Fishing Boat/Yacht thread....Fl and Miami scene.

[Eddo Rogue]

Not sure if I posted in the right place, but have been very interested in fishing boats lately.

Particularly, I have been watching a lot of youtube videos of the marinas and channels of Miami, FL. (Alfred Montaner "Chit Show")

It has raised a bunch of technical and non technical questions...

I have noticed 90% of the boats are outboards, is it because they are easier to operate and better for offshore boating?

The marinas and shores are shared by huge yachts and tiny dingys....How are they fishing the open ocean in a dingy? Is it a Cuban thing? lol

Speaking of yachts, are there really this many people that can afford a yacht lifestyle? It seems like Florida is littered with yachts, beyond just the rich and famous few.

Also speaking of yachts, The videos show huge boats and small yachts on trailers that make the tow vehicle look tiny....How is this guy pulling a 40' offshore fishing boat with a jeep? Is that a Florida thing?

Also the majority seem to have no clue how to simply back up a trailer, how do they know to operate a boat in crowded docks and open ocean?

Lastly it seems like there's a million boat manufacturers out there, and two similar boats can be $100,000 or $1million. what's up with that? Sometimes a 26' is $1million and a 40' is $100k...

Oh and also it seems once a boat is past a certain size, it take exponential more power to get it moving. A 23' boat with average V8 will go 60+ knots, but a 40' footer will have four 450hp outboards totaling 1800hp, and yet only top out at 30 knots, and get 1mpg doing it.

Any input is great, I just wanna chew some fat on this whole FL and Miami fishing boat/yacht scene.

 

[superj]

outboards have more clearance under the propeller when lowered fully. i don't know why that would be helpful in the ocean but maybe that has something to do with it?

all of the ones my parent's had when we were kids were inboard v6 and v8 powered. a 19 foot ski boat and a 29 foot cabin cruiser for scuba diving.

 

[Eddo Rogue]

outboards have more clearance under the propeller when lowered fully. i don't know why that would be helpful in the ocean but maybe that has something to do with it?

all of the ones my parent's had when we were kids were inboard v6 and v8 powered. a 19 foot ski boat and a 29 foot cabin cruiser for scuba diving.

Same here. All the boats I was around as a kid were 19-20 something foot v6 or v8 inboard powerboats, mostly halletts and elminator etc. One guy had a 2 stroke outboard and it was an oddball schiada. Never been around big fishing boats or something with multiple outboards hanging off the back.

 

[Ranger850]

outboard motors are easier to swap/remove to repair.

Not sure about the Dingy question

There are so many boats because some people live on their boat and Florida has some of the Richest people in the World that have a property in FL, near the water

Not sure about the Jeeps pulling boats, everybody I know has a F-250 or better, or a Chevy/Duramax, to pull BIG boats, otherwise a regular F-150 or Chevy 1500 will do.( I would like to see the pics you saw.)

As far as price, It's what's on the inside that costs.

 

[Eddo Rogue]

outboard motors are easier to swap/remove to repair.

Not sure about the Dingy question

There are so many boats because some people live on their boat and Florida has some of the Richest people in the World that have a property in FL, near the water

Not sure about the Jeeps pulling boats, everybody I know has a F-250 or better, or a Chevy/Duramax, to pull BIG boats, otherwise a regular F-150 or Chevy 1500 will do.( I would like to see the pics you saw.)

As far as price, It's what's on the inside that costs.

I couldn't find the one with the jeep, but here is some examples of the things that baffle me how this place manages to operate lol....The suv is pulling a pretty big fishing boat out at some point. The ending shows these guys flying along the ocean in a tiny boat...

 

[Ranger850]

I couldn't find the one with the jeep, but here is some examples of the things that baffle me how this place manages to operate lol....The suv is pulling a pretty big fishing boat out at some point. The ending shows these guys flying along the ocean in a tiny boat...

Yeah, I've seen that guys videos on TikTok or FB. I wouldn't consider ANY of those boats as "yachts" so no need for a massive tow rig. Even saw a white Ranger on the ramp at one point.

As far as the loading ramp goes, most of the ones I see are First Come, First Serve with no real moderation or traffic control, so SNAFU.

 

[superj]

I have never seen a boat ramp that had any kind of worker directing movement. Its always been first come, first serve. From socal to texas ro north carolina, and all kinds of lakes and rivers in between.

 

[Eddo Rogue]

I have never seen a boat ramp that had any kind of worker directing movement. Its always been first come, first serve. From socal to texas ro north carolina, and all kinds of lakes and rivers in between.

Me either, usually its just a ranger or cop looking for drunk idiots. At this ramp they show rangers directing traffic and cops helping boaters tie off lol.

 

[Eddo Rogue]

Yeah, I've seen that guys videos on TikTok or FB. I wouldn't consider ANY of those boats as "yachts" so no need for a massive tow rig. Even saw a white Ranger on the ramp at one point.

As far as the loading ramp goes, most of the ones I see are First Come, First Serve with no real moderation or traffic control, so SNAFU.

There are better examples in other videos of way undersized tow vehicles...mostly jeeps and suvs, towing stuff like 30' or bigger, and very tall....not a open flat speed boat.

I have only seen first come first serve as well, although I have seen camp reservations....its the SNAFU part that seems excessive here. In my experience most boaters know what they're doing at the boat ramp...

 

[Chapap]

You can spend several yearly salaries putting gadgets on a yacht-sized boat. My rule of thumb is to guess the price then double or triple it... a 200hp outboard is 10k+. A radar unit or two, couple fish finders, nice radio, thrusters, nav, autopilot. Two exact hulls could have 500hp to just scoot about or 2000 hp to get to the recommended hull limit. Bluewater vessels are significantly beefier than day boats too.

I can attest to the dinghy comment. Those are called stupid people. I once went with a bud about 4 miles into the gulf in a 25' center console. Weather was predicted to be perfect... but around dusk that changed. We saw clouds on the horizon so we called it and started heading back. About 10 min later we were at the very front of the storm in 5' swells and lightning. That was a nerve-racking 1.5hr trip back in. I got a sprained rib from hanging on.

 

[Eddo Rogue]

I been reading forums on idiot boaters, the stories are cringe worthy and hilarious and seemingly endless.

I guess besides equipment, hull design, build, quality etc can vary greatly.

I kinda understand now why there are $100k+ skiffs, and also $50k yachts.

Seems for the fishing crowd, the ultimate goal is a boat that can fish both a shallow stream and open ocean.

Its funny how they can get so specific too. Like a boat dedicated to fishing only bass.

As a kid, my buddys dad had a 28' scarab made for pulling the catalina ski racers. On a lakemead trip once we got caught in a monsoon. Huge swells and a long bumpy wet ride home, almost ran out of gas too, had to dock a different marina than where we started and hitch a ride to the truck. Probably wouldn't have made it if the boat was open bow.

 

[bilbo]

I grew up in MN, where nearly everybody has at least one boat, and saw essentially the same thing there. Boat ramps would get every bit as crazy as the ones in the FL videos, especially on holidays. If I had to guess, FL just has so many people that any given day at the ramp is going to be fun-filled at some point. Also, I wonder how many hours of boring footage it takes to get that 10-15 youtube video.

I think the thing with outboards is inventory related. A boat dealer can sell the same hull at several price points by utilizing different outboards. They just grab the hull and fit it with the motor the customer wants (or will pay for). With an inboard it would probably need the engine(s) fitted at the factory.

I've often asked the same question when I've seen the amount of 'toys' some have. I guess technically you don't need to be able to afford it, your bank does. At least that's how it seems to be viewed by many people. I'm truly shocked at what the bank seems willing to let me borrow. They cannot be trusted to help decide what I can afford from my experience. I have a friend that's super into wakeboarding and wakesurfing. That's his big hobby, and he spends a majority of his time with it. Straight out of college he took on a huge loan for a ski boat, $100k+. I though he was crazy but he said it made sense to him. Sure it costs more but he would never be able to save enough money to buy one outright. He doesn't want to spend his time fixing a boat, he wants to spend it on the water. And he wants to do this stuff when he's young enough to enjoy it, so taking the financial hit made sense to him.

I have to admit, I thin the tiny car/huge boat combo may be a Florida thing. I don't live near a boat ramp here, and haven't even been to one yet, but I've seen plenty of 25+ foot boats with multiple outboards towed behind squatted crossovers on the highways. I'd be really nervous about pulling out of the ramp with those setups, not to mention just driving down the road. That said, if huge boats made sense in my home state I would guess there'd be plenty of people trying to tow them with their Rav4.

The trailer thing is the same everywhere. It was the same thing at the lakes in MN. People would get downright belligerent. Many people don't have experience towing because they've never had to do it. Then they buy a boat and just go to the ramp without really practicing. In MN, half the people there grew up involved with agriculture at some point so trailer exposure was common. I don't know if that would be true for Miami. I've heard that a lot of people don't own tow vehicles and rent a u-haul truck for when they want to take their boat/jetskis out.

One of my favorite Friday lunch break activities is watching Miami Boat Ramps and/or the boat vs. inlet videos.

 

[Eddo Rogue]

I grew up in MN, where nearly everybody has at least one boat, and saw essentially the same thing there. Boat ramps would get every bit as crazy as the ones in the FL videos, especially on holidays. If I had to guess, FL just has so many people that any given day at the ramp is going to be fun-filled at some point. Also, I wonder how many hours of boring footage it takes to get that 10-15 youtube video.

I think the thing with outboards is inventory related. A boat dealer can sell the same hull at several price points by utilizing different outboards. They just grab the hull and fit it with the motor the customer wants (or will pay for). With an inboard it would probably need the engine(s) fitted at the factory.

I've often asked the same question when I've seen the amount of 'toys' some have. I guess technically you don't need to be able to afford it, your bank does. At least that's how it seems to be viewed by many people. I'm truly shocked at what the bank seems willing to let me borrow. They cannot be trusted to help decide what I can afford from my experience. I have a friend that's super into wakeboarding and wakesurfing. That's his big hobby, and he spends a majority of his time with it. Straight out of college he took on a huge loan for a ski boat, $100k+. I though he was crazy but he said it made sense to him. Sure it costs more but he would never be able to save enough money to buy one outright. He doesn't want to spend his time fixing a boat, he wants to spend it on the water. And he wants to do this stuff when he's young enough to enjoy it, so taking the financial hit made sense to him.

I have to admit, I thin the tiny car/huge boat combo may be a Florida thing. I don't live near a boat ramp here, and haven't even been to one yet, but I've seen plenty of 25+ foot boats with multiple outboards towed behind squatted crossovers on the highways. I'd be really nervous about pulling out of the ramp with those setups, not to mention just driving down the road. That said, if huge boats made sense in my home state I would guess there'd be plenty of people trying to tow them with their Rav4.

The trailer thing is the same everywhere. It was the same thing at the lakes in MN. People would get downright belligerent. Many people don't have experience towing because they've never had to do it. Then they buy a boat and just go to the ramp without really practicing. In MN, half the people there grew up involved with agriculture at some point so trailer exposure was common. I don't know if that would be true for Miami. I've heard that a lot of people don't own tow vehicles and rent a u-haul truck for when they want to take their boat/jetskis out.

One of my favorite Friday lunch break activities is watching Miami Boat Ramps and/or the boat vs. inlet videos.

I grew up and still stuck here in LA. The local lakes are pretty much dams, and most of us make the trek out to the bigger lakes off the colorado river like Havasu, Mead, or Powell.

I managed to grow up relatively "rural", for and SoCal Valley boy. We did stuff like ride dirt bike, off road, camp and boat, so towing was common, as was a rig to pull it. Still I am intimidated by boating, despite having grown up launching and driving plenty of ski and speed boats, all well under 30' though. My boat owning buddies are all wake surfers too

Its mind blowing to me how these people have the balls to tow, launch and operate a boat with no experience. Maybe I am mistaking confidence for sheer ignorant stupidity?

I can see the outboard thing now. They have simply advanced enough to be a desirable option, and are making a comeback now as a result. Also they are much easier to operate for these people with no experience.

I enjoy watching the inlet videos too. I didn't even know what an inlet was lol there is some city slicker idiot in me lol.

Luckily my hobbies are motorcycles and crappy trucks. Both relatively cheap lol, sexy tools being the greatest expense.

 

[Chapap]

There are specific reasons to need an IO. That's kinda the only alternative to OB. IB is a bit of a different animal. IO is nice cause it frees up space on the back of the boat, which is handy for watersports. It's far more maintenance intensive tho (which means more $$$). The engine is inside the boat and is seperate from the outdrive. It adds a big hole in the boat. Delicate hydraulics submerged in salt water. 3x more complicated driveshaft. Engine maintenance is not unlike a mid engine car. If the boat will live in the water, IO is an absolutely terrible idea. But that's worth it to some people for a clear view in the back tho.

edit: And you can't just turn around to see where the engine is pointing. I'm sure some can dock cleanly without taking a peek back there a few times, but I don't think I could.

 

[bilbo]

There are specific reasons to need an IO. That's kinda the only alternative to OB. IB is a bit of a different animal. IO is nice cause it frees up space on the back of the boat, which is handy for watersports. It's far more maintenance intensive tho (which means more $$$). The engine is inside the boat and is seperate from the outdrive. It adds a big hole in the boat. Delicate hydraulics submerged in salt water. 3x more complicated driveshaft. Engine maintenance is not unlike a mid engine car. If the boat will live in the water, IO is an absolutely terrible idea. But that's worth it to some people for a clear view in the back tho.

edit: And you can't just turn around to see where the engine is pointing. I'm sure some can dock cleanly without taking a peek back there a few times, but I don't think I could.

I always heard outdrives were more maintenance intensive, and looking how they are built it’s not surprising. Ive heard outboards and outdrives are easier to maneuver around docks due to being able to vector the thrust somewhat. With inboard and rudder you have limited control unless you’re moving, and there’s prop walk. That said I’ve not spent a lot of time with I/O or inboard powerboats. Just outboards and small sailboats.