For Sale — 1988 Bristol Channel Cutter Angelsea
Lyle Hess design · Pardey layout · Just out of a two-year, no-shortcuts refit · Currently sailing the Virgin Islands
Asking $85,000 USD
It’s time, unfortunately. After 18 years aboard Angelsea, we’ve come to accept that we’re getting a little too old to sail and maintain her to our own standards. So we’re doing the one thing we can still do right by her: handing over a boat that is finished, sorted, and sailing — not a project.
She has just come through a two-year refit at TOBY in St. Martin, and she is in the water and cruising the Virgin Islands right now. Rig, engine, ground tackle, electrical, electronics, refrigeration, galley, cushions, bottom — all of it done, and done in the last 24 months. Whoever buys her steps aboard and goes.
True to her heritage, she’s a capable, sea-kindly cutter built for bluewater passages, self-reliant voyaging, and quiet anchorages far from the crowd.
Why This One Is Different
• Bronze, not stainless. Every stainless deck fitting and chainplate has been replaced with solid bronze — corrosion and crevice-fatigue worries permanently off the table.
• Dyneema standing rigging, black, brand new. Angelsea was the first boat in the Caribbean to go to Dyneema standing rigging, back in 2008. This is the third renewal cycle after 14 years, 9mm, tensioned with deadeyes and lanyards — no turnbuckles, no swage fittings, nothing to hide a crack. Good for 10+ years. Probably longer but no statistics yet.
• A finished refit, not a started one. The engine is back in and running. The mast is stepped, painted, and rewired. The sails are bent on. The receipts are the boat.
• She’s proving it right now — sailing the USVI/BVI this season rather than sitting on stands with a tarp over her.
Engine & Mechanical
Beta Marine 25hp (3-cyl BD902, heat-exchanger cooled), installed 2012, approx. 4,800 hours. Runs perfectly — no smoke, smooth, reliable.
Pulled and fully serviced during the refit:
• New engine mounts, new shaft saver, new cutlass bearing
• Shaft inspected — no corrosion, no pitting
• Hoses and clamps replaced as needed, new zinc, repainted
• Kiwi feathering prop serviced
• New engine control; control panel refurbished with fresh paint, new key ignition and water temp gauge
• New sea strainer and new saltwater deck-wash pump
• Engine exhaust anti-siphon repaired
• New maintenance-free start battery
• New engine intake thru-hull; remaining thru-hulls serviced
• Bilge pumps serviced, smaller auto pump replaced
• All sanitation hoses replaced
• Water tanks cleaned and inspected
Electrical
• WattCycle 314Ah LiFePO₄ house bank with Bluetooth monitoring, under the forward berth
• 2000W LiTime pure sine inverter — runs an air fryer without complaint
• 120A Balmar alternator with Balmar 618 external regulator (2024)
• 640W of solar: two 120W bifacial on the stern, two 100W carbon-fiber on the rails, two 100W portable bifacial flex panels that deploy at anchor
• Victron 50A Bluetooth controller
• Wiring upgraded throughout for heavier amperage to ABYC standards
• 240V/12V 10A portable charger for French-yard shore power
• Cabin lighting conversion underway, with additional fixtures aboard
Rig, Sails & Deck
• Mast and boom repainted, two coats Awlgrip; masthead sheaves serviced
• Mast rewired — new steaming/deck light, new VHF antenna, new LED anchor light
• New black Dyneema standing rigging (see above)
• Furling staysail (2026) on a new Selden Furlex furler
• Full-batten mainsail (2024), jib (2022), plus drifter and whisker pole
• Bowsprit refurbished; continuous-line jib furler upgraded to a larger model for easier furling
• All new sheets, halyards and reefing lines; all winches serviced
• Freehand self-steering serviced, with a new vane sail — plus a new Raymarine autopilot
• Tiller refurbished and
new solid mahogany drop boards
• Ground tackle, all new: 35lb Delta (upgraded from 22lb for soft mangrove bottoms), Fortress FX-11 secondary, 150’ of 8mm chain, 150’ of 5/8” nylon rode, spare 5/16” wildcat, windlass “up” foot switch replaced. Electric windlass (2020) feeds a chain locker just forward of the mast for proper weight distribution.
• Fresh-water cockpit shower hose and faucet
• Full cockpit awning — real shade and rain protection for tropical anchorages
• New black dock lines
Navigation & Communications
• B&G Vulcan 9” chartplotter with new broadband radar
• Class B 5W AIS transponder, integrated with the Vulcan
• Standard Horizon VHF with AIS receiver
• Current FCC ship station license, MMSI programmed
Interior & Galley
Below decks she’s the classic Lin & Larry Pardey layout — traditional, practical, proven. Spacious double berth forward, a warm saloon, and a well-appointed galley to port. Toilet is under a teak watch seat by the companion way, this allows the double up forward. Solid teak joinery and bronze fittings throughout.
• New cushions throughout (2025) — powder blue
• New propane system, two 10lb tanks, new Force 10 two-burner stove (still baking brownies on command 😋)
• New 4.5 cu ft refrigeration with freezer compartment (2025)
• 7 GPH watermaker with new membrane
• New high-neck galley faucet, new fresh-water foot pump
• Interior varnish is due for a refresh — the one honest cosmetic item left
Hull & Bottom
• Bottom sanded hard — 90% of old paint removed — hull inspected, minor gelcoat blisters repaired after two years drying out. Epoxy barrier coat, then three coats of heavy-copper black antifouling
• Topsides buffed; heavy gelcoat means polish, not paint
• Rudder bearings inspected, zincs replaced
Gear Included
• New inflatable RIB aluminum bottom by Highfield (2026) with new Tohatsu 3.5hp outboard — light and easily handled
• Solid teak chocks for a 7’ Fatty Knees
• Spares, paints and hardware aboard
Honest Notes
We’d rather you hear it from us than find it yourself:
• Interior varnish wants a refresh.
• Exterior brightwork and bulwarks could use attention.
• Next haul-out, I’d replace the cockpit drain thru-hulls and the saltwater intake thru-hull that feeds the watermaker and head. Serviced and sound now — just my recommendation for the next owner’s schedule.
That’s the list. Everything else has been done except for minor maintenance issues.
Final Thoughts
For those who admire the Lyle Hess / Pardey legacy, Angelsea is everything that makes these boats timeless: seaworthiness, simplicity, and the quiet confidence to cross oceans safely and in style.
Boats like this usually come to market one of two ways — tired, or halfway through someone’s plans. This one comes to market finished and sailing, with bronze hardware, modern electronics, a new rig, and a fully sorted engine and electrical system.
Asking $85,000 USD. Reasonable negotiation. Lying Virgin Islands/Puerto Rico.
Fresh photographs available — message me for detailed interior and systems shots. Questions welcome; I’ll answer any of them straight.