Viking 22 Widebeam on the sea...

[V1701]

Evening all,
Friend of mine has one, with a nice 50hp Honda o/b. What do you think about going to sea in it? How far would you go? Any advice/tips? Basic boat spec here from owners club site, manufacturer's site is down at the moment. Please be gentle, he already owns the boat and is fully aware it's not really a sea boat. I've explained the worst part will be leaving and coming back to the marina berth and negotiating the marina entrance (Brighton)...

Thanks,
David.

I should add he's completely new to boating...

 

[Kawasaki]

Evening all,
Friend of mine has one, with a nice 50hp Honda o/b. What do you think about going to sea in it? How far would you go? Any advice/tips? Basic boat spec here from owners club site, manufacturer's site is down at the moment. Please be gentle, he already owns the boat and is fully aware it's not really a sea boat. I've explained the worst part will be leaving and coming back to the marina berth and negotiating the marina entrance (Brighton)...

Thanks,
David.

I should add he's completely new to boating...

Well-- you can go to sea in anything that floats
BUT
The conditions need to be perfect!
Yep, you recognise this vessel is no sea boat excactly.
In the 70's whislt at the Erals Court boat show, the Viking of the day drew My eye, big boat (for me then) and small price
I remember asking the Sales guy if it would be ok to go to sea in
I also remember Him telling me it would be no problem
I also remember swmbo pulling Me off the stand rather rapidly, fair play!
You mention your oppo is new to boating so that's a bit of a drawback
The Viking is not really the type of hull that will cope with anything more than an F3 imho, especially with wind against tide conditions or a beam sea
Well, it won't sink (hopefully) but I imagine it would be extremely uncomfortable
Dead flat calm conditions and a decent forecast, well why not?
BUT
Yer Man should have an experience bod with Him
Especially until He gets used to the boat or has had plenty of instruction
Is the boat going to be berthed in Brighton all the while?
If so I would imagine it will get little use as it, as we know not a serious sea boat
Learning to 'park' the vessel, leave and return to the Marina will take a while to learn and be competent at
BUT
Learning to handle a vessel of this nature at Sea, might take a while longer!!
Was that gentle enough?

 

[Searush]

IIRC Brighton is a particularly nasty entrance in some conditions is it not? Kwaka knows what he is talking about, advise him to stick to the rivers & wide canals it was designed for.

 

[V1701]

Was that gentle enough?

It was...

Thanks for taking the time to reply, good advice and comments...

 

[V1701]

IIRC Brighton is a particularly nasty entrance in some conditions is it not?

Yes, I live aboard at Brighton, been spectacularly bad lately...

 

[carlton]

As mentioned, Brighton is a bit exposed but if he chooses a flat calm day he should be fine. Big advantage of Brighton is that he can venture out and if conditions are a bit bouncy there's nothing stopping him turning around and getting back into his berth.

An essential part of 'seamanship' is knowing precisely when to call off the trip...

 

[V1701]

As mentioned, Brighton is a bit exposed but if he chooses a flat calm day he should be fine. Big advantage of Brighton is that he can venture out and if conditions are a bit bouncy there's nothing stopping him turning around and getting back into his berth.

An essential part of 'seamanship' is knowing precisely when to call off the trip...

Yes it's one of the reasons I chose Brighton, very amenable to nipping out for an hour or two anytime the conditions are alright...

 

[[2068]]

IIRC Brighton is a particularly nasty entrance in some conditions is it not?

I'm not sure that "nasty" is quite the word I would use.
"Interesting"?

I've only been there a couple of times, the second of which was in an F4-5 coming from the wrong direction. I was in the right place, but you get weird wave reflections going on, and it was as if the waves wanted to pick me up and throw me onto the wall.

Anyway, to the OP, the main problem you have is that with a boat designed for river use, there will be a limited number of days on which you will be able to sensibly go out.

 

[oldgit]

Being in the sheltered confines of the harbour and being tempted to just "nip outside" to see just how bad things are,may be a total kettle of fish to being thrown around "outside "and desperately wondering if you can get back in.

 

[Jim@sea]

Looking at some of the Viking Boats, its a shame that they dont make Seagoing Versions, after all what would it take perhaps have a wider transom to take 2 X 50 Outboards side by side, perhaps making the hull a bit thicker.
I recently sold a 21 ft boat which was all cockpit (for fishing) and the cabin was tiny, certainly too small to spend a week in. The Viking 20/22 looks as if it has the accomodation I need but I need to go round the coast and as I use Whithaven I can see the Isle of Man from the harbour entrance.
I am in the market for a 20 - 25 ft boat if anyone has one but I dont want an Inboard petrol engine.

 

[V1701]

Looking at some of the Viking Boats, its a shame that they dont make Seagoing Versions, after all what would it take perhaps have a wider transom to take 2 X 50 Outboards side by side, perhaps making the hull a bit thicker.
I recently sold a 21 ft boat which was all cockpit (for fishing) and the cabin was tiny, certainly too small to spend a week in. The Viking 20/22 looks as if it has the accomodation I need but I need to go round the coast and as I use Whithaven I can see the Isle of Man from the harbour entrance.
I am in the market for a 20 - 25 ft boat if anyone has one but I dont want an Inboard petrol engine.

The accommodation on the Viking 22 is amazing for the size, the double under the helm makes a world of difference. How about a Hardy 25, one here with a Johnson 60hp 2 stroke. If you go a little bigger (27ft) and content with 6 knots, there's a lovely Colvic Northerner close by here, with diesel inboard...

 

[MY littlebirchwoo]

Hmmm sounds like this guy...

http://www.eastcoastboat.net/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=27&sid=714731a9389decfa48ebeb66c28692b6