A boat I'm considering to purchase...

1984 Custom 31' Cutter

Here's some more information on it:
LOA: 31'
LWL: 28'
Beam: 10'
Draft: 4.5'
Displacement: 12,000 lbs
Keel: 4,000 lbs
Tonnage: Gross- 8, Net- 7

Without taking a sail on it, what is your opinion of the design? I'm NOT thrilled with the interior layout, preferring a bigger galley and smaller dinette, but it is far better than most of what else I've seen. Also, being a custom design I imagine it will be easier to change if I ever saw fit.

Before I drive across the state and coerce a test-sail out of the owner, do you think you can tell me what general sailing characteristics to expect from this design?

I would expect it to perform very similar to the Southern Cross 31 or Allied Seawind II, which is to say it wouldn't like going upwind in light airs but is perfectly capable of crawling off a lee shore in a blow, and has fair speed going downwind.

 

Nice, nice, nice.....

 

So far I can see it is a well balanced boat of traditional lines, probably doing a steady 6 - 6.5 knots in moderate wind, a good little passagemaker, with a clever interior for such a small boat.

Go and try.

 

Looks quite nice- First thing I'd do is get rid of the hoaky nav instrument box straddling the dinette bulkhead.

But get out your sandpaper and varnish- unless you can pay someone else to do it. I spent many summers varnishing instead of sailing. Just something to think about.

 

I'd buy her if I were you. After a test sail. And I would only do that to see if she ballances right. She looks rugged, sturdy and, being a custom build, was probably built right with no scimping in all those vital unseen corners.
Also, this is the type of boat that never really comes into or goes out of style. Its design type will always have a small but loyal following, so she should hold her value.

I would expect her performance should be accepatable up wind, tolerable downwind, and decent cross wind. But she looks like she will have good natural (easy on your arm and or auto pilot) course keeping properties. And loading her up with your stuff shouldn't slow her down much or compromise her stability.

In short, I see her as a cruising thoroughbred. Basically a one trick pony. The best kind of boat to own as long as her one 'trick' is what your after.

She does look expensive, though. Can you afford her?

Bob

 

My only concern is for distance offshore work the load carried may be a lot for a 12,000 disp boat.

I would guess about 600lbs to pull her down an inch , so offshore might have you start out 4 or 5 inches down on her marks.

FAST FRED

 

Thank you all for the replies. I would most likely be single-handing this boat and don't think that I would have to overload it with "only" enough stores to support one person.

Bob- The price is one thing about this boat that scares me. It's too cheap. It's too cheap and it's been on the market too long. Makes me think there must be something wrong with it. How cheap? When it first came on the market (a few years ago I believe) it was priced in the mid-30s. Now it's priced in the sub-20s. I talked to the guy a while ago and he said his kids are growing up and don't want to go out sailing anymore so he never uses the boat. If I bought it, I could easily pay the boat off in two years or less. I get that "this could be the boat for me" feeling. It's in the right size and price range, and it's not terribly far away. However, I think I'm going to have to wait until after Christmas before looking into it further. I won't have any upcoming expenses then, and maybe the seller will be more likely to accept a lower offer then. Plus, it'll be after hurricane season ends!

Can anyone recomend a good surveyor? The boat is currently in Cocoa Beach, just South of you, Fred.