Hello fellow sailing forum members. I am investigating the opotunity to move up to a trailer sailor from a little wind rush catermaran.
I Invision a ts will give me the opotunity to sail further afield from Hervey bay. Day sails and family over nighters. Kids are 2 and 4 who love the water and our cat. So something more stable and sea kindly is preffered over club racer.
So does a careel 22 sound suitable or are there better options out there? Budget would be 12k. Or am I getting ahead of myself and need to wait until my kids are a little older.
If a careel is a reasonable choice. Are there key things to inspect on them/ common faults?
Cheers.
I would look at something a bit bigger like a sonata 8.
You will want the extra room as the family gets older for overnight.
The Careel 22 looks like the Careel 18 but is a different beast. The 22 has a heavy keel and is inherently safer. Comes in two versions, the long cabin and the short cabin.
Potential problem area is common with all swing keelers, keel pivot wear, and the lifiting mechanism. I believe the 22 was fitted with hydraulic lift, which offers the advantage of positive lock down.
A few years ago C22s were going for circa $20k, but prices have dropped a lot since then.
Starting point for all trailer-sailer purchases is to check the towing capability of your vehicle. Then get a verified towing weight of the boat you are after. Boats larger than 20 ft can easily get up over the 2t mark when loaded and including the trailer.
While not a sonata here are a couple of bigger trailer sailors
26 foot Duncanson Yacht,http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/townsville/sail-boats/26-foot-duncanson-yacht/1118868621?utm_source=com.android.mms&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=socialbuttons&utm_content=app_android
Price: $17,000 Negotiable
sonata 26 1985 trailer sailer - excellent condition,
www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/northcote/sail-boats/sonata-26-1985-trailer-sailer-excellent-condition/1119274503?utm_source=com.android.mms&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=socialbuttons&utm_content=app_android
Sunbird 25ft yacht Caravan on Water,
www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/bairnsdale/sail-boats/sunbird-25ft-yacht-caravan-on-water/1111774447?utm_source=com.android.mms&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=socialbuttons&utm_content=app_android
Price: $16,000 Negotiable
Thanks for the replies. The plan is to store on a trailer at the boat ramp and use an old 80 series land cruiser to tow
gycc, I will echo yara's comments about the CC22, especially in regards to all up weight (boat, trailer,gear) the cruiser should be fine. A strong word of caution THE TRAILER MUST SUPPORT THE HULL IMMEDIATELY EITHER SIDE OF THE STRONG KEEL CASE OR THERE WILL BE UNDUE FORCES PUT ON THE OUTER PARTS OF THE HULL. I have a long cabin version and tow with a 60 series cruiser, it is in very good condition and cost the usually common $10 000 (with a new 15hp motor) at the beginning of this year. I have found it has plenty of space, has a pop-top, is very stable, performs quite adequately, but if you eventually want to move up to a little more 'coastal' cruising it may be safer to go with more length…as suggested by twodogs. Regards Greg
Well the careel I was thinking of got sold before I could view. Was initially a share option that caught my eye. So the pressure is off so to speak and the real search begins. Other ones I'm thinking of were sonata 7. Farr 6 or timpenny 670. Any one want to comment?
The thought of bigger is nice but seems to doubles the budget.
