Lift Keel 30ft Boat??

Hi Valo,
New or second hand good sir?

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shaggybaxter said..
Hi Valo,
New or second hand good sir?

Second hand around $30k
I want to do some sailing up and sown the coast as well as in Lake Mac. I like the option of anchoring in close to shore if possible.

Thanks Shaggy.

For around $30 I'd be looking at but perhaps not spacious enough.
tsvboats.com/townsvillebrokers/yachts-for-sale/used/sail-monohulls/farr-b30-trailerable-cruiser-racer/222994/

I am with SandS or a Farrier Trailer Tri.

There is a Feeling 326 listed on boats-on- line which might suit you. Feelings are French boats with a good reputation in Europe.

A few years ago there was a 30 plus footer on a mooring near mine that had just had a few days on the slips. It had a drop keel and a drop rudder and the owner left them up on the mooring. He came down there one day to sail her away to his home port. It was a gusty Westerly and I sat in my cockpit for about 30 minutes watching him trying to catch his boat in his dinghy as it charged about on the courtesy mooring!

Hi Valo,
Outside OZ, the french and the poms were pretty good at lift keels and have quite a long history with the concept.
What about a Feeling 326? They were different to previous Feelings in the keel swings up more into the hull than a stub on the previous versions, so a shallower draft with keel up.
I know its a little above your price range, but with such a strong buyers market you may be surprised?

https://yachthub.com/list/yachts-for-sale/used/sail-monohulls/feeling-326-shallow-draft/181330

getting out of the weather trumps looks

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valo said..
That Feeling 326, SteveTH & Shaggy, same one, would be great. However, way out of my price range. Doubt if they would reduce it by half!

Oops! Apologies to SteveTH , I missed that post. Yeah, I re-read the blurb, he seems pretty convinced it's a low ball price already, so scrap that one!

I remember when they first came out in the 80's and thought they would be great for coastal cruising and easily handled solo .
Some pretty noteworthy designers have been involved of the years . Holland , Mull, Hoyt etc.
Not sure about unstayed masts in a pumping sea but I suppose you
avoid such. Unique characteristics? Just look at it rigging wise.
For what you want in your price range perfect just make sure you check out the centreboard mechanism for wear and rust .

Mate you could do a deal here.
You don't want the trailer which is worth a few quid so .
1.Offer 28000 and he keeps trailer . ( He could sell for over 5000 )
2. Offer 30ishand sell trailer.
Rigo is nearly due so make sure it is reregistered

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Yara said..

You do want the trailer. Save on slipping, go to windward at 50 knots. However big lifting keels can be more trouble than they are worth.

The cost of owning and maintaining a suitable tow vehicle plus the cost of ownership for the trailer would soon negate any saving on mooring and slipping. Cause you surely aint gonna tow that with ya Holden ute.

I would be concerned with the added costs of maintaining a lifting keel yacht, Coming out of the water with the keel locked down on conventional slips might be OK with small yachts. Bigger boats in the 30 foot range might mean a travel lift and the boat chocked high off the ground. Same with centreboard yachts and I'm sure this is what kills their resale value. Might be some convenience in getting close inshore but I think I would prefer a shallow draft boat instead.

Large, lift keel boats are necessary for places like Atlantic Europe where large tides occur, and harbours dry out. For most of the population in Australia we don't have this problem, so a lift or swing keel is extra hassle and cost, for no real benefit.

Even when it comes to trailer-sailers, for which a swing keel makes sense, I prefer a drop keel, or the Investigator 563 style, which has internal ballast in a stub keel, and a simple, lightweight, swing centreboard.