From: hal@kaos.declab.usu.edu (000200 Lynch)
Newsgroups: rec.boats
Subject: Re: Beginner
Date: 28 Aug 92 16:56:18 GMT
Reply-To: hal@kaos.declab.usu.edu (000200 Lynch)
Organization: Utah State University


|>
|>I would like to purchase my first boat
|>and I would just like to have reactions from
|>any of you experienced people out there to 
|>this:
|>From reading this newsgroup for a couple of
|>weeks I've become discouraged from owning a power
|>boat.

Don't let the stinkpot grousing get to you.  Buy the boat you will use.
Think long and hard about how you will use your boat.  Remember if your
wife and kids aren't happy with your boat you probably won't be either.
I like sailboats a lot.  But for the local lakes, family expectations
and after some soul searching I decided a sailboat didn't make sense.
I bought a power boat and have no regrets.  Our boat is great for
the whole family.

|>  When I hear stories of automatic oilers
|>that don't work,

My bias is against outboards.  My neighbor sold his outboard and bought an
I/O.  He has found it cheaper to run and not as many problems.

|> improper fittings pulling out
|>and corroding,

Not a problem if you shop carefully and buy a _good_ brand.

|> greasy water in the bilge,

No excuse for this, get it fixed.

|>thin-skinned Bayliners,

I own one of those _thin skinned_ Bayliners and I think hull strength is
a non issue.  Does anyone have first or even second hand knowledge of a
bayliner hull breaking and the conditions under which it broke?

|> cranky I/O units,
|>and a host of other problems, legal and 
|>mechanical, it scares me off.  I was hoping
|>to spend more time having fun with my boat than
|>with fixing it.

My Bayliner requires not a lot more maintenance than my car.  I do however
religiously check vital fluid levels before each use.  Less than 5 minutes.
Hasn't used a drop of oil all summer.  We use our boat for skiing, sightseeing
and picnicing  so it tends to get wet and messy inside.  When we put it back
on the trailer we spend a few minutes drying the hull, upholstery, and
windows.  This prevents water spotting and keeps thing clean. Less than
10 minutes.  At home we clean it out, dry the jackets and put things away.
Again time spent less 10 minutes.  We keep the boat gassed and ready to go at
a moments notice.  From go decision to out the driveway, less 10 minutes.
We usually spent two and one half to three hours boating on a week day
and four or more on a saturday so you can see the fun to drudge ratio is
favorable.  
|>
|>So now I am seriously considering a sailboat for
|>use on large lakes and in bays in the northeast.  
|>I won't have more than two people to crew it, but
|>I would like to be able to sleep on board if necessary.
|>Also, it would need to be trailerable.  Is this what
|>is known as a daysailer?  Or is that what I would be
|>known as (in addition to other things).  I intend to
|>go to school to learn how to sail properly (I'm self-taught)
|>and how to navigate, etc.   
|>
|>I have been told that the two happiest days of a boat
|>owners life are the day he buys his boat and the day
|>he sells it.  Is this really true?

There are at least two reasons why this is true:
	1. You bought the _perfect_ boat but discovered later you bought the
	   wrong boat for the wrong reasons and you are very unhappy with it.
	2. You bought the _perfect_ boat and enjoyed it but your needs (wants)
           have changed so it is time to move _up_.
Obviously there are permutations of the two.

|>  Is boating just
|>one long maintenance schedule interspersed with 
|>moments of joy on the water?    Is it really something
|>you love to do and is maintaining the boat just part of
|>it?  Or is it something you love to do and maitaining the
|>boat is just a time/money consuming drag?

I admit it, I like to fiddle with my boat.  In my darkest moments I actually
wish some small thing would go wrong so I could fix it.  With reasonable
care boating is long periods of joy on the water with brief periods of joy
on land fiddling.
Was it Roy who said that boat reliability is based on a point system?  I 
believe it.  Each act of kindness toward your boat; tightning screws, hose
clamps, lubricating linkages, checking fluids, fixing leaks, cleaning etc
has it's own point value.  And the more points you have accumulated the less
likely your boat is to break.  In short maintenance is no big deal if you
do it!  
|>
|>
|>Any advice or comments out there (other than stay off the
|>water when you're around).
|>
After rereading my verbage I think the comments in general apply equally
well to power or sail.
Think about it.  What do you and your family actually want to do with the
boat you will buy?  It makes no difference whether it is power or sail
if it meets your needs, wants, expectations you will be happy.  I believe
you are far away from me so get wet.

|>Thanks
|>
|>
End of pontification.
--
Hal Lynch
	Internet: Hal@cache.declab.usu.edu
	DECnet:   USU::HAL