Westsail 42 Buyer's Guide
Shopping the used Westsail 42 means stepping into a small but coherent fleet of 119 center-cockpit passagemakers built between 1974 and 1979, with a handful finished by Jomarco after Westsail's reorganization. These are Crealock-designed, full-keel cruisers offered originally as finished boats or owner kits, so the condition of any individual hull depends heavily on how it was completed and maintained rather than on a uniform factory standard.
Layouts on the Used Market
Every Westsail 42 shares the same hull moulds and a center-cockpit arrangement aimed at long-distance liveaboard travel, with the fuller aft sections giving more below-decks storage than the smaller Westsail 32. The fleet splits between cutter and ketch rigs, the cutter being more common; the ketch brings a lower bridge clearance and a wider range of sail combinations that make shorthanded sailing easier. Because some boats were sold as kits, interior joinery and systems layout can differ hull to hull even where the shell is identical.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
On the used market a bimini and evidence of circumnavigation are commonly fitted, marking these as boats pressed into bluewater service. Heating and a washing machine are often seen, speaking to the liveaboard intent of the design. Less common but present as owner upgrades are air conditioning, a self-tacking jib, a freezer, documented transatlantic completion, and short-handed setups. A buyer should weigh the ketch rig's sail-handling advantage and any shorthanded modifications as consequential, while treating creature-comfort gear as secondary to structural and rigging condition.
What to Inspect
The two-section hull is built in halves of 12 hand-laid fiberglass layers joined with adhesive, so the centerline joint should be examined closely. The two-inch moulded flange at the sheer line forms the hull-to-deck join and deserves inspection for separation or bedding failure. Lead ballast cast in three portions bedded with glue and asbestos and glassed over means any ballast-area glass cracking or moisture warrants survey. The deck is plywood-cored and the deck and hull underwent a month-long cure, but latent flaws from that process or later core intrusion should be checked.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
These boats turn up most often in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. For a shopper, the practical checklist is: confirm whether the hull was factory- or kit-finished, verify the rig type and any shorthanded upgrades, inspect the two-section hull joint and ballast glassing, and assess the plywood-cored deck for moisture. A Westsail 42 that passes those checks is a serious liveaboard passagemaker with the storage and stability the design promised.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Westsail 42. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 5 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 25 | 1 | $59,000 | — |
| Aug 25 | 1 | $35,000 | -40.7% |
| Jan 26 | 2 | $67,000 | +91.4% |
| Apr 26 | 6 | $51,500 | -23.1% |
| Jun 26 | 2 | $43,236 | -16.0% |
Where they're listed
Westsail 42 listings appear across 3 countries. United States has the most listings with 7 (70.0%), followed by Mexico and Canada.
Country view
10 listings · 3 countries| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | $44,000 | 7 | 1 | 70.0% |
| Mexico | $67,000 | 2 | 0 | 20.0% |
| Canada | $42,472 | 1 | 1 | 10.0% |
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
6 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tayana Vancouver 42 | 41.75' | $ 119,948 | 50 | 12 |
| Whitby Yachts 42 | 42' | $ 63,094 | 18 | 0 |
| Valiant 42 | 42' | $ 299,999 | 18 | 4 |
| Moody 42 | 41.79' | $ 62,024 | 12 | 1 |
| Westsail 42You are here | — | $ 51,500 | 10 | 2 |
| Rustler 42 | 42' | $ 474,901 | 9 | 3 |