Sarum 28 Sailboats for Sale

Layouts on the Used Market

The original standard plan placed a forecabin, heads, hanging locker and saloon below, with four berths in all. Because the welded hull makes the interior bulkheads non-structural, many survivors have been reconfigured: one documented refit moved the heads aft, and buyers will find variations in saloon seating and galley placement. The beamy multi-chine hull keeps the cabin volume usable, but some boats originally came without a saloon table, lee clothes or a proper door on the heads, so layout completeness varies by owner.

Equipment and Common Upgrades

On the brokerage market, heating, solar panels, a wind generator, radar and a chartplotter are commonly fitted, reflecting how owners have modernised these boats. The most consequential upgrades cluster around power and energy — solar and a Rutland wind generator keep batteries topped without shore power — and navigation, where chartplotter and radar replace the ancient depth sounder some boats originally carried. Canvas and sail-handling improvements such as a new fully battened mainsail and genoa with boom cover and dodgers, plus cockpit-led running rigging to a single winch, matter more than creature comforts for short-handed sailing. A windvane self-steering system is a notable offshore addition seen on at least one refitted example.

What to Inspect

A documented refit of a Sarum 28 found a leaking forehatch that drained onto the forecabin berth and needed replacement, so test any forehatch for stains below. That same boat had a length of garden hose running from the stern gland to nowhere, a flooding path that should be traced and removed on any candidate. Check the cockpit locker covers: flimsy wooden ones were replaced with watertight aluminium on the refitted boat. Inspect the 240V wiring for a confusing multi-coloured scheme and confirm batteries and charger are not left unprotected beneath the wet-locker. Notably, that example showed no serious galvanic action in the hull, but a survey for aluminium corrosion remains essential.

Availability and Buyer's Takeaway

These boats are typically found in the United Kingdom. For a buyer, the checklist is straightforward: confirm the aluminium hull is free of galvanic corrosion, verify the forehatch and stern-gland plumbing, review the electrical layout, and assess how thoroughly the interior has been reworked from the original plan. A Sarum 28 with a modernised rig, windvane and energy suite is a capable shallow-draft cruiser; one retaining original timber saloon seating that appeared reclaimed from old pallets and no bilge pump will need work.