To Freedom (boat club) or not to Freedom that is my question....

[dingbat]

I would not venture much past about 5 miles without a good chart plotter - something you can plan on for about 1000. taking your budget down to 4k.....

Whats magic about the 5 mile mark?

Won my first offshore tournament with a Magellan GPS 2000 handheld (2.5”, green screen) and a chart book.

https://timeandnavigation.si.edu/multimedia-asset/magellan-2000-xl-1996

 

[Scott Danforth]

Fiberglass boats $5k and other are starter projects

Look for an aluminum boat powered by an outbound

 

[mrdad990]

Thanks Brian will do, i have been out in the ocean a few times in a bigger fishing boat that was my family's. however not my own. mostly will be sticking to shoreline and the marina until i feel confident. i def feel the rush of wanting a boat to take out the family and my wife is probably more excited that i am lol so we are both making eachother more excited. probably not the best idea but we have time since im not working and that is kinda where the rush came from. but grew up less than 10 min away from the ocean and i spend 10 hours a week on the ocean with my kayak however i know this is a little different.

 

[ahicks]

Whats magic about the 5 mile mark?

Won my first offshore tournament with a Magellan GPS 2000 handheld (2.5”, green screen) and a chart book.

https://timeandnavigation.si.edu/mul...n-2000-xl-1996

No "magic" implied. Way more about visibility, and how the shore line can disappear on you when you least expect it.....

If you want to trust that to a 2.5" hand held, go for it. Personally, I'd prefer something a little more substantial. Bigger point I suppose is you should have SOMETHING with you!

 

[Thundra]

Some years ago a good friend of mine wanted to get back into boating and had inquired about a Freedom Boat Club membership. I do not remember the exact numbers but these are roughly what I remember;


$5,000 up front to join.

$500 per month with a minimum 3 year contract.

That is what?, $23,000 after three years? He decided to not do it and never did get a boat.

This was years ago, at least 5-10 years ago.

 

[mrdad990]

tpenfield those videos are amazing! maybe its the thrillseeker in me but those look like fun not scary! Of course i can see how those could wreak a boat or have someone fly off. that would be something more for me and my wife only or just with the boys.

 

[JimS123]

The Freedom boat club has a booth at our local boat show each year. For what they charge you could buy a brand new boat with a 10 year mortgage and be cheaper in the long run. Also, if you do some research you'll find that many of the boats are all beat up and the reviews are awful. Certainly not something I would want to navigate in on the ocean.

Whatever you buy after a year you'll probably find out that either.....you didn't buy the right one for your lifestyle, or.....you don't want to have a boat at all. As I drive around my neighborhood I see a bunch of old scows sitting alongside houses deteriorating. Many were bought on a budget and not used too often, so when they did get put into service they were already broken.

I second the aluminum outboard suggestion. It should be a deep freeboard minimum 18 footer with an engine that has a local servicing dealer. Before you ever put it in the water have it serviced - tuneup, impeller, fuel lines, etc.

In any event, I think your budget is too light to get a reliable boat.

 

[mrdad990]

i agree with the starter boat. we are looking for something a little more basic since we are getting overwhelmed with so many choices. Trying not to spend ALL our savings right away on a boat lol. we have the money for it but preferably would like to keep it down as much as possible. something like a 16ft and put my dream of going off coast 22 miles to another time.

 

[tpenfield]

[Boat Club] Sounds like a whole bunch of money with the only benefit at the end is some boater experience and not having to pay for maintenance and repairs. I would think the $5K up front is to pay for all the damage to the boats . . . that they probably get. It does sound like the boating equivalent of owning a condominium instead of a house.

Not much on the market if you do a search for $5K boats . . . Some but who's to say they are not a money pit. :noidea:

The OP mrdad990 might be better served buying a $10-25K ish boat, putting his $5K down and then doing a personal loan or H.E. line of credit (if possible). However, maintenance cost will be an adder. . . . DIY vs. relying on shops is a major factor in the on-going cost that can eat into the budget.

Lots to consider. . .

FWIW - I would not plan on doing any open water crossings (Catalina Is or otherwise) right away . . . maybe in a couple of years, or with the 'next' boat (we haven't even begun to talk about the 'next' boat)

 

[mrdad990]

JimS123 any suggestions of types? we are very open on this now. I want to start to have fun first and if it doesn't work out just like you said then it won't break the bank... i am also trying to avoid slip fees and store it out of the water (so that i can also potentially avoid as much maintenance fees as possible)

 

[JimS123]

JimS123 any suggestions of types? we are very open on this now. I want to start to have fun first and if it doesn't work out just like you said then it won't break the bank... i am also trying to avoid slip fees and store it out of the water (so that i can also potentially avoid as much maintenance fees as possible)

When I was first looking for a boat I had my heart set on an 18 foot Starcraft with a 65HP Johnson V-4. (i'm dating myself for sure) My buddy had one like it and that boat would handle a storm on Lake Erie. I think it was about $3500 new, and that broke my piggy bank. I settled on a 16 footer. The plywood cost $165 and my Grandpa and I built her in his garage. Out the door with a brand new motor and trailer cost me about $1200.

Today I would look for a Starcraft, Lowes, Crestliner, Alumacraft, etc. Many other good ones as well. Minimum 18 foot. It would be an open bow (bowrider) with a Mercury outboard. If a nice closed bow came up I wouldn't rule it out. Preferably a 4-stroke engine, but a good late model 2-stroke would be OK. In any event, it would NEED to have a kicker as well.

Just my opinion.

 

[tpenfield]

tpenfield those videos are amazing! maybe its the thrill seeker in me but those look like fun not scary! Of course i can see how those could wreak a boat or have someone fly off. that would be something more for me and my wife only or just with the boys.

Yup . . . not sure I'd want to do that for very long though. Little boats get tossed around pretty good. I've only been caught in that sort of slop a few times and fortunately did not have far to go (maybe 5 miles or so). Usually, it starts out as a decently calm day and then the afternoon winds pick up more than expected and you are sort of stuck having to try to get through it on the way home.

I have 'stuffed the bow' only once in rough conditions, and was glad I have a cuddy/cabin style boat. A couple of years ago in our local waters there was a 24 foot bowrider that went out on a windy day and stuffed the bow into a wave. The boat was immediately swamped and rolled over within a few seconds, trapping a child underneath

This past weekend we nearly got caught in a very strong pop-up thunderstorm storm. . . we ran out of beer and decided to go home early which was sort of a saving grace . . We got back to the harbor just as the storm was hitting

90% of the time the weather is fine, its the other days that you got to be ready for. I often tell new boaters that "boating is dangerous, it only looks like fun"

It's those time where you want to have thought about what your boat is capable of and what are its (and your) limits. Will your boat stay afloat if swamped ??? . . . some do, some don't. Are you ready for the engine to die unexpectedly in challenging conditions? ( I've had that happen a couple of times) Etc. . . .

Anyway, per my other post, it sounds like the boat club will get a significant amount of money over a 3 year contract term ($23K), so it is sort of a coin-toss as to what would work better for you. Just keep in mind that boating is expensive, and 'ocean boating' tends to be more so as compared to 'lake boating', because you want/need a better boat under your feet.

 

[JASinIL2006]

If you are willing to do your own maintenance - and you sound like a very candidate to learn that stuff - you can save lots and lots of money. There still will be costs, aside from gas and oil, that you incur every year. Some of it is predictable, often it's something unexpected.

I don't do ocean boating, but a $5000 budget would be pretty tight even for an area with lots of boats and a relatively low cost of living. I can't imagine you'd find much in CA in that ballpark.

I really like the idea of a starter boat, something you can learn on as you get your sea legs. Save the idea of a 20+ mile trip for a second boat, when you know what you're doing and have enough experience to handle unexpectedly bad weather. I've not experience anything like the slop shown in those videos, but I've been out on water when the weather turned, and it was pretty scary, especially if you have your family on board.

Above all else, please be sure to take a boating safety class. As the captain of your boat, you're responsible to keep you passengers safe. It's imperative that you know what you're doing. A good boating class will equip you with useful knowledge and skills, and help you to understand your limitations.

 

[tpenfield]

And just remember, no matter how rough it gets out there, you always want to keep the propellers in the water . . .
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