I would urge careful consideration in going bigger - its expensive and heavy.

The maximum size of your boat depends on many things, what you think is imperative for safety being one. Although big can increase safety it can reduce it too.

I think electric winches and better engineering can help when everything goes right but, and I think this is a big but, personally I want to be able to handle a boat when everything turns pear shaped.

This means I can get the anchor up when the electric winch fails, I can row out a kedge, pull up the main by hand, sheet in the storm sail when the batteries are flat, get the dinghy on board, cope with an awning in a blow.

I am intrigued about my more senior cruisers with big and complicated boats. We even had one of our fellow cruisers who was kept at an island when his anchor winch failed and it was too big to pull manually. Going big can be done, but you will need to be more vigilant about your electrics and maintenance than if you keep loads below the manual limit.

Last year a boat sailing from New Zealand lost a crew member trying to handle to sails when the electric systems failed. The boat was abandoned. I top out at about 40ft for easy manual loads - anchors and sail sheeting. The square cube rule is a rule we cannot get around - we gain loads faster than we gain volume. (Stability and load goes up by the fourth power and volume by the 3rd). So going larger always comes at a price. In two ways.

cheers

Phil

I had this discussion with a mate i race with on the Jenneau 349 (34 footer) who owns and currently lives on a S&S 39 with his wife

He is in his 50's and has sailed all his life and has recently sailed it over from WA to Tassie

He said that the 39 was hard work and believed that his choice of boat would be a S&S 34 as he believed it was big enough to look after you in a blow but small enough that everything was a manageable size for one person

Regards Don

In general, I agree we shouldn't be reliant on electronics, UNLESS:
- you can maintain and afford the level of quality of the gear required to rely on power. (which normally means expensive), or;
- you are lucky to have that particular sailor skill of can do/make it work where you can make a davit out of coathanger wire.

Which I, sadly, am not blessed with either option.

So, from a 40ftr perspective; that's enough for me.
Getting the kite down, or dropping and hoisting the main manually a few times is enough work thank you very much. And my mast doesn't appear big for a 40, there looks to be a lot taller rigs in the marina when I'm looking around at least.

Jode5 for example is a good indication of his size boat where the quality of the systems is matched to the size. Power works.
The Pogo is a good indication of a boat where manual everything still works, but it barely makes the grade.
- It only squeaks in because the main hoist is a grind. The only electric winch on board is this one, and I ashamedly love it.

I can sh manage the boat when the conditions are calm, and when its rough for a day..ish. Clearing a jammed halyard when the boat is pinned in big seas and a ton of water has poured down the cabin-way shorting out the electronics (and I don't have a wind vane, only an electronic pilot) ...then can I state I can manage the boat single-handed?

That one gives me pause.

Admittedly, a more deeper inspection highlights a few of these to be my failures, rather than the size of the boat. The lack of the wind vane for example, if I install a wind vane, can I now manage the boat in those it-cant-be-happening-to-me moments?

Hmm ...interesting..if I just add ...(insert shiny thing/bit name here)

shaggybaxter said..
In general, I agree we shouldn't be reliant on electronics, UNLESS:
- you can maintain and afford the level of quality of the gear required to rely on power. (which normally means expensive), or;
- you are lucky to have that particular sailor skill of can do/make it work where you can make a davit out of coathanger wire.

Which I, sadly, am not blessed with either option.

So, from a 40ftr perspective; that's enough for me.
Getting the kite down, or dropping and hoisting the main manually a few times is enough work thank you very much. And my mast doesn't appear big for a 40, there looks to be a lot taller rigs in the marina when I'm looking around at least.

Jode5 for example is a good indication of his size boat where the quality of the systems is matched to the size. Power works.
The Pogo is a good indication of a boat where manual everything still works, but it barely makes the grade.
- It only squeaks in because the main hoist is a grind. The only electric winch on board is this one, and I ashamedly love it.

I can sh manage the boat when the conditions are calm, and when its rough for a day..ish. Clearing a jammed halyard when the boat is pinned in big seas and a ton of water has poured down the cabin-way shorting out the electronics (and I don't have a wind vane, only an electronic pilot) ...then can I state I can manage the boat single-handed?

That one gives me pause.

Admittedly, a more deeper inspection highlights a few of these to be my failures, rather than the size of the boat. The lack of the wind vane for example, if I install a wind vane, can I now manage the boat in those it-cant-be-happening-to-me moments?

Hmm ...interesting..if I just add ...(insert shiny thing/bit name here)

Windvane would not be very effective on your vessel. Catamarans and mono hulled yachts that can accelerate and jump on and off the plane or surf have too much of a rapid change of relative wind for a windvane to operate effectively. You are limited to those expensive autopilots found on Vendee Globe style yachts or Figaro's.

I can handle my 35 yo 38 foot steel coat on my own better than I can my cousins 2014 42 foot Jenneau with in mast furling and electric winches. I have reefing lines and a furling jenny and staysail so I don't need to leave the cockpit except to do a sail change. I changed my boat to make it comfortable and put some systems in place to make it safe to sail on my own. If i do ever change boats it will be to an Adams 42 centre cockpit. I will add though that my boat is low windage and with a flat deck where as my cousins has a lot of windage on the bow so it tends to get blown off a bit easier

All the best with your search.