[Threeweight]

The one thing I noticed most about it was how badly it smacked the water driving through chop and how loud it was. Besides the ride I liked everything about the boat.

In my experience, Stabis ride really really well if they are head on to waves, or at a slight angle. Crazy sharp "cutter V" in the bow. But they really don't like quartering into waves at all (what you were likely hearing was quartering waves slamming into the relatively blunt pods, and the sealed air chambers making that drum noise.

It's all a trade-off... the useable deck space in my 22' Hewes Ocean Pro is about the same as a Stabicract 2500, and it is a heck of a lot easier to manage and anchor in tight spaces on the river. Flip side, if I was crossing the CR bar and fishing offshore far from rescue as my typical use, I'd be happy sacrificing some space for safety.

 

[jcarufo]

When mooring in the rain, the Boston whalers I believe 18’ and smaller your supposed To take the drain plug out if you don’t have a bilge pump. I’ve tried it and the water only fills in a couple inches the near the stern. No plug = still afloat

Our Whaler is a '68 Sakonnet 17'. Definitely not dry when running, but that's what Mustang float suites are for. Floats like a cork. As many have said, it comes down to knowing your boat and it's capabilities and preparing for the worst. Two bilge pumps, three radios, AIS, 12+ Axiom plus hand held GPS, ALL safety equipment, ladder, etc. We've been 30 miles offshore in it numerous times ON THE RIGHT DAYS, but that's us. As to the 'drain plug' discussion, I like our bilge pump mod. Once up in Nootka, it rained for two days straight. Came out of the tent in the morning to find the boat filled and the stern just under water. Still floating though. I stood on the bow to get the boat level and the stern above water, turned on the pump, and we were back in business fishing that morning. We love our Whaler. It is one fishy boat.

 

[jhogue12]

Maybe I'm stating the obvious but sea worthy and unsinkable are not the same thing. You could roll a chambered hull and it won't sink. Likewise you could have catastrophic failure to a thru-hull fitting, sea-cock or pump and sink a very sea worthy boat.

 

[b ruff]

What about the SAFE boats they build up in Bremerton? The mounted automatic weapons add greatly to the safety, I would think.

 

[TSU ME]

Our Whaler is a '68 Sakonnet 17'. Definitely not dry when running, but that's what Mustang float suites are for. Floats like a cork. As many have said, it comes down to knowing your boat and it's capabilities and preparing for the worst. Two bilge pumps, three radios, AIS, 12+ Axiom plus hand held GPS, ALL safety equipment, ladder, etc. We've been 30 miles offshore in it numerous times ON THE RIGHT DAYS, but that's us. As to the 'drain plug' discussion, I like our bilge pump mod. Once up in Nootka, it rained for two days straight. Came out of the tent in the morning to find the boat filled and the stern just under water. Still floating though. I stood on the bow to get the boat level and the stern above water, turned on the pump, and we were back in business fishing that morning. We love our Whaler. It is one fishy boat.

Must’ve had the plug in. Do you still have the mahogany and teak wood interior or did you update?

 

[Broadoak]

I've heard the noise mentioned about the older stabicrafts or even newer ones when people don't foam fill the chambers. I had mine done and it's quieter than any plate boat I've had. They fill them with a closed cell foam at the factory during the building process, (my wife wanted maximum safety for the kids) the boat could be literally riddled with holes but there's nowhere for the water to go so they'll just keep floating. It does add some weight, but the sound reduction is well worth it IMHO

 

[Tug-O-War]

A lot of great candidates previously mentioned.
This maybe not be of the sea worthy category, more of a marsh, pond, dike, lake, river kinda floaty device is this little "Stealth by Otter". I've been trying to sink this thing for 25 yrs now to no avail. It's been through it all and back again. Even been bird shot many times. Good ole single person boat that regardless of what I do to it....I can't sink it. Flipped it a few times but...it still floats to this day.
Other than that...I've got nothing, from what's already been offered.

 

[Pink Hoochie]

Another vote for Boston Whalers.
I’ve been enjoying my new to me 1989 27 whaler.
I spent the first few months rewiring and doing some fiberglass work but it’s been well worth it.
It’s definitely a heavy boat and not the driest but very unsinkable.

 

[jcarufo]

Must’ve had the plug in. Do you still have the mahogany and teak wood interior or did you update?

Plug was in and it was before we moved the two batteries forward. Lot's of weight. Unfortunately, no factory interior. It was originally used as a fire boat on the East Coast. I don't know if it ever was 'stock'. I bought it from a doc I worked with in the ED in the early 90's. He used it mostly in Mexico. By that time it had a raised front deck and painted Mahogany 'custom' center console. It also had a funky 'T' top and outriggers we ripped off. Before we ever splashed it, we repowered it with a 90hp Honda and 8hp kicker and rewired everything. Basically a total rebuild. We learned not to trust anything mechanical you get from a medical doc . He was a wonderful ED MD, but mechanical aptitude? Literally, when we got it nothing worked or was wired correctly for that matter. It's old and funky on the outside but a true Whaler on the inside. It's taken great care of us in some really stinky conditions and we love it. One day we will give it to our grandson who is learning it's intricacies now. Hopefully, he will take us fishing in it in our 'old age'. jc Tuna Maru

 

[tinbender]

Best seaworthy and unsinkable can be in the same vessel. I own one that I think is pretty close to being the best of both. It is a 44'MLB. Ex Coast Guard 44' . They right themselves in a roll over and have numerous water tight hatches and corresponding airtight chambers. Always dreamed of having one when I was a youngster and wife said if I could figure out how to pull it off to go for it.

 

[Contango]

My vote is for Boston Whaler - very solid boats with good fuel capacity and range. I've had them for 20 years now. The first was a 2002 21' Outrage w/150 Merc and now the 2017 23' Outrage w/350 Merc - both center console. Both boats like shrimp, halibut, salmon and tuna with occasional bottom fish and crab. Their fish holds are like sealed ice chests. The Outrage has a deeper V than some of the other models and is a great rough weather boat - it gets you back from 50 out. Oh, it also can double as a water ski boat - I've been temped to throw on a slalom ski out at CR on one of those flat days after catching limits. If you see me out there, I'm the one with the ski pylon, but doubt there will be any skiing this weekend.

 

[Fiskiller]

I don't want to find out. Captain. Arima we seen the pictures of the Whale! Minimal damage!

 

[DogZilla15]

Because Whaler’s are the subject. Was on the water somewhere and this really BIG beautiful boat goes by. By big, I mean real BIG. There on the back end was the Whaler sticker. Didn’t know they made anything close to the size of that unit. Gorgeous.

 

[133409]

About the only time an 'unsinkable' boat is going to 'save you' is when you forget to put the plug in after launching.

 

[DogZilla15]

Tesoro.... Thought you were going to say is, when it’s on the trailer.

 

[Rseas]

When I bought my boat from Clemens I pointed over to a row of boats and asked "What's up with those boats?" the salesman said "Oh those are Stabicraft's, they're for the guys who are afraid to sink" So I'm guessing they're pretty sea worthy lol

I run a 21' Stabicraft as a work boat. It is one of the originals. I'm on the water 4-5 hours a day, 6 days a week. I have a 32 mile route and for the most part run during all weather conditions.

Some days I get beat up but the old girl always makes it back to the slip. Been doing this 5 years and only called it once. The wind was gusting to 65-70 mph and I couldn't get out of the slip.

The boat is not pretty and salty as hell, but the most seaworthy small boat I have ever known.

 

[SummitOne]

As mentioned above, some boats are unsinkable but do not have positive buoyancy. Bob Dougherty was the early pioneer of "unsinkable" and positive buoyancy as well as the founded Boston Whaler.

While I am not familiar with all the boats, some good ones are;

Fiberglass
Boston Whaler
Edgewater
Everglades
Grady White

Aluminum
Stabicraft
ACB (I own one of these, great boat)
Lifeproof Boats
Safe Boats

My two cents....

 

[Han Solo]

An experienced boat pilot knows when the sunk boat is even a little bit likely and avoids those days on the water. We had an experience last spring when we made our first trip in the 'Surprise'. You never know when stuff will happen even in conditions that are prime and you are not on guard.

We went out shrimping in the Salish sea. At times (75%) this place is like a pond. It is saltwater but surrounded by mountains and islands on all sides. There are extreme currents and standing waves on big tides. These can combine with westerly winds and stand things up. Later at slack tide the water lays down and it is eerily calm. It was a day like that where there was no wind, no swell, minimal tide exchange and no worries. We planned it that way picking the quarter moon days and least tide exchange mid day for our trip. We set gear and went adrift waiting for good things to happen. The spot was not far from the major shipping lane eastbound going into Seattle and Puget sound. I think we were 3 miles from the shipping lane. A cargo ship went by at 21 knots in the distance. We were laughing it up and having fun bouncing halibut jigs. I noticed in the distance a black line on the horizon. It did not register. A short time later one of my crew noticed it too and asked about it out loud. I looked back and saw the black line had grown in size. It was getting closer. Still did not register as any kind of threat. Not long after that the light came on. We were beam to the thing and I had just enough time to start the boat and spin 90 degrees to get the bow pointed to it.

There was a guy, new to the salt, on the bow fishing. I was in the pilot seat and saw the wake getting bigger and bigger as it approached. Chance was wearing his PFD and racked the rod he was holding and grabbed the handhold on the front of the house. We went up and over the first wake like a cork, about 8 foot which was curling at the top. The boat nosedived and punched into the second wake which was breaking and seemed bigger and we took 3 feet of white water over the bow. Chance was looking through the windshield at me and his eyes got really big as he held on. It was then that I realized we were really glad we took that wave head on. The water ran down each side of the house and into the dance floor and out the scuppers in the back. Chance was wet to his butt and had gone a deathly shade of white. I'm pretty sure the smell was Chance signing up for an underwear change. Within a minute the water was gone off the deck.

So yeah, you never know. But you can avoid bad weather and nasty bars.

The guy behind the wheel is the most important safety gear on the boat. The design matters and gives varying degrees of seakeeping with any boat design. Avoiding the bad situation is the key if you ask me.

I have the utmost confidence in my new ride. Designed by a guy who runs the Columbia River Bar and builds fishing and work boats for Alaska. Most likely you will not find a used one for sale. I do not plan on selling our boat anytime soon. It will endure far more than the people riding in it. It will outlive me and mine if the 20 year old boats I see built by the same guy are any indication.

 

[Kingkiller]

We own the 24ft NR Seahawk and as advertised it is not a boat that is unsinkable. How it would sink I am not eagar to find out but it would be interesting to take these boats out and fill with water just to see what would happen. The story is we were heading out for a day of fishing with my wife and sister in-law. Of course and Murphy's law says even with best intentions something happens. That day we forgot to close the access to the fish box so as we are driving out through the jaws my sister in-law remarks are you suppose to have water on the floor of the boat. I turned around to find the water above the fish box but it would not go any higher. Thanks for that. I bailed and the other owner of the boat went a little faster and the water drained out and the valve shut off. We have also been out at the PIG when we noticed the pump coming on all the time. We had a seal leaking around the bilge pump hatch on the swim deck, a little scary but the boat did great. Both of those times it filled to a certain place and nothing more. That was the same seal that leaked on the NR in Alaska that sank. So they do sink but ours would not fill with water just to a certain spot and stop.

 

[Tinman]

The Calkins Bartender is a contender for seaworthiness. It's a double-ender planing hull, which is quite a design trick. I don't think you can buy one. You have to build your own.