What is a 'Seaworthy' boat.

[Pilar]

No duct tape, Capn Dan.

A lot of people have volunteered for duty in the Saltchuck this summer. Lets talk a little bit about what makes a good ocean boat.

There's a few things I like to see in a friends boat when I cross the bar.

Big gas tank
Reliable power plant, economical if possible ^
Built in flotation
Scuppers/self bailing deck or good bilge pumps
High bow and forward drive with a solid windshield
High sides and full height transom all the way across
VHF, GPS, Sonar and even Radar
1/2 canvas with sides (optional)
Big out of the way fish box
Open fishing area or even walk around cabin (Grady White)
Rocket launcher rod racks

More general
Backups built in, IE; 2 batteries, powerplants etc..
Vee hull design
Closed bow
Smart skipper

What do you guys think? When I rebuilt 'Pilar' I changed a few things. Added a bigger gas tank, a new fish box and more flotation foam. The 4cyl engine was a keeper and so was the laid up cloth FRP hull. Its a solid 19' boat and I feel pretty safe offshore.

That's the bottom line. How safe do you feel in your boat far from shore? What would you change?

[Master Baiter]

Freeboard, good railing fore and aft, freeboard, GPS and working VHF, freeboard! :wink: Oh, did I mention FREEBOARD (no multi-purpose ski pleasure boat!).

[ 02-07-2002, 08:47 AM: Message edited by: Master Baiter ]

[rojo]

Good points Pilar. I just got 2'ites early on and finally stopped. I like twin deisels lots of range and all the safety gear I can get on it, including charts and electronics, radar is helpful. And what I feel is very important is to never stop learning, other people are wonderful sources of info. Roger

[Threemuch]

My new rig has most of that. Some things I would change:

Fish storage is weak. But the deck is HUGE so I can use a cooler on deck and it doubles as a chair.

No Radar, YET.

Economical? That's pretty funny.

Deck is NOT self bailing. :depressed:

Otherwise I am pretty happy. Bring on the SALT!

[Fish Hunter]

Had fun outside by B-2 last summer under ideal conditions. I felt comfortable out there but the weather was all gravy for 4 days. I don't want to become over confident so I have a few questions about what to improve/when to use about my 19' NR Sportster for tougher ocean conditions. The list above helps alot but the things I'm missing from Pilar's list are:

1. High bow
2. High sides , I have 28.5" sides but a full height transom.
3. Sonar and even Radar.
4.Vee hull design, this boat has a 12 deg. vee at the stern.

Not much I can do about all of these but #3. How much trouble could I get in with out Sonar and Radar?

My experience at sea is very limited, I would be intersted in your weather limits when you plan your trips, and any suggestions for my weather conditions considering my equipment. I don't plan on exceeding my comfort level based on advice given here.

[Nanook]

http://home.arcor.de/schindol/gifs/werkzeuge/werkzeug035.gif graemlins/hearton.gif

[rojo]

Fish Hunter, radar is great if you get caught in fog,I some times run in the fog but have done so for a number of years and it does not bother me to much. Sonar? do you have a fishfinder? Also run with another boat. Roger

[Pitch Pocket]

Sonar is just your depth/fish finder. The radar comes in handy when the fog socks in and you are blind. The GPS will get you back, but you won't see the 80 ton freighter bearing down on you in the fog until you are under it's bow. Radar tells you its coming up to 24 miles (or more) away.

In SE Alaska, we got caught in fog often on otherwise perfect days. All we had was a compass and dead reckoning. Not too bad close to shore, but if you are many miles out, you take your chances.

[Captn]

In the BAyliner 24' Trophy we have all of the above, except maybe the part about the skipper. Since we have a V8 power plant, I did go ahead and get a 25HP Honda for trolling and as a back up for the big motor. I have always heard that for the salt you want two of everything. All of the above specs are met, including Radar. With a little help from Krystalflash and Pilar on the GPS I think I'm dangerous.

[ 02-07-2002, 10:43 AM: Message edited by: captn ]

[Pilar]

Ha ha ******, what are you saying?

Fish hunter, My gunnels are 28" also. Fish finder/Sonar is good for running in bays. It won't keep you off the mudbars but you'll know when you are almost already in trouble. The other huge thing about the fish finder is finding the structure that reef fish favor.

I like Radar too but I would have to get creative to mount an antenna on my boat. One of those over head bars would work. Hey, the rocket launchers could go up there too!

As far as weather limits go. An absolute is if the Sea and Swell add up to 10 its a no go. We bail long before this normally. The only exception is the big swell days in the fall. With 6' - 8' swells and no wind you can fish the bubble at Tillamook.

I usually worry a whole lot more about trend than absolute conditions. Little or no wind, 5' swell and 2' seas is the ideal situation. On a day with any predicted wind I will fish early and come home before noon to miss the afternoon blow.

The bottom line is it's a judgement call each and every time we go out. NOAA made some spectacular blunders last summer on the forecast. We just accept the fact that the trip may end before it begins. Many times I have looked long and hard at the ocean before I launched and just turned around because its too rough. No one wants to get the crap beat out of them and thats what happens on marginal weather days.

[Threemuch]

I like to look at isobaric charts and see how close together the pressure gradient is. If it is very close and moving in, that means wind. In general, you can look at the wind and see when you have to bail. <15 is great. <20 is marginal.
<25 is getting really nasty. Above this you want to be off the water.

I think a big consideration here is swell and tide, because that will determine the state of the bar.

KB

[Fish Hunter]

Sonar=depthfinder :sleep: graemlins/idea.gif
Got two. Pass the coffee.
Thanks for the feedback guys.
******, your graphic reminds me of what I'd like to avoid, getting screwed on big blue.
Sounds like my boat might fit the bill a bit better than I had imagined. Didn't buy it with the ocean in mind. I'll be hopping over to the parish thread later, may want get in on this with you guys.

This boat has a 7 hour range (42gal@ 6gal/hr.), how does that rate? Someone told me to use at most 1/3 tank out and 1/3 back and save 1/3 just in case. So 2.33 hours each way, how does this rate? Is it enough for halibut or tuna? Bet it's ok for bottom fishing based on the charter trips I've been on.

[Taylor's viewpoint]

Nobody has mentioned the tides yet. Crossing the bar can be a real eye opener when the current is running hard. Generally you can cross the bar at high or low slack, but I always prefer to cross when the tide is flooding.

TV
When in doubt, go fishing

[Pilar]

TV, not on this go round anyway. This topic has been discussed at length in the past. Thanks for reminding some of the jaded ones that some of the other ones don't know all this stuff.

Just for fun search Bar Crossing or Columbia Bar in the old archives and in the recent board.

[Nanook]

Was just pullin' your leg Pilar about how, without your screwdriver, seaworthy or not, your boat was not goin' home that night. You did get to do the Tillamook night life though :grin: :grin:

[BuKuBass]

On my way to Portland Tuesday, I stopped at Biggs and there was new boat on a trailer with Coast Guard markings. Looked to be 25' long, 8' beam, made of half inch aluminum, permanet bimini top and powered by a 225 Yamaha 4 stroke. Stern was two feet with a 12 by 8 inch railing of "hardened" foam on the outside of the gunwales. Looked like it would be good in a "bar" fight.