers and consider other boats like the Nicholson 32 and the Miura 31 for your intended use. Nothing wrong with Cav 32s though.

garymalmgren said..
Hi Ben
just a simple bit of advice.
Try to get your hands on a boat that has already done something like what you plan to do.
That way you will end up with the really important gear like extra anchors, larger fuel tanks. and lots of other little nik naks.

A boat that has just sat around for ages and is going cheap might be a good project, but if you are looking at getting away in September you need to think about gear more than the head's location.

Gary

+1. Good strategy

PS I should add that on a short passage, you will need crew. Its a safety thing, and I would not contemplate an over-night passage on my own. More experienced sailors with the right gear will feel more comfortable, but the key difference is experience and gear. I don't have wind-vanes, and the auto-helm will drain the battery if I run it continuously, which means manual steering*, which is fine for day-trips. I mainly use the tiller-pilot to keep the boat on course while I need a break to do important stuff, like having a toilet-break, eating lunch, phoning the Admiral etc. Although the boat is rated for 8 persons, it begins to feel cramped with four people on board for a day-trip. If you have been tiller-steering for 8 hours, you will definitely need a rest. Do the math on the shifts and breaks.

(PPS * Others might post something about sheet-to-tiller steering - I'd like to try it some day, but without the experience and set-up, its not a viable option for me, yet)

garymalmgren said..
Hi Ben
just a simple bit of advice.
Try to get your hands on a boat that has already done something like what you plan to do.
That way you will end up with the really important gear like extra anchors, larger fuel tanks. and lots of other little nik naks.

A boat that has just sat around for ages and is going cheap might be a good project, but if you are looking at getting away in September you need to think about gear more than the head's location.

Gary

Thanks for the advise. I will defiantly look into that. Cheers.