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E30-2 or Tartan 30

debonAir

Member III
The more boats you look at the more you'll have that aha moment when you find "the one". There are a lot of things you can put on a check-list but those are all things you'll have to replace or repair on all boats at some point and can all be part of negotiation. They're all holes in the water we pour money and effort into and that one day when you realize you've got your 30 footer "just right" will usually be the day you start searching for that boat five feet longer so you can take the kids a bit further and bring their friends, or spend an extra night or two in a new port. The one thing you have to make sure of is that you like the looks of her. Everything else can be fixed.
 

Loren Beach

O34 - Portland, OR
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Agree with debonAir. Many years ago I read an article about yacht design by Robert Perry.
After talking about sailing design, build, and the interior that suits you, finally he cited his "Row Away" factor.
i.e. when you row away from your anchored boat and look back, does it look "right"... ! And, make you smile.
:)
Ericson's are not the only ones with a very high rating by this measure, but are among the best group.

For comparison, I have some pix from the NW Rendezvous and would have to concede that our Olson is more of a 'severe' design and less 'beautiful' than the BK Ericson's. But I console myself with the adage that 'beauty is as beauty does'!
Our recent re-fit reinforced the presumed knowledge that EY built our whole boat to a very high standard, waaaaay above the cheaper ones from some builders that shall remain unnamed.
And we like it's looks, so it's all somewhat subjective anyway.
:egrin:
 

Pete the Cat

Member III
Watched the video. Very odd choices for a boat to go to the Arctic IMHO--while folks have done transatlantic crossings in less--he is going to need fuel and storage just to keep warm and moving (I have only sailed to Newfoundland and it is a challenge because you cannot depend on the wind during navigable monthsand it is freaking cold beyond belief) and I don't see how that could fit in that volume.. I mean, we all have our ideas and differences, but this seems weird. You should note that the boatyards and Youtube are filled with folks whose dreams greatly exceed the reality that follows. I recommend MaineSail's Youtube channel for "how to" videos--he is a bit OCD but he is someone who has been there, done that and he has a gift to make basic maintenance and repair issues clear. If you are just starting out, I think a big challenge is being able to predict how you will actually use the boat--as opposed to dreams of tropical isles many of us started out with- this reality is the most important thing. I see a lot of folks who just seem to be outfitting a marina bound boat with all kinds of offshore stuff that they seem to have no actual plan to use. This guy at least has a plan and is allowing the kind of time that will be required to get it up to his standards. I support your analysis of the challenges you face and your commitment to go slow. Good boats are hard to find but worth the wait.
I use my Tartan 37 for. cruises along the Maine and Nova Scotia coasts in the summer and early Fall--I often sail overnight and multiple day passages and am gone for a couple weeks at a time and take a sailing buddy with me so its size, complex systems, and sea kindliness is appreciated. I sail my Ericson mostly in San Francisco Bay and the very occasional overnight coastal trip and mostly by myself--so being a few feet shorter and several tons lighter is just right. That means I don't need the Tartan's windlass, diesel forced air heater, refrigeration, under deck autopilot (a wheel pilot does fine), on the Ericson. So buying and equipping for the way you really use a boat to me is key. But you knew all that.
 

TrueBlue

Member II
Yeah Pete I don't think he uses any engine on that Junksail setup and he usually goes for 60-70 day passages. He said the extra 4ft. of line on water allowed him .5 more knots which would give him 1000nm more of range to explore over that period of time. And yeah its freezing thats why he uses the Junksail with his doghouse lookout so its not necessary for him to do on deck to control ship. Its not my type of sailing but I appreciate learning from others solutions to unique problems.

Btw having a Boat on each coast must be pretty awesome!

Oh and I thought too long on the Tartan 30 so he sold it to someone else. So I guess this is where the saying "That Ship Has Sailed" would be appropriate lol.
 

goldenstate

Sustaining Member
Blogs Author
I also do not like the sloped side deck house on the Ericson (maybe yours is different) and prefer the flat cabin top of the Tartan because it makes working on the mast and main sail less dangerous--less likely to slip off it.
I initially loathed the sloped side deck of the cabin house. It is a liability when the boat is at rest in the slip on a wet morning and I am scrambling around.

I have decided however, that angle isn't at all designed for the marina. It's for when she's heeled over 15 degrees, slicing water, and I need to saunter up to the mast to see about something. Then, the slope is perfect.

When I step up cautiously on it in the harbor, it's my gentle reminder I should be out sailing.
 

Kenneth K

1985 32-3, Puget Sound
Blogs Author
So buying and equipping for the way you really use a boat to me is key. But you knew all that.
True in the practical sense maybe, but I think that's putting a higher standard on boat purchases than on our other forms of consumption. Nobody really needs to go from zero to sixty in under three seconds; most four wheel drives are habitually operated on dry pavement; and who really uses all 12 rooms of their 4000 sq ft home. A boat is, more than anything else, a pastime for most of us. To some extent, frivolity is the point.
 
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