# Hunter 28.5 1985 buy or not to buy



## MishaB (Mar 14, 2012)

Hi, I’m new to sailing planning to buy Hunter 28.5 1985. I will see it coming Sunday. I have seen review on 29.5 but nothing 28.5. So far I have seen these comments:
… Hunter 28.5 not designed, or pretends to be, bluewater boat. Flirting with a Hunter 28.5… I have been really impressed with just how fast the Hunter 28.5 will accelerate when light winds puff up just a bit. But if you are going upwind against a nasty chop, this boat will certainly pound... All of the people I know who’ve owned this boat (and sail it in ways for which it was designed) rate it quite highly. There is an article “Flirting with a Hunter 28.5,” I can’t find online.

I’m planning to shuttle from Boston to Miami and back. Thinking, will take two weeks. In Miami, I'm planning to live on boat. I'm 5'10" tall. Assuming it’s not in a bluewater, what problem in a boat, besides normal wear and tear, should I look for? Any thoughts?


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## sailingfool (Apr 17, 2000)

Boat Review* by David Pascoe - Hunter 28

To each their own.


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## blt2ski (May 5, 2005)

THere is one of these in my marina. Overall, reasonably quick. Not sure I would want "THIS" sized boat be it a Hunter, or my Jeanneau of the same basic dimension's to live on for a few months of the year. But it could be doable. I do know of one person living year around and has been with the same model as mine. I do not have hot water/shower, where as the Hunter does.

I would think this boat would manage going N and S on the ICW. I know of a 37' that the owner has had since new, been from the PNW to mexico and back 3-4 times. I want to say 2 times on its own, the other two for various and sundry reason, mostly age and time contraints they trucked it to and from. I also know of a 54' on that went to and from on its hull too. Not sure I would do so on this coast with a 28' version.

I also know of very few that own Hunters that do not generally speaking like them. With that in mind, do as you wish, and enjoy which ever brand and size you buy with in your budget.

Marty


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## Faster (Sep 13, 2005)

MishaB said:


> Hi, I'm new to sailing planning to buy Hunter 28.5 1985. ........
> I'm planning to shuttle from Boston to Miami and back. Thinking, will take two weeks. ......


Do you mean you're planning to go from Boston to Miami on the boat? and back in 2 weeks?

Despite Pascoe's semi-infamous review I think that Hunters can do the coastal cruising duty well enough as long as, as with any boat, it's been maintained and looked after. I quite like the styling of the 80s/90s Legend series', not so much the later ones, but that's a personal subjective thing.

So if you like the look, the feel, and the cockpit/deck setup, and the price is right, and the survey turns up no red flags, go for it.. but there are plenty of other boats that would fill the bill just as well or better.


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## MishaB (Mar 14, 2012)

Faster said:


> Do you mean you're planning to go from Boston to Miami on the boat? and back in 2 weeks?
> 
> Despite Pascoe's semi-infamous review I think that Hunters can do the coastal cruising duty well enough as long as, as with any boat, it's been maintained and looked after. I quite like the styling of the 80s/90s Legend series', not so much the later ones, but that's a personal subjective thing.
> 
> So if you like the look, the feel, and the cockpit/deck setup, and the price is right, and the survey turns up no red flags, go for it.. but there are plenty of other boats that would fill the bill just as well or better.


Thank you both of you, for the advices. I mean 2 weeks one way. I'm planning to spend max $20k on the boat, but I have to live on board for at least 5 months (in Florida) between the voyages. If not the h28.5 what would you recommend in this price range? I'm handy with houses, work with computers and can dig out information, but obviously, did not work with boats. I would like something to be able to use right the way and work on improvements slowly. I'm taken classes now and want to put new knowledge to work ASAP.


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## Tanley (Aug 20, 2009)

If looking for a 28', my biased advice would be a 1986-1989 Cal 28-2. Watch Craig's List as there was an owner on the Cape with one in seemingly good shape within your budget. There are a couple for sale in NY, check out sailboat listings.com and yachtworld.

However, at a budget of $20K and this market, you're options are plentiful for newer and/or larger vessels.

Good luck.


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## Faster (Sep 13, 2005)

MishaB said:


> ...... If not the h28.5 what would you recommend in this price range? ......


Here's a YW search for the US Northeast with for $16000 cap, 1980-1990 to leave you some spending money...

1980 (Sail) Cruiser/Racer Boats For Sale

Quite frankly the Catalina 30 is hard to beat for the money for a decent cruiser, esp with liveaboard plans.


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## blt2ski (May 5, 2005)

Looking at Fasters list, the Cat 30 is probably the best boat for the size etc, if you can find a clean one. other brands I would look at include the Sabre, Ericson, Islander, Pearson except the "flyer" ie a flat deck not a lot of room down below to live on/in, O'Day. All boats above 28'. Some of the 27's might work. The boat brand list is not in any kind of order. Like all things that are this old, buy the cleanest one you can for the buck. It could also be worth looking at boats up to say 20-22K list, and possibly negotiate your way down to say 20K. This might open up a few more options in this size and price range.

The Jeanneau Fantasia good wood work inside etc, I have an Arcadia from that time frame. overall well built, but they do have some issues if it has not been fixed of the foam back hull liner being rotted, and falling off. Not hard to fix, but a pain. I've done it! Otherwise, most reviews from that time frame are positive.

Jeanneau, like O'Day, Catalina, and Ericson have a reasonably large'ish owners forums available to get info. Islander is hit and miss right now, there was a good site, it went down, someone was trying to get the info from that person, and get it back up online. 

Not sure about Sabre, Pearson or J-boat. J-boat "should" have something, but not sure. The 29's you see are outboard versions of the J30, the 29 is more race than cruise frankly. A 30 has some ability to race, but like a lot of older J's, many have been raced hard and put away wet!

marty


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## Sanduskysailor (Aug 1, 2008)

You have got some confusing information here. The 28 mentioned in the review is not the 28.5 which is an entirely different boat. There is a Hunter 28.5 forum with more info on the boat. Hunter 28.5
The price seems a little steep at $20K. Depending on the condition price should be between 12 and 18 K. I would imagine a boat in Miami would have the usual salt water and sun ageing conditions.

2 weeks from Miami to New York on the ICW is a little tight. Since you are only running in daylight that means about 100/mi day which probably is not realistic at 6knot motoring speed, waits for bridges etc. Obviously the Yanmar 2GMF-20 needs to be in top shape with a recent oil change and new filters, the shaft aligned and the engine aligned. The bottom should also have been recently painted and clean for the trip. You also would need some engine spares to be safe like primary, secondary filters and belts. My guess that your plan would be a touch ambitious with an untested boat. You could go offshore for stretches and with the right weather window and Gulfstream conditions you could make it. I wouldn't with a boat new to you. Too many things can go wrong with a boat that you don't have experience with and an intimate knowledge of its history.

I've sailed a Hunter 28.5 and they nice performing boats although not up to offshore conditions. Gelcoat cracks at the chainplates and stanchions are pretty common. Additional areas of concern are the cast iron keel and deck compression issues due to leakage around the wiring at the mast.

For the money you are looking at I'd also look at some better built boats C&C 29-2, Cal 28-2, later model Sabre 28, Tartan 28, later model Catalina 30. Pearson 28-2.

You might even consider a freshwater (Great lakes) boat and pay to have it trucked. You will save a lot of time and money in the future not having to deal with some of the ageing issues common in saltwater boats.

Good luck.


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## CliffRuckstuhl (Oct 21, 2009)

I owned a H 28.5 named Red Dog sailed it all over the place on Lake Erie, heads to small for room to sit but that's it. After a while I hated the V berth set up. The boat sails well to it's PHRF number will out point most all boats in it's class. Cast iron keel, rusts knock off the rust and just paint it every year. We lived on ours every weekend did a weeks vacation over all was a good boat. I would look at the J 30, I now have a J 29 and LOVE the J 29. J 30 is 30/seconds a mile faster then the H 28.5 the J 30 is by far a superior built boat. It will out sail the H 28.5 all day. Say your needing to sail a 1000 miles and with the J 30 you can average 2 knots faster. So were taking 1000 miles dividing it by 4 knots for the H 28.5 and we get 250 hours. In the J 30 were doing 6 knots and dividing it by 1000 miles and we do the same trip in 84 hours less. Now lets throw in that the J 30 will plain and the H 28.5 will not and we can average 1 knot fast over the same 1000 miles and we now knock another 23 hours off the same trip so were now 4 1/2 days faster. The J 30 is 6 inches wider a little longer has better resale value and is a great boat. There is a reason why J Boats has such a loyal following there great boats. Ive owned 3 J 29's (Long story) we got out of sailing for a year and my wife was the one who wanted us to buy another boat. She said, I don't care what boat we buy as long as it's a J Boat. WOW what wife says that? Hunters tend to have allot of free-board the distance between the deck and the water. The 28.5 has 8 inches more freeboard then the J 30 and 12 inches more then the J 29 what this translates into is when the boat is heeled on the H 28.5 it will feel like it is going to roll over and then the Toe Rails gets wet your heeled quite a bit and it feels like your 15 feet off the water and for some it's rather unsettling. On our J 29 my wife would not even notice we have the toe rail in the water because the boat is so wide and has such less freeboard. So take a good look at the J 30 and if possible sail on the H 28.5 then sail on a J 30 or similar type boat. So much of the time people look at just the interior of a boat and don't pay much attention to how a boat sail's. The boats Hunter build now seem to be more focused being a condo rather then a sailboat. But the H 28.5,H31,H34,H35.5 and the 37.5 are boats with some nice lines.

Cliff


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## MishaB (Mar 14, 2012)

Hi guys, thank you for the detailed responses. Cliff you are right, I did have uncomfortable feeling when H28.5 heeled, that we are going to roll over. It takes time to get used to. I'm actually fascinated now by 29' Columbia 8.7: the woodwork quality, the cabin size and abilities Columbia 8.7 Specifications. Unfortunately I do not see J 29 on sale in South Florida. I think I can get Columbia around $12k. What do you think?


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## CliffRuckstuhl (Oct 21, 2009)

Now your going in the wrong direction for distance traveled per day. PHRF for the 8.7 is 222 and the H 28.5 was a 177 and the J 30 a 147 all Lake Erie #'s. This is where the Slow Boat to China really means something with the Columbia 8.7, If you bought the boat for $12K it is quite possible it needs a complete re-fit. New Standing rigging and running rigging and now we just spent maybe $3-5K. Since your thinking of going from the New England area to Florida then open your search to the New England area as well. A boat from the Great Lakes or the Atlantic North will have so much less wear and tear on it compared to a boat from the South. As you know the boats up North sit on the Hard for a good 5-6 months so that's 5-6 months less use per year. 

We do a 2 week vacation on our J 29 and I have friends that climb on board and they wonder how we do 2 weeks, because we don't have all the furniture that they do. My wife sums it up pretty simple J 29 living is like tent living and a big cruiser is like motor home living. You would be amazed at how much distance we can put on some of these big cruising boats. We have some friends who have a Beneteau 36.3 with a roller furling main head sail and a 3 bladed prop and another set with a Hunter 333 and just doing a local port to port sail we will be at the marina hours before them and if it was a beat all the way there then were really talking hours. The J 29 can really go to weather. Another factor is how well the boat can point, one that don't make for very long trips and sometimes being out on the water for now with the Columbia 8.7 5-6 days longer could mean the difference of being in a very bad storm to not.

Cliff


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## CliffRuckstuhl (Oct 21, 2009)

One other thing it's not really a $12K boat, it's a $18K boat you just haven't spent the other $6K yet. The thing with old cruising boats is the owners don't keep them up dated. They have old rigging old sail's and old motors. If they did up date them then they would want more money for it. I just bought my J 29 over the winter it came with 3 Mains 8 head sails and 3 spinnakers, previous one I bought came with 19 sail's. So I was siting good for sail's for along time. You truly get what you pay for and with old boats you get old roller furling original sail's and old instruments and just plain old everything. So a lower priced boat really is not the deal it seems. 

Cliff


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## Sanduskysailor (Aug 1, 2008)

I know C-Rock and a lot of what he says is true. No doubt that the J29 and J-30 are better sailing boats than the 28.5. If you want to race they are usually a better choice. If you are doing coastal cruising it is not necessarily so. The J's tend to be beat on a little more. Although the J's construction is robust the execution was lacking a little in these 80s boats. It is hard to find a J-30 under $30,000 that does not have core problems and delamination in the transom and deck. Rudder problems are another area on these boats. Even C-Rock has had to do some core replacement on the Js he has owned.

The performance of the J's comes at a price in comfort and accommodations. The low freeboard of both the 29 and 30 makes for a wet ride. As they were originally designed as race boats they require a bit of crew as moveable ballast to keep them flat. This partially offset by the fact that you can sail both the 29 & 30 under main alone in moderate to heavy winds. Both the 29 and 30 *do not meet the stability index for offshore racing*. That does not mean they are not relative stiff but it does mean they do not recover well from a capsize.

The J-30 has a reasonably spacious interior relative to the 28.5. The J-29 is a tent camper. Another thing to remember is that all of these boats motor at about the same speed. The 28.5 has an 18hp Yanmar, the 30 has a 13hp Yanmar and the 29 inboard has an 8hp yanmar. If you are considering sailing the boat back from Miami, the 29 with a 8 hp motor in the ICW would be annoying at best.

As a newbie the J-29 and 30 might be a little bit more difficult to manage. BTW- My buddy had a Columbia 8.7. Wide body cruiser. Heavy duty hardware. "Wineglass" transom makes the boat a bit "rolly" with a following sea. He had bulkhead delamination at the chainplates, deck cracks and rudder problems with his before he got rid of it. Boat was not a responsive sailing boat.

Cal 28-2, C&C 29-2, Tartan 28 are all viable alternatives to a 28.5. If you are performance oriented, a S2 9.1 is a good alternative to the J-30 and faster too.


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## CliffRuckstuhl (Oct 21, 2009)

Sandusky Sailor knows I am a J Boat guy I love my J 29. The C&C 29-2 is a nice boat as well S 2 9.1 very nice as well. Yes the J 30 and the S 2 9.1 are more performance oriented there more of a racing direction where as the other boats mentioned are more of a cruising direction. Just get on one or all of them and keep in mind what you will doing more with the boat. 

C Rock


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## MishaB (Mar 14, 2012)

You may think I'm crazy, but I have seen today a Golden Hind 1975. What a beauty! 
&#8230;The original design, drawn up by Maurice Griffiths, was commissioned in 1965 by a British coffin manufacturer, Hartwell's, that decided to try its hand at boatbuilding. They built 120 Golden Hinds in plywood over six years, whereupon their yard manager, Terry Erskine, took over in 1971 and began building the boat with a fiberglass hull and a wood deck and cabinhouse. Erskine closed up shop in the early 1980s, but in 1995 production was resumed by Golden Hind Marine. Using Erskine's molds they built only a few fancier, more modern "Mark II"... Do not forget that I have to live on board for 4 month. Its not a fastest boat, but in this boat I can go around the world. No doubts about it. I may get one for $9500. I know its hard to get parts for the original engine, the cabin built from solid mahogany... Look at this one: 1969 Golden Hind sailboat for sale in Massachusetts
not the one I can get. Don't look like a coffin.


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## CliffRuckstuhl (Oct 21, 2009)

Yup I think your crazy and the phrase "Lead Sled" comes to mind. Only way that boat is going to get from Boston to Miami in 2 weeks is by truck.


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## Faster (Sep 13, 2005)

MishaB said:


> You may think I'm crazy, but I have seen today a Golden Hind 1975. What a beauty!


Misha, with respect.... If you go from a H28 to a Golden Hind within a week or two it's clear you don't really have an idea of what kind of boat you want/need nor, likely, a clear sense of what the differences would be.

If I had to go with a half glass/half wood boat it would most certainly be a wooden hull with a glass deck, not the other way around. Do the "Mark IIs" have glass decks?

Purchase price is important because you need to have a budget and know what you can afford, but before you get there you really need to figure out what kind of boating you want to do, where you want to do it and what type of boat suits that best.

I think more research is in order..


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## MishaB (Mar 14, 2012)

Ok, common sense coming back, thanks to you, guys. Today I’m going to look into 1982 O’Day 30’. According to owner, for last 10 years, it was barely used, only regularly maintained. It’s around 15k. May be I can bring to 14K. I will go through the boat using list of checks I have compiled from different sources. This type of boat should not have many problems, according to reviews.

Material
Stick with fiberglass construction if you're a beginner -- most wooden boats require a good deal more maintenance and care, and damage and rot in wooden boats can be hard to find without a massive teardown and/or lots of professional experience.
2
Check for: boat pox (blisters on the bottom); spongy deck; leaking chainplates; water running down the inside from the hull-deck joint; severe cracks around deck fittings and mast step; fittings pulling out of the deck; large gelcoat gouges below the waterline; cracks along the top of keel; wobbly rudder; wobbly driveshaft. These are all potentially expensive fixes.
3
If the gelcoat looks dull or faded, make sure it just needs a polish and not a new paint job.
EditDeck and Cabin hammer-Sounding a Hull (Tap-Test)
Do my best
In cabin sailboats, much more damage involves leakage of rainwater from above than seawater from below. Check for signs of leaking decks and cabintops, such as streaks, stains and mildew inside the cabin. Watch for gobs of sealant around the portlights (windows), which is a sign that somebody has been chasing down leaks.
2
Leaking decks can lead to very expensive damage to the deck itself and to bulkheads below. Many fiberglass boats have decks with plywood or balsawood core material. If water has leaked in around improperly sealed deck fittings, the plywood or balsawood core of the deck may have delaminated and rotted. If you find spots or areas of the deck that are mushy in the least, run away. This is a huge pain to fix.
1.	3
Water damage and rot in the interior bulkheads and woodwork may cause more than cosmetic damage. In some boats, the chainplates (attachments for the rigging that holds up the mast) are attached to plywood bulkheads inside the cabin. In some boats, the interior woodwork holds up a deck-stepped mast. If such structural woodwork is water damaged, rotted, or otherwise unsound, be alarmed.
Engine
1.	1
Steer clear of rare or very old engines unless you're certain there's an adequate supply of parts.
2.	2
Do the Smoke Test: healthy diesels make small amounts of black smoke with some white on cold starts. Sick ones make blue or continuous white. Diesels are generally robust but require a strict schedule of oil changes. Bonus points for proof of maintenance.
3.	3
Check for fuel leaks and a working bilge blower in gasoline engines. Again, bonus points for maintenance records and a spare parts kit. Common ailments of gas engines: wet or worn-out electrical, bad points and plugs.
4.	4
Before the seller cranks the engine, check to see if it is already warm. If the seller took the trouble to warm up the engine before showing you the boat, it may be hard to start the engine when cold.
Sails and Rigging
1.	1
Take all of the sails out of their bags and spread them out. Look for chafing, repairs, stretches, pulled-out stitches and broken slides. Mildew is harmless but tough to get rid of. Check spinnakers for excessive bagginess. Hoist the windward sails and check for excessive draft and stretch. Remember that replacing the sails can cost you half the price of an old sailboat.
2.	2
Rigging will show the general quality of the boat's maintenance. You can pretty much count on replacing a lot of rigging on any old boat, though. Check for worn pins and shackles, unraveling wire, broken blocks, worn-out lines. These items are relatively easy to fix and replace, however. Winches should work smoothly, but if they don't, you can almost always get them running right with a quick cleaning and greasing.
3.	3
If possible, hoist all the sails and work all the halyards, sheets, winches and furlers.
Troubleshooting
1.	1
Check the wiring -- it's commonly done by people who have no clue about what they're doing. If you have no clue, then get an expert.
2.	2
Check seacocks. Beware if they're seized open.
3.	3
Look for leaks around portholes and hatches.
4.	4
Work the engine controls; cables and linkages should move smoothly. If possible, do a battery load test.
5.	5
Check spreader and mast lights. Listen for wires banging around inside the mast -- a sure way to lose a night's sleep.
6.	6
Dodgers and other canvas get bonus points for being Sunbrella and having unfogged plastic windows .
7.	7
Make sure safety equipment complies with government regs and in good condition. In the galley, the propane or CNG should be installed properly.
8.	8
Ensure that the bilge doesn't smell like a bilge.


Anything missing?


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## CliffRuckstuhl (Oct 21, 2009)

Looks like that will cover it, "GET IT SURVEYED" this alone will answer all your questions. It will cost about $500.00 or so for a survey. Get a surveyor who is a sailor be there when it's surveyed and check out the surveyor ask for references. Plus when the surveyor finds problems and he will this is a tool to get the price to where it should be. It is a buyers market if it comes through the survey ok and the asking price is $15K I would offer maybe $10K and buy it for around $12K. You can always go up on your offer but once you make that offer you can't go back down. IT IS A BUYERS MARKET, it will need new sail's and all new running rigging. I would bet it has all original sail's I would get a quote from a sailmaker for new sail's.


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## MishaB (Mar 14, 2012)

Surprisingly guy was very supportive and I spent 2 and half hours going through the list. Tapping the service of the deck, I found a few places where balsa has been damaged from the leaks and a few seacocks did not work. He admitted that she has leaks around the mast. I have seen a few spider webs cracks which exposed the balsa to water. Overall its very clean and sound boat, but no way I will pay $15k for her. I offered $13K but he was firm on 15K. Apparently he feels no presser to sell. Not a motivated seller. I do not know how to fix spider cracks and not sure how much damaged the deck. To replace seacocks she has to be taken out of water. I would say, I have a good time and learned a lot from the guy. He has explained to me every pipe and every piece of equipment. Most important, I have surprised myself with patient and determination to found problems on her. The owner actually agreed with me on every issue I had found. After all he basically said that the boat is not perfect and I should not expect it for the price. So I will keep looking…


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## Faster (Sep 13, 2005)

"Spider cracks" on older boats are not at all unusual, and they rarely penetrate beyond the surface gel coat to allow water into the deck coring.. if indeed water is getting through these cracks they are far beyond the normal to-be-expected 'crazing'.

Worrying about hauling the boat to fix certain issues like seacocks is not really an issue - you're going to have to haul her anyway, and chances are (normally) you can negotiate part of that cost with the seller since it's something a proper survey should bring to the fore in any event.

Sellers with 'firm' prices on old boats that have some issues will succumb to reality eventually.. so maybe don't write him off just yet. At the same time there are lots of boats out there these days..


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## CliffRuckstuhl (Oct 21, 2009)

One thing to remember is that the price range your looking in are 30 year old boats. There is nothing wrong with this my J 29 is an 83. If you find a boat has some wet deck like you did on the Oday 30 then you have a few choices do nothing and the wet core will get wetter, get the area repaired and live with how it looks or get it repaired and re do the entire deck. I went went with the fixing my wet balsa core and having the deck repainted. It is not cheap and you could spend $5K-8K real fast but there are ways to do it cheaper. If you had a shop fix the wet core you could then use Kiwi Grip for the non skid and then paint the smooth portions with some 2 part polyurethane. Its not all that hard to do, I did it on a previous J 29. 

I really think you need to settle in on a design look at all of them and find which one you like best and the search for the best one of that design. Remember some boats were made to be like condos down below and some were made to sail very well. Everything is a trade off and the designers are trying to squeeze allot of space into 30 feet. Key thing to do is to actually sit in the head like your using it. The head on the 28.5 seemed to be made to fit a 13 year old my shoulders almost touched the walls on both sides.


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## CliffRuckstuhl (Oct 21, 2009)

So what happened with this?


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## MishaB (Mar 14, 2012)

I will look into “1980 Beneteau First, 30ft. in excellent condition. Two suits of sails(one new). Brand new reconditioned Yanmar diesel engine (zero hours). Auto pilot never used. New head stay and roller reefing foil. V.H.F. radio, full enclosed head and galley. Cockpit cushions and bumpers anchor and chain. Sleeps seven. Reasonably priced at $8,000.” 
Reading about her, I have found that is not the best model. Recommended models are start with 34’ footer and up. The guy owned it for 6 years and as you see did some work. I read somewhere that Beneteau First had stress fatigue cracks and keel is iron and needs to have 4 layers of epoxy. If I like her, I will definitely do survey. This is not the fastest boat, but I can liveaboard on this one. As I have mentioned before, I would like to shuttle from Cape Cod (MA) to Miami. First time I would like to go through inter coast. I can’t find any information on the ICW to go. Is anybody can outline navigation? Thank you in advance.


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