Small is …..errr cheaper

Wansworth said:

...cannot decide if I should give up on sailing

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Bouba said:

Buying a boat is the best way to know if it’s worth boating

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dancrane said:

If there's room for doubt whether you should give up sailing, you definitely shouldn't buy a yacht, not even an 18-footer.

It's definitely possible and totally reasonable to enjoy this sociable, no-cost, no-effort discussion of boats, far more than the real thing.

I still feel continuous relief three years after selling the boat I adored. I enjoy hours on Apollo Duck and Boatshed, judging costs and values and mostly shaking my head to think that some sucker will buy this, or that, and become responsible for its condition and keep, until he too can sell it...

...sometimes I see something I like and could afford, and can visualise myself using enough to justify buying. But not enough to be worth paying through the nose to berth, or to justify the hideous days scraping and antifouling, or worrying about a tired engine and iffy electrics or damp cabin or dubious-aged standing rigging or ancient sails, or the terrifying cost of new replacement parts.

Right now, you really are in sailing heaven...happy daydreams based on memories, free of cost and without toil, headaches or frustration. It's especially nice thinking about boats you really can afford, because ownership is potentially so near but you never have to endure the reality.
.

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Bouba said:

There are two types of men....those that need a hobby and those that don’t. I would say that almost everyone on a specialist site like this (and of which there are many)...is a hobbyist at heart.

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Bouba said:

What you say is true....after three years. After thirteen years those pangs might make you want to dip your toes back in...

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Bouba said:

There are two types of men....those that need a hobby and those that don’t...everyone on a site like this is a hobbyist at heart.

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dancrane said:

If there's room for doubt whether you should give up sailing, you definitely shouldn't buy a yacht, not even an 18-footer.

It's definitely possible and totally reasonable to enjoy this sociable, no-cost, no-effort discussion of boats, far more than the real thing.

I still feel continuous relief three years after selling the boat I adored. I enjoy hours on Apollo Duck and Boatshed, judging costs and values and mostly shaking my head to think that some sucker will buy this, or that, and become responsible for its condition and keep, until he too can sell it...

...sometimes I see something I like and could afford, and can visualise myself using enough to justify buying. But not enough to be worth paying through the nose to berth, or to justify the hideous days scraping and antifouling, or worrying about a tired engine and iffy electrics or damp cabin or dubious-aged standing rigging or ancient sails, or the terrifying cost of new replacement parts.

Right now, you really are in sailing heaven...happy daydreams based on memories, free of cost and without toil, headaches or frustration. It's especially nice thinking about boats you really can afford, because ownership is potentially so near but you never have to endure the reality.
.

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dancrane said:

Don't be downhearted, it's terrific to have loved the pastime for what it was worth, yet to know that for you, it isn't worth repeating the experience.

You can afford a small yacht and you've been window-shopping for years, so if you haven't bought one, that was the smart choice for you.

Don't forget it's much, much more fun to dream of buying a boat, than to be desperate to get rid of one, or to have no love left for it.

Many owners must be quietly envying you.
.

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dancrane said:

Excellent points, succinctly made.

But I wonder whether stretching three years to thirteen only strips out the negative memories, that are valuable to knowledge of the reality.

My shed finally reached a point of near-completeness for the boat-owning hobby, just as I got rid of my last boat. I even bought a circular saw, whose only use has been in scrapping the Osprey. But I admit I love the idea that I am kitted out for any small task my next boat requires.

But here's the thing...today, a Friday, I'm not working. For the last ten years, all days-off came with a Need-To-Do list of boat jobs, some not so big, some very challenging and a bit of a headache. Today I can look at boats, dream idly, make more coffee, laugh at the foul forecast and never worry.

I'm glad I was able to learn enough to make my boats work, but gaining that knowledge wasn't the reason I bought them (and paid so much for berthing and everything else), so I'll strive in future to avoid any seemingly-attractive budget boat that needs repair or work.

Of course my negativity is singular to me. For about a hundred days of each indifferent UK summer, I'm not free to sail a boat or fix it.

As Wansworth enjoys much better weather and freedom from the obligations of employment, perhaps he should own a boat again. The simple clarity of that conclusion makes me wonder why he keeps asking the forum whether or not to go ahead.

Whatever his reasons, if there's doubt that it makes sense to buy and own again, it doesn't make sense to burn time and money making sure.

I'm very glad I owned boats...they taught me the relaxation and economy of not owning them. I do still have two Avons and an outboard.
.

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Wansworth said:

I hear your wise words……..but much like a drug addict or alcoholic it only takes a momment to fall into old ways

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dancrane said:

I appreciate that almost nobody on this forum will approve of that kind of maturity, nor recognise my interpretations of value, or what is worth enduring.

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dancrane said:

I was anticipating the perspectives of contributors who, if they shared Wansworth's doubts, would have their time free for pleasure rather than paint.

He is usually encouraged to buy, anything rather than just speculating on what might be nice. I hope he realises it's smarter to keep dreaming.

There's so much else to enjoy, that won't feel nearly so available if he invests time and capital in a boat.

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DownWest said:

I didn't even buy the boat, swopped it it for a favour.

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Bouba said:

You realise that you are different from Wansy…the odds of him finding a boat owned by a woman who is interested in his favours…is quite remote

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Wansworth said:

This little gem just waiting in the harbour were my wife hails fromhttps://www.milanuncios.com/veleros/velero-498835544.htm

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LittleSister said:

You may jest, but that looks a nice little boat, and I had so much fun and so many adventures in vessels like that and smaller.

Buying a boat never makes sense, practically and financially. The smile it can put on your face, though, the feeling of being alive, and the joy of being alive (even if just from lying drowsy as your own little boat rocks at anchor) are priceless.

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