# New owner of a 1974 Cal 29.



## Seafarer (Aug 26, 2012)

I am a 33 year old guy living in FL, working towards becoming a live-aboard with the goal of selling off all of my land-based belongings (OK, I'll store some of my nicer things at my parent's house) and going cruising.

I recently bought a 1974 Cal 29, which is my fourth "large" sailboat. Previously owned a 1974 Seafarer 24, 1974 Cal Cruising 35 (RIP), and 1982 Island Packet MKI (hull #13, built as a kit).

I purchased it in a marina 60 miles away with an inoperable Atomic 4 inboard, and am currently working on an outboard conversion to a Yamaha 9.9 4-stroke. This will be a semi-permanent installation while I disassemble and remove the A4, then save up for a diesel replacement (thinking a Yanmar 2GM20 would be a good fit). I plan to live aboard near Anna Maria Island, FL.

The man that I bought the boat from lived aboard with a large dog for three years, during which time he never cleaned anything. The boat smells like dog piss and the bilge has dog hair matted an inch deep in it. I spent an entire week cleaning the interior before I was satisfied with it (for now), but I'm afraid there is no saving the foam cushions. They are in great shape, but smell so foul that walking by the boat on the dock is offensive to the senses. I keep all but the V-berth cushions stuffed into the quarter-berths for now, which keeps the airflow around them, and thus the stench of them, down to manageable levels.

I plan to keep most of the systems simple, but along the way will be an new head and holding tank, refrigeration, solar panel installation, dodger / bimini combo, a Cape Horn windvane, and complete re-wiring. Eventually I'd like to remove the fixed windows and install opening ports... but that's near the end of the list.


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## CatMan22 (Apr 16, 2012)

Congrats on the new boat and good luck with the rest of the renovations you plan on.


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## clip68 (Jun 26, 2014)

Congrats on your latest boat, and welcome to SailNet! Don't worry, it only looks like Mos Eisley around here!

-Chris


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## Volksdragon (Aug 14, 2014)

How are you liking it? 
I'm looking at a cal30 right now 
More concerned with blue water capability in storms


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## Seafarer (Aug 26, 2012)

I like it very much! The 29 is pretty well known as a strong, safe boat, with good use of interior space for cruising and living aboard.

There are three completely different Cal 30s, all designed by Bill Lapworth. Not all are equally suitable for offshore work.


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