J/30 Class Association Forums J/30 Forum The Smack Introducing myself, and looking for a boat.

Hi everybody. I'm Doug, I sail on Lake Erie, and am kicking around the idea of getting a J30, or J29.

I spent my childhood crewing on my father's Soverel 30 and T-10, but have never wanted a boat of my own until last year when I bought a Cape Dory 25 on a whim. (None of you have ev bought a boat on a whim....right?) The boat is heavy...slow...and the outboard motor is a PITA. So I'm shopping.

I found a J-29 here in Cleveland for a good deal, but Id need to spend some time and money on it. Next thought was a J-30. That's what brought me here. (That, and the 3 days I've been waiting for the J-29 club to approve my forum account.)

So there you have it. If you know of a boat that I can get a good deal on, I'm interested. I don't mind working on one, and I think the 30 would make the wife happier anyway.

Mods: Please feel free to move this thread to a different section if I'm in the wrong place here.

Doug - the smack section is as good of a place as any to discuss this. Here is what you find for advantages of a J/30 over a J/29.

• The J/30 Class Association is active - you discovered that yourself in trying to register for an account on both the J/29 and J/30 sites. We have held the J/30 North American Championship every year except 2005 when they were scheduled in New Orleans. Another national level event called Katrina took precedence over the NAs
• There is a wealth of information on the J/30 Class website and on this forum. If you have a question about the boat, systems, maintenance, racing tips, etc. you'll find it has probably already been discussed with references for you, or people here are willing to share ideas with you.
• People - we've got a great group of folks scattered all over the place. No matter where I go, I can find a J/30 owner that I can join on a boat or at the bar.
• A great boat at a reasonable price - the J/30 is a great balance between racer and cruiser. The J/29 rates faster but if you do any cruising or have a family, you'll find the amenities of the J/30 better suited.
• True One Design - no such thing a MHOB, MHIB, FRIB, FROB - we are all fractional with inboard diesel and all boats rate the same. There are some cockpit and interior option differences, but nothing that has differentiated sailing performance of one configuration over another. The national championship has been won by old boats and "new" boats (last hull made in 1986)

You can find a reasonably priced "race ready" boat or if you are handy, one that may need some TLC for a lower cost. These boats were all made 1978 - 1986 and some (like mine) had issues with wet balsa core. This isn't a show stopper, just realize that some may require more work than others, and once properly fixed, that problem won't occur again. The J/29 has the same issues.

There are some J/30s in the Cleveland area. Let me know if you want contact info and We can put you in touch with local owners to talk with them and maybe get together to see their boats. Good luck with your search.

Hi Doug,
There is a J/30 for sale located in the Toledo area. The boat name is Sophia. She is listed on the J/30 web page under boats for sale. If you need contact information, let me know and I can forward the info to you.
Good luck in your hunt.

Doug - I suggest taking a look at Sophia as well. If you want to go out for a sail on a J/30 and a J/29 to check out the differences, we can get you out on our J/30 and know some of the J/29 owners and can probably hook you up for a ride. (Of course if you want to crew on a J/30 while looking, you are more than welcome as well .) Give us a holler if you are interested, we sail out of Forest City Yacht Club downtown - Rich and Dolores Galaska - http://breezin.galaska.net

I was reminded over and over during my stint as class president, that the two most important features of the J/30 are the inboard engine and the head.

Hi Doug,

Welcome to the 'site and I will also add my voice to the J/30 as a great boat. If you like, you can read my blog (go into the archives section) as a recent J/30 owner you can see some of the reasons why I went with a J/30 over some of the other boats that are out there. You will not regret buying a J/30.

Thanks for the great info guys. I'm pretty torn on the two boats. It may come down to a coin-flip to be honest. I'll be using it to race 75% of the time, so speed is a factor. I can make it comfortable enough for cursing.

I did talk to the broker about Sophia. The hull has some core issues that scared me away from it. There's another in Chicago that I am trying to find someone to go look at. I fear the same issues will be with that one.

The J-29 here in Cleveland is pretty inexpensive, and I think I can get it in the water for under $9k, so that is a factor too.

One thing is certain: The 29/30 communities are active and willing to help a new guy. That is my favorite part of all of this.

I'm VERY sorry to tell you all that earlier today, I decided on a J29 here in Cleveland.

I struggled with it quite a bit, because there are things about the J30 that I like quite a bit more. It all came down to $$. I was able to get a bone-dry J29 for $7,000. I spent $500 on 3 used (but REAL nice sails) and I'm about in the water. The only thing I need to really repair is the rudder.

So at the end of the day, I'll have to put quite a bit of elbow-grease into this one, but I'll be in the water for under $9K, and have a hell of a racer/cruiser.

Who knows...in a year I might be able to sell it for more, and get the J30 that I had my eye on.

Thanks SO much to everyone that sent me messages and PM'd me. It's appreciated.

Don't be sorry_.more so be proud. The J/29 is a great boat, and a boat that can actually sail and sail well. Congrat's on the new boat and enjoy it.