This boat is the best I've owned in my 26 years of sailing - it is fun, has good performance, has loads of room and behaves itself at sea.
The performance is very good although the IOR style rig means sheeting the main to windward until about force 3, and you really DO want to use the spinnaker as often as possible, although it can be rather fun downwind on a gusty day!
This boat sails very well although is rather tender, a legacy of the IOR-friendly design of the keel. It is very responsive on the helm (you won't be able to leave the tiller) and is like a big dinghy to sail, you will be able to tack and gybe within a couple of seconds if you miss your mooring - to begin with I didn't even bother buying an engine!
Many are available at bargain prices and the class association is getting itself together again, so values will increase. There is room for 4 full berths below with stowage for water, fuel, gas and space for a cooker and bowl. This is streets ahead of many others in this size range! Some even have toilets, but mine has a second bucket......
Overall a good boat for you to buy and sail on a realistic budget - it can (just) be trailed legally by a Peugeot 406 but will need to be recovered up the slipway by a 4x4. Mine's not for sale....
I have cruised an E-boat to Belgium twice from the Blackwater and have done many miles over the last 2 1/2 years with me (now) 4 year old daughter. Becaouse of its easily driven hull shape, all you have to do to cruise in comfort is reef early. Force 6 up the Wallet with 2 reefs in and tripple reefed headsail gave me 4.5 -5 knotts with max 10 degrees heel
Owned for 3 years.
Preloved Visitor
Reviewed February 2003.
Performance
Safety
Accomodation
Overall Value for Money
I have owned an e-boat in the past and found it very exciting to sail however my ownership lasted about 6 months mainley due to the lift up keel only being held by one solitery wire which broke resulting in the near loss of my fingers, buyers beware she was also easy to knock down so if you do intend buying one make sure she is fitted with plenty of bouyancey
Owned for 6 months.
Preloved Visitor
Reviewed October 2002.
Performance
Safety
Accomodation
Overall Value for Money
If you're after a fast sailing boat at a small price, this is it! With a flush deck it looks and feels much bigger than its 22ft overall length. The price you pay for this is somewhat cramped headroom down below (approx 4ft) but with a 9ft beam, there's plenty of space to stretch your legs out and all 4 berths are over 6ft long so excellent for tall people like me. Back up top, the ride is fun and always rewarding. For a relatively small boat, it's surprisingly dry, mainly due to the wide beam and generous freeboard. With a lifting keel (10in draft with keel up!), you can also get into all sorts of areas which would off limits to fin keelers. Due to its light hull and relatively low ballast, some find it a little tender to sail in fresher winds and some alarming articles have been written about stability. However, I have regularly been out in f5+ and never felt unnerved. The trick is simply to reef a little earlier than you would in a heavier boat. Easy really! £4,500 should get you a decent one which I think is an absolute bargain!!
Owned for 4 years.
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