New to motor boating

[MikeyP78]

Hi All,

I’ve been trawling the forum for a little while prior to posting and hope you can steer me in the right direction!

My wife and I have been looking at getting a motor boat for the last couple of years on and off and need some advice on suitable boat.

we are a family of five with 5 year old twins and a twelve year old (who's that tall he passes for 16/17) so would ideally like to accommodate all of us over a long weekend. We may have up to £50k to spend and will probably look to moor it in or around the Solent area.

I quite like the look of the Bayliner 285, but the thought of running a large V8 petrol worries me somewhat. The Sealine S23/25 is really appealing, but being only a 4 berth I’m not sure if we could all squeeze in for a weekend. I have seen the Nimbus 280 and Merry Fisher 925 which would accommodate us, but I don’t know if they would be a little ponderous And they are very different to a sports cruiser.

Unfortunately it seems boats that accommodate 5 comfortably are way outside of our budget.

I am a complete novice so some experienced guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Mike

 

[Megaboat]

That's a challenge! We had a sealine S24 and it was roomy for its size buy not to sleep 5.

You might go older and larger like a sealine Senato 330, or a Fairline Corniche

 

[Jamie Dundee]

Look for a boat with a really decent cockpit canopy. You can put a couple of kids out on camp beds in decent weather, better than camping in a tent.

 

[colhel]

We have a Nimbus 3003 which can offer the accommodation you're after and is in your budget but sadly lacks the sporty feel you'd like. The other thing to consider is not just sleeping capacity but living capacity. Our boat has 3 cabins but at the expense of a smaller cockpit/saloon.

 

[simonfraser]

smaller MF for you, a small RIB and a tent to put your wife and the kids out on the beach, they'll have a great time

 

[Bouba]

Hi Mikey... I think that your problem is your budget...if you are a competent mechanic then taking your family to sea in a very old boat is ok...otherwise I think it’s risky. 50k as a down payment on financing a boat is probably doable...how flexible can you be?

 

[ST840]

My son is 11 and sometimes sleeps on the floor of our boat in the saloon. Yours could do the same with a decent mattress topper, this would then leave the saloon double berth for the twins!
Our boat is 8.6m long. And kept on the Hamble if you want to take a look?

 

[MikeyP78]

Look for a boat with a really decent cockpit canopy. You can put a couple of kids out on camp beds in decent weather, better than camping in a tent.

This was actually a consideration, thanks. A lot of the boats I have seen also extend the diesel heating into the cockpit so would make out more comfortable if the temperature drops.

 

[MikeyP78]

My son is 11 and sometimes sleeps on the floor of our boat in the saloon. Yours could do the same with a decent mattress topper, this would then leave the saloon double berth for the twins!
Our boat is 8.6m long. And kept on the Hamble if you want to take a look?

That’s a good idea. it would only be the odd weekend.

Thanks for the kind offer of looking at your boat, but we are in Hertfordshire. My wife want to moor near the Solent because shes originally from Arundel in West Sussex and really wants to have ties with that part of the country again.

 

[oldgit]

Where do intend keeping this boat.Have you done any research about moorings?
Your choice /size of boat could well be dependent on where you can afford to keep it.
One word of caution, petrol boats are cheap for good reason.
You will pay around £2.50 a litre at most marimas.IF you can find anybody that still sells the stuff.
Forget the whizzy tippy tent boats ,they are all about image and precious little else £50K could get you an older diesel boat that will sleep 5/6 in some sort of comfort,
Corniche/Princess 330 or 35.
Folks with these will be able to go boating when sports boats are hiding under their blue canvas covers

Sleeping on the floor ,you cannot be serious.
Forget the image thing think about gettng a proper boat.?

 

[MikeyP78]

Hi Mikey... I think that your problem is your budget...if you are a competent mechanic then taking your family to sea in a very old boat is ok...otherwise I think it’s risky. 50k as a down payment on financing a boat is probably doable...how flexible can you be?

I have to agree, budget is never enough ?

I had considered an older boat as I am a competent mechanic (ex-RAF Tornado tech, electrician and now fix trains), but we live in Hertfordshire and having a boat moored down on the south coast isn’t close enough for me to be tinkering with a project other than the odd repair and routine maintenance.

Finance is not really something I want to take on and would rather own the boat outright, especially as this will be our first boat.

 

[Portland Billy]

Look for a well kept Fairline Corniche or Turbo 36.
There are lots of 90' s era boats which would suit your needs and budget.
A well used and looked after boat can be a better option than one which just sits in a marina.

 

[Bouba]

I have to agree, budget is never enough ?

I had considered an older boat as I am a competent mechanic (ex-RAF Tornado tech, electrician and now fix trains), but we live in Hertfordshire and having a boat moored down on the south coast isn’t close enough for me to be tinkering with a project other than the odd repair and routine maintenance.

Finance is not really something I want to take on and would rather own the boat outright, especially as this will be our first boat.

Being a mechanic is half the problem solved...boating on a budget requires it...as the season starts to end, more boats will come onto the market...including those with motivated sellers...good luck?

 

[MikeyP78]

Where do intend keeping this boat.Have you done any research about moorings?
Your choice /size of boat could well be dependent on where you can afford to keep it.
One word of caution, petrol boats are cheap for reason.
You will pay around £2.50 a litre at most marimas.IF you can find anybody that still sells the stuff.
Forget the whizzy tippy tent boats ,£50K could get you an older diesel boat that will sleep 5/6 in some sort of comfort,
Sleeping on the floor ,you must be joking.

We live in Hertfordshire and had originally intended mooring in Essex but it seems quite bleak on that coast. However, my wife is from West Sussex so I have looked at costs mooring in Chichester and Southsea with Premier Marinas as a guide. I was pricing up to 10m. I know there are more marinas out there but it gives me a starting point. We would love to be down in Devon, but realistically we would like to be no more than two hours away to make it usable at the weekends.

I didn’t realise petrol was that expensive! But I was aware it can be scarce and a 5.7 or 7.4 litre V8 sound quite ruinous. What is the average price of diesel at the minute?

would I be right saying that something like a Sealine S23 is a ‘whizzy tippy tent’ boat?

 

[MikeyP78]

smaller MF for you, a small RIB and a tent to put your wife and the kids out on the beach, they'll have a great time

I quite like the sound of that idea ?

 

[Elessar]

We live in Hertfordshire and had originally intended mooring in Essex but it seems quite bleak on that coast. However, my wife is from West Sussex so I have looked at costs mooring in Chichester and Southsea with Premier Marinas as a guide. I was pricing up to 10m. I know there are more marinas out there but it gives me a starting point. We would love to be down in Devon, but realistically we would like to be no more than two hours away to make it usable at the weekends.

I didn’t realise petrol was that expensive! But I was aware it can be scarce and a 5.7 or 7.4 litre V8 sound quite ruinous. What is the average price of diesel at the minute?

would I be right saying that something like a Sealine S23 is a ‘whizzy tippy tent’ boat?

Chichester and southsea are both good value by south coast, big marina standards. One has a lock and one has a sill. Check out the constraints. But you will be able to stay in the Hamble in Swanwick or Universal for 40 nights free.

Other places that are cheaper are above the road bridge in the Hamble. Cabin, RK, foulkes and east lands. The bridge is a constraint at high tide but not much of one in a small boat.

For 24/7 access you pay more.

The sealine S23/4/5 is very spacious for its size. It’s a lovely boat if you want a sports cruiser. One child will have to sleep in the cockpit. I think you will want to go a little bigger if you can though.

Diesel was £1.45 for premier bertholders last week 60/40 tax paid. Though I just paid £1.13 today in St. Peter port.

In the world of Fred if you don’t like a boat like he has you are an idiot. Lots of people love sports cruisers, or tippy tent boats as he calls them. Make you own mind up rather than being led by one opinion. Try asking him about out drives If you are bored.

 

[harvey38]

I have to agree, budget is never enough ?

I had considered an older boat as I am a competent mechanic (ex-RAF Tornado tech, electrician and now fix trains), but we live in Hertfordshire and having a boat moored down on the south coast isn’t close enough for me to be tinkering with a project other than the odd repair and routine maintenance.

Finance is not really something I want to take on and would rather own the boat outright, especially as this will be our first boat.

Hertfordshire? We're in Staffordshire duk and still manage to make the 260 mile journey to Ramsgate, we took on something that was mechanically and structually sound and just taking our time using it and updating it. Best thing we ever did?

 

[superheat6k]

Whatever you buy first time you will likely want to change it within a year, possibly sooner. So when buying think hard about how easy it will be to move on, as nothing worse than being stuck with an unsuitable boat you can't sell, and any newbie is manna from heaven for a broker.

So avoid petrol - no matter what the price of diesel, they will always sell easier than a petrol, and buy something popular, so avoid any make or model that is unknown or 'rare' - 'rare' as a feature in a boat advert generally means the buyers are rare !

Also be aware squeezing 5 into a sub-30' boat is always going to be a challenge, and kids (and SWMBO) can easily be put off, especially if caught out in hairier weather in a small boat with no room to move.

Watch the market because quite soon £50k will buy you quite a lot of boat.

Finally kids like outside space and you want them safe, so a boat with a walk around deck and hard rails for guards might be preferable to guard wires that start 3' in front of the cockpit.

 

[superheat6k]

How about something like this - asking £70k but it has been on the market several months now, so I reckon close to the OPs budget, and ideal for five. Kids in the back Mum & Dad up front.

CHB Puget Sound 34 | 10m | 1979 - Hampshire | Boats and Outboards


Or the basket case version of the same model (NB I nearly bought this but the engines were a serious concern for me) ...

Chung Hwa Boats (CHB} CHB Puget Trawler 36 For Sale - £49,999

 

[Bigplumbs]

Does the OP want a planing boat though