Searching for the Perfect Trawler

*Hi everyone -- yeh, I know there's no such thing as "the perfect trawler" but I hope to come close. I've always been a blo-boater, but the time has come to make the switch to something more comfortable even at the expense of diesel.*I'm a 58-year old single guy, so I need something I can single hand, that's comfortable to live*aboard and would serve as a good cruiser for the Bahamas, intracoastal waterway, the Chesapeake, etc.

I'm not a fan of the trunk cabin trawlers (don't mean to offend those of you who are), but I am a fan of full-beam aft cabins which usually means a sundeck style. I realize that makes egress, fishing and line handling a*little tougher, but there's one of those trade-offs.

I'd like to get feedback from all you esteemed trawler folk on the following*vessel. She's a Grand Banks 36 Motoryacht, so she's not classed as a trawler with twin Cummins 210s.*Will she suck diesel to break the bank at cruise though? I love the lines, layout -- centerline queens fore and aft,*stall showers in both staterooms and she was originally configured with no teak decks except for the flybridge. Here's the Yachtworld link:

http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1996/Grand-Banks-Motor-Yacht-2365734/Fort-Myers/FL/United-States*

I'm very much open to a critique on "Whimsea" and also to other suggestions.*My*range is $150-$200K after dealing.

Thanks everybody.

Cheers... JD*

Very nice boat. I'd buy it in a heartbeat, if*I had the bucks.** KJ**

KJ wrote:
Very nice boat. I'd buy it in a heartbeat, if*I had the bucks.** KJ**

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*Ditto, lovely looking boat.

That's as nice as 36 ft. can get, I think. Awesome GB, and what a layout.

Perfect varies with the Desirements of the owner.

What do you require , hate? dont care about much?

Cruising range? Blue water or brown water (1/3 the cost), marina kept or hook kept?

Silence worth anything , or noisemaker 24/7 OK?

Perfect?

Make a list and check it twice.

There is more to cruising than just empty volume.

That's just FF speak for being jealous he does not have one. Damn-it, that's one nice boat, and if you don't snap it up, I've half a mind to come over there and grab it meeself. Now where's that Powerball ticket for this week's jackpot...?

The devil is in the details. Things such as survey, good engine guy to check the higher* hour engines, previous maintenance, does the boat smell bad, older electronics, is the boat a recovered sinker, etc. Figure another $20K minimum to get it as you like it. Where is the dinghy stored?

Keep looking at the location options such as a Great Lakes fresh water boat that has been dry stored indoors during the winter. Nothing like a downriver 30 day 1/2 great loop cruise to deliver your new vessel.

*

Beautiful boat and would do everything it sounds like you might want to do. I ran across this one in an ad the other day might be worth a look, lot's of living space on a 42 for a few less $$ and Krogen builds a nice boat.

http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1988/Krogen-Silhouette-42-SeaDeck-2313213/Alameda/CA/United-States

Some older Krogen 42s are cored hulls below the waterline.

You know, I had to go back and look again at that GB 36. That's really an amazing boat. I thought I had seen just about all that could be done with a 36 ft. boat, but two full staterooms, two heads each with separate showers, and still having storage. Marks like Bayliner and Carver are famous for milking the most out of space (albeit with some sacrifice to service), but I gotta hand it to GB for that layout. I'd rather have a single, but what the hey.

It has two great singles in the Cummins*210s!

The coring on Krogens is Airex (or eq.) PVC foam. Won't rot like Balsa.

Thanks David for the info on the engines and lack of engine room space -- and yeh, I understand the debate about singles vs twins. **I'm really*more*oriented toward a*single with*a "get-home" feature, but*it's about trade-offs right? I'll go twins if the efficiency is right. *

The GB 42 MY*is even more*beautiful than the 36 and there are two in FL which look great, but I think it's just more*boat than I can handle.

The*GB 36 MY -- she has*such a great layout and she's shows so well that it's*easy to get past the twins. I may bite the bullet and take a*flight down to to see her. If I bought her I'd add a*watermaker, inverter*and more refrigeration, freezer under a settee maybe? May*do solar and/or wind -- doesn't hurt does it?*

Really appreciate the input*you gave and everybody else here... thanks, muchly!* JD*****

Dswizzler wrote:
...I ran across this one in an ad the other day might be worth a look, lot's of living space on a 42 for a few less $$ and Krogen builds a nice boat.

http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/1988/Krogen-Silhouette-42-SeaDeck-2313213/Alameda/CA/United-States

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Dswizzler...I really like that layout.* I've never seen one before.* Love the seadeck/tailgate ramp.

Lawrence -- I've always liked most everything about the Manatee -- Manatee couldn't be a more perfect name. This link really catches the essence of the Manatee: http://www.klutch-kargo.com/TheBoat.htm*-- apologies if you've seen it before. Cheers, mon!* JD

Hustler,

I like the GB 36 too and think it would be fine w smaller twin engines. There was one on yacht world about a year ago w two 55hp Yanmars. A woodie. 75hp Beta/Kabota's would be even better. New engines and naturally aspirated. There is a GB 36 woodie on YW w a Cat about 160hp. I saw a 36 w a John Deer some time ago too. Just say'in.

Keith,

Airex is the best FG construction known. Yes!


-- Edited by nomadwilly on Thursday 15th of September 2011 09:38:50 PM

The Silhoutte is one of the first of all boats that ever appealed to me. Truly a bachelor's pad -- really, that's what she is. There's one on the East Coast much closer to me than a CA boat -- she's in MD and I'm in the DC area.*Whoever took the photos of the CA boat did a great job.*The boat on the East Coast doesn't show nearly as pretty.*When I first started researching boats of any kind - monohull, cat, trawler -- I came across the Silhoutte. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think there were less than 30 built. She's a sexy boat, but she has a*planing*hull and*Volvos*-- I'm thinking*"parts" and it's much easier and less expensive to find support for Yanmars than it is for*Volvo*-- so I've heard. Is that generally true?*

Volvo engine parts are easy, they are in Atlanta? and what ever you need the dealer will order for you.

You get to pay the air freight or overnight costs as well as for probably the most expensive parts in the world.

That Silhouette lacks in the curb appeal department. I know you could argue the same thing about a Manatee but they have charm for some reason....

Pyrate wrote:
Lawrence -- I've always liked most everything about the Manatee -- Manatee couldn't be a more perfect name. This link really catches the essence of the Manatee: http://www.klutch-kargo.com/TheBoat.htm*-- apologies if you've seen it before. Cheers, mon!* JD

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*Yeah, actually Fat Chance Frank is a boat buddy, and has given me mucho advice on my projects, etc.. *Here's a shot of our two boats back to back at my dock here in Key Biscayne. *

Baker wrote:
That Silhouette lacks in the curb appeal department. I know you could argue the same thing about a Manatee but they have charm for some reason....

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*Thanks for that tender, tongue in cheek description of the Manatee, John. *You know, before I was in boating, I collected and restored the ugliest trucks ever built, many one-of-a-kind. *The few people that still know me from those days simply say I just wanted to do the same thing, but wet. *I've never loved a man-made thing like I do our little Manatee. *Sometimes I take the water-hose and play with the real manatees here in our cove side by side with Bucky. *When you see the real thing rolling around right next to the boat, you have to laugh. The boat was so properly named, you know.