Marshall,

My two cents. Last year I bought my first boat. 20 year old steel hull.

May I suggest this:

http://old.cruisingworld.com/steelpay.htm

And then this:

http://yachtworld.com/core/listing/c... pbsint=&ps=30

Or search (advanced) yachtworld.com for "33' steel sailboat".

My guess is that is the same boat described in the second piece above.

I have this same boat but with a cutter rig. Brewer still sells the
plans and suggests the cutter for open water cruising. The sloop
configuration is easier to sail in coastal waters but the
reconfiguration to cutter is relatively straight forward.

Steel is "unconventional" but so what. I can attest to the fine quality
of the hull, but not the interior. These boats were finished by the
owners. Mine is beautiful. She gets a lot of attention. I singlehanded
her from Shelbourne N.S. to Sydney, as a novice, so she must be both
"easy" and "forgiving."

Best of luck,

Howard


MarshallE wrote:
Hi,

My family is interested in what sailboat to buy and learn that can handle
offshore or perhaps ocean crossing. Older fits our budget better.

What type? How long?

I know this is vague but just trying to develop preliminary ideas to
consider.

thanks
marshall