Hello all, i am a long time reader, first time poster!
I was wonder what everyones personal opinion is towards having enough standing head room in their boats. i know there is probably a lot of folks who's boats dont have the headroom, but do you feel you are very content with good sitting headroom? Do you wish you bought a boat that has it?
I currently have a 23' Seafarer that has plenty of sitting headroom down below but i stand at 6'2" and i am wondering if i would be better suited/ more comfortable with the higher cabin. the boat's great for weekend cruises but i am looking at doing some longer ventures.
I am going to be upgrading to a bigger boat in the future but in order to find good headroom you almost have to be 30 foot long range.
I felt before that i would enjoy having a huge boat but after reading this site and it's "Small is simple" attitude i feel like there is no need for a large vessel.
Anywho thanks for reading.
Welcome to sailfar.
I know that for me, standing room was important. Not everyone on this forum thinks that. I know Norm and Cubemonkey (his better half Elizabeth) have a boat that doesn't have standing headroom, and in just the last season alone, they managed to put over 1500 NM on Averisera.
Personally, I am glad I got a boat with standing headroom, for medical reasons. Some of the boats that are still in the smaller size range that have standing room, do so by having a pop-top companionway or something similar, and give you standing room in only part of the cabin. I think that having a berth that you can fully stretch out in is probably more important than having a boat with standing headroom though. :)
That said, I do believe that a smaller boat is better idea than a bigger boat, and I can't imagine getting anything bigger than the boat I have now, which is only 28' LOA.
When we had our 21 footer, with GOOD seated headroom, but no standing headroom, we could quite nicely go 2 weeks cruising, then we began to tire of it.
On our Meridian 25, with standing headroom in the main cabin ( for US anyway- I'm 5'8" and she's way less ;D) we can cruise for an unlimited time.
It's not really NECESSARY, but it sure makes things more pleasant. Now, we have friends who cruise PCS25s, without standing room, quite well. I just don't think it would work for us long term.
I suppose it's more of a mind set than anything else. If you don't have it and you want to go cruising, you'll learn to live without it I'm sure.
Oh- and the Pearson Ariel at 26 feet probably has headroom , as does the Triton at 28 feet. So there's 3 under 30 feet that DO have standing headroom ( for shorter folks anyway :D)
Quote from: CharlieJ on January 11, 2008, 04:13:23 PM
Oh- and the Pearson Ariel at 26 feet probably has headroom , as does the Triton at 28 feet. So there's 3 under 30 feet that DO have standing headroom ( for shorter folks anyway :D)
Charlie, aren't many of the Albergs with sufficient headroom for those of us with compact stature (under 5'11") :) I just checked the Cape Dory list.
Tim
More than likely so, but I personally don't know that, so I can't say it. I do know the Cape Dory 25 in our marina does, also the CD 27 that was there.
I'd suspect many of the older CCA era style boats did have, but again, I can't state that for sure.
thanks for replays..
AdriftAtSea
I am "really" looking at building a trimaran, for my upgrade boat, how much head room do you have in your telstar. i know from looking at a lot of trimaran designs that it is even harder to find one that has the headroom i require. (unless your in the 30 foot range).
My old Ariel had standing headroom , one of the reason I purchased her. My islander 29 has standing room as does the islander 28, as does the Ericson 26
Quote from: CharlieJ link=topic=1382.msg13154#msg13154 date=
When we had our 21 footer, with GOOD seated headroom, but no standing headroom, we could quite nicely go 2 weeks cruising, then we began to tire of it.
On our Meridian 25, with standing headroom in the main cabin ( for US anyway- I'm 5'8" and she's way less ;D) we can cruise for an unlimited time.
It's not really NECESSARY, but it sure makes things more pleasant. Now, we have friends who cruise PCS25s, without standing room, quite well. I just don't think it would work for us long term.
I suppose it's more of a mind set than anything else. If you don't have it and you want to go cruising, you'll learn to live without it I'm sure.
Oh- and the Pearson Ariel at 26 feet probably has headroom , as does the Triton at 28 feet. So there's 3 under 30 feet that DO have standing headroom ( for shorter folks anyway :D)
The Telstar 28 has about 6' of standing room throughout most of the cabin. Most of the guys that crew for me are 6' or so, and they don't have any issues with the standing room in the boat.. .:) I'm only 5'4" so there's really lots of room for me.
BTW, the Corsair 28 has much smaller cabin. The cabin on the Corsair 28 is such that I can't stand upright in it. The cabin on the Telstar 28 is almost the size of the cabin on the Corsair 31 trimaran. I looked at all three boats, among others, when I was hunting for my boat a few years ago.
I've also written quite a bit about the Telstar on my blog (http://blog.dankim.com/), including some things about why I finally ended up picking the Telstar.
Unfortunately, at the moment, my last upgrade of Wordpress has done something funky, and I'm trying to get the bugs out. :)
Quote from: ScotiaSailor on January 11, 2008, 06:58:14 PM
thanks for replays..
AdriftAtSea
I am "really" looking at building a trimaran, for my upgrade boat, how much head room do you have in your telstar. i know from looking at a lot of trimaran designs that it is even harder to find one that has the headroom i require. (unless your in the 30 foot range).
Welcome aboard, Scotia, and Grog to ya! :)
Having had both standing and non-standing headroom in boats I lived on, for me, if you are going to be living aboard, I *much* prefer standing headroom - to the point of calling it a necessity. :)
Now, if you didn't have any other choice, than no standing headroom vs not having a boat, well, you could get by without it... ;) But otherwise, it sure is nice!
At 6' 2", you would *almost* have standing headroom in an Ariel. I'm 5' 9", and I think that the 5' 11" number would be the max. However - it would be a pretty easy modification to pull the cabin sole, make it a bit narrower, and drop it back in for full 6'2" headroom.
In my v-berth, headroom is probably 5' 6". I did the above, cut out the sole, and dropped it about 5", and voila - I can stand under the hatch.
According yo a Triton owner who I guess chooses to remain anonymous :) headroom is 6'2"
The importance of headroom varies a good bit from person to person. I didn't mind the not-quite-standing-height in a Catalina 22 I sailed years ago with a girlfriend (her boat btw). Of course I was younger and -- well -- distracted.
I have full standing height below, but under the cockpit extension* I have only about 5' and find that moving around and getting in and out of the boat has become quite difficult on my very fragile back. I don't think I could manage anymore without standing room.
*The Swedes outfit my boat with what they call a cockpit extension. It folds forward from the back of the cockpit to directly meet the dodger. There is a picture here (http://www.skolnick.org/images/delivery/extension2.jpg). It has much less windage than a typical American enclosure and takes less storage to stow. Also unlike American enclosures it is independent of the bimini (stowed forward of the windscreen in the blue vinyl cover in the photo). I think the concept would scale very nicely to smaller boats.
Regardless of my canvas, I think anyone with back troubles should be cautious about less than standing headroom.
The cockpit extension idea would work well with a boom gallows, and I think I've seen people who have done just that. Would also save the weight of a bimini frame, back there in the end of the boat...
Although it makes CJ and some Ariel purists cringe, I am still considering a cockpit arch/boom gallows for my boat. Could mount the solar panel/windgen/spare VHF antenna/etc there, and use it with the above idea in order to not have a bimini frame.
I had thought of that as I am 6' 4". However the fact is that hter are not any boats out there with that much headroom in my price range. Most of the time below is not standing. the only time standing is washing dishes or moving stuff around. The MacGreagor has about 6' but I can do the dishes and cook with the hatch open. Sliding galley sure helps.
A nice bunk is quite important more than headroom in my opinon.
One article I read pointed out that if you want standing room, get a boat with real standing room. If you get one that almost has standing room, you're going to spend a lot of time hunched over and whack your head a lot. :) If you get a boat that only has sitting head room, you'll be far less tempted to stand upright, and probably whack your head a lot less.
Quote from: AdriftAtSea on January 12, 2008, 11:01:54 AM
One article I read pointed out that if you want standing room, get a boat with real standing room. If you get one that almost has standing room, you're going to spend a lot of time hunched over and whack your head a lot. :) If you get a boat that only has sitting head room, you'll be far less tempted to stand upright, and probably whack your head a lot less.
So true! The main reason I purchased my (32') boat was to get standing headroom. The reason for this is pretty severe lower back problems since 20 years. My back feels a lot better when I no longer have to move around 'twofolded' in the cabin. A hardhat (helmet) would come in handy though, I 'just about' have standing headroom at 1.84. ; keep bouncing my head into those odd nuts and bulkheads all the time.
I have found that when you have "near standing room" that ball caps are bad news. The bill seems to block the sight line to the thing you are about to bash your head on. I have learned to take my cap off and leave it behind the windscreen before going below.
The other problem with ball caps is the little button in the center of the top... it hurts like heck when you stand up and hit that against the overhead, and it leaves a dent in your skull.
Not only dents- SCARS!! And not always in the same place.
But the part about the bill blocking your sight line is for sure a truth. You should get Laura to tell you about the time I almost cold cocked myself on a 2 x 6 beam - I have a good scar from that- THROUGH the cap!! I did knock myself to my knees.
But what worse, for those of us follicley challenged, is that without hair to sense how close you are, ones head is ALWAYS in contact with something. >:( I now wear a stocking knit hat whenever in the cabin.
Thanks for the input folks. It is all i can do but talk about sailing till the ice melts and it gets warm enough to sail in a snow suit.
Welcome aboard,
I have to echo the sentiments of many above. If you intend on cruising for anything more than the occassional weekend, you will hate life pretty quickly not having standup headroom. And why?
You may have to look around to find a good headroom in a boat less than 30 ft, but they're out there. My Columbia 8.3 has 6'1" headroom (with a soft headliner) all the way to the vee berth. (8.3m = 27'2").
Fair winds
John
I have a Grampian 26 and although some people think of this boat as ugly, I love the standing headroom. :)
The only time I hit my head is going from the galley to the V birth and forgetting about the lower height
through the main bulkhead.
Phil
76 Grampian 26
Irish Mist
Our Laguna 26 has over 6' except in the head where its about 5'8" Sure makes putting your pants on easier :)
I'll join the chorus here: I had a wonderful boat with sitting headroom for about 16 years--a Marshall catboat. She was a dream to sail, and she "looked like a boat," to quote my nonsailing artist wife.
But sitting headroom was really uncomfortable. As we got older (we're both over 60 now), it got harder and harder to crawl around on hands and knees. And putting on long pants -- well, one of us had to sit in the cockpit while the other stretched out and got dressed.
Now that we've got a Cape Dory 25D, with 5' 11" standing headroom, cruising is much more comfortable. Alberg rules!
--Joe
The Cape Dory 25D, as in diesel, has 5'11" of headroom below. The Cape Dory 25, as in outboard, has only sitting headroom.
For me, inside headroom is nice for sure, BUT it's outside headroom that I value the most.. By that, I mean I can stand bolt upright in the cockpit and the boom will never hit me in the side of the head!!.
One of the reasons I just purchased "Che" a "65 Ariel was for the standing room, the ability for two people to pass standing up makes for much better cruising :) Admittedly they have to be two very friendly people ;)
That is true as well, rtbates, for me to find more than 6 feet inside the cabin as well as 6 feet under a boom.. thats gonna be a big boat.
Hi guys,
I'd love to have standing headroom. At 6'5" I doubt that I'll ever get it :'(. When I was young(30ish), my Venture of Newport 23' was good enough. I now have(at age 58) an Ericson 25 and with headroom of 5'6". My next boat will be in the 27-30' range and will have headroom of about 6'. Still not standing headroom but it will have to do and I'll be happy with it ;D. The good thing is, the older I become, the shorter I get. Who knows, maybe someday I'll get my standing headroom ;D.
Fair winds and full sails,
Pappy Jack
I guess there are some distinct advantages to being vertically challenged. :) At 5' 4", I have a lot more choices than Pappy Jack does. :)
At 6'2" you sure can't fit into a "pocket cruiser" like I did. Being 5'9" tall the 6' headroom in most of my Kaiser 26 was just fine.
But the most important thing to remember about headroom is that women don't lay down in boats they can't stand up in.
Quote from: Pappy Jack on January 30, 2008, 09:20:00 PM
Hi guys,
I'd love to have standing headroom. At 6'5" I doubt that I'll ever get it :'(. When I was young(30ish), my Venture of Newport 23' was good enough. I now have(at age 58) an Ericson 25 and with headroom of 5'6". My next boat will be in the 27-30' range and will have headroom of about 6'. Still not standing headroom but it will have to do and I'll be happy with it ;D. The good thing is, the older I become, the shorter I get. Who knows, maybe someday I'll get my standing headroom ;D.
Fair winds and full sails,
Pappy Jack
Just wondering if you had a big enough place to bunk down. It seems to me that most small boats are built for people of around 5'8". At 6'5" I imagine that you have a permanent crick in your neck.
Quote from: Pappy Jack on January 30, 2008, 09:20:00 PMThe good thing is, the older I become, the shorter I get. Who knows, maybe someday I'll get my standing headroom ;D.
LOL, Pappy! That's the way to look at the glass and say it's half-full! ;D
Quote from: oldsalt_1942 on February 04, 2008, 09:06:44 PMBut the most important thing to remember about headroom is that women don't lay down in boats they can't stand up in.
And another LOL. :D
A Grog to both of you guys for the laughs. :)
Headroom.
We don't have it on Averisera. Underway it is not much of a problem. We most often notice that we miss it when trying to cook or do dishes. The galley surfaces are very low and set up to make sitting, kneeling, or standing (bending over, legs bent isn't really standing) difficult. The sink doesn't drain on port tack, it floods.
I sail a lot of charter boats with 6 1/2 foot head room. Too much!
Norman
Adam,
Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner :-[. As to your question about where I sleep. Well, I took out the bulkhead between the V-berth and the head. I then put in a hinged extension and cushion over the head. The extension swings up in order to use the head or to get other stuff I've stored there. There is a gap between two flanges where the bulkhead used to be. I left about 2" of the bulkhead in that gap just for a little extra support. Will this weaken the whole boat structure? Probably a bit but then I don't plan to do any trans oceantic crossing ::). Oh, by the way I don't have a crick in my neck but I did have back surgery a few years ago but thing are better now ;). Maybe I should start thinking about a BIG OL' MULTIHULL ::)...naaa. I'll just tough it out :D.
Fair winds,
Pappy Jack
Here's a photo that Norm wanted posted, so I'm posting it. :) According to Norm's e-mail:
It is a photo of a small sailboat (Vega 27) while they were both at Marina Cay (East End of Tortola, BVI). What is remarkable is that this is the first small sailboat Norm had seen set up for voyaging since he got there in November.
(http://www.flauntlingerie.com/files/IMG_2127.JPG)
As someone who has been living in a boat without standing headroom for nearly ten months, all I can say is: It's really darn important.
I met a nutcase who had been living in his boat for nine years, and it was some 24ft French thing, and he was living on the canals in Holland. Anyway, at one stage I made a complaint about it being hard living without being able to stand up, and he said to me: "So, what do you do when you get in a boat" and I said "Oh I don't know, walk to the nearest place to sit down", and he said: "Exactly." Which is kind of true.. But standing headroom would make it much easier to cook for example. Try cutting everything and washing etc all on your knees. It's not exactly inspiring...
I met the young couple in Norm's pic last year in Bahamas....too funny. Even think I posted a pic 'somewhere' here during a vega 27 exchange
I did notice something funny about the picture though.They are both hunching over :-\Mudnut.
Yes, but both also appear to be doing tasks that being bent over slightly might make more sense than standing straight up.
. . . or they have curvature of the spine. ::)
Ahhhhh - sweet youth!
Quote from: AdriftAtSea on February 20, 2008, 12:46:34 PM
Here's a photo that Norm wanted posted, so I'm posting it. :) According to Norm's e-mail:
It is a photo of a small sailboat (Vega 27) while they were both at Marina Cay (East End of Tortola, BVI). What is remarkable is that this is the first small sailboat Norm had seen set up for voyaging since he got there in November.
(http://www.flauntlingerie.com/files/IMG_2127.JPG)
I'm sorry if this is out of topic.Being in OZ,we don't have the luxuary of lots of differnt makers and models to choose from when considering a boat to liveaboard and cruise on in the 30ft range,unless ya have heaps of $$$.I haven't and feel I need to balance the two,L/aboard with the abillity to cruise when needed.I know the reality of (When ya inside you mainly are seated,so headroom isn't that important line)What I guess I'm asking is"Does a wider beam make up for the lack of headroom?"I'm 5ft 9''and most boats to fit me are around the 35' mark.I can buy a 35' FC hulled boat for under $29.000.but not so in any other type of hull,unless it's an old steel boat or worse,A 1935 wooden thingie.Sooner or latter I'm gonna need to stand up.Any thoughts.Mudnut.
You can always do what several of your countrymen have done and fly to the US to buy a boat and sail it back. :)
When i was looking around at different boats i did finally find a 28 foot boat that had 6'2"-6'4" headroom.
I bought the Grampian 28, but as i noticed is that in order to get that nice headroom the boat has a "Very" high ammount of freeboard. if i was to fall off this boat at anchor even, if it were not for the ladder in the back i am not sure you could climb back up.
it should be interesting to see how much she will be effected by windage at anchor and such..
(http://www.grampianowners.com/G28/Momigi3001.jpg)
(not my boat but it is a g28, just to give you an idea of how high they are)
-Greg
Or Buy from Mexico...
Quote from: AdriftAtSea on March 10, 2008, 10:42:15 AM
You can always do what several of your countrymen have done and fly to the US to buy a boat and sail it back. :)
I haven't even began to learn HOW to sail yet,let alone cross oceans.A friend of a mate said he would transport a boat to OZ for $10,000 from the states.He is into international transport as a buisness.If I add up all the other costs like sales tax,inport duty and surveyors cost it still adds up to about the same cost.If it wasn't deck stepped it would cost even more.I sure do like the variety you folks have though.Gotta sell the house first.Mudnut.
Mudnut -
I'm 5' 9" also, and can stand up in my boat which is 25' 6"LOA. That was a priority, for me, after my last boat, where I couldn't stand up. I don't think that having additional beam would make up for the lack of height, it would just give you more stowage that you'd have to bent over to get into. :)
I'm not sure where in Oz you are, but it seems like there would be places there, especially on the Pacific side, where there would be a good used boat market from folks who'd done the SoPac tradewind route, and who then were leaving the boat when they went back to the Americas or Europe. Maybe in New Zealand, too? I know some cruising destinations are almost notorious for having lots of boats that were left behind after their owners got there and had determined that the "getting there" wasn't really what they had planned it would be, so they leave behind nice, outfitted and decent boats.
Hmmm... Just learning to sail puts a definite crimp in that suggestion. :)
captK,all to true,but ,Iv'e looked on yachtworld to compare similar US made boats for sale in the states against the prices there asking here for the same boats.Allied seawind,morgan's even 30ft HR's,C&C's,columbia,Alberg's and the list goes on and the asking price when adjusted to the $AU,just dosen't figure.
Two yrs ago my personal life took a U turn,my partner and I are going our own way when we sell the house.So seeing I loved all my time at sea I figure(buy a liveaboard yacht,learn to sail and marry them together)It dosen't seem too hard a deal.I have been researching,reading and learning along the way.This year it WILL happen.No kids,no alimony zip nada,50/50,with no ill thoughts.Sounds like a dream result to some folks I bet. :D
One boat I fell in love with is a John Hanna Tahitian Ketch,similar to Weston Farmer,I'm a sucker for "Old and classic"and scared of the upkeep of wooden boats,so the same designs in steel or FRP are tempting.I have a few others in mind but will leave them untill the day of reckoning comes.
As for learning to sail my "Home"That will be a walk in the park,to me it is just a means to and end.Sailing lessons are in the pipeline.I don't feel the need to cross oceans,coastal is just fine.Sorry for the waffle on.I do listen to all you folks here and other sites say and it calms me to no end.Mudnut.
mudnut, good luck on your adventures, you will find a gal that loves to sail as much as you do. Get the boat and all will fall into place.
Jack needed head room at almost 6' we only have a 33' but she has 6'4 headroom throughout. I am only 4'11" (barley) so headroom to me is a cutty cabin (almost)... :)
Good luck, Mudnut.
A Cape Dory 25D (too small to live aboard) was recently sold in OZ for a pretty fair price. Somebody who posts on the Cape Dory bulletin board sailed from California to OZ (he was planning a circumnavigation). He never explained why he flew back to California and sold the boat (perhaps he met a woman?).
Learning to sail won't be that tough--just follow the advice in the old joke about getting to Carnegie Hall: Practice, practice, practice.
First, of course, you've gotta find the boat--then the woman.
--Joe
Quote from: Oldrig on March 12, 2008, 08:40:50 PM
A Cape Dory 25D (too small to live aboard)
???
If it were just me looking to live aboard, A CD 25D would be on my short list (top 5 or so)...if I did not have the A-30.
Ed Campbell, who writes and publishes the "Campbell's Cruising Guide to Texas" ( Our ONLY one) spends all his cruising time aboard a CD 25, with his lady friend. They don't live aboard, but they sure spend long trips aboard. Nice boat.
[/quote]
If it were just me looking to live aboard, A CD 25D would be on my short list (top 5 or so)...if I did not have the A-30.
[/quote]
Agreed--I love my 25D. But I also love my wife of 25 years--even though she doesn't understand that sailing is the most important thing in the universe. :)
Quote from: Oldrig on March 13, 2008, 09:05:27 PM
Agreed--I love my 25D. But I also love my wife of 25 years--even though she doesn't understand that sailing is the most important thing in the universe. :)
Something dawned on me when I read this...I'm not picking on you, it's just your post made me think (I good think, right? Well, maybe).
Perhaps we use the term live aboard too generally. There are different types of live aboards. There are those that live aboard a boat as cheap "housing," but never sail or travel. On the other end of the spectrum, there are those that live aboard because they are cruising.
So, this made me think about a CD 25, or other small boat, in terms of a couple or a family. I began to wonder "what do you mean by LIVE?" Neglecting passagemaking and forced times 'aboard' (such as weather), just how much time "living aboard" does the cruiser actually spend "aboard?" Where is the "living," out among the local population, in nature, or is it "trapped" aboard a small boat?
I guess one direction my nearly directionless musing has gone is to wonder if having such a small living space help push small-boat cruisers into more personal, direct contact with the area they are cruising. A CD 25D would be a small "house," tied to the dock, as a substitute for a full blown land based "home," but would make a fine base of operations for exploring a new location.
I submit the smaller the 'aboard,' the larger the 'living,' since the small living space encourages more outings. I can well imagine a couple living on a Spacious 50 with all the amenities just living "aboard."
It's funny for me to think about this stuff, because the Alberg 30 seems cavernous to me when I am alone, but "tight" ( ;) ) when the whole family is there. (Actually, she's still quite spacious. The children can run around below, there's the forecabin if someone "needs" some alone time, etc....just comparatively, one person rattles around in a space that feels tighter with four).
Back on topic: The newer A-30's have right at 5'-10" or 11" headroom. The older ones (pre '71) have a few inches more. :)
having been a full time liveaboard ( no home ashore at all) and a shorter term cruiser ( with home base) Here's how I look at it.
When you are living aboard full time ( I did it on a 35 foot tri, with three aboard) it's not so much the room for YOU and crew, as it is for the "Stuff" you MUST have. We cruised from Florida in summer, to the Chesapeake in fall, down to northern Florida in deep winter, and then into the keys for winter/spring. For one thing, that 25 simply doesn't have the storage capacity for clothes (and blankets) for all four seasons, for several people. At least Tehani doesn't
For people with a home base ashore, you can leave the off season stuff at home, safely stored, and only carry the clothes aboard that you really NEED at the time. A slightly larger boat can give you that capacity.
Our Tehani is well large enough for Laura and I to do prolonged cruises, but she's a small 25 footer. We could NOT live aboard full time - well, we COULD, but we wouldn't like it that much. As a woodworker, I'd like to have aboard a live aboard boat, at least a small set of tools. No storage room on Tehani.
Laura is an artist- she'd want a certain amount of art supplies and equipment. Simply isn't the space for that. Plus carrying clothes for 4 seasons, AND foodstuffs for long trips- simply not enough boat.
Now in a 30 footer, the two of us feel we could live aboard for full time, simply due to the increased capacity to store things.
I'm probably not getting my point across totally- it's 3 in the morning and I'm here cause I can't sleep, so bear with me. I hope you understand what I'm saying. Or trying to say.
Sorry to be digging up old bones, but this was the main requirement when we were looking for our next boat, being several hours away from our boat we usually would spent the night on it before returning home. My wife said that if she could stand up in the boat she would enjoy it more and want to use it more, well you don't have to hit me with a brick, we got a boat with standing headroom. :D
The problem is finding one at a reasonable price (for us), we loved the Flicka and CD25D but both were a little pricey, so looking through the internet we had found the the Seafarer 26 had standing headroom but the closest ones around where about 600 miles away, which I hated to drive that far just to see if the boat would work for us, and usually pics on the internet and the actual boat are vary different.
But just about the time we decide to take a trip to look at them one came up for sale close by at half the price, we went and looked at it and bought it the same day, this after looking for about a year.
I know it is a project boat but when it is done it will the way we like it not the way the previous owner liked it.
Hey CaptMac:
Congratulations on your purchase!
If standing headroom is a requirement, and you're willing to invest lots of sweat equity in your Seafarer 26, it should work out just fine. This is a great board to turn to with questions, and you should also look at some websites devoted to Seafarers and other Tripp-designed boats.
Here's one http://www.seafarer-research-center.com/index.html (http://www.seafarer-research-center.com/index.html).
--Joe
I'm in search of buying my first boat and that is the one thing I am looking for in this seeming to be extremely long search of at least 6'2 of headroom or more.
I went aboard a westsail 32 and I think supposely the headroom was 6'4"s but I think really it was about 6'2" and I must me 6'1" without my shoes. I really liked it that I could stand up in it although the ceiling was right there and if the boat was moving I think I'd be more hunched over then standing straight up. I really did like the fact that if I were cooking I could stand straight up which I think would be very important. I didn't like the V-berth seemd cramped and I imediatly knocked my head when getting out of it so no didn't really like it but the settes and v berth were the right length for me and so was the height so those are really the two important things I have found is beds long enough and headroom on the inside
I went aboard a cape dory 27ft and I was hunched over seems like somewhere I read that the headroomn is about 5'11"s so I think 6'2"s probally would be perfect for me. I have found some cape dorys that were 28ft and the headroom was 6'2"s they claimed so I guess you could stay under 30ft and still have a fare amount of headroom. I sure wish I was shorter lol
I recently purchased a Freedom 21 that has sitting headroom
I sold my Voyager 26 that had head hanging to one side headroom.
I think headroom is great for long term livability. But if its marginal I rather be sitting than trying to stand. Does this make sense?
Yes I am still here, scraping bottom paint off the new for me F21.
Its in NJ headed to VT on a new trailer soon.
Just can't seem to find the right big boat at the right price
Ice
On my CD27, being only 5'8" tall I have standing room. However, getting my 250 pounds through the opening to the V-berth is a sideways proposition. ;D
My "headbanger" is not the overhead in the cabin, it is hitting the slider as I step up to exit the companionway, having partially closed it. ::)
Last time, I was really dazed and bleeding. A kind lady on my dock provided the solution for the immediate bleeding problem, and a future head butting cushion by dressing the wound and installing a pair of Mini Pads in my cap. :-[
Oh well, it worked.
Quote from: Shipscarver on April 08, 2009, 04:42:13 PM
installing a pair of Mini Pads in my cap.
I have learned not to wear my cap below deck. The bill hides the head-bangers, including the companionway slide, the dodger edge, and this one tricky bit in the walk through.