Does anybody have any experience with shipping a trawler thats 14 feet tall from the west coast to the east coast or am I nuts for even thinking about it. The quotes I am getting are all over the place. My leader is in love with it and its the first time she has said that. Thanks http://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/images/smilies/confused.gif
transporting a 14 foot high trawler from the west coast to the east coast
- Thread starter peapod
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kurt.reynolds
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CPseudonym
Moderator Emeritus
Kurt you need to find peapod a boat and peapod you do the same for Kurt. It'll save you both a bunch of money. 
kurt.reynolds
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- 1982 Grand Banks Motoryacht
I have a 2002 Camano 31', I think it is about 13' 6" to the top of the flying bridge.
Is it the owner's responsibility to arrange a yard and crane to lift and place the boat on a truck? Or do the shipping companies do that?
Does the shipping company assume responsibility for safe passage? Or does the owner have to buy insurance?
You hear horror stories about boats getting driven under too short of an overpass, at least I have.
Once the boat leaves, does it go straight there? Who arranges the offloading on the other end?
Is it the owner's responsibility to arrange a yard and crane to lift and place the boat on a truck? Or do the shipping companies do that?
Does the shipping company assume responsibility for safe passage? Or does the owner have to buy insurance?
You hear horror stories about boats getting driven under too short of an overpass, at least I have.
Once the boat leaves, does it go straight there? Who arranges the offloading on the other end?
CP seudonym We have been on more boats here in Maine then there are mosquitoes ok maybe not that many but a lot but just like where we choose to rest our heads we are looking for that special one. That being said your right about it being a whole lot cheaper and easier but I don't seem to know how to do that. I wish I did. Pack mule I will check out J Dianels and see what they have to say. Thanks, Peapod
kpinnn
Senior Member
I tried to ship a gufstar trawler fro Florida to Mass. It measured 16 plus feet. The prices were all over the place. The person with the best credential quoted $16000. The boat was over width and height. If the bridge was removed the height was close. The lower prices, in the $8000 range were from uship.com. I found many were not insured and at best quite questionable. I decided to motor up the coast in the Spring.
Good Luck
Good Luck
Removing and reinstalling a flybridge is not as big a deal if you take some steps to ensure it will go well. When I had mine torn down and shipped I arranged with the yard that was going to reassemble the boat to have their lead technician fly back to MI to supervise the teardown. He took his time, marked every wire he was going to cut by putting tape and tags on both sides of the cut. He knew he was going to have to put it back together so he wanted it to be done right.
The flybridge was shipped on its own cradle that was hauled on its own trailer. The fly bridge is 12' wide x 24' long so it needed its own trip permits, etc. BTW, the cradle you see in the photo below was one that had hauled a different flybridge. It was not wide enough or long enough for mine so they built extensions on each of those 'ribs' to accommodate the extra width and length.
The flybridge was shipped on its own cradle that was hauled on its own trailer. The fly bridge is 12' wide x 24' long so it needed its own trip permits, etc. BTW, the cradle you see in the photo below was one that had hauled a different flybridge. It was not wide enough or long enough for mine so they built extensions on each of those 'ribs' to accommodate the extra width and length.
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We shipped our boat from Austin, Texas to Michigan in 2006. I refused to remove the flybridge, but did take off the arch, sundeck hardtop, venturi, wheel, bimini, etc. Loaded height was 15' 6", which required a lead "pole truck" as an escort, and some unique routing. The expense of the pole truck and the extra road time/distance was less than removing replacing the flybridge and hauling it on another trailer. Cost back then was $8000. Be very specific in your desires, get it in writing, get evidence that the carrier is bonded and insured, be flexible in pick up and delivery dates. Watch out for screw jobs and damage by yards who assist at both ends. Do the work yourself if possible. Document with digital camera.
Wow Skidgear your sure your not a lost brother I not only document and verify but also take photos of everything both before and after. I can't tell you how much grief, money and heartache that has save me and other.I think this part of your advice can benefit all on the forum. As far as you move is concerned that sounds reasonable but it was also a long time ago. I just changed the drop location to the Mississippi to see if that will help on the quote. The only problem I have with that is I don't like getting on a boat that I don't know and make the size trip. I knot saying it not possible but I sure would like some time in my home waters to shake her down and get to know the boat. Thanks for the good advice and sharing you experience. Peapod
healhustler
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Peapod: When in the towing and rigging business, I had conveyors going from Baltimore to everywhere including the west coast. I recall them maxing out at 14'5", and there were only a dozen or so spots on the Interstates that I had to go around. True, 14' is oversized, but by now, except for tunnels, a few bridges and maybe some construction sites, 14' is just not that big a deal as long as you're pick up and delivery are near Interstates. Frankly, 14' or under and 14' or under width was gravy for oversized hauling.
capt jerry
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how about putting it on a ship as a deck load????
Healhustler I guess we have something in common in an earlier life I also was involved in moving very large things around the country. The company I was with supplied all the custom trailers and custom trucks to Sea Ray Boat. But being out of it for a long time I guess I am also out of touch on prices and regulation. Some of the quotes we are getting are over 38000.00+ with a open end. I thought this was very high for a 36 footer the has a12.2 beam and weights around 34000 lbs. I have gotten one low ball quote but have to wonder why the big difference. Much appreciated, Peapod
capt jerry
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I sold my 40 ft eagle to a aussie and it was 28000.00$ to ship it there it was a 8000 mile trip it left from ft Lauderdale. they picked it right out of the water and set it right on deck.
CPseudonym
Moderator Emeritus
peapod, we came to the same conclusion after going through the same mental gymnastics about 2 years ago. There's just too many boats available to go through the expense unless the planets really align perfectly for the deal.
I came close on a Monk 36 once but stopped short.
I came close on a Monk 36 once but stopped short.
Thanks for the supportive words and the funny thing is this is the second time we ran into problems on moving a boat we fell in love with. The first one was a Seaton that we went to the Maryland to check her out and we both said this is the one. We went back to our home port in Maine to see if our local lifts could pick her up but no luck locally but we did find one in Eastport and we could have made it work The dealer then called us to tell us she was sold to someone in Nova Scotia. We should have put her under contract but she was on the market for a long time and we thought we had a few days. Remember what they say about thought. Thanks
FF
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Going coat to coast , I remember of reading of folks that motored to Duluth and got plopped in in a river leading to the Left coast.
Short overland in western states with easier rules a shorter miles on trailer..
Short overland in western states with easier rules a shorter miles on trailer..
AKDoug
Guru
I shipped my new boat from Virginia to Anacortes, it is exactly 14' high with mast down, weighs 18,000 lbs, and cost $9,800 delivered. Boat Transport Services in Marysville Washington did the move, and everything was perfect. They moved the boat from East to West in 5 days on a specially built trailer, all permits and insurance was included. When moving a boat from the East to the West, the value increases due to local market conditions, so it easily offset the cost of shipping
CPseudonym
Moderator Emeritus
Fred can you remember any specific cities or rivers mentioned left side of Deluth? Bride and I are considering the reverse direction with our trailer friendly Owens. Any info you can recall will flatten out our learning curve.
AKDoug
Guru
I moved it in early May this year. The big issue was zebra mussel control. The truck trailer is specially set up for boats so I don't really suppose there would be a great deal of price difference. I know my mover called several times asking me if I was ready to move yet, and that most boats move from East to West. The truck having to go East empty is bad economics, and I doubt that trailer can move anything but boats. I would think you might even negotiate a better deal if the timing were right.
Back hauls have always been a problem in the trucking business especially if you can haul only one type of commodity. I didn't realize most boat move east to west that could be a real plus for us.I thought all the money is in D.C and New York but I forgot about Hollywood. Thanks
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