Hi all.

Basic question. Iam sure it's been asked before but I couldn't see it.

Is a S&S 34 too much of a boat for first yacht?

Looking for shorthand cruising and overnight with the wife n kids rather than racing.

Please put up other suggestions that you think would suit a first timer.

Cheers

southace said...
My mate has just put his Duncanson 29 on the market is in south oz though but they are a great little cruiser before the step up, it really depends on how much experience you have with boats I guess.

Cheers Southace.

I'd call myself a pretty experienced dingy sailor. Now is the right time to move up to a cruiser.
Enrolled in keelboat course just for piece of mind and been invited to go on a few local boats.

Looking forward to the coming summer for time frame.

Cheers

Stone I am sure u will be swamped with advice on this but my for my two cents... There are quite a few boats that are common in WA that would probably suit depending on your budget etc. SS34's are very sea kindly so not too much for shorthanded (1st choice of Aussie solos after all), I've raced on one for near on 20 years and can't say enough good things about them - this forum is full of other SS34 lovers too! One that I set up well for cruising would be hard to beat for the family, Rotto etc. Other similar boats for similar price include Duncanson 34 (I have one of these and very happy with her) & UFO 34. All these designs are good solid ocean capable designs that wont get too hairy for the family and can handle the strong sea breezes over here without flinching. If you want something for a bit less money or a touch smaller the SS30 is a great boat, also a few Peterson 30s around. Next step down in size you can look at Spirit 28s or the Spacesailor range are good little cruisers with very good interior space for size, the Spacey 28 would be the best but the 24 may suit too - not a bad option as very reasonably priced if you want to see how much the family enjoy before spending more significant $. There are no doubt plenty more choices but that list are fairly common in Perth so would probably give a good range to compare size, price, features etc. Good luck and happy hunting!

I'm one of the S&S34 owners on this site. They are a brilliant sailing boat and provided the rig is OK they are bullet proof and forgiving of mistakes (from more experienced skippers as well as learners) and easy to sail solo.
Any boat this age and size will require maintenance but once it is set up it isn't bad. Let's face it, it is only the hull that is getting old and they last forever. Everything else is replaceable with something newer.
They are quite cramped compared to many newer boats of the same length but are adequate for a couple and two kids. We spent a few days to a week away on ours with two kids of 12 to 14 years of age. Not at sea but in sheltered waters. Offshore two or three handed is fine.
Send me a private message if you want to talk about them.

Funny that. You never hear ill spoken of an S&S 34 by anyone who has ever owned one.