Ever have a jinxed boat?

BWR1953

Vice Admiral
Joined
Jan 23, 2009
Messages
5,802
Superstition is a long part of nautical history. I've owned 10 boats and one of them was severely jinxed and ended up being destroyed.

My current little fishing boat is starting to feel jinxed too... oboy.

Anybody else ever have a jinxed boat?
 

jm_bullard

Seaman
Joined
Jul 17, 2007
Messages
53
Re: Ever have a jinxed boat?

I have one, but I hope it was the motor that was jinxed, not the entire boat.

First time out with it, would not go past 1/2 throttle - linkage bolt between carbs was stripped (easy fix)

Second trip - fuel pump gasket sprung a leak (another easy fix)

Third trip - new starter died - 12 miles out. Had to pull start a 120 hp under the August sun in Mississippi. (easy fix)

Sixth trip - magnets under the flywheel broke loose. Wife and kids were with me, and the admiral told me it was time to get a new motor.

Six trips in the boat, and had motor issues 4 times. Got a new-to-me low hours 2004 150 Optimax, and I am looking forward to many trouble-free trips.

BTW - the old motor was a Force, for those of you who did not instantly recognize the 120 hp label. :D
 

TBarCYa

Senior Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Apr 13, 2005
Messages
781
Re: Ever have a jinxed boat?

Two boats ago I was given an old Cobia that needed stringers and a floor. I spent the better part of a summer doing the work and ended up with a very solid hull. During the time I was working on the boat, I got into a fight with my uncle who happened to be the one who gave me the boat. It was one of those his girlfriend worked with my girlfriend things and it didn't go well.

Anyhow, I got the hull completed and the engine ran I spent the reaminder of the season trying to figure out why it would only run at higher RPMs for a minute or two before running like crap, then stalling then being terribly difficult to start. That fall, I bought a used engine which just happened to behave EXACTLY the same as the engine it replaced.

Firguring that my uncle had hexed the vessel, I accepted a 21' Regal Cuddy as payment for some work I had done and I moved the VHF and depth finder to the Regal. I sold the trailer that the Cobia was on and threw in the somewhat running boat with it. During the two years I owned the Regal, I had many issues with it. Since it was an I/O and I'm quite familiar with car engines I was fairly successful in diagnosing issues like a cracked fuel line causing the fuel system to vapor lock, bad wiring, a missing fuel level sending unit and a bunch of other issues. More seriously, I had the upper gears in the outdrive fail and seize up, then the coupler failed and I never did figure out how to flush the head.

So, I traded the Regal for the boat I have now. I figured that the depth finder and other items from the Cobia had brought the curse to the Regal so I ensured that nothing from the Regal had made it into the Maxum. I bought a new first aid it, fire extinguishers, throwable PFD, anchors and even the float for the key was new. I still have most of the stuff that came out of the Regal but it's wasting space in my shed rather than going into the new boat.

Before anyone asks, when I sold the Cobia I did not tell the next owner that I thought the boat was cursed. I figured that my uncle had put the curse on it for me owning it and that the next owner would have better luck with it than I did.
 

ezmobee

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 26, 2007
Messages
23,767
Re: Ever have a jinxed boat?

I never had a jinxed boat but there was a joke at my uncle's cottage one summer where he and neighbor found it was impossibly for our neighbors boat, jet ski, and my uncle's boat to all work at the same time. If one got fixed, another broke.
 

victorc1

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Jul 15, 2009
Messages
133
Re: Ever have a jinxed boat?

I bought a 1996 Monterey 180 SCR with a 3.0 Ltr LX Mercruiser AlphaOne II in July for $2,500.00 the seller was asking $5,000.00. ( I thought I sapped him) Since I bought it I ran it 3 times. So far I changed the gimbal bearing, the 2 u joints, the 2 bellows, the impeller with the seals that go on the outdrive, the alternator, starter, rebuilt the carburator, changed the fuel pump, spark plugs, ignition wires, distributer, rotor, ignition module, propeller 21 pitch to a 19 pitch, battery, then the ignition key mysteriously disappeared so I changed the ignition switch. After all that yesterday I went to start it and water is mixing with the oil in the motor. That never happened before. Also my car would start and shut off, I connected it to the computer and nothing showed up, finally I took a chance and changed the cam sensor and it works now, I also have been having problems with my girlfriend and at my job. Not to mention the financial stress on my wallet.
 

proshadetree

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Jul 19, 2008
Messages
1,887
Re: Ever have a jinxed boat?

Sorry about you luck as of late.Just remember this to will pass.
 

Thad

Lieutenant Junior Grade
Joined
Jun 8, 2009
Messages
1,028
Re: Ever have a jinxed boat?

Have you changed the name without the proper ceremony and party?
Or have you not named them at all?:eek:

You have to follow the old ways of the boating god's.:rolleyes: They will surely mess with you if they are not given their party and rum, lots and lots of rum. Beer will work too.:D
 

BWR1953

Vice Admiral
Joined
Jan 23, 2009
Messages
5,802
Re: Ever have a jinxed boat?

Sold my little fishing boat today... yeah, that jinx isn't hangin' around my neck anymore!

Now to find a bargain Starcraft! LOL! :D
 

Capt'n Chris

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
May 21, 2009
Messages
461
Re: Ever have a jinxed boat?

All boats are a jinx...gotta love 'em. They are female you know. They require your time, money, effort and attention, are beautiful to look at and sometimes in the way. They follow you everywhere, you never know what they want or are thinking till they need it (and most often its too late), they gain weight (mostly water weight), they require expensive accessories and as they get older, generally are less dependable and show signs of fatigue. So if that's a jinx, better let your wife read this....will give you a good reason to go out alone today!
 

BWR1953

Vice Admiral
Joined
Jan 23, 2009
Messages
5,802
Re: Ever have a jinxed boat?

All boats are a jinx...gotta love 'em. They are female you know. They require your time, money, effort and attention, are beautiful to look at and sometimes in the way. They follow you everywhere, you never know what they want or are thinking till they need it (and most often its too late), they gain weight (mostly water weight), they require expensive accessories and as they get older, generally are less dependable and show signs of fatigue. So if that's a jinx, better let your wife read this....will give you a good reason to go out alone today!

What a very 1800's point of view.

A boat is a THING, not a person. A thing can be sold or destroyed, but a person cannot.

I don't have a wife, but my girlfriend would consider what you said to be very offensive.

Ugh.
 
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