wrote in message
oups.com...
You meet all types, I finished my first ocean crossing in May to
Hawaii and was very proud that I had used about 12 gallons of diesel
and 5 gallons of gas for the generator in the 20 day crossing, and that
included motoring the last 80 miles to make it in time to take my wife
on mothers day out for dessert on mothers day just at dusk. I then met
the second cruiser, out of hundreds in our year of cursing that was a
bit if a sour puss. I was boasting of what I thought was minimal fuel
consumption, and informed by this cruiser that I probably spent too
much time on the radio and had very expensive ice cubes, and that he
could have circumnavigated with the same amount of fuel. O well, there
is always someone......
I agree with Peggy whole heartedly. A large part of safety is
knowing what you have and how to deal with it.
The type of use you describe:
"The boat will be used more as a weekend getaway on a medium-sized
inland
lake than as a cruiser so I thought gas engines would be more
economical in
the mid to short-term. i.e. rather significant lower cost of
acquisition."

With the price of gas these days you may be able to get into a very
comfortable and much larger boat then a diesel powered vessel. The big
question for me, is will you have enough $$$ left over after purchasing
it to use it. If you want a comfortable boat and you don't plan on
many miles, and plan on keeping it for a long period of time. Then gas
powered seems to be the most economical. If you don't do much
distance cruising it may take you years to recoup the additional cost
of the diesel. But I do love the simplicity of my diesel truck and
boat.
What option will get you out on the water more?
John

So far, you guys have helped me "squat" about 50% for gas, 50% against. LOL!
On any given weekend, the boat wouldn't be motored any more than 20 miles on
average - then anchored for the weekend. I'm not sure if a $50k+
differential in price would be worth it over a 2 - 3 year period.

Another issue I'm having, FWIW, is that this boat would be replacing a
second home on a southereastern island (which we just sold last week) in
which we earned a 545% ROI over 10 years...I sure hate to buy something that
depreciates but we'd like something to get away for the weekends and is only
20 minutes away from home and office.

If I were cruising the intercostal, I'd get the diesel without question.

Still perplexed in Austin, TX,
Miles