interesting

hello, i have'nt bought a boat yet so i joined this site . i have been impressed by hendo's pages. [give a man a piece of wood and he'll build a boat] . my first question is ; why are these boats called trawlers? in australia where i live a trawler is usally a working boat towing nets to catch prawns or fish. thats the first of many questions, thanks for letting me join. tom ps hendo's is a cray boat for pulling pots or traps

Marketing plain and simple. Years ago someone started calling them trawlers and the name stuck. Heavy cruisers is more appropriate.

Welcome to the forum.

A trawler moves slowly. That's all the speed a "proper" recreational trawler needs. Don't give me no "fast trawlers." ... Regardless, sedan cruisers (which almost always have two propellers/engines) are the majority here.

Welcome aboard tomtom 56. Hendo will appreciate your interest.
Everyone has their own idea of a trawler. My thoughts: the hull looks a bit like a fishing trawler, it usually operates, as Mark says, slowly,at hull speed, ie around 8 knots, often has a displacement or semi displacement hull, is reasonably fuel economic, provides some living accommodation, even luxury on some, and is often a traditional looking boat. Some are actually converted trawlers.
To me, a Grand Banks 36 is, a Riviera with fast planing hull is probably not. Which is not to say a Riv is not welcome, it most certainly is, they are great boats. It can pretty much mean what you want it to, it`s a very elastic term. Seeing pics of members boats will help, you`ll see how much they vary.

It just puts more hair on your chest.

What they really are is "Heavy Cruisers".

The problem is that if you have a boat whose trawlerness is in question you're masculinity is suddenly in question. Some here have asked if their boat is a trawler hoping a slew of posts would bounce back affirming their hopeful thinking. Of course we immediately made limp seaweed out of their hopes and if we could hear their voices they prolly got a bit squeaky.

"Fast Trawler"? Remember the real name "Heavy Cruiser"? You can't go fast with a heavy boat.