F32 Stability

JimK · Post by **JimK** » Sat Sep 03, 2011 8:33 am

Hi Folks,

I am considering an F32 as a river cruiser. It's a great looking boat with all the space, power, and accomodations that I will need on the river.

I have read a number of reports about handling issues with the F32's in rougher water and being bow heavy. To that end, I have read even more about the F32 being an overall great boat.

The majority of the time it will be a weekend cruiser and a few times a year I will be taking multi-day/week long cruises. I am getting a survey to make sure the boat is mechanically/structurally sound. I would appreciate comments from those with experience or knowledge on F32's as to anything that would make an F32 an inherently good or bad choice as a river cruiser.

Thanks,
Jim

74TrojanF36 · Post by **74TrojanF36** » Sat Sep 03, 2011 10:06 am

I have a F36, love it...handles great in the rough waters....powers through like a bear!

I would say you cant go wrong...but that may be a little bias.

rossjo · Post by **rossjo** » Sat Sep 03, 2011 10:58 am

The F32 is about the same beam as an F36, but 4' shorter.

It has a very shallow draft int he rear, so it is great for river cruising, as it only draws about 30" of water (I know! My creek is very shallow at low tide!)

Shallow draft & Low Water-Length to Width ratio (29:12) and fairly tall make it a handful in a 3"+/<6second interval following seas - it a constant struggle to keep it from trying to tuck in.

I would NOT take an F32 offshore in anything greater than 3' seas.
In Charleston, where we have to run 50-60 mile out (plus 50-60 back) to fish the ledge, I would never take my F32.

I will (and do) take it anywhere in Charleston harbor (2nd largest shiping port on the East Coast) or up/down the ICW. Great boat for that!

more comments form the others ...

Molly Too · Post by **Molly Too** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 9:01 am

I absolutely agree with Capt. Ross.

We are on the Chesapeake Bay at Fort Monroe. 5 minutes out of the marina, weâ€™re in the center of the Hampton Roads harbor entrance, with a straight shot east to the mouth of the bay & the ocean beyond. We often have unobstructed easterlies pushing the swell over 2'. In following conditions, itâ€™s a real handful. But with very good throttle and rudder attention, even 3â€™ or so is manageable. But by then, things are very uncomfortable for the other passengers and all you really want to do is seek shelter from the conditions. My point is, if you get surprised out there, you can count on the â€™32 to get you back.

We use Molly Too precisely like you intend to and enjoy every minute of it. They are great for fishing, great for cruising, and great for partying. Only at 32â€™, locker space is short, so we found you can only â€œoutfitâ€ her for one type of use at a time.

prowlersfish · Post by **prowlersfish** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 9:16 am

I agree and I think the f32 will fitt your needs well.

ready123 · Post by **ready123** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 9:59 am

Don't stone me guys but here is a thought:
If you are *really only* staying on the river systems why not consider one of the houseboats designed specifically for that service area?
The shallow draft, space efficiency, sundeck size, slide add-on for the kids

http://www.yournewboat.com/78Gibson14x5 ... 50Spec.pdf
http://www.yournewboat.com/78Gibson14x5 ... /index.htm

alexander38 · Post by **alexander38** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 1:09 pm

I'd agree on the houseboat...Trojan made some

. And it would be a great riverboat..but the f32 would fit the bill and faster...

prowlersfish · Post by **prowlersfish** » Sun Sep 04, 2011 8:02 pm

Maybe they don't want a ugly boat ?

JimK · Post by **JimK** » Mon Sep 05, 2011 9:57 am

Thank you all for the great information. Sounds like the F32 lends itself perfectly to my plans. No chance of 2'-3' seas and most likely the biggest following sea I will encounter is any swell that runs up on me after a quick slow down on WOT.

Regarding a houseboat, I considered this and looked at a few and to Ready123's points, they make fantastic river cruisers. Lot's of space and great accomodations. There are also plenty available on the rivers something I can't say about the F32. I'm hung up on the look of a houseboat and I feel somewhat isolated from the water when riding on one.

The Admiral (wife) wants something with more of a fun factor as well. In fact, she is pushing for a Carver Santego. She has developed an affinity to the 27" with six cylinder engines. Her points are that it is faster and more fuel efficient with almost as much space as the F32. The F32 is two feet longer and two feet wider so I'm doubtful that the Santego will win in a space comparison. In the looks department, I can't think of many boats in the 30' range that are better looking than the F32. Maybe not the best reason to buy a specific boat, but it matters to me.

According to the Admiral, the Santego has a GPH burn at WOT that is below the F32 at cruise and the cruise burn rate on the Santego is only slightly more than the F32 at idle. To put it in real numbers the claimed Santego WOT is 22GPH (30kts) and cruise is 12GPH (20kts). I don't find it too hard to believe that the Santego is faster so I lose that argument. However the burn rates seem really low to me. I have not dug into any details on the Santego and was wondering if anyone on the forum has any info to share on this somewhat apples and oranges comparison.

Thanks,
Jim

prowlersfish · Post by **prowlersfish** » Mon Sep 05, 2011 10:10 am

Of course a smaller boat will burn less fuel , I take the fuel burn numbers with a grain of salt as the seller will lean to the low side ( and if its a broker forget it ) forget wide open as how often are you going to run at that speed ? both are good boats , Take her on both boats and maybe she will like the trojan . you know thats the only way you will get it and be happy .

ready123 · Post by **ready123** » Mon Sep 05, 2011 12:46 pm

Don't just limit your selection to performance and how the boat looks.......

Once you start using it a whole host of other things become more important that looking pretty does not overcome

What kind of boating are you going to do?
Does it require a lot of docking to docks close to the water?
Does it require a lot of setting the anchor?
Does it require a lot of passing thru' locks?
Will you be sleeping on-board a lot?
How many people will you have on-board?
Will the boat have enough inside space on those rainy weekends?

Consider if you answer Yes to any of the above how much more of a pain it will be to do it in the Carver Santego vs the F32 or even a houseboat

Hint... side deck width for crew to move fore and aft.
(I would never want to spend much time on a Santego and other Carver's too for that single reason... side deck layout)

Why do so many boaters become unhappy and sell their boats soon after getting them

In my opinion it is because they either lack prior boating experience of the above situations or they did not take them into account when making the choice of their boat.... they selected on speed and looks which have absolutely no effect on usability

JimK · Post by **JimK** » Mon Sep 05, 2011 1:48 pm

You bring up a lot of great points and thank you. I've raised most of the same points but was unaware of the issue with the side deck. I have not been on a Santego yet but we have an appointment to look at one.

We will spend a fair amount of time locking through so moving fore and aft is a concern. I just took a closer look at a picture of a Santego and I'm not sure I even see a side deck. Are you forced to climb through the hatch to get onto the forward deck? I'll be sitting on the bridge so I guess I can let the crew decide how much she likes moving fore and aft on a Santego. To Paul's point earlier, getting on one may clear things up and hopefully put the F32 in an overall favorable light.

Thanks for the insight.

Jim

rossjo · Post by **rossjo** » Mon Sep 05, 2011 5:36 pm

No side decks on Caver Santego 27 ...

ready123 · Post by **ready123** » Mon Sep 05, 2011 6:07 pm

There are side decks (maybe half width of F32) but look at the layout of getting from the aft deck to the bow, hand holds difficult and require stretching (off balance in boat movement?) and change in height of side deck..... just nothing like an F32 or houseboat

foofer b · Post by **foofer b** » Mon Sep 05, 2011 7:09 pm

Plus look at how small the working area of the front deck is on the Santego. The windows don't look like they would afford much ventilaTION. It has a tiny back deck and are you seriously considering an outdrive? Have you considered a F26? I imagine it is much roomier than the Santego.

There is no comparison between my F26 and the F32, but I think it stands up to the Santego.

Oh and you can get the F26 with a flybridge.