Moody 29 Buyer's Guide
Shopping the used brokerage market for a Moody 29 means looking at an Angus Primrose–designed, Marine Products Ltd–built fiberglass cruiser from the early eighties, a product of the long Moody–Marine Projects partnership that seeded a wide support network for the marque. She is a 29.53-foot masthead sloop with a fin keel, a single 20-horsepower Bukh DV20ME diesel on shaft drive, and a modest 24-gallon fuel and 48-gallon water capacity — dimensions that shape both her appeal and the realistic scope of her upgrades.
Layouts on the Used Market
The Moody 29 carries a fin-keel hull of fiberglass with a rudder typed as spade in estimates rather than a confirmed measure, and a dependent-load draft near 4.5 feet, and her length-to-beam ratio of 2.81 places her as more spacy than 79 percent of similar designs, so the used boats you meet will typically feel open for their length rather than cramped. The 7,300-pound displacement and 2,750-pound iron ballast give a settled coastal profile, and the 48-gallon water capacity supports short cruises without implying offshore range. No alternative hull or cabin-layout generations are described in the source material, so used buyers should expect the standard Primrose coastal interior rather than a later Dixon-era redesign.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
On the used market, Moody 29s often carry an autopilot, a chartplotter, hot water, a dodger, a short-handed setup, and a spinnaker, all of which appear as frequently seen rather than universal factory fits. Heating, solar, a bimini, and a life raft are less commonly seen and usually represent owner upgrades rather than standard equipment. The original rig uses 10 mm (3/8 inch) sheets throughout — jib and genoa at 9.0 meters, mainsheet at 22.5 meters, spinnaker at 19.8 meters — so a spinnaker in the often-seen tier is consistent with the boat's documented sheet dimensions.
What to Inspect
The documented record for the Moody 29 records no structural defects, rigging failures, or osmotic problems, so a survey should focus on age-related wear not described in the sources. The capsize screening value of 2.16 indicates that this boat would not be accepted to participate in ocean races, a design limit rather than a fault but one worth noting when judging intended use. The Motion Comfort Ratio of 18.6, better than only 24 percent of similar sailboats, and the immersion rate of about 912 lbs/inch are flat metrics that help a buyer assess load behavior rather than reveal a known defect.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
The typical markets for the Moody 29 are the United Kingdom and Ireland, where the Marine Projects–built Moodys of this era remain most concentrated. For a shopper, the takeaway is a compact, spacious-for-length coastal cruiser with a clean documented issue record and a realistic upgrade profile:
- Verify the Bukh DV20ME and shaft drive service history
- Check the 10 mm sheet inventory against the 9.0 / 22.5 / 19.8 m specs
- Confirm often-seen gear (autopilot, chartplotter, dodger, spinnaker) is present and owner-upgrade tier items are documented
- Survey for age wear despite the absence of cited design defects
- Treat the 2.16 capsize screen and 18.6 comfort ratio as coastal-use boundaries
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Moody 29. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 9 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 25 | 8 | $ 19,610 | — |
| Oct 25 | 4 | $ 17,567 | -10.4% |
| Nov 25 | 1 | $ 17,533 | -0.2% |
| Jan 26 | 1 | $ 10,154 | -42.1% |
| Mar 26 | 1 | $ 20,240 | +99.3% |
| Apr 26 | 18 | $ 18,801 | -7.1% |
| May 26 | 1 | $ 13,649 | -27.4% |
| Jun 26 | 5 | $ 14,853 | +8.8% |
| Jul 26 | 2 | $ 17,547 | +18.1% |
Where they're listed
Moody 29 listings appear across 2 countries. United Kingdom has the most listings with 36 (87.8%), followed by Ireland.
Country view
41 listings · 2 countries| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | $ 18,274 | 36 | 6 | 87.8% |
| Ireland | $ 14,853 | 5 | 3 | 12.2% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
7 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sadler 29 | 28.42' | $ 17,533 | 63 | 11 |
| Hallbery Rassy 29 | 29.2' | $ 43,531 | 60 | 16 |
| Moody 29You are here | — | $ 17,533 | 41 | 9 |
| Moody 30 | 30' | $ 17,147 | 27 | 9 |
| Moody 27 | 27.67' | $ 14,893 | 25 | 8 |
| Moody 34 | 33.42' | $ 43,256 | 21 | 3 |
| Colvic Sailor 29 | 29.5' | $ 21,324 | 10 | 0 |