Depressed of Basingstoke!!

[miket]

My lovely old Freeman 33, in absolutely cracking condition, updated without regard to cost is still for sale!!
So, it is 29 years old and has 2 London taxi engines with 2000 hours. What is the problem? Don't tell me price because any serious punter would ignore the asking price, whatever it was, and make an offer.
Most recent viewing finally crumbled when they said they thought that the engines would need replacing soon and the cost of that would be prohibitive. Give it a break! at 2000 hrs they are not yet run in! Spares are available at a fraction of the price of your average current engines.
Perfect for a family starting boating on the Thames with super wide decks, low freeboard, sensible engines, a good dog friendly layout and can go from navigable source to mouth.
It seems to me that a lot of people new to boats would rather spend £50k on a totally unsuited targa boat with outdrives, no keel and no side decks, that will be horrible to handle at 4.5 knot river speeds but will look seriously cool?!! Probably scare themselves to death and then never go out again.
Is there no common sense any more?

 

[boatone]

Is there no common sense any more?

Nope !

 

[nimbusgb]

Is there no common sense any more?

Nope. Its been made illegal!

 

[jecuk]

Sounds like a perfect boat for a newcomer to boating on the river. Good size (not too big and tricky to handle) and good outside access. Some of this stuff is just luck I suppose. But people forget the maintenance cost on outdrives etc versus engines that will run every time well at low revs.

I already have one but for someone looking for a modern () boat it sounds perfect!

 

[apollo]

Mooring fees are cheaper for a Binliner, and thats the major annual bill for most folks.

..and even though you cannot walk round one, they impress your workmates/chicks/relatives more?

For what its worth I agree with you (as is evident in the boats I have owned), but that seems to be the typical punter these days.

 

[neale]

Mooring fees are cheaper for a Binliner, and thats the major annual bill for most folks.

..and even though you cannot walk round one, they impress your workmates/chicks/relatives more?

For what its worth I agree with you (as is evident in the boats I have owned), but that seems to be the typical punter these days.

Trust me when I say that no chick has ever been impressed with my Bayliner

 

[rr_123]

There are buyers out there, but the market is quite depressed.

I have just sold my worthy and sturdy craft, but I agree that there is quite a lot of unsuitable "bling" available due to the state of the economy, and the lower prices of the bling are in turn driving down prices of older but more-suitable-for-inland-waterways vessels.

R

 

[byron]

It seems to me that a lot of people new to boats would rather spend £50k on a totally unsuited targa boat with outdrives, no keel and no side decks, that will be horrible to handle at 4.5 knot river speeds but will look seriously cool?!! Probably scare themselves to death and then never go out again.
Is there no common sense any more?

To my jaundiced view someone with an old Freeman or Broom are they cool looking ones. I mean, which is cooler a VW Golf with go-faster stripes or a Triumph TR4. The same applies to boats. The difference being old Freemans and Brooms are far better suited to the Thames than the current crop of jelly moulds.

 

[alruss]

To me the size is wrong for a first boat, 33ft. And not cool enough for a subsequent boat.
Personally, my type of boat but will stick to 26ft sea boat for now.

 

[No Regrets]

I tried a 26ft Sportcruiser, and it was awful for the river as you say!

33ft is a lot dearer to moor though, and do you really need two engines?

Those Freemans tend to look a little tobacco stained too, all yellowy brown and sooooo 1970s like a Ford Cortina!

So, cool, No.

Spacious and practical, Yes.

 

[Andrew_Fanner]

I'd have thought an ideal boat for the river, especially if you have children larger than "smalls" wanting a bit more of their own space.

 

[miket]

No Regrets

Those Freemans tend to look a little tobacco stained too, all yellowy brown and sooooo 1970s like a Ford Cortina!

So, cool, No.

Spacious and practical, Yes.
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I agree that the "Coffee and Cream" is not to everyone's taste and ours, being one of the later boats is actually white gel coat with a brown stripe under the g'whale.

If you have 2 kids a wife and a dog, I would have thought one would have grown out of "cool".

 

[Richard Shead]

And

Those Freemans tend to look a little tobacco stained too, all yellowy brown and sooooo 1970s like a Ford Cortina!

So, cool, No.

Spacious and practical, Yes.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I agree that the "Coffee and Cream" is not to everyone's taste and ours, being one of the later boats is actually white gel coat with a brown stripe under the g'whale.

If you have 2 kids a wife and a dog, I would have thought one would have grown out of "cool".

low screen, priced right there is no reason why that wont sell.

 

[Ramage]

Dont give up hope.. a friend of mine has been trying to sell his Princess. He tried e-bay twice and just got wallies.

He advertised it on a boat sales website (not sure which) and last weekend had six viewings. 3 made good offers and now she is sold.

If this spring weather holds up things should improve.

 

[Siy]

Isnt there an in-between? I am a newbie, bought my first boat a Fletcher 19GTS around July/August last year so had a couple of months on the water...

I wanted something that looked ok, and thought at the time that I may take it to the sea...but I know in reality that I won't!

So what does one look for? I will be upgrading sometime (hopefully this year)... Could do with something a bit bigger, yet still prefer the sporty look (perhaps I am just shallow?) - not to impress anyone....just because it's what I like.

All ideas on a postcard please to the usual address...

 

[mlines]

I wanted something that looked ok, and thought at the time that I may take it to the sea...but I know in reality that I won't!

I would take it down to the sea whilst you have a towable boat and give it a try, its a completely different experience in its own right.

 

[Siy]

Yup - think you are right... but I am a little lost - I wouldn't have a clue where or how to begin!!!

 

[Ramage]

I recommend you look for an RYA Powerboat 1 & 2 course. In addition to loads of useful skills the course also covers launching & recovery from a trailer.

Not sure who is nearest to you, but Bisham Abbey (near Marlow) do the course.

 

[Siy]

I will definitely look to do this actually. I did the inland waterways one shortly after buying the boat, and it was pretty useful... so sounds like a plan. Now I jsut need to find the time!

Thanks

 

[Sneds]

I think the freeman or a broom or similar is ideal for the river. Surely space, reliability and useability are the key requirements?

Anyne who buys a sea-going planing hull to use on the river will probably regret it as its the wrong environment for that type of boat.

We moor in Bristol and go up the river occaisionally but more often we go down the river and out into the Bristol Channel.