Hi,
I am cruising all year around singelhandedly in my 35ft Hallberg Rassy from
1976.
There is no problem to handle a significantly bigger boat completely on your
own.
I sailed singelhandedly from Finland in 2004, via Spain to Turkey in the
Mediterranean. Have not checked the distance, but it is thousends of sea
miles. Currently my boat is on Crete, Greece.
You need a bow thruster, remote control of the windlass, autopilot + wind
rudder, modern radar, fixed blade propeller, powerful engine. With thinking
ahead you can avoid most difficult situations. Never count on external help,
make sure you can handle everything on your own, including up and down from
the top of the mast.
Good luck,
Martin
--

"BeeRich" skrev i meddelandet
oups.com...
Hi folks.

I've been slowly researching sailboats for my future. I've raced
Lasers in my past, grew up on an Alberg 30 here in Toronto, and wish to
continue my love for boats.

I've been to boat shows, and looked at boat plans online.

Regardless of price, what is the largest sailboat that one can handle
singlehandedly? I'm looking for a rear cockpit sailboat that I could
take anywhere in the world. As well, I don't need it to sleep 40
people, as I'd rather exchange staterooms for storage or other
functionality.

Thanks to a Toronto boat show I'm fond of the Dufour 40 foot range.

http://www.dufouryachts.com

I look forward to your replies.

Cheers

Wow a bow thruster for a 35 foot boat? Or do you mean a larger boat?
Why the fixed prop? is 40 horsepower considered a powerful engine for
a 40 footer?

Cheers

Hi,
yes, I mean a bow thruster to help you out of a difficult situation, and a
fixed blade propeller with a powerful engine to give you the power to
reverse out of difficult situations.
I have several times seen modern boats with folding propellers, and weak
engines, end up in situations where they need external help to avoid a
complete disaster. Unexpected winds, currents in a narrow space and you can
quickly find yourself in trouble.
In my opinion 40 hp for a 40 footer is on the smaller side.
I have 75hp Volvo Penta MD21 in my 35 footer (with a max of 3000 r.p.m.
giving 55 hpin the boat), with a big 3-blade fixed prop, and I have on
occasion needed all of it, both in the North Sea and in the Mediterranean.
Cheers,
Martin
--
"BeeRich" skrev i meddelandet
oups.com...
Wow a bow thruster for a 35 foot boat? Or do you mean a larger boat?
Why the fixed prop? is 40 horsepower considered a powerful engine for
a 40 footer?

Cheers

On 31 Jan 2006 09:15:38 -0800, "BeeRich" wrote:

Wow a bow thruster for a 35 foot boat? Or do you mean a larger boat?
Why the fixed prop? is 40 horsepower considered a powerful engine for
a 40 footer?

Too many variables. For a racer-cruiser, it's big. For a steel full
keel ketch, it's small. But my buddy at Port Credit sails a 15 tonne
steel ketch with a 35 hp Volvo in it at 8 knots. But then he went to a
lot of trouble to get a special thrust bearing and an AutoProp, which
allowed him after a lot of experimentation to get close to the maximum
out of his relatively small but reliable engine.

A bit of advice: I know a lot of current boats have sail drives, but I
think a lot of moorings/marinas/clubs are very careless with stray
current, and sticking a big strut of aluminum into salty electrified
water makes these units fail. For cruising, I would choose a fully
inboard engine.

R.

Why would stray currents manipulate a sail drive more than a fixed prop
on drive shaft?

Install Mercruisers. That should do it.

Cheers

Why would stray currents manipulate a sail drive more than a fixed prop
on drive shaft?

Install Mercruisers. That should do it.

Cheers

BeeRich... I'm certain the following is an *extreme* example of
what you might be looking for:

At this very moment there is a loung lady... Dee Caffari... the
*sole* occupant aboard the S/V Aviva... a 72' Challenge Class
yacht... making her way down in the Southern Ocean attempting
a circumnavigation the "hard way" meaning Westbound from England.

The aformentioned vessel is state of the art... the skipper very well
qualified...and owners/sponsors with "deep pockets"!

Though not necessarily an appropriate consideration for you... the
above illustrates what can be done along the lines of what you have
been talking about.

Best regards

Bill

Refer: http://www.avivachallenge.com

Hi Bill. I read about her. Why she's going that direction, I have no
clue. The type of boat I would probably ultimately have is a normal
long haul sailboat, with modifications such as autopilot and other
safety/nav gear. I'm guessing all lines have to go the cockpit.

On 2 Feb 2006 07:29:21 -0800, "BeeRich" wrote:

Why would stray currents manipulate a sail drive more than a fixed prop
on drive shaft?

Install Mercruisers. That should do it.

Cheers

http://www.practical-sailor.com/issues/last/psadvisory/

I thought you wanted a sailboat.

R.