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Old 01-31-2016, 01:24 PM   #163
N4061
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Join Date: Feb 2010
Posts: 1,161
Seattle Boat Show - Follow=up

It was a long day of travel from southern California to Seattle (2.5 hr flights) but worth it. Upon landing at Seatac airport I was greeted with temperatures in the upper 40's and rain (better then the last time Mary and I attended the show back in 2007 when the temperatures were in the mid 30's). A short drive to the in-the-water display had me walking through the entrance a few minutes after 11:00 am (right on time). Waterline boats had their booth display a few yards from the entrance where Scott and Lisa met me and we talked before Scott and I walked a few more yards down to the boats. Scott did a nice job arranging all three boats (31', 38', 43') in line allowing people to compare beam and transom heights.

We first boarded the Camino 31' (my first time) where I was surprised and impressed with this little boat. I can see this boat offering the various lines of "tugs" some serious competition due to its high end teak interior finish and overall quality. Next we went aboard the new 43' which did not disappoint me. The boat is basically a big brother (or sister) to the 38' offering the same layout with a second bedroom up front to port. After a little time aboard admiring this boat we went aboard a newly commissioned 38' and settled in for the day. It was great to get back aboard what would be our next boat. Scott and I took a walk outside through the "heavy" pilothouse sliding doors and up to the bow. We discussed some of the changes on our boat including an extended bow rail over the anchor. This was a change I requested to enhance the look of the boat by providing a slightly longer / sleeker look and something that is always difficult with a "trawler" which are usually a little on the boxy side of a design. Scott agreed not so much for the aesthetics but rather the practicality of providing the operator a little more room to work the anchor. Over the past couple of years Scott and I worked very well together with my constant flow of ideas / changes and his evaluation before making a sound decision. Another observation I made while up front was the amount of under-deck storage to the starboard side of the anchor locker we could use for storing fenders and lines. While I would like to see a little more molded raised areas to limit the flow of mud off the anchor I realize its not feasible. We will have to rely on hosing off the anchor using the fresh water wash down up front.

After a few minutes up at the bow (the rain had stopped) we made our way aft and up the starboard side molded steps to the upper deck and flybridge passing by the new location for shore-power connections. I noticed space and depth on the hull side is limited and we may have to mount the connections on the pilothouse wall instead. While this location provides very close proximity to the main circuit breaker panel it would require the power cord to lay across the floor, before the first step leading to upper deck. This is not something I'm crazy about and need to study a little more before making a final decision.

The boat we were aboard had a very nice custom enclosure providing protection from wing and rain. The seating arrangement and mast are the same we will be receiving on our boat. No changes required up top.

We returned to the salon and started to discuss the changes Mary and I are making. Despite being a Friday with on & off rain there was a constant flow of enthusiasts walking through the boat. It was interesting to hear people comment how large the salon and pilothouse were for the size of the boat followed by the overall quality of the finish. I met with one couple from TF and we enjoyed a good half hour crawling around the engine room and discussing their potential next boat.

In between talking with people, reviewing drawings provided by the yard and taking measurements I was able to confirm we still a few more changes to make. The biggest decision is how to reconfigure the standard refrigerator location. We originally planned to locate the combo washer/dryer on the bottom half but decided we would wait on this unit. Even when we lived aboard 3-4 days per week we didn't use the combo washer/dryer often and optioned to take our cloths home to wash. Neither of us liked to discharge the soapy water into the marina despite using environmental friendly detergent. So we now have a large 2'D x 2'W x 4'H space to play with (any thoughts?).

I also had the opportunity to meet with an electronics installer who Scott recommended and has completed a number of recent installations on H38 and H43 boats. We sat up in the Pilothouse and discussed our plans and different manufactures. While we are Furuno fans Scott and Eddie have us considering Simard for this boat. It was very satisfying for me to see four people fit very comfortably in the pilothouse thus reconfirming what I originally thought when we selected this boat - the pilothouse is the largest of any boat we could find up to 45'.

The OSR despite being a little on the small side should work fine for the two of us. Easy access to the island bed with plenty of shelving on both sides makes for a very comfortable room. The relatively high ceiling with a large overhead teak trimmed hatch combined with a direct line of sight through the pilothouse to the salon provides an open feeling and something that should never be under evaluated. Separate head and shower rooms will be nice and change from our previous boats. One item I forgot to ask Scott about was if owners add a shower curtain inside the shower room to help protect the teak wood finish on the door since this is wet room.

Time flew by quickly and before I knew it I had to return to the airport for the flight home. It was great day (even the sun came out) and I'm glade I made the trip to spend time aboard the 38 before ours delivers around May.

John
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