Sailing Magazine - Retrofits https://sailingmagazine.net/articles.sec-124-1-retrofits.html Thu, 18 Apr 24 00:00:00 -0400 en hourly 1 RETROFITS: Bristol 32 - A classic, tough boat becomes a pleasure to sail with cruise-worth upgrades https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1705-retrofits-bristol-32.html  The search for a vintage Bristol 32 sloop took us to six states by road trip and to three others via online research. We wanted the boat that has often been called the little sister to the class...]]> RETROFITS: Manta 42 MkII - Comfortable two-hull cruising awaits after a refit focused on warm-water sailing https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1706-retrofits-manta-42-mkii.html  Multihulls have never been more popular. In-water boat shows now dedicate huge amounts of space to them and sailors are interested in them for more than just chartering. Sailors who want to spen...]]> RETROFITS: Catalina 36 MkII - A perfect weekend cruiser in good shape gets performance-minded upgrades https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1707-retrofits-catalina-36-mkii.html  The Catalina 36 hits a sweet spot among weekend cruisers. It’s big enough to be comfortable and capable, but small enough to easily manage it shorthanded and it comes at an approachable price....]]> Our annual guide to retrofitting - Bringing new life to older boats https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1708-our-annual-guide-to-retrofitting.html  Our annual guide to retrofitting features three boats. Click below to go to the stories.Bristol 32Manta 42 MkIICatalina 36 MkII...]]> Marshall 22 Catboat https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1563-marshall-22-catboat.html  It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what drew me to a catboat, and specifically a Marshall 22. Perhaps it was some romantic notion conjured from gazing at an Edward Hopper or Winslow Homer painting,...]]> Cal 33 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1564-cal-33.html Some boats are meant for a lot of daysailing, a little bit of cruising and maybe one longer cruise a year in nearby waters. That’s where a boat like the Cal 33 comes in.  The ...]]> Swan 46 MK I https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1565-swan-46-mk-i.html  If you had to choose a modern manufacturer and a designer with a timeless sense of style, the combination of German Frers and Swan would be at the top of the list. Swans are expensive boats beca...]]> Bayfield 25 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1418-bayfield-25.html A trailerable cruiser gets rehauled DIY style When Madison, Wisconsin, resident Barb Constans and her partner Deb Rohde were preparing to downsize from their Southern Cross 31 Tao they had a few specific criteria: Their new boat needed to be trailerable, offer standing headroom, have a classic look and the versatility required for bluewater sailing (no small feat for a trailerable boat), and it h...]]> Tayana 52 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1419-tayana-52.html A sturdy bluewater cruiser gets the upgrades it needs for a once-in-a-lifetime trip After many years of dreaming about a great sailing trip, our sailboat kitty was finally big enough to get a boat that we could really stretch our legs on. The rough plan is to take a yearlong sabbatical, head across the Atlantic in late May, spend the summer in the Western Med, the winter in the Caribbean and be...]]> Beneteau Oceanis 430 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1420-beneteau-oceanis-430.html A new engine bring a roomy production boat back to life After a protracted "been-there done-that" discussion over whether to buy another bargain-priced, classic plastic, full-keel sloop in need of TLC, we knew it was time for something different. Although I'll always appreciate vintage vessels-especially those with graceful sheerlines and long overhangs, decks gleaming with varnished wood and s...]]> Hobie 33 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1295-hobie-33.html An aging speedster gets go-fast upgrades for family racingThe first production ultralight displacement boats are turning 30 years old, and that means their price is finally down in the ultra-affordable range. I bought a 1986 Hobie 33 in New England for $23,000, dreaming of 20-knot surfs and front-of-the beer-can-fleet finishes, but its ancient sails and knotty foils needed replacement or repair, a...]]> Catalina 42 mkII https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1296-catalina-42-mkii.html The North Channel of Lake Huron has been calling, and it has been a longtime dream to spend a few summers exploring this great wilderness. We wanted a boat that was comfortable, capable and able to carry all of our cruising toys. The North Channel is mostly secluded wilderness, but it is fairly protected as well, so we were willing to trade the robustness of an offshore passagemaker for some of th...]]> Star https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1297-star.html A wooden Etchells-built boat is revived by a novice to the classFew one-design boats boast the pedigree of the Star. Designed in 1911 by Francis Sweisguth, who later designed the Interlake dinghy, the sloop-rigged, two-person, 22-foot keelboat is one of the world's oldest one-designs. It's also the oldest Olympic-class vessel, participating in its first Olympic Games in 1932. The history of Star ...]]> Hobie 16 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1178-hobie-16.html I went looking for a beach cat to sail at my lake cottage in northern Michigan. After a bunch of Craigslist searches and going to look at several boats, I found a sweet little Hobie 16 near Chicago. The Hobie 16 is the original beach cat, the one that started it all. Production started in 1969 and continues today. The boats are fast, fun, and pretty tough; the perfect boat for the kids to bang aro...]]> Bristol 24 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1179-bristol-24.html When the cruising bug bit hard, my wife and I dreamed enough about sailing away from it all to actually go boat shopping. The problem was we had very limited funds. A brand-new boat was out of the question, but a perusal of used-boat websites indicated that finding the right full-keel heavy displacement pocket cruiser might be possible. Ultimately, we decided on a Bristol 24, also known as a Bris...]]> Nelson/Marek 43 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1180-nelson_marek-43.html After years of racing we are looking to slow down a little and do some cruising with a bit of weekend and beer can racing thrown in, but we are not willing to give up good performance. We are looking for a performance boat that we can comfortably cruise, but of course comfortable is a relative term. We target the IMS boats of the 1990s, as these were good-sailing seakindly boats. Our search leads...]]> Morgan Out Island 51 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1181-morgan-out-island-51.html The Morgan Out Island 51 has a reputation it does not deserve. Many sailors think of it as something of a tub, a glorified houseboat with masts, a dockside condo at best, and just a bigger version of the original and much maligned Morgan Out Island 41. This misconception makes the Morgan OI 51 a terrific value on the secondhand market. The OI 51 is a roomy, capable cruiser that performs decently, ...]]> Tartan 40 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-997-tartan-40.html Classic S&S-inspired design moves on to a new life as a world cruiser F riends in Miami just purchased a handsome 1989 Tartan 40. The successful sea trial and survey were the culmination of a systematic, two-year plan to find the right boat for extended cruising. Ricardo Paris attended my boat buyer's workshop a couple of years ago and we discussed his sailing agenda. He wanted to spend...]]> Marshall 22 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-999-marshall-22.html

 Style, substance and smooth sailing come in a compact package perfect for sprucing up.

...]]> Melges 24 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1000-melges-24.html This high-performance one-design class attracts top talent, and for good reason O ne-design racing gets us excited. There's nothing quite like duking it out on the course against identical boats to get the competitive juices flowing, where it is the skills of the skipper and crew that matter more than the boat's equipment or rating. And there's nothing quite as thrilling as racing neck-and-...]]> J/30 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-1001-j_30.html

 

...]]> Catalina Capri 18 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-780-catalina-capri-18.html With some TLC, a sturdy pocket cruiser becomes the perfect first boat W hen my husband Richard and I decided to move to rural Door County, Wisconsin, we swore that our time had come at last-we were going to become boat owners. The Door Peninsula has approximately 300 miles of harbor-scalloped shoreline to explore, as well as a tantalizing scattering of islands across its western Green Bay waters ...]]> Olson 25 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-847-olson-25.html A sporty classic offers the opportunity to go back to the basics on the race course It is time to go racing once again, but we are looking for something a little different this time. We've done this dance before, from the squirrely IOR days to a brief (and expensive) campaign in a Farr 40. We want to get back to the basics-smaller crew, simpler boats-and our cash flow is not quite what it used to...]]> Privilege 39 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-848-privilege-39.html Bluewater cruising on a cat is possible with a sturdy boat and safety-conscious upgrades I often consult with sailors in the market for cruising boats. I suggest monohulls for most of my clients, typically a well-engineered, solidly built, moderate- to heavy- displacement sloop or cutter-the type of boat that has been crossing oceans for decades. However, I currently have two clients looking for ...]]> Penguin https://sailingmagazine.net/article-662-penguin.html This classic dinghy is the perfect off-season project with promise of great sailing to come Admittedly, our choice to find a Penguin dinghy to retrofit and head out for some sailing was driven in large part by a sense of nostalgia. Although we enjoy sailing on more modern, performance-geared dinghies such as Lasers and occasionally even an MX-Ray, we realized we rarely got the chance to take frie...]]> Morgan 382 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-35-morgan-382.html A classic cruiser gets upgrades that will keep it in the family for years to come The more you sail your 1980 Morgan 382 the more you realize that there's no sound reason to spend big bucks on a new, or even newer boat. The handsome 382 is solidly built and does everything a more expensive boat would do, and it is paid for. Designed by Ted Brewer, the 382, and its slightly updated sister models t...]]> Island Packet 31 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-36-island-packet-31.html This comfortable, moderate-sized cruiser is just the ticket for an Abacos-bound retrofit Your house is worth half what it was two years ago and your 401K is in a freefall with no bottom in sight. Is it time to buy gold and rations for when the lights go out? No way, it's time to go sailing! Looking at our balance sheet, a bit of the boat fund is still intact. The round-the-world cruiser is out o...]]> Ericson 27 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-37-ericson-27.html Updating the sail controls on a solid and comfy little cruiser makes for good sailing The older I get, the more I appreciate accommodations. The creakier I get, the more I appreciate boats under 30 feet. There was a time when nothing pleased me more than working up a sweat manhandling acres of thrashing sailcloth. I would wear my bruises with pride. Now I can think of other, equally rewarding way...]]> Rebel 16 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-641-rebel-16.html This nimble and tough classic is perfect for a daysail or a day of racing This year the boat that holds claim to being America's first production fiberglass one-design will celebrate its 60th birthday. That the boat is still in production makes this milestone that much more remarkable. In 1948, fresh out of the Navy, Ray Greene began building a 16-foot family daysailer out of his Toledo, Ohio, sh...]]> Dana 24 https://sailingmagazine.net/article-649-dana-24.html A sturdy, surprisingly roomy pocket cruiser to sail the world or the lake Pocket cruisers have always attracted sailors for a variety of reasons, whether they're young people first entering the market, empty-nesters making the decision to downsize or simply enthusiasts seeking entry to shallower bays, coves and harbors. Ideally, these little yachts offer a blend of cruising comfort and performanc...]]>