Two generic questions about motor boats from a non-owner, but potential buyer.

[Povremeni pomorac]

Dear All,
I haven't been in a motor boat for over 2 years though I had access to a Merry Fisher for a while via a boat-share type of thing in the Solent, which was nice for days out. Other than that, I am a modestly proficient sailor who is a bit bored with just pottering between Chichester and Poole and back. (Or the other way round.) That's the background. I don't LOVE baots; I just find them mildly fun, so at the moment I don't own one, and all being well this coming year will just charter in the Adriatic.
So, are you chaps happy with a boat that just has one outboard motor? I'm thinking something like a Merry Fisher, c 27feet. Are they reliable enough to put all one's eggs in the one basket, so to speak? I'd feel much happier with two, but yet I'm told that aero engines are so reliable now that a jet pilot can expect to go through their whole career without an angine failure. Is the same true for a Suzuki 200, say?
Secondly: bad weather. Whereas I've been comfortable in a 38ft yacht in a force six (reefed of course) I found the Merry Fisher I was using to be somewhat lively once we got to force 3-4. Frankly, I'd not have wanted to go out had it been anything more than force 4 based on what I'd felt. Was I just being a wimp? Could one, with experience, go out in worse weather?
Advice greatfully received.

 

[Bigplumbs]

Dear All,
I haven't been in a motor boat for over 2 years though I had access to a Merry Fisher for a while via a boat-share type of thing in the Solent, which was nice for days out. Other than that, I am a modestly proficient sailor who is a bit bored with just pottering between Chichester and Poole and back. (Or the other way round.) That's the background. I don't LOVE baots; I just find them mildly fun, so at the moment I don't own one, and all being well this coming year will just charter in the Adriatic.
So, are you chaps happy with a boat that just has one outboard motor? I'm thinking something like a Merry Fisher, c 27feet. Are they reliable enough to put all one's eggs in the one basket, so to speak? I'd feel much happier with two, but yet I'm told that aero engines are so reliable now that a jet pilot can expect to go through their whole career without an angine failure. Is the same true for a Suzuki 200, say?
Secondly: bad weather. Whereas I've been comfortable in a 38ft yacht in a force six (reefed of course) I found the Merry Fisher I was using to be somewhat lively once we got to force 3-4. Frankly, I'd not have wanted to go out had it been anything more than force 4 based on what I'd felt. Was I just being a wimp? Could one, with experience, go out in worse weather?
Advice greatfully received.

I think single outboard engined boats have been very reliable for a long time and In fact I would rather be out in a boat with an older 2 stroke than I would with a modern 4 stroke. Old 2 strokes don't have too much stupid stuff that likes to put the engine into limp mode or other shut downs cos some planet saving sensor decided to shut it down.

I think Sail boats can put up with the rough stuff better than motor boats

 

[Nigel52]

Dear All,
I haven't been in a motor boat for over 2 years though I had access to a Merry Fisher for a while via a boat-share type of thing in the Solent, which was nice for days out. Other than that, I am a modestly proficient sailor who is a bit bored with just pottering between Chichester and Poole and back. (Or the other way round.) That's the background. I don't LOVE baots; I just find them mildly fun, so at the moment I don't own one, and all being well this coming year will just charter in the Adriatic.
So, are you chaps happy with a boat that just has one outboard motor? I'm thinking something like a Merry Fisher, c 27feet. Are they reliable enough to put all one's eggs in the one basket, so to speak? I'd feel much happier with two, but yet I'm told that aero engines are so reliable now that a jet pilot can expect to go through their whole career without an angine failure. Is the same true for a Suzuki 200, say?
Secondly: bad weather. Whereas I've been comfortable in a 38ft yacht in a force six (reefed of course) I found the Merry Fisher I was using to be somewhat lively once we got to force 3-4. Frankly, I'd not have wanted to go out had it been anything more than force 4 based on what I'd felt. Was I just being a wimp? Could one, with experience, go out in worse weather?
Advice greatfully received.

 

[Nigel52]

Interesting question. Firstly I like many others on this site absolutely love boats and being on the water. Obviously budget, size of boat and type of use dictates what one buys.

I too moved from many years of sailing channel, Biscay and much further afield but was looking for something that still got me onto the water motor powered only. I started off with a 6m RIB with a 2stroke hybrid Evinrude 90HP totally reliable. Then a Rhea 23 day boat with Suzuki 150hp 4 stroke a beautiful engine, quiet, good torque and would keep going all day. Now have on order a 29ft power boat with enclosed cabin for days when the weather is inclement with 270HP diesel Mercruiser. All have in common a single power unit which I believe are reliable for coastal cruising. No I would not cross the channel on one engine unless in company. The idea of motor boats is you have the power and speed to avoid heavy weather. In general power boats under 35-40ft should not be out in more than F5-6. Messing about on boats on the water is the elixir of life.

 

[julians]

There's no reason why a single outboard shouldn't be perfectly reliable assuming it's maintained properly.

But it's down to personal choice as to whether you feel comfortable with a single engine, I'm fine with that choice for the boating I do and where I do it, I might make a different choice if my boating were different.

Re feeling comfortable in heavy seas, the merry fisher in your example is a lot smaller than the 38 foot yacht you compared it to, so no real surprise you felt happier in heavier seas in the larger boat. Bigger heavier boats tends to handle seas better than smaller lighter boats.

The mf could almost certainly handle much heavier seas than your example, but whether it's pleasent is a matter of opinion.

 

[Hot Property]

I went to Brixham and back from the Hamble a couple of years ago in my 23 ft sports cruiser with 200 Verado. A 200 mile round trip excluding 3 days boating down there. As always make sure maintenance is carried out and you have sufficient safety gear on board.

I bought an epirb for crossing Lyme bay as we were 12 miles offshore in a F5. We arrived safely but a bit camp!

 

[BruceK]

Secondly: bad weather. Whereas I've been comfortable in a 38ft yacht in a force six (reefed of course) I found the Merry Fisher I was using to be somewhat lively once we got to force 3-4.

Did you slow down to displacement speed? Sail boats are stabilised, as you well know by their keel and sail, motorboats by gyroscopic forces in their engines and inertia of their mass at speed. Balls to the wall may have given you a smoother ride.

Both vids taken the same day within 20 minutes of each other, just uploaded at different times

 

[westernman]

We arrived safely but a bit camp!

 

[Martxer]

[/QUOTE
Probably best to avoid Lyme bay if it has that affect ?

 

[Bowlerhat]

New or newish single engines are brilliantly reliable if serviced properly. However, you can always hit an object in the water or get something horrible wrapped around a prop. A ‘get you home’ outboard then becomes a thought. Bad weather sailing is more often a choice than a necessity. Personally, we cruise in good weather, but have been caught out around Portland Bill and Start Point (at night). The Category rating of the boat will define the safe limits, but I have never viewed these as a ‘cruising limit’. The two are quite different (with a cruising limit being something you will set yourself). That said, buoyancy and stability of big volume mobos (like the MF) are remarkable and hove to, head to sea, you can ride out a lot. As others have said, a reduction to displacement speed will make a big difference to comfort. We cruise in a single engine 29ft boat with no ‘get you home’ outboard. We typically remain coastal and look for good weather, light wind/gentle breeze days to both enjoy a comfortable day at sea, but also to be able to make some headway and get to places.

 

[Bigplumbs]

I went to Brixham and back from the Hamble a couple of years ago in my 23 ft sports cruiser with 200 Verado. A 200 mile round trip excluding 3 days boating down there. As always make sure maintenance is carried out and you have sufficient safety gear on board.

I bought an epirb for crossing Lyme bay as we were 12 miles offshore in a F5. We arrived safely but a bit camp!

'Camp' Nick I never knew you were that way inclined....... Modern times now of course

 

[Momac]

Secondly: bad weather. Whereas I've been comfortable in a 38ft yacht in a force six (reefed of course) I found the Merry Fisher I was using to be somewhat lively once we got to force 3-4. Frankly, I'd not have wanted to go out had it been anything more than force 4 based on what I'd felt. Was I just being a wimp? Could one, with experience, go out in worse weather?
Advice greatfully received.

That's not a fair comparison. Any 38 ft motorboat will handle waves better than a 27ft Merry Fisher .
As said ...Yachts are inherently more stable than motorboats.

If you don't love boats then why consider owning one?

 

[Povremeni pomorac]

"Camp"- tell me more duckie!

 

[Povremeni pomorac]

That's not a fair comparison. Any 38 ft motorboat will handle waves better than a 27ft Merry Fisher .
As said ...Yachts are inherently more stable than motorboats.

If you don't love boats then why consider owning one?

Well, I quite LIKE them, but don't love them. So it is not a main aim of my life that I should have one, but if the right one comes along, at the right price, I might get a MB for the UK and sail in Croatia. I quite like sea fishing, and the occasional chum might be up for a trip or two, to, say, Weymouth and back. I appreciate my attitude might be a bit unusual. I was more keen but see so many stories here about people who have had major issues with their boat(s) that I am less keen. Also, a couple of times now when I've been sailing from Hamble to Poole, I've thought, "What the hell is the point of this? I could drive there in an hour or so."

 

[julians]

Well, I quite LIKE them, but don't love them. So it is not a main aim of my life that I should have one, but if the right one comes along, at the right price, I might get a MB for the UK and sail in Croatia. I quite like sea fishing, and the occasional chum might be up for a trip or two, to, say, Weymouth and back. I appreciate my attitude might be a bit unusual. I was more keen but see so many stories here about people who have had major issues with their boat(s) that I am less keen. Also, a couple of times now when I've been sailing from Hamble to Poole, I've thought, "What the hell is the point of this? I could drive there in an hour or so."

There's not much 'point' to leisure boating, you do it because you find 'it' fun, if you don't find 'it' fun then you don't do it.

'it' being your chosen form of boating, be it fishing, sailing, going from marina to marina to have lunch, burning fuel at 50 knots etc etc

If the worry/cost/hassle etc outweighs the fun then don't do it.

 

[Povremeni pomorac]

There's not much 'point' to leisure boating, you do it because you find 'it' fun, if you don't find 'it' fun then you don't do it.

'it' being your chosen form of boating, be it fishing, sailing, going from marina to marina to have lunch, burning fuel at 50 knots etc etc

If the worry/cost/hassle etc outweighs the fun then don't do it.

That's my dilemma. Sometimes it's fun and sometimes not. It's a very nuanced decision for me, which is why I haven't bought a boat. I think the fishing bit would be good, but I am still trying to work out whether it's worth it or not. I suppose one can always sell the thing after a couple of years once I'd done all I wanted to. We had a similar experience with horses many eyars ago. We owned one for a couple of years, till we'd done all there was to do without getting into hunting or serious competition work.

 

[Hot Property]

Bugger, auto correct strikes again. Damp not camp. ( Although Big plumbs may have a different view..)

 

[superheat6k]

I went to Brixham and back from the Hamble a couple of years ago in my 23 ft sports cruiser with 200 Verado. A 200 mile round trip excluding 3 days boating down there. As always make sure maintenance is carried out and you have sufficient safety gear on board.

I bought an epirb for crossing Lyme bay as we were 12 miles offshore in a F5. We arrived safely but a bit camp!

You've always been a bit camp ! (I'll get my coat ).

 

[Hot Property]

You've always been a bit camp ! (I'll get my coat ).

You've woken up Trevor! And yes you need another boat...

 

[ST840]

@Povremeni pomorac What you need is the boat I own. It's up for sale. If you drop me a PM I'll email you the details. It will do all you need it for and more!
You can go fast, slow, sleep on it, fish on it and do it relatively cheaply too!