Boat Length

R

rawidman

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Feb 5, 2007
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25110
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When my boat was designed and built (in 1999), it was designated as a 28' boat. That's what the advertisements said and that's what the USCG Documentation paper says.

Some time between 1999 and now, the designation was changed to 31' but there was no change to the design of the boat. I don't know what the documentation says for the newer ones and I don't know when the change was made but they are advertised as 31' boats.

When talking about my boat, I call it a 31' trawler. Of course that means I'm paying for three extra feet at a transient marina compared to a "28' trawler". At home, I pay for 30', the minimum wet slip charge.

If you were in my shoes would you tell the (transient) marina the boat was a 28' boat or a 31' boat?
 
Whatever the LOA is on your doc! What would you say 31 if the doc says 28?
 
My boat is a 2557, which means it is 25.5 feet long. The 25.5 is what's in the water, but the overall length is 30 feet. I pay for 30 feet of dock space at the marinas as I dont want them putting me in a slip that was meant for a 25 foot boat. I told one marina that I was 25 feet long and had 6 feet of boat hanging out past the end of the dock and it was not really tied or secured to the dock that well.
At $1.50 per foot I would rather pay the extra $7.50 and know that I am secured in a slip.
 
I have the same situation. My boat is modeled as a 28'er and registered as a 28'er. (It was like that when I bought it) Length Overall is 32'.

Since both the model and the reg says 28' that's what I call it for insurance/marinas/Bahamas entry/friends.

Bob
 
I often tie up at docks of slips that are on the short side and a few feet of bow extending out really don't make a difference. Just lead the bow line to the end of dock or last piling and it s fine
 
Bob,

Do you get the US Customs sticker each year for the boat or do you skip it since your boat is 28’? My MD registration says I’m 30’4”, so I just pay the $25 each year to be safe.
 
quote:
Originally posted by mixman

Bob,

Do you get the US Customs sticker each year for the boat or do you skip it since your boat is 28’? My MD registration says I’m 30’4”, so I just pay the $25 each year to be safe.

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Nope, no Customs Sticker required. That's another reason I like the 28' registration. :)

Bob
 
My rule is say whatever the maker called the boat, in your case 28'. Later customers got an extra three feet of marketing, not boat. A few marinas will measure and many dont allow parts of the boat to extend outside of certain limits but most dont care.

It can get intersting with sailboats with bowsprits where LOD and LOA are very different.
 
It is my understanding that prior to a few years ago swim platforms which were not part of the molded hull were not included in the LOA. So if you have a swim platform that is bolted on to the boat they probably didn't include that in 1999. In later years it was included.
 
Yes bolted on attachments were not generally included in the selling length though they were included in an accurate LOA. LOD or LBP (length between perpendiculars) was the standard. For selling reasons makers started molding everything into the hull so the boats got longer.
Suddenly the 33' XXX was selling as 38' XXX and making customers think they were getting a bigger boat. Recently it seems makers just dont care about whether something is bolted on or molded in they just conveniently use LOA for selling purposes.
 
I wish my boat was like a clown car. The same room on the inside and three feet shorter on the outside.

I just figure that there is so much confusion piled layer upon layer after so many years of re-defining the measures of any given boat out there. I just state whatever is on the label. Giving anything else just confuses everyone in involved, and as the marketers found out long ago, nobody really cares and even fewer would be capable of defining a more accurate answer anyway. Be nice to the world and keep it simple. "My boat is a 48 foot Tollycraft". Says so right on the side, right there in plain sight for everyone to see. If some joker wants to go out there with a tape measure and try to get down to the last half inch, well be my guest. I mean, these guys don't even have an accurate way of measuring strict 90 degree bisections of a line laying along side the pier. Any further precision is just a joke.

"What? Wait. What's that you say? You say you DO have a way of accurately measuring?"

In that case, my boat is 50 feet, ten and one-half inches long over-all, tip-to-tip in 63F degree weather measured with plumb bobs on a calm day. I'm currently in a 45 foot slip with a 6 foot overhang allowed. Having that extra inch and a half to spare got me into a really nice marina. Anyone know how much the fiberglass will expand/contract given a 10F degree temperature change? I'd like to be prepared to state the length given the forecasted temperatures for a given day.

Be honest now, don't you get a little tickled just thinking about giving your boats length in the form of a question, the next time one of those over eager HS types wants to play "training day". "Maam, I'm trying to give you a straight answer, but you still have not told me the time of day or the day of the year in which you are asking. Between the two of us, if you won't be able to tell me whether the sun is shining or not that day, this is going to get even more tricky. After all, with the prevailing la-nina patterns last year, its already highly likely to get even more complicated."
 
When you're bragging to friends use LOA, when you're paying for dockage or storage, use the model length. My 27 foot Carver is almost 32 feet long.
 
When you're bragging to friends use LOA, when you're paying for dockage or storage, use the model length. My 27 foot Carver is almost 32 feet long.
 
quote:
Originally posted by RamSport47

When you're bragging to friends use LOA, when you're paying for dockage or storage, use the model length. My 27 foot Carver is almost 32 feet long.

Click to expand...


a 3607 becomes a 42'er..
 
It depends on the marina. My boat is listed as a 38, with the pulpit it's 41'. Some marinas are very specific about using LOA, so I will normally give them 41'. I've been to marinas where that matters because of the docking arrangement and in that case I'd rather give them the full length and pay a few extra dollars rather than get crammed into a spot I don't fit in. If I know I'm just backing into a slip with plenty of room in front of me I'll tell them 38.

John
 
An off-take on this LOA issue is beam. One thing I've learned over the years after owning a catamaran is to never, EVER hail a marina and tell them it's a cat. Our beam is 10'. But if I tell them it's a cat, they assume it's at least 20' wide!
 
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