Pipe Dream or? (1/2 ton towable aft cabin cruiser)

[hvymtl939]

So the admiral and I have been talking about our next boat, and have decided for sure we want a cruiser of some kind. What we wondered, does the ideal one exist? Here's what we would love.

1/2 ton towable
Aft cabin

Besides that, we're not too picky. Does such a thing even exist? Prefer to not have to move up to a Super Duty.

 

[alldodge]

Don't think you can find an aft cabin and still tow "easy" with a half ton, 2500 for sure. Look at the lighter boat manufactures and this can help

 

[Old Ironmaker]

Lighter boat or bigger truck. Those big boats are not towers in my mind, cuddy's are maxing out for this old crew of grey hairs. I will pull buddies cuddy with my 1/2 ton, it's within towing max. but I sure know it's back there, and the gas tank takes a noticeable beating compared to my 19' Aluminum. Power winches save time and effort though. Upgrading to a 3/4 ton would save money on fuel and maintenance costs in the long term for sure.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Buddy of mine had a 1988 25' carver twin cabin. He towed it with his half ton ford.

 

[southkogs]

Towing an aft cabin sounds a bit ambitious - aren't most of 'em 26' and over? That's a lotta' boat to launch and retrieve.

** well, Scott's post answered that question **

 

[Old Ironmaker]

Buddy of mine had a 1988 25' carver twin cabin. He towed it with his half ton ford.

For how long Scott? The 1/2 ton would have taken a mechanical beating. Even within max towing recommendations.

That's brings up another point for the O.P. What is the maximum tow rating for your 1/2 ton? Whatever it says reduce it by 15%. That isn't a quantifiable number just my experience destroying trucks for 47 years of driving them. I learned to drive on my Fathers 20 ton dump truck after school and on weekends. He figured I might as well earn him some money while I was learning to drive. I bet it was the only one of those in the student parking lot, anywhere. I took it once for a joke, not funny to my father.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Old Ironmaker , yes, towing 8100# with a towing capacity of 8300# is beating the truck up pretty bad. He did it for two seasons, then upgraded the truck to a 3/4 ton. the other problem is the boat was 114" wide making it a permitted load

southkogs , yes, most are over 26'. the '88 Carver 2557 was 25' from the transom to the bow, or 29'-10" overall (bow pulpit to swim platform). i personally don't consider such a large boat "towable".

towing my 24' (26 OAL) - 9'-6" wide boat down from the land of beer and cheese to the sunshine state was enough of a white-knuckled trip in traffic with all the other drivers. cant imagine towing 29' or more of OAL that far,

 

[southkogs]

Okay ^^^^ that makes more sense.

There's a dude at the launch I go to most often who dumps a 24' in every now and again. He's not real skilled at it, so it's a bit of a folly anyway - but I'm not sure how much more "proficient" I'd look getting it done. It doesn't seem like the extra couple of feet should matter that much, but it seems to be a lot of boat going in and out.

 

[hvymtl939]

Current truck is rated for 8900. Replacement truck which will be purchased sometime this summer is rated for 11,400. Although it's not a true aft cabin, the Admiral liked the layout of the Bayliner Discovery 266. We have lots of lakes we like to visit, and we're not ready to be locked to one by slipping it (that's the plan for the boat after this one, when we cross the 30' mark). And I'd prefer not to have a massive truck for the dozen or so times a year this would get pulled around.

 

[Maclin]

They are usually much taller also, so going down the road is even more fun for the money...

 

[Blind Date]

Most 24' aft cabin cruisers are gonna be under 4 tons loaded/fueled up sitting on a trailer. You can tow that much weight with a 1/2 ton truck & not destroy it. Distance and whether or not your towing up and over a mountain are important things to consider.

I bought a 2500HD when I got my 250 Sundancer 14 years ago. That truck is gone & I now use a 1/2 ton Tahoe. But I only tow short distances (under 50 miles) with it & not very often as the boat is slipped during the summer. A new 1/2 ton GMC Sierra w/max tow and a 6.2 under the hood would tow my boat with ease.

 

[hvymtl939]

The Glastron GS259 looks like another great option. I'm very curious to check out one of the outboard powered versions.

 

[ahicks]

This seems incredibly subjective here, requiring a little more input to supply usable info. . When we ask about "towable" are we talking about the seasonal, twice a year, to and from the water towable, or are we talking about something closer Scott's cross country example? Will there be anything in the way of more challenging ramps in play, or just ultra modern ramps with gentle entry angles?

Point being, I can see a lot of examples where a typical 1/2 ton would be fine. On the other hand, I've been on some roads and ramps where a 3/4 ton 4x4 will be grunting....

 

[roffey]

I had a 26 foot Wellcraft I pulled with my F150. My new F150 can pull 12 tons. I think the big restriction is how wide the boat is. Someone can correct me here but I think ten feet and wider you need a special permit.

 

[BRICH1260]

How far are you going to be towing?
Bear in mind most truck tow ratings displayed are for use with a weight distribution hitch. Not real practical with a boat trailer.
I'd be leaning toward a 2500 series just to have the extra brakes and suspension, if nothing else.

 

[Blind Date]

The Glastron GS259 looks like another great option. I'm very curious to check out one of the outboard powered versions.

One hatch with a screen to let fresh air in the cabin? I'd keep looking. One of the selling points of my 250 Sundancer is all 4 port windows open with screens, in addition to the screen on the deck hatch. This equates to a boat you can actually overnight in during the summer. With a trailerable cruiser you can never have enough ventilation in the cabin. Regal is one of the better/best builders for putting plenty of ventilation in their cruisers. Look at what they have to offer.

 

[Old Ironmaker]

Ventilation was the 1st thing I noticed a lack of the 1st time I spent the night on a cruiser. It would be the 1st thing I would look for if in the market someday.

"Towing" is subjective. A big difference going down the dead strait 403 here than up and down the I-95 through the Cumberland Pass. Huge difference not a big diff, Eh Scott? .

 

[frantically relaxing]

Aft cabins come in WAY less than 24-26 feet folks.. Our '87 Searay is one example, it's 21'. We spent 4 vacations and many many weekends in between camping out in this boat...

 

[bruceb58]

Bear in mind most truck tow ratings displayed are for use with a weight distribution hitch. Not real practical with a boat trailer.

Why do you think that? There are many equalizing hitches that work fine with surge brakes.

I use an equilizing hitch with my boat trailer although I do have elect/hydraulic brakes.

 

[bruceb58]

My new F150 can pull 12 tons.

Yeah....I kinda doubt that!

The serious restrictions that 1/2T trucks have is not the rated towing but the rated payload. Not uncommon to have a 1/2T truck with less than 1500# of payload. That gets eaten up pretty fast with tongue weight.