Post by: Taco280AI on December 05, 2020, 09:35:38 PM
TIA
Post by: Encore 280 on December 05, 2020, 09:38:48 PM
Post by: KFhunter on December 05, 2020, 09:47:53 PM
Outfitting it will hurt, bad. Budget $5k to start on a new boat being very modest, unless you buy a ready to fish package..then budget $5k lol
Storage is also a big factor, but if you got space under a roof, your good, paying to store is a huge $ drain
Putting away boat is key, rinse outboards out with fresh and wash hull, always.
Lack of maint and cutting corners after you take em out the salt is what kills them.
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Post by: fishngamereaper on December 05, 2020, 10:02:13 PM
Fuel stabilizer, ring free, oil changes, lower until oil, impellers, tune up, filter's, trim cylinders, trailer bearings, trailer brakes, tires,.....
At the very low end 400-500 a year general maintenance is easy.
But if someone has to ask how much it costs to own a boat they probably can't afford the boat.
Post by: KFhunter on December 05, 2020, 10:06:08 PM
Check lists are your friend, dont be proud lol
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Post by: Hillbilly Zen on December 05, 2020, 10:49:27 PM
Post by: KFhunter on December 05, 2020, 10:59:43 PM
Lol
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Post by: Crunchy on December 05, 2020, 11:11:07 PM
Post by: xX Let ER Rip Xx on December 05, 2020, 11:19:50 PM
But yes, BOAT...... means break out another thousand.
:tup:
Post by: huntnphool on December 05, 2020, 11:35:05 PM
A guy buying a twin 300 Grady doesn't ask these questions 🤔
Lol
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+1, my buddy’s with 25’ Gradys and 250’s just say “send me the bill” :chuckle:
Post by: Bill W on December 06, 2020, 07:48:23 AM
On flashers.... in my opinion anything other than green,red or "chrome" flashers will sit in the flasher bag. I speak from experience.
Post by: screedler on December 06, 2020, 07:52:09 AM
Outboards are easy, maintenance isn't gonna hurt you, diy
Outfitting it will hurt, bad. Budget $5k to start on a new boat being very modest, unless you buy a ready to fish package..then budget $5k lol
Storage is also a big factor, but if you got space under a roof, your good, paying to store is a huge $ drain
Putting away boat is key, rinse outboards out with fresh and wash hull, always.
Lack of maint and cutting corners after you take em out the salt is what kills them.
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So I'm no salt boat guy, lake dingy dude here... So I may be out of my 'depth' here but I want to reiterate their last sentence here, "Lack of maint and cutting corners after you take em out is what kills them" this even applies to freshwater. :) :'(
My dad left behind a pontoon boat that he only used on one small lake during the time he owned it when he passed away, problem is that in his failing health in his last few years he stopped doing the maintenance on it. Funny story with that... My mom had taken out a group of her silver haired lady friends for a cruise one day and the motor failed on them. Her and her sister had to jump in to try and swim/push before some other boater gave them a tow. So, I've got to get my motor overhauled now. Won't run for longer than about 30 seconds without cutting out, fortunately there's a functional old trolling motor that fits on the pontoonus otherwise it would be dead in the water. Doesn't help that I'm an IT geek who doesn't know my way around a gas engine. :bash: Figured out how to replace the inline fuel filter, but I think that the motor not having been drained of fluids before winter for a few years is going to bite me in the behind big time on this one. Now I've gotta get the boat mechanic out next year to give it some lovin I think.
On the other hand, the little v-hull I inherited is kickin' fantastically with a trolling motor... Just can't wait for my new deep cycle battery I got to go with the new trolling motor I got for it, will be livin the life at that point going from a 30lb to a 55lb thrust TM. Now if I can learn how to use the fishfinder I'll be a happy man...
And yeah, storage... If you ain't got a boat shed or a neighbor with one that you can barter for rent for (I'm lucky in that way) storing a trailer + boat will cost ya!
Post by: KFhunter on December 06, 2020, 07:55:33 AM
Post by: Taco280AI on December 06, 2020, 07:55:35 AM
Post by: NRA4LIFE on December 06, 2020, 07:56:31 AM
Post by: KFhunter on December 06, 2020, 08:08:01 AM
Something with comfort, speed and range, and you can get out of the spray and sun.
rough idea of what it takes to outfit a boat, look at all the 'stuff' on this boat.
https://orangecounty.craigslist.org/boa/d/dana-point-must-see-mako-236-turnkey/7241146425.html
I'd get something like that link, but outboard. I'm sick of inboard engines.
Post by: Stein on December 06, 2020, 09:57:19 AM
20' doesn't really get you much other than additional cost for the boat, another axle on the trailer, four bearings, two tires, trailer brakes, more weight and less fuel economy. The advantage on the water is pretty minimal for the cost.
When you get to 24, you have a bunch more capabilities, again bumping up to something that is harder to tow, harder to store and probably with twin motors, so double the maintenance cost and upping the fuel bill significantly.
With my 18 footer, it costs me $50 every time I go fishing, that covers launch and fuel only. I spend way too much on fishing gear every year as well as stuff like ice, various things that break, and so on. I average about 15 trips a year, so $750 give or take.
I wouldn't be surprised if larger boats were $75-100 every time you take them out. If you need to pay to store them, I would call around, but $300 a month for dry storage is on the lower end. Where you store it will be a huge component of the annual cost if you can't keep it for free at your house. If storage is free, fuel will obviously be the #1 cost.
I probably pay about $200 a year in engine maintenance on a main and kicker, but I don't follow the manufacturer's schedule as it gets new engine and lower unit oil as well as spark plugs every year in addition to the other stuff.
Used is a great way to go when there are reasonable priced boats on the market. When I bought mine, used boats that had plenty of love marks were only $3k less than new when I found a great deal on a boat a dealer wanted to move. Used glass boats are always more of a gamble as you can't tell what's under the floor or in the transom. With aluminum, worst case is you have some wet foam on smaller ones, bigger ones without flotation are pretty easy to inspect the hull and transom.
So, my best guess is $750 for launch and fuel, $200 insurance, $200 maintenance, $50 flares/signals and maybe $200 for unexpected fixes and stuff wearing out.
Not including the cost of the boat, I'm spending $1,400 a year which in my opinion is a pretty low cost for the amount of adventure our family has.
If you have to pay for a slip, just that is going to almost triple my all in cost.
It's not for the faint of heart, but nothing beats a good day on the water.
Post by: RB on December 06, 2020, 12:48:44 PM
20' is the dead zone for boats in my opinion. 18' is the upper end of one class because you can fit it in a garage, tow it on a single axle easily with a 1/2 ton and push it with a 90-115 usually limited by conditions rather than motor for speed. It's easily launched solo and you don't need a deep launch which means you have a huge choice in launches and tides that work. You can also run it in pretty shallow areas.
20' doesn't really get you much other than additional cost for the boat, another axle on the trailer, four bearings, two tires, trailer brakes, more weight and less fuel economy. The advantage on the water is pretty minimal for the cost.
When you get to 24, you have a bunch more capabilities, again bumping up to something that is harder to tow, harder to store and probably with twin motors, so double the maintenance cost and upping the fuel bill significantly.
With my 18 footer, it costs me $50 every time I go fishing, that covers launch and fuel only. I spend way too much on fishing gear every year as well as stuff like ice, various things that break, and so on. I average about 15 trips a year, so $750 give or take.
I wouldn't be surprised if larger boats were $75-100 every time you take them out. If you need to pay to store them, I would call around, but $300 a month for dry storage is on the lower end. Where you store it will be a huge component of the annual cost if you can't keep it for free at your house. If storage is free, fuel will obviously be the #1 cost.
I probably pay about $200 a year in engine maintenance on a main and kicker, but I don't follow the manufacturer's schedule as it gets new engine and lower unit oil as well as spark plugs every year in addition to the other stuff.
Used is a great way to go when there are reasonable priced boats on the market. When I bought mine, used boats that had plenty of love marks were only $3k less than new when I found a great deal on a boat a dealer wanted to move. Used glass boats are always more of a gamble as you can't tell what's under the floor or in the transom. With aluminum, worst case is you have some wet foam on smaller ones, bigger ones without flotation are pretty easy to inspect the hull and transom.
So, my best guess is $750 for launch and fuel, $200 insurance, $200 maintenance, $50 flares/signals and maybe $200 for unexpected fixes and stuff wearing out.
Not including the cost of the boat, I'm spending $1,400 a year which in my opinion is a pretty low cost for the amount of adventure our family has.
If you have to pay for a slip, just that is going to almost triple my all in cost.
It's not for the faint of heart, but nothing beats a good day on the water.
:yeah:
Post by: Hillbilly Zen on December 06, 2020, 02:31:04 PM
A guy buying a twin 300 Grady doesn't ask these questions 🤔
Lol
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Haha! Fair point!
Post by: Hillbilly Zen on December 06, 2020, 03:05:43 PM
I dont do anything to winterize my boat other than draining the freshwater and filling with rv antifreeze. The outboards drain themselves and are used all winter. Kept it in Manson last winter and covered the cockpit with a tarp and kicked the snow off after every storm. Running uplake surrounded by snowcapped peaks in February with not another boat for miles, that is what owning a boat is about to me.
Post by: Blacklab on December 06, 2020, 04:03:14 PM
Basic maintenance just like a car. If you’re going to run it in the salt then you need some salt away really good flushing afterwards. Oil changes upper and lower unit plus water separator fuel filter less than 100 bucks a year. Replacing plugs and batteries can get spendy. Not much difference in a car or a truck
Post by: Night goat on December 06, 2020, 05:12:27 PM
im a boat mechanic by trade
i charge 120$/hour at the shop and 60$/hr on the side when im doing my own thing
i am also a boat owner, i own a sailboat because of how badly power boats can nickel and dime you to death
the only good boat engine is an industrial grade diesel engine in a purpose built boat.
everything else is a throw-away consumer grade item.
my friends 42 foot sailboat cost him roughly 12,000$ a year for moorage and maintenance.
there are products on the market like Salt-away and Barnical buster that can make diy easier, but, mechanical know-how is a must, as willingness to learn.
if you make a mistake and buy a raw water cooled engine, you will get a few trips in the salt before things go TU. cooling systems are easy to maintain but expensive to fix. mixing elbows, heat exchangers, bellows, and other hardware can quickly rack up a bill in the thousands. a trip to the mechanic can easilly become 3500-5000$ depending on what went wrong. no excuse to not have a fresh water/closed cooling system.
a new long block Mecruiser 350 and drive is under 10,000$ less install if thats any indication on the long term durability
even outboards like the larger hondas and yamahas and mercury have issues, one of them being the fact that the entire crankshaft assembley sits on one bearing, they are car engine put from a horizontal arrangement to a vertical one with gravity taking over.
you are almost better getting something under warranty these days
they can be affordable if you learn how to do things the right way, but, a giant pain if you rely on a shop :twocents: