10-13-2009, 09:53 PM
I'll admit that its a rough-ridin' SOB. It does bounce around pretty good, especially if you're going head-on into some 3-footers. It is also wet-riding unless you're directly head-on or following. If you hit big waves at any angle, you get a shower. I find myself going "the long way" sometimes so that I don't have to quarter into any waves. I'll run parallel and ride the troughs, then cut into the waves, to get from point A to point B. Crossing Linwood or Swim Beach in a big west wind is a good example.
Having said that though, I've only had waves thrown at me here twice that I turned around in. I "probably" could have made it, but I don't run through "probablys." I've actually taken several waves directly over the bow of my Alaskan, and still didn't feel like I was going to die or stick the nose. I hit the bilge pump, cinched my life jacket a little tighter, slowed down a bit more, and kept on going. I did NOT have customers on the boat!
The two times I turned around were with a fully loaded boat with customers, and it just wasn't worth any risk at all.
If you want a smooth, dry riding boat in rough water, you need to go fiberglass. Period. If you want a tough-as-nails boat you can bang into boat docks, beach on rocks, break ice, and do about anything else you want with it, you need a Lund Alaskan! I've never seen an aluminum boat that rides smooth and dry in the waves though. Even mine, with 3 group-29 batteries, a full tank of gas, and three large customers--rides rough in the waves.
Mine has about 2000 days on it, and still doesn't leak a drop. It does need some new flooring though, as the wood is beginning to soften up in a few areas.
Also, If you want a 20-footer, I'd forget about a tiller. First, the motor will be too big unless the boat is seriously under powered, and that would be a huge mistake. You need a MINIMUM of 90 hp on a 20' Alaskan. Second, its much easier to control a boat of that size with a steering wheel. Plus, you have something to hang onto, and your weight is better distributed.
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Having said that though, I've only had waves thrown at me here twice that I turned around in. I "probably" could have made it, but I don't run through "probablys." I've actually taken several waves directly over the bow of my Alaskan, and still didn't feel like I was going to die or stick the nose. I hit the bilge pump, cinched my life jacket a little tighter, slowed down a bit more, and kept on going. I did NOT have customers on the boat!
The two times I turned around were with a fully loaded boat with customers, and it just wasn't worth any risk at all.
If you want a smooth, dry riding boat in rough water, you need to go fiberglass. Period. If you want a tough-as-nails boat you can bang into boat docks, beach on rocks, break ice, and do about anything else you want with it, you need a Lund Alaskan! I've never seen an aluminum boat that rides smooth and dry in the waves though. Even mine, with 3 group-29 batteries, a full tank of gas, and three large customers--rides rough in the waves.
Mine has about 2000 days on it, and still doesn't leak a drop. It does need some new flooring though, as the wood is beginning to soften up in a few areas.
Also, If you want a 20-footer, I'd forget about a tiller. First, the motor will be too big unless the boat is seriously under powered, and that would be a huge mistake. You need a MINIMUM of 90 hp on a 20' Alaskan. Second, its much easier to control a boat of that size with a steering wheel. Plus, you have something to hang onto, and your weight is better distributed.
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