American Tug Waypoint 36 concept

Interesting. American Tug offers the more affordable Waypoint 36 “economy” build with molded FRP interior features.

2018 American Tug Waypoint 36 Power Boat For Sale - www.yachtworld.com

That second 'stateroom' is questionable for any with age or physical issues regarding easy night time head call!

Al-Ketchikan
Old age is coming at a bad time

I like the American Tugs I've seen. "Sailboat Cramped" comes to mind when looking at that 2 stateroom model.

Ted

I own a AT34. Let's start with the reality, this 36 foot boat is a 34 foot hull and 2+ feet of swim platform (like my boat) and one can only put so much inside a 34 foot hull. I looked at the drawings and pictures. I am assuming the engine room and tank room are the same..... tankage is the same.... I am not being negative in this "first" evaluation. Consider this as my "observation" based upon my experience with my 34ft boat. I can see many positive changes i.e. the second stateroom. I am of the philosophy, never make the guest too comfortable or they will never leave. Hanging closet space is a problem on my 34. The closet space is fine for me but, cramped for me and a lady. I am not sure if they have over come that. The only glaring problem is, no washer/dryer (or I cant find it on the drawings) I would miss that. I am going to assume it is a 30amp boat. One must be creative when it come to using the electric stove and the microwave at the same time. (I shut off the electric hot water heater and then, forget to turn it on.)
Conclusions; I want a walk through before ..... and if I were 10 years younger, this would be real close to the top, if not the top of the list, of possible boats to buy.
Again, the second stateroom..... any short comings, thats for the guests to deal with. They dont like it, go home.
Yea, yea, I know, if I want more space, buy a bigger boat. That would solve many problems.... but 6 months later, I would still want 5 more feet of hull. (Dont we all)
IF this new boat showed up in my slip.... I would have a big smile, make arrangements to sell my current 34ft at a VERY good price and then go about adding 'stuff' to make the new boat 'mine'. Overall, I like the boat!!! Even without the walk through, based upon the pictures and drawings, I give the new design a 95%+. If there is a washer/drying hiding somewhere, I would give it a 99%+.

I don't think you would find a washer/dyer as I believe that the saloon is smaller than the AT34, to accommodate the 2nd stateroom.

It is kind of neat to see the Yachtworld listing with the fiberglass with the mock-ups inside.

Jim

Seems like a move to compete with the likes of the burgeoning Ranger Tugs upsized models. Tomco is a smart group, hopefully it won't detract from their bread and butter.

JLD said:

I don't think you would find a washer/dyer as I believe that the saloon is smaller than the AT34, to accommodate the 2nd stateroom.

It is kind of neat to see the Yachtworld listing with the fiberglass with the mock-ups inside.

Jim

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I wonder if there is room to put the fridge back where it used to be and then the washer/dryer in the aft port corner of the saloon?

Good concept - less bling, less cost, more boat

I think it looks like a good boat at a great price. If you want a washer/dryer, I’m sure that AT would be happy to sell you a boat with one, it just won’t be the Waypoint. As I understand it, the way they hope to make money on this boat is to drastically reduce production time/cost by eliminating the customization that usually comes with a new build for an owner.

I think it is rare that an owner will use this boat to live aboard or cruise extensively, hence no real reason for a washer/dryer. It comes with a propane stove and no genset. Again, not bad limited cruising in the PNW. The battery bank is on the smallish side but maybe the solar will mitigate that? Not a boat that you will sit on the hook for a week watching TV with the AC and ice machine running.

The only obvious design quibble I have is that if it were me, I would have extended the boat deck aft to provide cover for the cockpit. I like boat shade and protection from the rain.

dhays said:

I think it looks like a good boat at a great price. If you want a washer/dryer, I’m sure that AT would be happy to sell you a boat with one, it just won’t be the Waypoint. As I understand it, the way they hope to make money on this boat is to drastically reduce production time/cost by eliminating the customization that usually comes with a new build for an owner.

I think it is rare that an owner will use this boat to live aboard or cruise extensively, hence no real reason for a washer/dryer. It comes with a propane stove and no genset. Again, not bad limited cruising in the PNW. The battery bank is on the smallish side but maybe the solar will mitigate that? Not a boat that you will sit on the hook for a week watching TV with the AC and ice machine running.

The only obvious design quibble I have is that if it were me, I would have extended the boat deck aft to provide cover for the cockpit. I like boat shade and protection from the rain.

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My 34 AT was "used". I added 2 135 watt solar panels and a 3rd house battery and a 1500 watt inverter. Plus I did put in a sat radio so I can follow Radio Classics and the classical music.... I also put canvas over the cockpit. It came with a generator.

I look at it as they describe as the boat for young families. Not serious trawler people or liveaboards or full time cruisers, but people wanting to enjoy the water at an affordable price.

It's for the family that might be considering a Sea Ray or Carver but likes the seaworthiness of an AT or likes the design better. Looked at this way, the second stateroom is about what you'd expect and fine for two kids.

Could be interesting and I think it's smart they're using a different name to distinguish from AT. I've seen several builders of different type boats come in with lower priced lines and find success but you must protect your name while doing so as others have done nothing but damage their name and confuse customers. The PNW is so unique, it will be interesting. I'm not going to get too excited until there is an actual finished boat to examine.

BandB said:

affordable price.

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???

Add in the generator and extra house battery and electronics?
It would no longer be inexpensive.

BandB said:

I look at it as they describe as the boat for young families. Not serious trawler people or liveaboards or full time cruisers, but people wanting to enjoy the water at an affordable price.

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Is this a regionally specific evaluation with a smattering of elitism?

On the northwest coast of North America you could do some serious four season cruising in this boat, depending on how it was outfitted. One would have to wait for weather windows, much like has been done for tens of thousands of years in much smaller craft. We call those hiking days

MurrayM said:

Is this a regionally specific evaluation with a smattering of elitism?

On the northwest coast of North America you could do some serious four season cruising in this boat, depending on how it was outfitted. One would have to wait for weather windows, much like has been done for tens of thousands of years in much smaller craft. We call those hiking days

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I don't think it is elitism but a realistic look at the market. $350k is a lot of money, but for a new boat built by a US based established builder, I see it as a bargain.

Most folks in the trawler market are older and want their creature comforts. Without a genset, AC power will be limited when away from the dock. Now, for an old sailor like myself 2 x 4ds plus a separate start battery with the addition of solar sounds great. My 40' sailboat had 2 x 4Ds and separate start battery. It was fine for a family of 4 for a week away.

I think the market here will be those who have not grown accustomed to ice in their drinks. Those folks, ie most of the folks here, would go with another AT model setup the way they want it.

dhays said:

I don't think it is elitism but a realistic look at the market. $350k is a lot of money, but for a new boat built by a US based established builder, I see it as a bargain.

Most folks in the trawler market are older and want their creature comforts. Without a genset, AC power will be limited when away from the dock. Now, for an old sailor like myself 2 x 4ds plus a separate start battery with the addition of solar sounds great. My 40' sailboat had 2 x 4Ds and separate start battery. It was fine for a family of 4 for a week away.

I think the market here will be those who have not grown accustomed to ice in their drinks. Those folks, ie most of the folks here, would go with another AT model setup the way they want it.

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Makes sense. I'm a four season sea kayaker forced here by my wife's car accident, so don't fit the norm. Still...it's not the boat that makes the adventure, it's the person at the helm.

MurrayM said:

Makes sense. I'm a four season sea kayaker forced here by my wife's car accident, so don't fit the norm. Still...it's not the boat that makes the adventure, it's the person at the helm.

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So you are saying you just went from one kind of craziness to another. [emoji6]

dhays said:

So you are saying you just went from one kind of craziness to another. [emoji6]

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Yup. If you aren't living on the edge, you're occupying too much space!

Dare to Dream

MurrayM said:

Yup. If you aren't living on the edge, you're occupying too much space!

Dare to Dream

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My Mom was with a group kayaking on the west side of Vancouver island. She saw a guy on a paddle board come into the bay they we're in. He had been paddling a good share of the day and came into shore and setup his camp. Then, with his paddle board unemcombered with geer, he went back out for another hour to play in the surf. Even my crazy mother thought that was crazy.

dhays said:

My Mom was with a group kayaking on the west side of Vancouver island. She saw a guy on a paddle board come into the bay they we're in. He had been paddling a good share of the day and came into shore and setup his camp. Then, with his paddle board unemcombered with geer, he went back out for another hour to play in the surf. Even my crazy mother thought that was crazy.

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We found that after three weeks of paddling the modern worlds 'edginess' would begin to drop away, and you could then become more aware of the subtleties of Nature. After a couple months it just becomes your normal life...when we got a motel room in Port Hardy it took us about 10 minutes of sitting on the floor to even think about using chairs.

MurrayM said:

Is this a regionally specific evaluation with a smattering of elitism?

On the northwest coast of North America you could do some serious four season cruising in this boat, depending on how it was outfitted. One would have to wait for weather windows, much like has been done for tens of thousands of years in much smaller craft. We call those hiking days

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What is it with it having elitism. Actually my comments were based largely on the words on their website talking about who the boat was targeted to. Young families don't have the luxury of taking hiking days as they have work to return to.

BandB said:

What is it with it having elitism. Actually my comments were based largely on the words on their website talking about who the boat was targeted to. Young families don't have the luxury of taking hiking days as they have work to return to.

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They actually state, "This layout will offer more accommodations than other boats in class and be a perfect cruiser for younger families or those with grand kids."

One could assume then, that those with grand kids (or, gasp, even younger families) just might be "serious trawler people" as you call them.

That must be the bit that stuck in my craw...assuming someone with such a boat couldn't be considered "serious".

Our daughter is still in high school and our family has managed to see a lot of the north and central coast of BC in our scrappy little boat.

MurrayM said:

They actually state, "This layout will offer more accommodations than other boats in class and be a perfect cruiser for younger families or those with grand kids."

One could assume then, that those with grand kids (or, gasp, even younger families) just might be "serious trawler people" as you call them.

That must be the bit that stuck in my craw...assuming someone with such a boat couldn't be considered "serious".

Our daughter is still in high school and our family has managed to see a lot of the north and central coast of BC in our scrappy little boat.

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I look at it as I described. I would see them pushing the AT on other potential buyers. You can look at it different. I spoke highly of the boat and you act like somehow I demeaned it. It isn't a trawler so not for those serious about owning a true trawler. I'm not sure what the fight is that you want but I'm not in it since I don't know what side you think I should be taking. I think it could be a nice boat to fill a market need but I don't know whether it will succeed or not.

MurrayM said:

That must be the bit that stuck in my craw...assuming someone with such a boat couldn't be considered "serious".

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There...I isolated it for you. A bare bones boat with plywood furniture could do some "serious" cruising, particularly on the northwest coast of North America.

MurrayM said:

There...I isolated it for you. A bare bones boat with plywood furniture could do some "serious" cruising, particularly on the northwest coast of North America.

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Someone with a canoe could be serious.

BandB said:

Someone with a canoe could be serious.

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We agree then

You threw me earlier when you stated that "serious trawler people" wouldn't be interested in this boat.

It tries to do too much: so many berths (6). Who can stand more than one overnight with six people aboard? Prefer boats this size be designed to sleep 2 comfortably, with provision for a couple of very short-term guests.

markpierce said:

It tries to do too much: so many berths (6). Who can stand more than one overnight with six people aboard? Prefer boats this size be designed to sleep 2 comfortably, with provision for a couple of very short-term guests.

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Older retired people and couples without kids do prefer as you describe. I'd prefer the larger stateroom and salon and fewer staterooms. Families with two kids or more plus their friends prefer all the space possible, also with brothers and sisters who have kids and come along.

Just like houses, the tendency is to provide all the sleeping space possible. The extra stateroom adds to value. New, the extra stateroom does sell. Doesn't mean it's what everyone would want. I have a captain friend who this past week took a 68' Searay to the Bahamas with 8 guests and a crew of 2 so 10 people total. Larger boats cram even more staterooms, wanting to accommodate all the charter guests they can.

I really agree with BandB. I see this as an ideal entry boat for the family with kids (small people you can cram into that small cabin) or grandparents that would like to take their small grandkids with them on the boat for a week or weekend.

Really, I think this is a great idea and I think (hope) they will be successful with it. I would love that boat. If my wife didn’t feel the need to bring our kids, their kids and spouses with us, I think it would be wonderful. I would just need to add a diesel furnace and I’d be set. I don’t tend to stay at a single anchorage for days on end, so the lack of a generator wouldn’t be a problem. My only gripe is the lack of a covered cockpit. Around here, I’ve seen a number of that type of boat with a canvas extension covering the cockpit.

I'd convert (non destructively) that hidey-hole guest cabin into a photo editing/office area with home dried and bulk food storage at the back.

Retirement plans are to stay in photogenic anchorages for weeks at a time, and stretching out marina visits for fuel to the maximum (with a sensible reserve).