Thinking about buying a boat

[Nemrod]

"the short version is we will NOT get an old Thunderbird "

Oh darn and I was looking forward to hearing of the GPS coordinates for the northwest's newest dive site.

Don't let the glitter and gloss at a boat show suck you in. Remember your original premise, a trailerable boat that could carry a couple of divers for local diving.

N

 

[dsteding]

Richard, you'll get the full story this weekend, however, the short version is we will NOT get an old Thunderbird (too expensive) and we will wait for the Boat Show and spend time there looking around.

This is exciting news

 

[Nemrod]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvGWMUNoOnA&mode=related&search=

Starts out with a chopper sequence before shifting to a rescue operation utilizing--what else--a Boston Whaler Outrage 22. Good shots of the rough riding Whaler in action.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cpnw-9MfQNY&mode=related&search=


Another of a small, probably 15 foot, sit down Whaler running in light chop.

Here is another below that is particularly relavent to the initial thread, this way Peter and his current wife can both have a boat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WIGQRDiZ2g&mode=related&search=

When people talk about boats riding rough, be it a panga or a row boat, you have to remember that certaily a 250,000 dollar triple engine battle wagon is going to cut through 4 foot chop like a hot knife through butter but some of us, even if we could sink a quarter million into a toy might find more productive things to do with such resources, like making people happy other than ourselves.

N

 

[Hank49]

, the short version is we will NOT get an old Thunderbird .

Not only too expensive....too ugly...

 

[B-24]

Peter
I’m not a scuba diver but I do have a lot of experience out on the lower Columbia River in all kinds of boats. Tri hull, catamaran or double hull is hard to turn. If you need to make a 90° turn or come about to pick up a skier for example they just won’t turn like a single hull. It doesn’t matter how their trimmed. People argue and swear that a tri hull will take rough water better. Sorry, I’ll take you out there and prove it.
Deep-V is OK for performance, your sacrificing floor space for the V, it depends on what kind of water your on if it’s worth the sacrifice. With my experience the best overall hull design is the typical old lap straight single hull design with lots of freeboard (depth) and lots of birth (width). The lap straight gives it lift going into a wave in rough water. No water breaks over the bow or it’s got to be pretty bad out there before it does. Birth refers to the stall a boat is parked or mored in at a marina. It also refers to the width. Being wide gives it more buoyancy. Lots of freeboard (depth), means no water coming in over the stern to drown the motor out. Taking on rough water, water skiing on smooth water, what ever Mother Nature or circumstances throws at you that hull will see you through it and back home again.
Last but not least when you crank that wheel at full speed that thing digs in and comes about right now.
The old wooden lap straight hull was the original design. As we know wood hulls require a lot of maintenance and loving care. There are lots of fiberglass or better yet aluminum hulls out there with that same design. Length is up to what you want. Just be sure it has enough birth and freeboard in proportion to its length.
I got my first taste of this when I was 14 years old. My Dad took him and me into the Columbia River Gorge in a 14’ boat. It was a beautiful day when we left the marina. After we were out there the wind came up from nowhere with huge white caps coming at us. Water coming in over the wind shield on us. Water washing in over the transom & stern drowning the motor out. Oh yes, lessons to be learned. We were lucky to make it back that day.
Having a small outboard is a good idea just keep in mind that the environmentalists are putting the outboard motor on the scrap pile. I understand they’re already illegal in some places.
Don

 

[mrjimboalaska]

Peter,
Take a look at this....http://akmining.com/boat/aurora.htm
we skiied as kids behind a trihull, we thought it was a nice boat...
but dad caught into sturgoen and steelhead fishing and bought a Duckworth
to run the snake and the salmon with, nice boat.....

 

[BKP]

Here's what I've done: http://www.garlic.com/~triblet/whaler/

Chuck, nice modifications. My Searay Select 200 ('06) doesn't lend itself to "Whaler-type" mods, however, for a 21' bowrider, with a 5.0L MPI Merc, w/ a Bravo III, it does great for two divers and gear on the inland waterways. It's my 3rd boat, and 2nd Searay -- very pleased with the reliability and quality, and the deep V manages the chop.

I also have a galvanized Shoreland'r, and was wondering why you didn't fit yours with a swing-away tongue, as opposed to removable? My beam width makes garage parking undoable, however, if I had a single wide door instead of two 8'6" doors, the swing-away would have made storing it possible.

My tow vehicle is a Nissan Frontier. Like you, I have nothing but good things to say about it. Handles up to 6500 lbs. without breathing hard. If I won the Lottery tomorrow, I'd keep the truck...

-Barry

 

[Nemrod]

"Having a small outboard is a good idea just keep in mind that the environmentalists are putting the outboard motor on the scrap pile. I understand they’re already illegal in some places."


The above is not a true statement. Newer outboard motors have exceedingly high efficiency and extremely low emissions. N

 

[BKP]

"Having a small outboard is a good idea just keep in mind that the environmentalists are putting the outboard motor on the scrap pile. I understand they’re already illegal in some places."


The above is not a true statement. Newer outboard motors have exceedingly high efficiency and extremely low emissions. N

Actually, there *are* a number of townships/counties that have begun banning particular outboards (most notably carburated 2-strokes).

 

[Nemrod]

And, FYI, most notably, only Yamaha currently produces carburated two strokes as I recall. Almost all two stroke and four stroke outboards are DFI and are three and four star rated which is as high an EPA rating as is possible now unless it has gone up since I last checked. None of these engines are banned from any place and if they are (which they are not) then most of the carburated I/O should be as well because they are pretty dirty engines. For example, all Mercury outboards are three and four star rated and all are DFI or fourstroke, they do not sell or make carburated engines now since a couple of years ago. I think that Yamaha is allowed to produce carburated and non compliant engines because of their fleet average and our governments insistence upon shipping our jobs overseas to countries that produce far more pollution than we do, BTU for BTU.

LOL, someday we will have a Mr. Fusion, until then, make mine an outboard, all this is a complicated subject and who knows what the future may bring.

N