Moron boat builders...

[gran398]

Absolutely, the state of Florida knows how to build boats.

They lead the pack. From Earnest Hemingway (the inventor of the outrigger) forward, Florida enjoyed a natural advantage in boatbuilding. Sportfishing's beginnings. Twenties...forties....sixties...eighties...


Florida ruled. Whittaker. Rybovich. Bertram. And noted custom  builders. Intrepid. Sea-Vee. And Miami custom builders.

The Carolina boys have always been in the mix. Yep, textile mills were involved...read money. Willis Slane...High Point, NC. The 32 year old founder of Hatteras Yachts...he was in the mix. Was a principal in a textile mill here in North Carolina. His family supplied denim to Wrangler, circa 1960.

But Slane liked to fish. Was pissed that he and his bud's couldn't leave Oregon Inlet to marlin fish one day back in 1958. So he told his bud's (Hatteras Marlin Club members) that he was going to build a plastic boat that would run Oregon Inlet, on any sea.

They scoffed...but our boy had the last laugh...a fiberglass yacht was born. Ten orders were placed in 1960 at the NY boat show. Hatteras Yachts was born.

[Circle Hooked]

Boy oh boy Scott your are full of info tonight,i enjoyed reading that thanks  

[seabob4]

But Slane liked to fish. Was pissed that he and his bud's couldn't leave Oregon Inlet to marlin fish one day back in 1958. So he told his bud's (Hatteras Marlin Club members) that he was going to build a plastic boat that would run Oregon Inlet, on any sea.

They scoffed...but our boy had the last laugh...a fiberglass yacht was born. Ten orders were placed in 1960 at the NY boat show. Hatteras Yachts was born.

If the "plastic boat" was the "cat's meow", what's with all the cold-molded builders? Plastic no good no more?

I'll put a Rybo up against anyone, anyday...and a SF Bertram...the real deal...

[gran398]

Carolina Skiff...name only.. built in Waycross, Georgia.

I just learned something,what a rip off.

Bob i would like to hear that CC story sometime.

Alright, Scott, here goes.  CC transfers production up to, I believe, Forest Park, NC  43 Constellation hull #1 goes off pretty smoothly.  Sarasota engineers leave the "builders" alone on hullls 2 and 3.  Boats are more than halfway through completion when de-lam is discovered in the engine rooms...de-lam to the extent where both boats had to be un-decked, all the systems removed, the engines, the wiring, the plumbing, etc., etc., etc., and the hulls cut up and thrown in many dumpsters. Now, keep in mind, these are $800K boats! This all came to me several years ago from my good friend at Teleflex, John Dority, who happens to live in Sarasota off of Bahia Vista, he supplies almost every builder in the eastern US with Teleflex steering hardware...

There's a reason Yellowfins are built in Sarasota...  

So they transfer production...and ain't got to do with where they transfer production to. Would presume back then it was a state with no labor unions and cheap labor.

So then management fails to oversee production. Great. But then they blame the production guys for dumpster love.

"When you pay peanuts...you get monkeys"

And:

"When you pay monkeys...you get peanuts".

Make sense? Management failed to manage. And nothing to do with location. Pretty boys effed up.

[seabob4]

Alright, I started it, I guess I'll try and finish it.  Carolina builders seem to think they are a cut above Florida builders, who seem to think they are a cut above Tennessee builders (read that SeaRay, MasterCraft), who seem to think they are a cut above Michigan builders (read Tiara), then lets throw in the Jersey builders, the west coast guys...

So why do they all have the same common issues when it comes to servicing?  I mean, breaks down, it needs replacing.  The builders KNOW this is going to happen, they know the needs are going to have to be addressed...yet, it's the same old , stand on your head to replace a float switch with one arm, replace a freshwater pump by feel only because you can't see the mounting location even with a mirror...

So, that being said, sea-keeping abilities aside, Carolina boats are no better then anybody elses...

Unless you can pay somebody like me to service them, and then you're thinking you got ripped off...

[gran398]

But Slane liked to fish. Was pissed that he and his bud's couldn't leave Oregon Inlet to marlin fish one day back in 1958. So he told his bud's (Hatteras Marlin Club members) that he was going to build a plastic boat that would run Oregon Inlet, on any sea.

They scoffed...but our boy had the last laugh...a fiberglass yacht was born. Ten orders were placed in 1960 at the NY boat show. Hatteras Yachts was born.

If the "plastic boat" was the "cat's meow", what's with all the cold-molded builders? Plastic no good no more?

I'll put a Rybo up against anyone, anyday...and a SF Bertram...the real deal...

Just that. Go back. The plastic (fiberglass) hulls were the new and different product circa 1960.

[seabob4]

But Slane liked to fish. Was pissed that he and his bud's couldn't leave Oregon Inlet to marlin fish one day back in 1958. So he told his bud's (Hatteras Marlin Club members) that he was going to build a plastic boat that would run Oregon Inlet, on any sea.

They scoffed...but our boy had the last laugh...a fiberglass yacht was born. Ten orders were placed in 1960 at the NY boat show. Hatteras Yachts was born.

If the "plastic boat" was the "cat's meow", what's with all the cold-molded builders? Plastic no good no more?

I'll put a Rybo up against anyone, anyday...and a SF Bertram...the real deal...

Just that. Go back. The plastic (fiberglass) hulls were the new and different product circa 1960.

Don Arronow come to mind?

[Circle Hooked]

Derail time,looks like were gonna have football  

[gran398]

Hey...this is good.

Who is the best now versus who was the best then?

What does it matter...there's no demand

You wanna trade my Chinese Carolina cleat for your Chinese Florida cleat

 :flower:

 

[Circle Hooked]

Hey...this is good.

Who is the best now versus who was the best then?

What does it matter...there's no demand

You wanna trade my Chinese Carolina cleat for your Chinese Florida cleat

 :flower:

 

I must say thats funny    

[GoneFission]

Bob - are you are talking about the Chris-Craft plant in Kings Mountain, NC - the one that closed and laid off all their employees in 2009?  That closing had nothing to do with the quality of the boats - and that plant was supposed to build the smaller boats - not the 600K yachts.  The simple reason for closing was lack of orders.  Chris-Craft opened the plant in 2006 with production beginning in 2007.  Initially they were going to build 33-40 footers there, but later only built the 24-29 footers.  Then, in 2008, as we all know, came the
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in the economy.  Chris-Craft laid off half the work force in 2008 (40 employees) and closed the plant and laid off the rest in 2009.  Manufacturing moved back to Sarasota, where they also laid off about 50 employees in 2008.  The Kings Mountain building was recently sold to an electronics firm.  

Info on the 2008 layoff:
http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/st ... ily51.html

[Mcdiver]

This is the same argument that you have in the car industry.  Chevy vs. Ford VS Chrysler.  The bottom line here is that every company produces great units sometimes, and every company produces lemons sometimes.  

As with all designs, engineers do not work int the field, and most of them have no idea what the finished product feels like.  Hence the installation of bilge pumps etc before the cap is installed, then pie plates installed after the fact, because no one thought about it.

The moral to this post?  CHEVY all the way.

[Blue Agave]

I concur, boat builders are morons and Chevy all the way!

[Circle Hooked]

Chevy all the way    

[seabob4]

Sometimes I get pissed and feel the need to rant...sometimes I shouldn't.  There is nothing wrong with Carolina built boats, in fact I absolutely love the flare that they are well known for.  But I'm not going to say that they are better built than either the boats that are built here, or better built when the same boats built in Carolina WERE built here.

My apologies to my Carolina brethren, if it was a SeaRay Laguna I was working on, the Tennessee boys would have caught some hell!  I ended up having to pull the whole wire bundle out of the top leg, run the antenna feed with a pull wire down the top, now I'll pull the bundle back down with a new pull wire, and be done with it.  And then I won't be pissed, and I will have a beer...