Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

[jkust]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

Don't forget to add the trailer weight in there too. A trailer that size certaintly isn't light. My trailer (21' bowrider) is 700lbs.

Agreed, my 18 foot bowrider trailer is a thousand+ lbs with only a single axle.

 

[moosehead]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

OP, good advice. Don't get discouraged, you live in a spectacular area for boating, and have the green light from the Admiral.

Take your time, look around, rent a few craft. Focus on what you think you'll be doing most, as you have described a pretty wide spectrum of boating, namely: (1) trailering to inland lakes, to (2) Mission Bay, to (3) 39 Mile Open Water trip from Long Beach to Catalina.

For instance, even though you can make the crossing to Catalina in an hour +/- depending upon conditions and craft, I would want a larger seaworthy boat for the Pacific Ocean, biased towards outboard and open self-bailing deck, VHF radio, small head. Perhaps opposite for inland lakes and say watersports, which could tilt you towards a smaller I/O. Do you really want a sleep aboard cuddy? Are you wanting to fish? Watersports? Will you consider a slip in Mission Bay or Long Beach?

Have fun with it, look and pilot a ton of boats. Make the crossing to Catalina and look around that marina, along with the lakes and bays you are most interested in boating. While it is always good to progess from a starter boat, you also want to get the proper category of craft suited to your useage.

 

[Alwhite00]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

My 250 Sundancer has a dry weight of 5,300 - Ready to go to the lake it's 7,600 with the trailer - stuff adds up quick. Also, Throwing stuff in the truck does not change the tow rating of the stuff you have. Also need to add in the bodies in the vehicle. I weighed mine at a truck scale a couple different times and it's at 7,600. the trailer (tandem galvanized roller) has a listed weight of 1,650 so make sure you crunch the numbers before hand.

BTW - I think that size is fine for a first boat. I started out with a 21' mid cabin and outgrew that in a hurry and had never driven a boat before and had not been on one in the 15 years prior to that.

LK

 

[frantically relaxing]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

First off, and no offense meant to anyone, but I grit my teeth any time I hear "that's too big for a first boat"... Phooey. If you were looking at rowboats and decided instead to buy an 18' Bayliner, then THAT would be "too much boat"... So the learning curve's a bit steeper, big deal. You only live once!

Second off-- sell the motorhome? Geez, a boat AND motorhome has always been one of our mainstay's...

===========================

Wouldn't know what to do if we didn't have both!

Thirdly-- tow vehicle-- Your Lincoln is fine. Make sure the boat stops good enough to suit you. And if anything doesn't feel right, THEN consider a different tow vehicle.

Until then, KEEP the motorhome, buy the boat, use the hell outta both of 'em!

 

[WIMUSKY]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

^^^^^^^ Your last setup is a dandy. Very nice! And I agree!

 

[crabby captain john]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

I'd not be hesitant to use your tow vehicle with that boat providing the trailer brakes were upgraded to electric and a weight distribution hitch was installed. That hitch will toss some of (most) the tongue weight back to the 4 trailer wheels. I've been towing trailers and boats of all sizes for decades... use your comfort level and make your decision.

 

[Pez Vela]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

My goal is store the boat at my house...

I hope you're not planning to join the plague of RV and trailer boat owners who illegally park on city streets. There's a new ordinance for that here in San Diego. You might want to check into it. If you can park it legally off the street in your back yard, I'm very jealous. You must live in a better house than I do. As far as your other questions, launching a 25' boat at our local lakes has got to be a joke, right? There's hardly any water in them last time i checked, and our drought conditions are here to stay if you ask me. I say keep the Portabote for your freshwater adventures and put your 25' boat in a slip. Catalina awaits you.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

trailer brakes were upgraded to electric and a weight distribution hitch was installed. That hitch will toss some of (most) the tongue weight back to the 4 trailer wheels.

Agree with the weight distributing hitch. I went with Kodiac discs and electric/hydraulic. Way better system than electric brakes. Drum brakes just suck in salt water.

 

[bobdec]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

Regal 2565 ,. overall length 27' 6" , beam 8' 6" OP has not physically seen the boat yet. I'd suggest taking a look at one up on a trailer and thinking about trailering and launching that rig. Have to be a gymnist to get on/off boat to/from trailer unless you get some steps fabricated. Otherwise you need someone who can back it down the ramp and someone to drive the boat, same with retrieval. That's a problem if you decide to go out with friends or family that can't , or won't, do either. 25' is the usual cutoff for trailering. Learning to handel a single screw (I/O) that large is tough for a newbee even w/o the launching added. My guess is if you don't store it in the water the launching retrieval hassel will get old fast resulting in less usage and enjoyment.

 

[ShrimperJosh]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

Really appreciate your thoughts. Makes sense, except the trailering

boat dry weight = 5960
fuel (72 gal x 6.2 lbs/gal) = 446 lbs
water (20 gal x 8.33 lbs/gal) = 167 lbs
Total = 6573 lbs. This leaves me with (8600-6573 = 2027 lbs).

Is 2027 lbs really not enough for a dual-axle trailer...I would think that toys would be at a minimum and I could keep them in the back of the Navigator during towing.

Love your idea about the chock behind the driver-side front wheel...Won't help me get up, but will help me front going down!

What is the "25000 series territory" you mention? Lost me there...

One of the problems on boat ramps, with 2 wheel drive, is sliding. Your front brakes are set to do most of the stopping, and backing down a ramp puts weight on the back. I've slid down a few myself, and slap myself silly when I haven't locked in the front end. Granted, some ramps are steeper than others, but best to be prepared. When using a two-wheeler, remember it is rated on flat ground principles, and when you start throwing in ramps, the numbers often times go out the window. Just my two cents.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

duplicate post

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

My guess is if you don't store it in the water the launching retrieval hassel will get old fast resulting in less usage and enjoyment.

I would completely disagree. No harder than a boat many feet smaller. I have owned boats from 20' to 27'. Launching is nearly the same on all.

Bobdec, what is your experience besides the one 18' boat in your profile?

 

[Morgueman]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

Going from no power boating experience to HUGE, is not wise.
I think you are way under estimating the towing weight.

Dry 6000#
Which may or may not include batteries. 150#
trailer 1500-2000# depending on trailer
spare tire 50#
anchor and chain 50#
dock lines, fenders, electronics, docking pole, pfd's,
first aid kit, misc essentials, clothes, towels, personal items, foul weather gear. 100#
fuel 467#
water 150#

9000#

Don't forget to add the coolers, gear, people, and fuel weight in the Nav, to get
an accurate GCVWR number, thats likely another 850-1000#

Does the Nav have mirrors that will let you see whats going on behind that boat?

All valid considerations...

Although I could take a chance and see if I feel comfortable towing while exceeding the GCWR and towing capacity, if it turns out that I'm not comfortable with it, I've wasted a lot of time, effort and money. Even if the towing seemed comfortable to me, I'd be concerned with the field day that attorneys would have with me in the event of an accident, not to mention my guilt if others got hurt.

 

[tpenfield]

Re: Is this NEWBIE out of his league buying this boat??? Be honest...

The weight calculations put you pretty close, and perhaps a bit over the vehicle rating, particularly if you are all loaded up with people and gear. Lots of threads that discuss towing capacity get this array of responses. So, as you say, it is up to what you feel comfortable with, etc.

The only thing you could do (IMHO) to stay within the capacity rating of the Navigator is to tow with the boat fairly empty of fuel and water and fill those things up local to the launching point and/or at the launching point. That will give you about 500 lbs less weight for freeway travel, etc.

Your other options may be to look to see if the Expedition has some models rated in the 9K + lbs range, or the Chevy Suburban. . .