Should my first sailboat be wooden?

[tjm2003]

Hey there,

I'm thinking about buying a cheap old 1948 Rhodes sloop as my first owned sailboat. I have been learning to sail on a 28foot Tartan fiberglass sloop (which has been a terrific experience), but I really think a nice old wooden boat would be great. Plus, the owner is only asking around 2k for it, so I don't have a lot to lose. He says the boat is "fine" when asked flat out "What's wrong with it." He sent a picture and it looks good. Of course, I'll go down and check it out.

I understand that wooden boats necessarily entail a lot more work, but other than that, it seems like it could be fun. On the other hand, I don't want to inherit a nightmare.

Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

The newbie.

[JimConlin]

Even if the boat is free, hire a good surveyor to look at it for you. He can tell you what work it needs and what it might be worth when the work's been done.

If the $2k boat needs another $2K to be sailable, safe and serviceable, and is then worth $3K, then you're upside down, financially. If you have the skills and time to do the work yourself, then you still might come out OK. If you can look at the numbers rationally and you heart goes out to it, then fine. Everyone should have love in their life.

The heavens may part and I be smote (smitten?) , but i've thought that older boats of [another material] presented a good value. There are some nice boats out there by Carl Alberg, Bill Luders, etc, for very reasonable money.

[R.I.Singer30]

Do you want to sail or work with wood?Wood requires work I am finding out.It's not a bad thing. smile.gif

[Leon Steyns]

A very good point. It depends on what you want, I guess: if the goal is to get a sailable boat right away and time is a serious constraint, don't buy a 'project'! On the other hand, if it's love at first sight... :D

It's personal: it's easier for me to fall in love with a wooden boat. redface.gif

Greets, Leon Steyns.

[JimD]

tjm, I'm surprised there haven't been a few more folks here asking serious questions. Does it even come with sails? How big is this boat? If it's a 15 foot sloop then you can probably rebuild it plank by plank for another 2K. If its a decent sized boat as the 28 footer that you are used to sailing and its 55 yrs old and for sale at $2K then you are spending $2000 on firewood, except you can't safely burn it because of the paint fumes. Be afraid. Be very afraid.

[John B]

Aw Jim, that's a bit tough. Perhaps you may be right in this case but attitudes like that are contributing to haulouts banning wooden boats and the value of them to be low like that. Generalisation. What if she's been built well and well maintained and this guy just doesn't know what he's got or he's just had her on the market for a while?
Certainly you need to be circumspect, but firewood?
Can't accept that as a generalisation just because of age. My boat would have been toast 3 times over given the state she was run down to with bad owners at times over the last ...mmm 96 years.. We've been cruising and racing her for 20 years now.
I looked at a boat yesterday that another forumite had described as being in a shocking state on her mooring. She's hauled... needs a new coat of paint. The owner has another bigger boat and had ignored her for a while and the grass was green.that's all.

Keep an open mind.. have a look first. survey second.

[Chris Coose]

Go to the boat with a pen knife and a small hammer.

If the knife penetrates in any place without resistance, step back and look at the entire piece of wood and imagine yourself replacing it.

If this is a centerboard boat and the board and case have not seen attention in the past 10 or 20 years take a very hard look over the entire centerboard structure.

Look carefully at all the hardware, especially rudder connection, nothing should be loose.

Keel? lead, cast iron, condition of the bolts and the timbers it is connected to.

Is the rigging stored or sitting out with the boat? Either way, look it over good. Is the mast clear finished or painted? Clear is best, you can make an examination.

Step back and now use the hammer on the top of your head. That should bring all your thoughts into perfect order and you can then make a decision.

[JimD]

Originally posted by John B:
Aw Jim, that's a bit tough. Perhaps you may be right in this case but attitudes like that are contributing to haulouts banning wooden boats and the value of them to be low like that. Generalisation. What if she's been built well and well maintained and this guy just doesn't know what he's got or he's just had her on the market for a while?
Certainly you need to be circumspect, but firewood?
Can't accept that as a generalisation just because of age. My boat would have been toast 3 times over given the state she was run down to with bad owners at times over the last ...mmm 96 years.. We've been cruising and racing her for 20 years now.
I looked at a boat yesterday that another forumite had described as being in a shocking state on her mooring. She's hauled... needs a new coat of paint. The owner has another bigger boat and had ignored her for a while and the grass was green.that's all.

Keep an open mind.. have a look first. survey second.You could very well be right John. I'm no expert on such things, but keep an eye on the for sale signs out of curiosity and don't come across too many classic yachts half a century old that have been well maintained all those years on the market for a couple thousand, tho very possibly I don' follow the market closely enough to see the occassional genuine sweet deal that comes along.