Advice for a first boat please, cuddy or cruiser.

Just to add what has already been said. Your decision should be water sports or cruising. There is no real happy compromise. The next is trailerable or marina. Personally if you are cruising get the biggest you can afford because when it comes to cruising it's a slippery slope uphill and you dont want to be changing boats too regularly. Under 28 foot (or trailerable) is great for a couple, but gets a bit cramped for guests / kids unless it is just day tripping. If it's watersports you are after I'd forego cuddy altogether tbh, and would look at bow riders and the like. The cuddy tends to cramp things up on a small boat and brings little to the table other than a bit of privacy maybe for a portapotty, but that is seldom an issue for the watersports genre and although the cuddy improves sea kindliness in that you wont swamp so easily if you dig the bow into a wave you'd be unlikely to be doing any watersports in those conditions anyway.
 
When planning your trips take fuel consumption into consideration.
Doubt the fuel tanks are very big on the type of boat you are considering.
Petrol is sometimes not easy to obtain ie.impossible at some secluded cove.
You must have sufficient fuel for entire journey and back,it is normal for try and have a third of tank in reserve just in case.
A typical scenerio would be to try and get as far as possible,the journey out will be fine, dead calm sea and nice economical cruise all the way.
Things can change fast and and you wake up from your afternoon snooze to see white water out in the way.
You have got to get home and the last thing you want to be worrying about is fuel,you could be doing the entire run home at very slow speed indeed taking much longer and using far more fuel.
 
Nick_H said:
There are lots of happy Bayliner owners, but I think even they would accept they are built more to a price that some other makes, and that's reflected in used prices.

I can't help thinking you should look more closely at your mate's 29 footer. If the work needed is mainly cosmetic, then you may be surprised how cheaply you can transform a boats upholstery, and how well the GRP will polish up. On the other hand get the engine and especially the outdrive checked carefully, as repairs on these can quickly add up.
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Sorry i wasnt slurring all Bayliners, i know nothing, but second hand they do seem good value.
Yes i think i will, its appearing more attractive by the minute. I was trying to sell it for him last year but couldnt get a single viewing. He said one of the outdrives was problematic, the toilet and minor bits, but its been sat a long time now and he may be missing something out!. Saying that i think i could get it off him for a few thousand, so that leaves plenty in the kitty for repairs.
 
BruceK said:
Just to add what has already been said. Your decision should be water sports or cruising. There is no real happy compromise. The next is trailerable or marina. Personally if you are cruising get the biggest you can afford because when it comes to cruising it's a slippery slope uphill and you dont want to be changing boats too regularly. Under 28 foot (or trailerable) is great for a couple, but gets a bit cramped for guests / kids unless it is just day tripping. If it's watersports you are after I'd forego cuddy altogether tbh, and would look at bow riders and the like. The cuddy tends to cramp things up on a small boat and brings little to the table other than a bit of privacy maybe for a portapotty, but that is seldom an issue for the watersports genre and although the cuddy improves sea kindliness in that you wont swamp so easily if you dig the bow into a wave you'd be unlikely to be doing any watersports in those conditions anyway.
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thankyou, i think we're leaning towards cruising. I like watersports but the wife doesnt much and if i manage to get her snorkeling then its been a good day! Plus if im skiing then she's driving.... No doubt once we've a boat we'll become strangely popular with visiting UK based family and friends, and what can be nicer than treating them to a day out (plus they can chip in for fuel) so like you say size may well be the way to go.
 
oldgit said:
When planning your trips take fuel consumption into consideration.
Doubt the fuel tanks are very big on the type of boat you are considering.
Petrol is sometimes not easy to obtain ie.impossible at some secluded cove.
You must have sufficient fuel for entire journey and back,it is normal for try and have a third of tank in reserve just in case.
A typical scenerio would be to try and get as far as possible,the journey out will be fine, dead calm sea and nice economical cruise all the way.
Things can change fast and and you wake up from your afternoon snooze to see white water out in the way.
You have got to get home and the last thing you want to be worrying about is fuel,you could be doing the entire run home at very slow speed indeed taking much longer and using far more fuel.
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thanks, i'd heard of the 1/3 rd rule. But the scenario you suggest is frightening indeed. Great advice.
 
When we had both our bowrider and cuddy we would alternate days between cruising and water sports. Must say I enjoyed the cruising more... Not least that I am not that good at wakeboarding and my boys always wanted to scare the sh.t out of me in the Ringo..

On a more serious note it's a bye-law in Torbay - and common sense - that every driver must have a spotter so if it's just you and the wife you may need (should have) a second person in the boat.
 
I keep my boat in mallorca and just wanted to add that unlike the in the UK, in mallorca petrol is available in every marina that has a fuel quay, so from an availability of fuel point of view, in the balearics, its not an issue to have a petrol engined boat.

Regarding watersports , if it's just the two of you,then get a large rear view mirror fitted, we wakeboarded for years with just the two of us.
 
I have to agree with all the comments made and like you have done the very thing you are embarking on. I started with a cuddy as it was substantially cheaper to test the water so to speak and as most have noted this is a bug that really gets you and draws you in. I have a great first season and almost immediately knew I wanted a bigger, cruising type boat. My complication is that I have two kids and their pals who prefer the water sports aspect rather than cruising so I compromised (all boats are) and went 25 foot with heads, 4 berth (2 constant and a convertible table) but fast and nimble enough to tow a skier or a couple of donuts.
The bad news is I'm already thinking of the next one and fear that will be a continual theme..... The good news is there is nothing better than casting off the mooring lines and being in your own wee world with the ones you love. You can go where you want and feel a real sense of freedom you rarely get in land.
My last remark is one I've found to be true, your first boat will show you what you like and what you really want/need so don't break the bank on the first one as number two is just around the corner.......
 
We started off with a 21ft sports cuddy, on a trailer & found it very limiting on things we could do on her. After 6 months we sold her on & moved up to a 24ft sportscruiser, that was 5 years ago & the best decision we made.

With a sportscruiser the options are endless, whether it's watersports, going for a long cruise, fishing, anchoring overnight in a cove or even staying in the marina. A sportscruiser ticks all the boxes.

Our cuddy had a 5ltr v8 petrol & the cruiser has a 5.7 v8 petrol. The difference in fuel consumption isn't that great and you get so much more boat for your money

After 5 years I'm selling our cruiser and looking to go up to 27-30 ft with diesel power to enable us to cruise further distances. Anyway all the best in your search
 
Glad I have wetted your appetite! I started out water skiing and living on the coast in Devon I was out every week all year round, seriously I ski mad and skied in Jan in hail and snow!, I had a 22ft boat with a 225hp Yamaha so it was brilliant for out of the hole monoski starts. But when I moved up to a 26ft Bayliner with 230hp starting on one ski was an endurance test as the acceleration was a lot slower so you got dragged through the water for quite a way before the ski had enough speed to plane, also the wake is steep, fine for wakeboarding but I was into slalom which wasn't so good. So bear this in mind if you want to do a lot of waterskiing, I think you will have to decide between watersports or accommodation/cruising unless you get a seriously overpowered pocket cruiser but there goes the fuel economy if there is such a thing! I found I in the end I preferred having friends onboard and nice food and wine, or relaxing weekend trips instead of watersports.
I would add that having worked on virtually every model of Bayliner and most Searays under 30 ft over the last 20 yrs, the Searay is better built but has probably less room as they often have lower profiles, Bayliners are good value for money and one I really like is the 28 footer, they are built to price but do the job, I had mine for 8 yrs and took it into out in a 3m swell and it got me safely across an open stretch of the North sea on my way to an island, it never let me down or gave me a scare so they are ideal starter boats to get you out on the water.
 
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JimJimney said:
Hi, that makes complete sense for us too and given the hours im putting into getting a first boat i dont want to have to change up too soon! What was the 22 footer? Have you stayed with the 25ft. Did you find that big enough for you?
thanks
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Every person would answer that question differently.

We bought a 25ft cruiser as our first boat to see if it was for us. 8 years on we still have that same 25ft cruiser.

It is big enough for us to go away on for a few weeks at a time and it is cheap to run and maintain (well as cheap as a boat can be).
 
CX54WEK said:
Every person would answer that question differently.

We bought a 25ft cruiser as our first boat to see if it was for us. 8 years on we still have that same 25ft cruiser.

It is big enough for us to go away on for a few weeks at a time and it is cheap to run and maintain (well as cheap as a boat can be).
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I'm with you on that. When I first started looking at oats I was in the market for a 21 foot ish cuddy. I also had half an eye on sports cruisers up to 25ft but they were a bit out of my price range at the time. in the end I delayed buying a boat until I could get the 25 footer as I knew it would suit me better. Ended up keeping it for about 13 years which in boating terms seems to be a lifetime!
 
Hi,just been reading parts of your thread,if I may be so bold,my FAIRLINE SUNFURY is up for sale,she is currently on Appolo Duck.
When I was first looking for a boat,this was the size for me,and the re-engine and drive to the single YANMAR 315,sold it for me.
I had a problem with her once on a trip to the Channel Islands,when the steering oil cooler failed,guys from the forum came to the boat in Guernsey and help me get her sorted out .
She's been a great boat,and we've crossed the channel in her every year since I've had her.
British built for British waters,
Contact me if your interested. Thanks. Hope you don't think me too rude for cutting across your thread.
 
An update if anyone was interested, we ended with a 23 foot sessa islamorada. It's got a 2 berth cabin with mini galley, and heads so I think a good compromise for us. Took it to the Balearics last year and did 3 nights on board, cramped but fantastic. We're now in season 2 and still learning but I think it's perfect for us, for now at least.
Had one big mechanical bill sadly, but I've bought a trailer to mitigate the cost a little so this season we don't need a permenantly marina. I'm posting another post about setting up the trailer as that's another mission.
Thanks for everyone's help last year
 
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