OK, folks. I'm thinking of getting my first new boat and I need some advice.

I'm thinking I need a light, trailerable boat ( my tow vehicle is a 95
Chrysler LeBaron FWD) with about a 1000 pound capacity (I'm physically
handicapped and I figure a somewhat larger craft will be more stable for
entry and egress but I need it to be pretty light in weight ( because the
car has only a one ton tow capacity) so I can load and launch it easily.

My physical limitations are from blood pressure and heart trouble, diabetes
and Post Polio Syndrome.

So, what styles / lengths / brands should I look at?? I once had a used 12
foot aluminum Jon boat, but it was a bit narrow and quite tender when
approaching hull capacity. I borrowed my brother's old aluminum 12 foot
Sears rowboat once and lightly loaded it was fun, but it was a bit heavy to
cartop (this was before the health probs hit.)

Oh, price is important too. I may go for a used boat / trailer if I find a
great deal. VBG

TIA

Budd

Budd Cochran wrote:
OK, folks. I'm thinking of getting my first new boat and I need some advice.

I'm thinking I need a light, trailerable boat ( my tow vehicle is a 95
Chrysler LeBaron FWD) with about a 1000 pound capacity (I'm physically
handicapped and I figure a somewhat larger craft will be more stable for
entry and egress but I need it to be pretty light in weight ( because the
car has only a one ton tow capacity) so I can load and launch it easily.

My physical limitations are from blood pressure and heart trouble, diabetes
and Post Polio Syndrome.

So, what styles / lengths / brands should I look at?? I once had a used 12
foot aluminum Jon boat, but it was a bit narrow and quite tender when
approaching hull capacity. I borrowed my brother's old aluminum 12 foot
Sears rowboat once and lightly loaded it was fun, but it was a bit heavy to
cartop (this was before the health probs hit.)

Oh, price is important too. I may go for a used boat / trailer if I find a
great deal. VBG

TIA

Budd




A 16' carolina Skiff....wide, stable, not too heavy. But one of your
considerations should be where you are planning to use the boat.,

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
...
Budd Cochran wrote:
OK, folks. I'm thinking of getting my first new boat and I need some
advice.

I'm thinking I need a light, trailerable boat ( my tow vehicle is a 95
Chrysler LeBaron FWD) with about a 1000 pound capacity (I'm physically
handicapped and I figure a somewhat larger craft will be more stable for
entry and egress but I need it to be pretty light in weight ( because
the
car has only a one ton tow capacity) so I can load and launch it easily.

My physical limitations are from blood pressure and heart trouble,
diabetes
and Post Polio Syndrome.

So, what styles / lengths / brands should I look at?? I once had a used
12
foot aluminum Jon boat, but it was a bit narrow and quite tender when
approaching hull capacity. I borrowed my brother's old aluminum 12 foot
Sears rowboat once and lightly loaded it was fun, but it was a bit heavy
to
cartop (this was before the health probs hit.)

Oh, price is important too. I may go for a used boat / trailer if I find
a
great deal. VBG

TIA

Budd




A 16' carolina Skiff....wide, stable, not too heavy. But one of your
considerations should be where you are planning to use the boat.,

I like to fish at a nearby irrigation reservoir, Ken's Lake, near my home in
Moab, Utah. It varies from about 2 to 4 acres and a maximum depth of about
80 ft. My eldest son says it's smaller than the flight deck on his ship (
CVN 75, Harry S. Truman) while he was in the Navy. It's also limited to
sail, manual or electric propulsion.

Budd

Based on your condition and towing ability - I would recommend you look at a
20' pontoon w/ a 75 hp engine on it. You can leave it in the water (yes,
there is the dock fee and fuel is a little more expensive) but no trailer
loading, hookup at the house and all the strenious effort required to take a
boat to the lake and back. You show up, crank it and go. Plus the pontoon
will give you plenty of room for doing whatever you want.

Other option would be to get something that fits your needs and dry dock it.

Someone in your condition does not need to be trying to load and trailer a
boat. Plus anything you could tow is going to be very small and not very
stable.

--
Tony
my boats at http://t.thomas.home.mchsi.com

"Budd Cochran" wrote in message
...
OK, folks. I'm thinking of getting my first new boat and I need some
advice.

I'm thinking I need a light, trailerable boat ( my tow vehicle is a 95
Chrysler LeBaron FWD) with about a 1000 pound capacity (I'm physically
handicapped and I figure a somewhat larger craft will be more stable for
entry and egress but I need it to be pretty light in weight ( because the
car has only a one ton tow capacity) so I can load and launch it easily.

My physical limitations are from blood pressure and heart trouble,
diabetes
and Post Polio Syndrome.

So, what styles / lengths / brands should I look at?? I once had a used 12
foot aluminum Jon boat, but it was a bit narrow and quite tender when
approaching hull capacity. I borrowed my brother's old aluminum 12 foot
Sears rowboat once and lightly loaded it was fun, but it was a bit heavy
to
cartop (this was before the health probs hit.)

Oh, price is important too. I may go for a used boat / trailer if I find a
great deal. VBG

TIA

Budd

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
...
Budd Cochran wrote:
OK, folks. I'm thinking of getting my first new boat and I need some
advice.

I'm thinking I need a light, trailerable boat ( my tow vehicle is a 95
Chrysler LeBaron FWD) with about a 1000 pound capacity (I'm physically
handicapped and I figure a somewhat larger craft will be more stable for
entry and egress but I need it to be pretty light in weight ( because
the
car has only a one ton tow capacity) so I can load and launch it easily.

My physical limitations are from blood pressure and heart trouble,
diabetes
and Post Polio Syndrome.

So, what styles / lengths / brands should I look at?? I once had a used
12
foot aluminum Jon boat, but it was a bit narrow and quite tender when
approaching hull capacity. I borrowed my brother's old aluminum 12 foot
Sears rowboat once and lightly loaded it was fun, but it was a bit heavy
to
cartop (this was before the health probs hit.)

Oh, price is important too. I may go for a used boat / trailer if I find
a
great deal. VBG

TIA

Budd




A 16' carolina Skiff....wide, stable, not too heavy. But one of your
considerations should be where you are planning to use the boat.,

I have two grown sons, one 130 lbs and the other 280, myself and the wife
total 450+. While the boys are not going to be home much, they both love
fishing, so I want to be able to go on an all day, family outing. I want it
big enough to handle a large reservoir if I ever get a chance, like Blue
Mesa near Grand Junction CO or Lake Powell, but I have to be able to handle
it also.

I looked at some Carolina Skiff sites and the craft is too heavy.

Budd

"Tony Thomas" wrote in message
news:EOwuc.17251$3x.8834@attbi_s54...
Based on your condition and towing ability - I would recommend you look at
a
20' pontoon w/ a 75 hp engine on it. You can leave it in the water (yes,
there is the dock fee and fuel is a little more expensive) but no trailer
loading, hookup at the house and all the strenious effort required to take
a
boat to the lake and back. You show up, crank it and go. Plus the
pontoon
will give you plenty of room for doing whatever you want.

Other option would be to get something that fits your needs and dry dock
it.

Someone in your condition does not need to be trying to load and trailer a
boat. Plus anything you could tow is going to be very small and not very
stable.

--
Tony

I wish I could afford a pontoon and dock fees and put it on a fantastic Bass
/ Catfish lake but as the old saying goes, "If wishes were horses the
peasants would ride."

Besides, worry about the boat ( vandals, storms, etc.) would cause heart
attacks 9, 10 and 11 ... if I survive.

I'm looking at a max cost of about $2000 dollars. On a fixed income you
don't make a down payment on the Q. E. III. VBG

I guess I'll settle for all the stability I can get and, as I did on a old
Grumman canoe used by our Foster kids many years ago, I'll make stabilizing
pontoons for it, if necessary. Size, capacity and price are the limiting
parameters for me.

Budd

Now that we have a little more info on what you really want and your use, I
would still suggest a small pontoon. There are several companies out there
that make them and you should be able to pick up a used one in a 14 to 16'.
However, $2000 is not really enough money to get something that is
dependable.

Looks like your going to have to find an older jon boat w/ a small tiller
handle engine on it for that price.

--
Tony
my boats at http://t.thomas.home.mchsi.com

"Budd Cochran" wrote in message
...

"Tony Thomas" wrote in message
news:EOwuc.17251$3x.8834@attbi_s54...
Based on your condition and towing ability - I would recommend you look
at
a
20' pontoon w/ a 75 hp engine on it. You can leave it in the water
(yes,
there is the dock fee and fuel is a little more expensive) but no
trailer
loading, hookup at the house and all the strenious effort required to
take
a
boat to the lake and back. You show up, crank it and go. Plus the
pontoon
will give you plenty of room for doing whatever you want.

Other option would be to get something that fits your needs and dry dock
it.

Someone in your condition does not need to be trying to load and trailer
a
boat. Plus anything you could tow is going to be very small and not
very
stable.

--
Tony

I wish I could afford a pontoon and dock fees and put it on a fantastic
Bass
/ Catfish lake but as the old saying goes, "If wishes were horses the
peasants would ride."

Besides, worry about the boat ( vandals, storms, etc.) would cause heart
attacks 9, 10 and 11 ... if I survive.

I'm looking at a max cost of about $2000 dollars. On a fixed income you
don't make a down payment on the Q. E. III. VBG

I guess I'll settle for all the stability I can get and, as I did on a old
Grumman canoe used by our Foster kids many years ago, I'll make
stabilizing
pontoons for it, if necessary. Size, capacity and price are the limiting
parameters for me.

Budd

Sounds silly, but you may want to look into kayaks/canoes. Easy to
launch/rather lightweight, manual powered. I'm only mildly disabled, so a
regular canoe works for me, but my friend is much worse off and has an
outrigger canoe. Extremely stable/lightweight


"Budd Cochran" wrote in message

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
...
Budd Cochran wrote:
OK, folks. I'm thinking of getting my first new boat and I need
some advice.

I'm thinking I need a light, trailerable boat ( my tow vehicle is a
95 Chrysler LeBaron FWD) with about a 1000 pound capacity (I'm
physically handicapped and I figure a somewhat larger craft will be
more stable for entry and egress but I need it to be pretty light
in weight ( because the car has only a one ton tow capacity) so I
can load and launch it easily.

My physical limitations are from blood pressure and heart trouble,
diabetes and Post Polio Syndrome.

So, what styles / lengths / brands should I look at?? I once had a
used 12 foot aluminum Jon boat, but it was a bit narrow and quite
tender when approaching hull capacity. I borrowed my brother's old
aluminum 12 foot Sears rowboat once and lightly loaded it was fun,
but it was a bit heavy to cartop (this was before the health probs
hit.)

Oh, price is important too. I may go for a used boat / trailer if I
find a great deal. VBG

TIA

Budd




A 16' carolina Skiff....wide, stable, not too heavy. But one of your
considerations should be where you are planning to use the boat.,

I like to fish at a nearby irrigation reservoir, Ken's Lake, near my
home in Moab, Utah. It varies from about 2 to 4 acres and a maximum
depth of about 80 ft. My eldest son says it's smaller than the flight
deck on his ship ( CVN 75, Harry S. Truman) while he was in the
Navy. It's also limited to sail, manual or electric propulsion.

Budd

We had a 16 foot Grumman that I bought thru the aluminum recycler I worked
for back in the early 90's when we were Foster Parenting.

With the outriggers, made from stacked chunks of pink insulation foam, it
was impossible to swamp it, but it lacked room for our fishing gear.

Budd
(who's beginning to believe there isn't a boat made that will work for him.)

"Peter Pan" wrote in message
ink.net...
Sounds silly, but you may want to look into kayaks/canoes. Easy to
launch/rather lightweight, manual powered. I'm only mildly disabled, so a
regular canoe works for me, but my friend is much worse off and has an
outrigger canoe. Extremely stable/lightweight


"Budd Cochran" wrote in message

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
...
Budd Cochran wrote:
OK, folks. I'm thinking of getting my first new boat and I need
some advice.

I'm thinking I need a light, trailerable boat ( my tow vehicle is a
95 Chrysler LeBaron FWD) with about a 1000 pound capacity (I'm
physically handicapped and I figure a somewhat larger craft will be
more stable for entry and egress but I need it to be pretty light
in weight ( because the car has only a one ton tow capacity) so I
can load and launch it easily.

My physical limitations are from blood pressure and heart trouble,
diabetes and Post Polio Syndrome.

So, what styles / lengths / brands should I look at?? I once had a
used 12 foot aluminum Jon boat, but it was a bit narrow and quite
tender when approaching hull capacity. I borrowed my brother's old
aluminum 12 foot Sears rowboat once and lightly loaded it was fun,
but it was a bit heavy to cartop (this was before the health probs
hit.)

Oh, price is important too. I may go for a used boat / trailer if I
find a great deal. VBG

TIA

Budd




A 16' carolina Skiff....wide, stable, not too heavy. But one of your
considerations should be where you are planning to use the boat.,

I like to fish at a nearby irrigation reservoir, Ken's Lake, near my
home in Moab, Utah. It varies from about 2 to 4 acres and a maximum
depth of about 80 ft. My eldest son says it's smaller than the flight
deck on his ship ( CVN 75, Harry S. Truman) while he was in the
Navy. It's also limited to sail, manual or electric propulsion.

Budd

"Budd Cochran" wrote in message
...

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
...
Budd Cochran wrote:
OK, folks. I'm thinking of getting my first new boat and I need some
advice.

I'm thinking I need a light, trailerable boat ( my tow vehicle is a 95
Chrysler LeBaron FWD) with about a 1000 pound capacity (I'm physically
handicapped and I figure a somewhat larger craft will be more stable
for
entry and egress but I need it to be pretty light in weight ( because
the
car has only a one ton tow capacity) so I can load and launch it
easily.

My physical limitations are from blood pressure and heart trouble,
diabetes
and Post Polio Syndrome.

So, what styles / lengths / brands should I look at?? I once had a
used
12
foot aluminum Jon boat, but it was a bit narrow and quite tender when
approaching hull capacity. I borrowed my brother's old aluminum 12
foot
Sears rowboat once and lightly loaded it was fun, but it was a bit
heavy
to
cartop (this was before the health probs hit.)

Oh, price is important too. I may go for a used boat / trailer if I
find
a
great deal. VBG

TIA

Budd




A 16' carolina Skiff....wide, stable, not too heavy. But one of your
considerations should be where you are planning to use the boat.,

I like to fish at a nearby irrigation reservoir, Ken's Lake, near my home
in
Moab, Utah. It varies from about 2 to 4 acres and a maximum depth of about
80 ft. My eldest son says it's smaller than the flight deck on his ship (
CVN 75, Harry S. Truman) while he was in the Navy. It's also limited to
sail, manual or electric propulsion.

Budd



Take a look at some of the simpler Lund boats: www.lundboats.com. They make
an enormous variety of models - everything from very basic to quite
elaborate, and they hold their resale value VERY nicely.

I have a WC-14 which I easily towed with a '92 Taurus (6 cylinder engine).
On the web page, it looks like the old Grumman 3-bench rowboats that resorts
keep around for guests, but it's MUCH more stable and well built. Not a
great boat for lounging, though, if that's what the lady in your life has in
mind. It's in the "Adventure Series" on the web site. I have a 15 hp 4
stroke motor on it and it moves just fine with 3 adults. It's he
http://www.lundboats.com/index.cfm?i...&intModelID=69

I do most of my fishing on the Finger Lakes in upstate NY, and sometimes on
Lake Ontario. The latter can develop some very strange waves, but the Lund
handles them well (and safely). The only problem I've had (which I just
solved) was that if I'm alone in the boat on a day when I need to drive into
high winds, the combined weight of the gas tank, battery and me was enough
to raise to the bow to a point where it would catch the wind in, shall we
say, ways which build character. :-) I thought of moving the battery to the
bow, but it would require some creative carpentry that I haven't had the
time for. So, a bag of sand solved the problem for under ten bucks. I leave
the sand behind when I have passengers.

The boat, motor, tank of gas & trailer come in between 900 and 1000 lbs.

If you have not been religious about having your transmission filter & fluid
changed, now is the time to start. And, it might not be a bad idea to have a
transmission oil cooler installed. It's a mini-radiator just for that
purpose. Most are about the half the size of a loaf of bread. Your regular
mechanic should be able to handle the installation.

Finally, if you want something a little more comfortable, look at the 1660
Rebel Tiller:
http://www.lundboats.com/index.cfm?i...&intModelID=67

I'm not sure about the weight of that boat, though.

-Doug