Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 06-13-2014, 09:12 AM   #1
Senior Member
 
slowandsteady's Avatar
 
City: North Kingstown, RI
Vessel Model: Mainship 34 III
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 179
Chris Craft Today

Here is an article I ran across today on line that I thought some people might find interesting. I grew up on Chris Craft boats and I still admire the old ones.

Chris-Craft: Charting a New Course for a Storied Boatmaker - DailyFinance
slowandsteady is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2014, 09:30 AM   #2
Guru
 
psneeld's Avatar
 
City: Ft Pierce
Vessel Name: Sold
Vessel Model: Was an Albin/PSN 40
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 28,147
Interesting and for old time boaters.... I'm sure they can relate.

Todays boaters are not yesteryears....

It will be interesting to see who and what kind of boats survive the next big fuel jump..if there is one....

If for any reason fuel prices reverse...the same interesting question will apply...

Even top notch boats that don't fill a niche, ones that just sell, may not survive for long....at least not like the old days unless they are REALLY quick to adapt (which too many in the past haven't been).
psneeld is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2014, 10:43 AM   #3
Guru
 
ancora's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Posts: 4,021
As long as the "suits" run Chris Craft the bottom line will prevail and quality will suffer. Look at what happened to Tollycraft when it went corporate.
ancora is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2014, 12:08 PM   #4
Guru
 
BandB's Avatar
 
City: Fort Lauderdale. Florida, USA
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 21,449
To me, the only connection between Chris Craft today and Chris Craft of old is the name. It's really just like a new company was launched and they own the name. The boats are nothing alike.
BandB is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-13-2014, 12:31 PM   #5
Senior Member
 
slowandsteady's Avatar
 
City: North Kingstown, RI
Vessel Model: Mainship 34 III
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 179
I agree BandB. The days of the indestructible hulls and "Styled in Fiberglass" of the Commanders and the Catalinas are gone. I think the article mentions taking some styling cues from the old runabouts Chris Craft used to make, but other than that, it's just the name that remains...
slowandsteady is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-15-2014, 01:52 PM   #6
Guru
 
Northern Spy's Avatar
 
City: Powell River, BC
Vessel Name: Northern Spy
Vessel Model: Nordic Tug 26
Join Date: Feb 2012
Posts: 4,075
Interesting read. I didn't know that Chris Craft sold out in 1960. This makes sense to me now.
Northern Spy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-30-2014, 07:27 AM   #7
Senior Member
 
ronlord's Avatar
 
City: Cape Coral FL\Grand Island NY
Vessel Name: Missy
Vessel Model: 1997 Mainship 350
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 192
I think the late model Chris-Craft launches are gorgeous boats, and their price tag reflects that. I see quite a few of them around here with the pretty blue hulls.
ronlord is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-30-2014, 08:33 AM   #8
Guru
 
Capt.Bill11's Avatar
 
City: Sarasota/Ft. Lauderdale
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 5,438
Quote:
Originally Posted by ronlord View Post
I think the late model Chris-Craft launches are gorgeous boats, and their price tag reflects that. I see quite a few of them around here with the pretty blue hulls.
+1 to that.
Capt.Bill11 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-31-2014, 10:06 AM   #9
Guru
 
BandB's Avatar
 
City: Fort Lauderdale. Florida, USA
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 21,449
Quote:
Originally Posted by ronlord View Post
I think the late model Chris-Craft launches are gorgeous boats, and their price tag reflects that. I see quite a few of them around here with the pretty blue hulls.
I think they are very nice. Just hard for me to think of them as Chris Craft. But then I know there are young buyers today who don't even know there was another Chris Craft.
BandB is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-31-2014, 10:26 AM   #10
Guru
 
psneeld's Avatar
 
City: Ft Pierce
Vessel Name: Sold
Vessel Model: Was an Albin/PSN 40
Join Date: Oct 2011
Posts: 28,147
1970 Chris Craft runabout
Attached Images
 
psneeld is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-31-2014, 12:48 PM   #11
Guru
 
AusCan's Avatar
 
City: Adelaide
Vessel Name: Kokanee
Vessel Model: Cuddles 30 Pilot House Motor Sailer
Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 3,218
Yes, they are beautiful boats. Good to se they ar getting back to being a classic boat after their foray into the mainstream for a while.

I have a buddy who was buying up some some of the old classics, restoring and reselling them. He actually made money at it. I joined him for for a cruise to the Chris Craft rendezvous in Maple Bay BC. I was drooling over some of the boats. Polished mahogany and chromed hemi Chryslers go so well together.
AusCan is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-31-2014, 03:57 PM   #12
Senior Member
 
City: Gainesville, FL
Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 243
Currently living and working in Pompano Beach, a stone's throw from the site of the old Chris Craft plant (closed in '79.) Always loved the mahogany runabouts - and keep our '55 19-foot Capri at our lake place in western New York...
Attached Thumbnails
Sh-Boom min.jpg  
kraftee is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-31-2014, 07:10 PM   #13
Guru
 
BandB's Avatar
 
City: Fort Lauderdale. Florida, USA
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 21,449
Before moving to FL, I never saw one of the new models except online. It would be a very nice boat for the lake we lived on but no dealer within 200 miles. Their dealer network isn't really very strong.

Looking other places, no dealer close to Texas or Tennessee. Huge boating areas. We lived on largest lake in NC and never saw them.

And before you say it's price restricting their ability in those areas, Cobalt costs more and was huge on our lake.
BandB is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-31-2014, 08:25 PM   #14
Guru
 
Moonstruck's Avatar
 
City: Hailing Port: Charleston, SC
Vessel Name: Moonstruck
Vessel Model: Sabre 42 Hardtop Express
Join Date: Nov 2008
Posts: 8,276
There was a Chris-Craft factory very near where I lived as a very young boy. Later my grandparents lived near there. I can remember the boats lined up on the yard, the sound of machinery, and the smell of the mahogany wood. I loved seeing the boats. You can probably see how it could fire a young lads imagination. They later introduced fiberglass to the line, but not in the hulls. They molded the trickier curved pieces of the painted cabin sides and tops. For those interested in the history here's a link.

Remembering Chris-Craft of Chattanooga - 10/17/2006 - Chattanoogan.com
__________________
Don on Moonstruck
Sabre 42 Hardtop Express
When cruising life is simpler, but on a grander scale (author unknown)
https://moonstruckblog.wordpress.com/
Moonstruck is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Trawler Port Captains
Port Captains are TF volunteers who can serve as local guides or assist with local arrangements and information. Search below to locate Port Captains near your destination. To learn more about this program read here: TF Port Captain Program





All times are GMT -5. The time now is 10:08 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Search Engine Optimization by vBSEO 3.6.0
Copyright 2006 - 2012