Talk To Me About Boats

[mikethompson]

Occasionally I feel like the cat in this meme;



I live on a lake, have many lakes within driving distance, and I think my kids would get a kick out of it. On the other hand, I've heard that 'boat' stands for "bust out another thousand". I'd be looking at getting something like this for a few grand.



Has anyone gone the boat route and loved it? Hated it?

 

[captpat]

The two best days in a boat owners life are the day he buys it and the day he sells it. I have a boat and like any hobby it's not bad financially as long as you keep up with maintenance on the boat AND the trailer if you have one.

 

[jguss]

Are you aware that sometimes they sink?

 

[AJL67]

Being in Florida i know many boating families that are on the river or take it out to the jetty for ocean time, as long as you get your money out of it in enjoyment that’s all that counts. Be sure to get an inner tube or pull raft and things like that! Like anything I’d have a pro check it out first especially the engine(s).

 

[Piping Rooster]

Buy new if you can! Used boats are the epitome of that acronym! Inboard engines are a pain to work on and they are always in need of work. Todays outboards are really well engineered for the marine environment where as most inboards are car engines. Most outboard brands make very reliable products these days. As well as being able to run shallower than most inboards its easier to clear the prop or water pickups of any debris without having to enter the water. I could go on and on but with my 30+ years of boating experience I'm choosing an outboard every time. As for the hull choice Fibergalss would be my choice as they're strong and easy to repair. Used is fine but make sure you know what to look for when it comes to structural integrity. Lots of videos online that go over hull surveying. Watch those first before rushing to buy that beautiful boat! I can not stress that enough! Its easy to slap on some paint to make her look good! Take women and their makeup for example, they look good the night you take em home, but the next morning when the makeup is worn off they look like a truck driver! You wont be happy... Good luck and have fun!

 

[Chaukisch]

I got a river flowing right through my town which I could follow all the way into the North Sea.



I often thought about getting some kind of small nutshell, I wouldn't even need a license
for anything up to a 15HP outboard. Something with a sail would be really nice.
It just seems like a lot of work and money and how many days a year will I be out with it? I don't know.
But thinking about it sure is fun.

 

[scloyd]

My parents owned a pontoon boat and it was a lot of fun when we took it out on weekdays. Weekends were a disaster, way too many other boats. We got to the point where we only took it out on weekdays and evenings. It was very costly. My dad kept it at a marina that maintained it and stored it off season.

My father-in-law received a used boat similar to the one in your photo as a trade-in on a car. My wife and I took it out once and it was fun. He sold it shortly after that.

If I lived on a lake and didn't have to trailer it back and forth to the lake, I would definitely own one.

I owned a canoe for many years. It was easy to transport and easy to store. I kept it under cover behind the garage. It was fun taking the kids out to paddle around and fish. I took it to the Boundary Waters in northern Minnesota twice. I loved the canoe...I should buy another.

 

[jaytex1969]

Boat: noun, a hole in the water, surrounded by wood or fiberglass, into which one throws money.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I have an 18" aluminum canoe. It hasn't cost me a dime past the original sale 28 years ago. I mean, I can't pull a skier or water floats... well, I could, but... it'd be a hell of a workout, ha ha.

The kids take it out down the river here occasionally, but we use it more as a fishing platform than anything.

 

[Flatfish]

Currently own a 16 foot catamaran. But have only drifted on it for about 30 mins this year.
It is either too windy, too calm, raining, waves too big, too many tourists, nobody around to help me push it, something else on that I want to do, can't be bothered.
So I'm going to try and sell it if I can.

 

[mawnansmiff]

They say to get the feeling of owning a boat, stand in the shower whilst ripping up banknotes!

Seriously though, as you live by a lake, first thing I'd do is find out how much mooring fees are or how much launch fees are. That should inform you as to how much you might want to spend on the actual boat.

Regards,

Jay.

 

[pappymac]

I have lots of friends who own boats. Most of them use their boats two or three times a month. They all spend money that could be used buying new pipes and tobacco to maintain the boats that the seldom get to enjoy.

I was the editor of a monthly hunting and fishing magazine for 10 years. I was asked once why I didn't own a boat and I said, "I get invited to go fishing with charter captains two or three times a month, why do I need a boat?" Seriously, though, fishing with a local charter captain/fishing guide may cost around $600 per trip on average. For one trip a month that's $7,200 per year and you don't have to pay for the fuel, bait, equipment, maintenance and in most cases you don't have to pay for non-alcoholic drinks.

All of that is irrelevant if you are rich or if you like to do stupid stuff like waterski.

 

[didimauw]

I have an 18" aluminum canoe. It hasn't cost me a dime past the original sale 28 years ago. I mean, I can't pull a skier or water floats... well, I could, but... it'd be a hell of a workout, ha ha.

The kids take it out down the river here occasionally, but we use it more as a fishing platform than anything.

I have a 18' Coleman fiberglass canoe, that my dad bought 20 years ago atleast. I'll never sell it. We have been through some stuff together. Otherwise, my in laws live on a lake and have channel frontage. So it's their back yard. So I get all the benefits of owning a boat, without paying or doing any of the work.

So much better than owning one. Might try that some day! Got inlaws Mike???

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Got inlaws Mike??

Yes, but since my wife was the baby of her family, they are all older, and live in the NC mountains. I don't take the canoe up there. My canoe has a slight keel, making it better for our lakes and rivers in AL. I have put it in the Gulf a few times, and it makes a pretty good ocean canoe.

 

[AJL67]

How many kids do you have?

 

[trudger]

If it flys, floats or… rent it.

 

[Piping Rooster]

If it flys, floats or… rent it.

I'm gonna guess what the last one is supposed to be... Never rented one of those, but I'm curious about insurance rates and what coverage is available? Lol

 

[Sir Yak]

Our family got into paddling a few years ago and it has been wonderful. Kayaks are not what your talking about but you could get a herd of yaks for what you’d spend on a boat and after that initial cost there’s not much else to spend on paddling. Paddling gets you out in the water and looking at nature and is easy low impact exercise. I wish I’d discovered it 30 years sooner.

 

[jaytex1969]

My childhood household was 4 kids and 2 parents on a single blue collar income.

Fund were tight and discretionary spending was very controlled, but we always had a boat. We spent most weekends in the summers crabbing and fishing on the Chesapeake and its tributaries.

We've had short boats and long boats, inboard and outboard motors, trailered and moored boats.

Dad and I even built a boat one year. I studied drafting and we got a grand in lumber and hardware and proceeded to build the ugliest, box shaped monster you can imagine. To our credit, it sailed nicely, held an old school 90hp Johnson motor on the transom and didnt leak for 4 years, until we raced a storm back to the dock one day and rammed the dock pretty good in our haste.

I also got to learn the fine art of barnacle scraping. Now, there's a good time!!


Jay, on the road.

 

[StringBEan]

Our family got into paddling a few years ago and it has been wonderful. Kayaks are not what your talking about but you could get a herd of yaks for what you’d spend on a boat and after that initial cost there’s not much else to spend on paddling. Paddling gets you out in the water and looking at nature and is easy low impact exercise. I wish I’d discovered it 30 years sooner.

I 1000% second this. I wrote fishing articles for a local newspaper back in the day, and did all my content from shore or paddling in a little crappy kayak. But, I’ll be honest, being in that crappy hunk of chartreuse colored plastic made my week EVERY time. Plus, no maintenance costs, and if your upper body strength is an issue, a new ‘yak with a mirage drive (pedals) is infinitely cheaper than a gas powered pleasure boat. All this is irrelevant if you solely want a boat for towing skiers and the like. If your end goal doesn’t involve towing or planing out on a giant reservoir, kayaks are fantastic.