# Cruising and living on a Bristol 24?



## gtsail (Sep 14, 2017)

My search for a suitable bahamas + caribbean boat continues. I've ruled out the regular out the regular Cape Dory 25 due to insufficient headroom. The 25D's seem hard to come by, and CD27/28 and bigger get up well above $10k for boats in good condition.

Now I've found a bristol 24 in "excellent" condition according to the owner, and these reportedly have 6' of headroom. Spoke to him on the phone and is very knowledgeable about the boat. Interior and woodwork is in good shape, new cushions, recently painted hull.

No problems with the keel like some of these models had (where ballast was concrete/iron, water seeping down, etc). He is not positive but thinks it's lead.

It's an inboard diesel version, running rigging is new, standing rigging is not new but in good condition. Sails are in very good condition. However no roller furling.

Comes with basic electronics like vhf/gps/depth, auto bilge pump. Both auto tiller and wind vane.

No leaks, hull and deck are solid. The starboard bulkhead did suffer some rotting, which he replaced himself. Bristol 24's commonly leaks through the deck where the chainplates are attached to bulkhead.

Asking price is $9k.

- Do you think the asking price is fair?

- Has anyone lived or cruised on a Bristol 24? It's the "dinette" layout with a settee on port side and sink/stove/icebox to starboard. Was it enough space? Could 2 cozy people cruise around on this thing? As of now I'd be single handing, but who knows.

Thanks!


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## Markwesti (Jan 1, 2013)

Sounds good to me , especially the inboard diesel . Price sounds fair but I have not researched it . We semi live on and cruise our boat and it's not much bigger , Could 2 people live on that boat ? Answer of course . Read up on Lin and Larry Pardey . Good luck ! Keep us posted .
http://www.landlpardey.com/
CORSAIR 24 (SAILSTAR) sailboat specifications and details on sailboatdata.com


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## Capt Len (Oct 9, 2011)

Friends (2) lived on and cruised BC coast on 18' Family Cat (Bill Garden) several years. Of course it can be done.


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## capta (Jun 27, 2011)

I just can't imagine a 24' boat would be a comfortable place to live. Sure it is possible, but come on now, you are talking of living in what most folks would think of as closet space. Being on the water is not the easiest existence, but doing so in a boat where the only comfortable place to be is in bed, has got to make it doubly taxing. 
It all looks good and fun from this side of living and cruising a 24' boat, but after 6 months or a year of doing it, I doubt it will look as good.


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## roverhi (Dec 19, 2013)

If the boat is in good condition the asking price is fair. Spent a lot of time over the last six months looking for a less than 29' boat in SoCal and saw a lot of junk. Most were priced lower but would've taken a lot of money to bring up to snuff. Finally found a Sabre 28' with a nearly new diesel, forepeack full of nearly new racing sails, refrigeration, for $9.000.00. Cosmetically in poor shape after some years of neglect because of title issues with deceased owner. 

As far as 24' as a live aboard, for the young and adventurous it will probably work. Personally would want a few more feet if I was going to do more than short 1 week or more cruises. The S28 is a comfortable boat for me to have spent a month or more on but you would give up a ton of storage on a 24' boat in comparison. For one, probably no head or hanging locker. Having said that, the guy next to me has lived on a a 26' Pearson Ariel for over 20 years.


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## JimsCAL (May 23, 2007)

The Bristol 24 is unusual for her size - standing headroom, heavy (6000 lbs), lots of ballast. So definitely more up to what you propose than the typical trailer-sailor in this size range. That said, no way I would want to do it in a boat this small. As was mentioned above, storage is one big problem.


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## mbianka (Sep 19, 2014)

A 1968 Bristol 24 was my first sailboat. Owned it for about ten years. Great boat that I sailed all over Long Island Sound and up into Narragansett Bay with. I'm 6'2" and don't recall ever banging my head down below. Very solid boat but, like was mentioned a previous owner had repaired the bulkhead that the chain plates attached to. A little low on the freeboard but, a solid sailing boat. Thick shallow keel was nice for gunkholing and if you ran aground the boat would just sit there until you got off or the tide came in. Guess how I know.  I did install a roller furling which helped eliminate scary wet sail changes at the bow in rough weather. Mine had no life lines just a bow pulpit. Down below was very comfortable for me and it had a long cockpit that I could stretch out in or carry four people easily. 
Can't comment on the diesel version mine had an outboard in a well. My boat had good storage underneath the cockpit but, I did not have diesel in that area.
It was a basic boat that had everything I needed. I did sail with a friend on some cruises but, you probably would want something bigger if sailing with a life partner on an extended cruise. For single guy with occasional crew it's a nice boat. I have fond memories of my time spent on it.


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## RegisteredUser (Aug 16, 2010)

Crawl around inside one.
See if it would work.
I looked at them long ago and thought they were beautiful.
Minimalist pocket cruiser...
It's small.


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## boatpoker (Jul 21, 2008)

9K is quite optimistic. Here is the soldboats.com data for diesel powered Bristol 24's. As these are now low value boats, not too may show up in brokerage listings anymore.

....... It won't let me upload a pdf. file to this site. Send me a pm with an email address and I will respond with that file.


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## jasonh1965 (Sep 6, 2017)

For comparison, I just bought a Georgina 23. She's very solid and considered a fairly rugged boat. Mine has an inboard diesel, table on one side with galley on other, inboard 5HP diesel, anchor locker, full head with holding tank/pumpout, good sized icebox and shore power. Good sized V berth for sleeping AND 6'1" headroom. Wheel steering is a nice touch as well. Kijiji has one for sale in markham, Ontario, Canada for only $ 4500 CDN. Thats $3500 USD and even comes with a trailer. I wouldn't cross an ocean on her, but I'm told lots of people take them coastal cruising and bahamas. 
Decent storage space. I've considered removing the diesel in favor of an outboard and gaining a bunch more interior space, but for now it runs well so it stays as is.


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## gtsail (Sep 14, 2017)

My plan was, *if* I make an offer, then I'd offer $7k.

I'll pm you boatpoker for the pdf about past selling prices.

My other thought is that perhaps it's best to just continue saving until spring and buy something a little bigger at that point. I wouldn't actually be departing to go south until the end of next summer at the earliest, but I'd like to have something I can live on before May of next year.

At that time I'd be able to afford something more in the $20k range, so something like a Cape Dory 28 or Bristol 27 should be able to be found in good shape. I'd like it to be something with proven offshore potential so that's the pool of boats I'm looking at.

I'm also single 30 year old male right now, so this cruising would be done solo at the moment. The thought of finding some nice lady to join me would be a bonus


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## boatpoker (Jul 21, 2008)

I got your PM but you did not provide an email address for me to send the pdf to.


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## roverhi (Dec 19, 2013)

You might expand your horizons with other models. The older Pearsons like the Triton and Renegade are good boats in the vein of a Cape Dory. There are also boats, some with more modern underbodies, like the Sabre 28, Tartan/Yankee 30, Tartan 27, Columbia 29 etc that are very good boats. I would have bought an S&S designed Columbia 29 but its Palmer gasoline engine looked to be on it's last legs. A bit of a flyer but there is a Vancouver 27 for sale in France for under $20,000, That is a true go anywhere boat that would really be comfortable to live aboard and cruise for years.


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## gtsail (Sep 14, 2017)

A pearson 28 triton in spectacular condition just went for $11,500 and came with a trailer even. Not far from me either. Somehow I didn't see it until today, it was listed for 6 weeks, and just sold yesterday! Darn it.


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## Markwesti (Jan 1, 2013)

Consider this , https://www.popyachts.com/ketch-sailboats-for-sale/tahiti-dreadnought-32-in-napa-california-126241 . I mean were just looking around . I have told myself more than once "if you would just have saved up a little more".


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## gtsail (Sep 14, 2017)

Hmm, here's something I found. A Bristol 27 for $6.5k.

1980 Bristol 27.7 Sloop Sail Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

Doesn't that seem priced a bit too low??


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## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

That is a very nice boat for that price but the price is not all that extremely low. It sounds like the owners are very anxious to sell. Boats of this age generally need a lot of stuff, and depending on what is right or wrong, they can actually have a negative value. I am not saying that is the case here, but the listing says, "Older mainsail and genoa" and the cost of buying new sails for this boat could easily be close the price of the boat. 

The 27.7 was a really nice design for that size and era. By 1980, build quality at Bristol had improved a lot. Its a bit of a shame that this boat has had wheel steering added since these boats did not have a decent cockpit layout for a wheel. Also the geometry of the mainsheet to the traveler is not a very good set up in terms of being able to control sail shape. 

Good luck,
Jeff


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## Captain_Mike13 (Jul 31, 2018)

* The first sailboat that I ever bought was a 1979 24ft San Juan in 2000. I lived on that boat in South Florida for 4 years. You couldn't even stand up inside her. I rode out hurricane Charley in her off of Ft. Myers Beach, FL. in 2004 and Not even a scratch on her from the Hurricane. I have owned several sailboats since then, A 35ft 1966 Ericson/Alberg, a 1969 29ft Columbia, and a 28ft Grampian. I have been Landlocked for the past 8 years in North Dakota. Last week I bought a 1969 Bristol 24 with a 9.9 2012 Merc in the well, 5 sails all in great shape, and she is a beautiful little boat. No Survey, Never have been on or seen the boat except on a live stream over the internet and pictures. I already know she will need some work all old boats need work constantly. I am going to make the V-birth into a composting toilet with a hot and cold pressurized Shower in it. and two hanging lockers behind it. The sailboat is in Maryland and I am currently saving all my money to go get on the boat next March. Lin and Larry Pardey sailed around the world in a 24ft sailboat together so don't let people with 50ft yachts tell you that this or that sailboat is too small because at the end of the day the view off your deck is the same as theirs is. I paid $2000.00 for the Bristol 24 and it is very clean and well taken care of by her owner which was a 71-year-old man who loves the boat. I will be doing a blog and a YouTube channel on my New Sailboat which will be SV Swept Away. I believe you could find a better deal than the one you got listed here, but mine does no have a diesel in it either. However, I did not want one. I like the in the well thing because I know how to rebuild a carb on an outboard and switch impellers out. and I can always buy a brand new motor for $2200.00 and drop it in the well and go. I will be heading to Marathon Key (Boot Key Harbour) next March or April. So if you decide to get one of these Sailboats contact me and we can maybe go sailing sometime? *


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## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

Captain_Mike13 said:


> * . Lin and Larry Pardey sailed around the world in a 24ft sailboat together so don't let people with 50ft yachts tell you that this or that sailboat is too small because at the end of the day the view off your deck is the same as theirs is. *


You do know that there is a huge difference in interior volume, seaworthiness, carrying capacity, etc. between the Pardey's 12,000 lb, boat with its 22 foot waterline and the 5800 lb Bristol with its 18 foot waterline.

Jeff


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## Captain_Mike13 (Jul 31, 2018)

Jeff_H said:


> You do know that there is a huge difference in interior volume, seaworthiness, carrying capacity, etc. between the Pardey's 12,000 lb, boat with its 22 foot waterline and the 5800 lb Bristol with its 18 foot waterline.
> 
> Jeff


 Yes, Jeff, I do realize this they built their sailboat with their hands, of course, it is going to better than any production sailboat in that size range. It was even better than a Dana 24. I, however, have lived on a 1979 24ft San Juan and trust me the Old Bristol is a big upgrade from that! Me being only 5-8 can at least stand up inside of it. It is just me and my puppy a few outfits and a few books. So for me, the sailboat will be just fine. I don't need a ton of space and I spend most of my days outside and in the cockpit, so I basically just sleep inside, otherwise, I am always out and about and doing things. I plan on doing upgrades to the boat too. At the end of the day, it will be fine for just me and my dog.


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## Jeff_H (Feb 26, 2000)

The most important criteria in evaluating any boat is that its owner likes her for the way that owner uses her. In that regard, you seem to have owned the perfect boats, and that is very good thing! 

Jeff


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## drakes (Mar 31, 2017)

I lived on a Bristol 24 for about a year. It sailed pretty well and felt VERY safe. It was a solid little boat. Mine had the outboard well which I liked Started in St Pete - sailed straight to Key West for about 6 months in a Marina then went to Marathon and lived another 6 or so on the ball in BKH I loved the boat. But it was just me and I lived pretty simple. I also ate a lot of meals on shore. I rarely used the head on the boat. It was a great boat for the Keys and for me at the time. I am not sure I would of sold it but I found a Pacific Seacraft Maraiah 31 at a price I just couldnt pass up so I bought it and sold the Bristol. The Bristol was actually a better liveaboard for what I was doing at the time. It was easier to maneuver and anchor single handed and much easier to get on and off of from the Dinghy. Irma ended up taking the Mariah and I have had a couple boats since. I miss the Bristol some times but I have gotten used to having a little more space and I have some plans for some Carribean cruising that I think the extra capacity will be useful.


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## Lazerbrains (Oct 25, 2015)

I owned a B24 and it was a great boat for it's size. Good headroom and all berths are 6' 6". 
I am a minimalist at heart, but would say that lack of storage led me to move up to 30' boat.
I think it would be hard to livaboard a B24 and carry the needed spares.


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