"Tim Shavinsky" wrote in message
...
I'd like to thank everyone for their inputs. My response:

1. I did not count opportunity cost twice.

2. Opportunity cost is explained he
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opportunity_cost

More lame attempts at politically correct, liberal, thought police, mind
control. Turns out opportunity cost is just another term created to confuse
the issue which issue is the simple, old fashioned term - investment
analysis. The first thing you need to do if ever you wish to become a
successful cruiser who earns money instead of ****es away money is to learn
to recognize liberal thought control speech. Then when you learn that you
can refuse to use such language to brainwash yourself. Don't do the work of
the 1984 fascist crowd for them. Stand on your own two hind legs and learn
how to think like and be a man or you will never become a man - just some
herky jerky automaton.

3. It is foolish to ignore opportunity cost.

It is even more foolish to use that term. Stop it please!


4. I have some sailing experience so that is helpful.

Excellent! That is more than some here, such as Capt. JG can realistically
claim.

It looks like downsizing and switching over to a sailboat is the way
to go. To reduce opportunity cost and depreciation I'll look at buying
an older, but solid boat in good condition. To reduce the fuel costs I
will look at buying a sailboat and getting some experience on larger
boats, about 32' in length. I can go to living on a mooring (have to
convince the wife) which will zero the dock fee.

A man does not *convince* the wife. A man instructs his wife. He tells her
how things are going to be. If she doesn't like it she can find another man.
It's that simple. That's the first thing. The next thing is NEVER buy a
sailboat because the wife happens to like the way it looks inside. Never was
a woman born who understands sailboat accommodations. A woman must be forced
to adapt to the vessel and not vice versa. This doesn't mean the vessel has
to be spartan but it must be practical for sailing and this practicality
dictates, to a great extent, layout. Forget about large skating rink
varnished teak and holly soles. Forget about two or three heads with shower
stalls and hot water on tap. Forget about three burner ranges with oven.
Forget about hair dryers, large clothes closets and all that crap females
think is essential.

Go with a good, basic, blue water vessel such as an Allied Seawind 32. You
can hardly do better than that. Small enough to single-hand but large and
capable enough to circumnavigate.

Mooring and/or anchoring is the only way to go. Find yourself a nice quiet
home port and put down a mooring and make this your base from which to range
freely. It's always nice to come home to your own secure mooring after an
extensive world cruise or even shorter trips to where ever.

Solar panels should
supply all my energy needs.

Good man. You can purchase about a 400 watt solar array and you will have
all your energy requirements fulfilled. Even enough for a small
refrigerator.


Since I have the time I can do most of
the ordinary repairs myself. I have to get rid of the boat asap as it
drops in value daily. I can't ship my current boat to Europe because
of the expense and continued expense. I was hoping to find some
friendly country south of the border.

Insure the hell out of that trawler then torch it some night when you are
'out of town'. Use the settlement to buy a quality named sailboat of 30-33
feet. Don't buy anything bigger as it becomes too much of a chore to afford
and/or handle.


I should have done this all in the beginning but my eyes were bigger
than my wallet. I never considered escalating costs, but then only an
economic savant with tremendous discipline would ever act so prudently
in the first place.

Yes, that's me alright. I have never been fooled by economic brainwashing.
People used to say I needed insurance. But I noticed some of the most
expensive downtown skyscrapers belonged to insurance companies. They said
you should borrow in order to buy but I couldn't help noticing the large
number of huge, prosperous banks downtown. Many said I needed an expensive
automobile but I couldn't help noticing how huge and prosperous most car
dealerships and the auto industry had become.

In other words all it takes is to open one's eyes and to understand upon
which side of one's bread the butter is on. These so-called necessary things
for me to have were an obvious rip off or the buildings and fortunes
wouldn't have been apparent enough for even a retard to see.

Summarizing, the wisest choice for those of limited/fixed means to go
cruising:

a. Buy an older, solid boat in excellent condition.

With a quality name! Avoid the Hunters, Beneteaus, Catalinas, Ericsons,
Morgans, Pearsons, Irwins, Islanders, Tartans, C &Cs, Soverels and that
other cheap mass produced garbage. Look instead to yachts with respectable
names such as Pacific Seacraft, Allied, Hinterhoeller, Cape Dory, Bayfield,
Bristol, Baba, Sparkman and Stephens, Cabo Rico (look at some CR 34s - you
can't do much better than that for quality and resale)

b. Live aboard on a mooring.

Definitely. And don't fall into the trap of an inflatable dinghy as a ship's
tender. Get a quality hard GRP dinghy such as a Fatty Knees instead. Row it!
Forget about the outboard engine for it is a pain in the butt and will get
stolen real fast in many cruising grounds.


c. Buy a sailboat.

d. Keep the boat simple and do the repairs yourself.

e. Rely on solar power.

Yes, yes!

Forget the watermaker. Too expensive initially and the upkeep, cleaning and
gasket, o-ring and filter expense is prohibitive. Plan to use very little
fresh water and haul it to your boat in plastic, five-gallon jerry cans.

Now I have a few more questions about sailboat. From what I've seen
the smallest I would go is about 27 feet, the largest about 32 feet.
What boats would you guys recommend that I look at?

You can't go wrong in the 27-foot range with a Coronado 27, a Dana (Pacific
Seacraft) 24 (really a 27) or a Cape Dory or Bristol 27. Island Packet
27-32s hold their value well but I don't think they are that well built to
justify the high purchase price. Oh, don't even consider any multi-hull.
They are way overpriced and dangerous as they capsize if you just happen to
sneeze into the mainsail too hard.

It would be me and
my wife aboard, we have no physical handicaps, I'm 6 ft tall. I want a
solid, reliably built boat that is simple and easy to handle. I prefer
a diesel inboard auxiliary.

A small Yanmar diesel two cylinder is acceptable. Make sure it has a
compression relief and can be hand cranked in case the batteries go dead.
Install a high-output alternator. But use it sparingly and make sure the
propeller is sized and pitched to properly match the torque and rpm's.
Two-bladed only as three bladed props cause so much drag that they can add
days to a voyage.

Also what is the downside to living on a
mooring other than the obvious? Where are the best places to do this
in the US? I would imagine California is not too friendly to this type
of lifestyle plus the sailing is not as nice as the Caribbean.

There are no downsides to living on a mooring other than the idiot who drops
a small aluminum anchor right upwind and immediately proceeds to drag down
on your vessel. You need to plan to be around most of the time, especially
on week-ends when most of the idiots come out of the woodwork so you can run
their arses off when they endanger your vessel with their stupidity and rude
lubberliness.

Finding suitable mooring sites is becoming more and mored difficult in this
over crowded and over regulated world. But you can still find them. You just
have to cruise around and ask around. Keep your eyes open. If you find a
good spot make sure you keep your distance as far away as possible from any
boats already moored there. Don't dare run a generator of any sort and don't
run your diesel unless you are downwind of everybody. Respect the rights of
those who arrived before you did.


Thanks everyone, you are a knowledgeable and experienced group.

You are welcome. It's nice to be able to impart some of my vast knowledge
about cruising and living aboard to any interested party.

Wilbur Hubbard

On 2008-06-24 17:25:07 -0400, "Wilbur Hubbard"
said:

A man does not *convince* the wife. A man instructs his wife.

Wilbur, will you get it in your head that some don't WANT to single-hand?

And getting rid of a wife and/or maintaining her separately will
DEFINITELY destroy his finances.

Other than that, a good post with mostly good, solid points.

--
Jere Lull
Xan-à-Deux -- Tanzer 28 #4 out of Tolchester, MD
Xan's pages: http://web.mac.com/jerelull/iWeb/Xan/
Our BVI trips & tips: http://homepage.mac.com/jerelull/BVI/