Hurricane GS 201 encapsulated wood

[Florida Boy]

I have been strongly considering the purchase of a Hurricane deck boat (Godfrey Marine) GS 201 for family fishing, skiing, etc.<br />90 % fresh water use, 10 % salt water use, boat will be stored on trailer.<br />Since this is a purchase in excess of 20,000.00 I have been doing some research and I see Hurricane uses wood in the stringers.<br />Although they claim to use "fiberglass encapsulated MarineDeck PTP,"<br />(I assume the PTP is pressure treated plywood), I have read there is no way to chemically bond fiberglass to wood, so it delaminates etc., and the internet is full of articles on wood stringers with photos of encapsulated wood that is rotting. Although the issue of wood quality may be debated,<br />bottom line is, I see Hurricane only warrants the hull for 5 years, and to me that says a lot about their confidence in this product when other boat makers are offering lifetime hull warranties.<br />I am still considering the Hurricane, but...<br />do you know of any deck boat we can purchase which uses no wood construction?<br />Any info on this would be greatly appreciated.

 

[93bronco]

Re: Hurricane GS 201 encapsulated wood

pursuits are high dollar boats and they use the same type.<br />their warranty is about the same.<br />-<br />is the 201 the center console version?<br />i looked at one at the local dealer, nice boat.<br />if you could get it with a T-top it would even be better.

 

[MrBill]

Re: Hurricane GS 201 encapsulated wood

F-Boy:<br /><br />Five year hull warrantee is not unusual, but there should be a separate guarantee for stringers, most manufacturers these days guarantee the stringers for life against rot. Check out a comparison of features and PRICES with other manufacturers, Crwnline for instance. MSRP's are on line at crownline.com<br /><br />Make sure you buy enough power for that boat, you'll need 240 HP or more. The price seems very low...comparable to Bayliner. The higher quality boats of that size (new) s/b over $30K.

 

[BillP]

Re: Hurricane GS 201 encapsulated wood

Research from credible sources (such as the APA)will show lab (including military)tests on pt woods for marine use. Bottom line is they are 100% acceptable and work better than non treated wood. Yes, resin sticks to it and no it doesn't delaminate. Naysayers are basically unaware of the changes.<br /><br />By the way, I was in the Pursuit factory (Ft.Pierce FL)about 3 years ago watching my friends 24'cc hull get laminated. They were using regular 1/2" ply for stringers, bulkheads and all structural wood work...not pt ply. Their warranty was 10yrs and transferable at that time.

 

[track75]

Re: Hurricane GS 201 encapsulated wood

Bryant makes a 23' deck boat that is completely wood-free. No wood in the stringers, transom, floor, seat bases, or anywhere else. Very nice boats. They are a small high-quality builder out of Tennessee. I have one of their bowriders and I've been very pleased. Plus, if you have a question you can talk directly to Joe Bryant or one of his top guys. They also frequent a few of the internet boating forums. Not sure if this is one, though.<br /><br />Check them out at www.bryantboats.com <br /><br />Good luck

 

[Florida Boy]

Re: Hurricane GS 201 encapsulated wood

Thanks for the tip on Bryant, I had not heard of them before. Unfortunately, with a dry weight of 4,000 lbs (!) their 234 deck boat is out of my league. Nice boats though... the only other deck boat I can find without wood is the NauticStar 200. Here's the link...<br /> http://www.nauticstarboats.com <br />I will probably go with the Hurricane GS 201, I really like the twin fishing chairs up front and the dry weight is only 2,360 lbs. I finally got a reply from Bob Wachs at Hurricane (Godfrey) on the wood construction, and he assured me all PTP products come with a lifetime warranty against rot, and this is true with their stringers as well.

 

[KCook]

Re: Hurricane GS 201 encapsulated wood

Dunno this for a fact, but it would not surprise me if the new Glastron deckboats have no structural wood. As these are brand new designs.<br /><br />However, I would still lean toward the Hurricane. They have simply had a lot more experience with designing and building deckboats.<br /><br />Kelly Cook

 

[JGREGORY]

Re: Hurricane GS 201 encapsulated wood

http://www.suntrackerboats.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.models&nav=17 <br /><br />Try this out!!