Where has this forum gone?

Why limit it? We all (speaking for the guys here cause I don't want to get into any LGBTQRXWPY discussions) like to see pretty pictures of pretty ladies using the boat.
Highlighting, not limiting, as pretty pictures of pretty ladies using the boat seem to be plentiful already.
 
I hate to say it but the most civilized and enjoyable site I've followed for years is a fairly heavily moderated regional motorcycle site. You can criticize and disagree but no personal attacks are tolerated. Friendly banter and general smart-assism is enjoyed and encouraged. Those folks who show up with little to offer but quick to stir the pot are disposed of. I get TONS of information and help from the members and have met some great people. The group is good enough that I've been to Mexico with a complete group of strangers and am going again in October.

This site is a close second though with a few exceptions that I just ignore.
 
I do think the big mega-threads are community killers. They start with the intent to focus on a specific model but eventually they end up being their own community and discuss topics that aren't model specific but that may be of interest to members as a whole. But when the rest of us look at the 'new posts' and see a posting in one of those threads we dismiss it because we assume it doesn't pertain to us. Same thing happens on some motorcycle forums I'm on.

I think this site is a wealth of information, but I often struggle finding relevant information. Not just here, but on other forums, I find the single-topic persistent mega-thread to be really difficult to navigate and get useful information out of. But it's not a problem unique to this site.

My other criticism is that there may be too many sub-forums. If you try to be a good netizen and post in a more specific subforum, your post doesn't draw many eyeballs, and thus the "general discussion" topic ends up being the place where most action takes place, perhaps diluting specific topics or searches.

If I was to break the forum up, I would break it up similar to Sea Ray's model lineup.

Sport Cruisers (Sundancer 260 - 370)
Bow Riders (all open bow boats)
Sport Yachts/Yachts (all boats over 370)
Marine GPS/Radar/Sonar
Marine Electrical - DC & AC Power
Gasoline Engines
Diesel Engines

I don't think more specific forums are necessarily helpful, neither are the mega-threads. Audio/visual feels like a general post-specific topic (but not mega thread) for the models sections since they will likely have common issues, like original equipment, speaker placement, wire runs, common to their models.

What I really wish was if there was a way to pay somebody to cull the forums and translate it into a wikipedia-type site for all the specific information.
 
I love CSR -- don't change a thing. I think FrankW's post was spot on. Many of the long-time folks have either sold their boats, gotten busy with life, or have moved beyond the newbie stage and don't have as many questions as they did in the beginning so they post less. In the meantime, we've had a bunch of great new members who really add positive questions and answers. Sure, it's gotten tamer but that's not a bad thing because the drama tends to spiral out of hand too quickly.

Keep up the great work Jim and all of my online friends here!!!
 
I love CSR -- don't change a thing. I think FrankW's post was spot on. Many of the long-time folks have either sold their boats, gotten busy with life, or have moved beyond the newbie stage and don't have as many questions as they did in the beginning so they post less. In the meantime, we've had a bunch of great new members who really add positive questions and answers. Sure, it's gotten tamer but that's not a bad thing because the drama tends to spiral out of hand too quickly.

Keep up the great work Jim and all of my online friends here!!!


I couldn't agree more! I miss some of the bantering but the things I've learned on this site are invaluable!
 
I think this site is a wealth of information, but I often struggle finding relevant information. Not just here, but on other forums, I find the single-topic persistent mega-thread to be really difficult to navigate and get useful information out of. But it's not a problem unique to this site.

My other criticism is that there may be too many sub-forums. If you try to be a good netizen and post in a more specific subforum, your post doesn't draw many eyeballs, and thus the "general discussion" topic ends up being the place where most action takes place, perhaps diluting specific topics or searches.

If I was to break the forum up, I would break it up similar to Sea Ray's model lineup.

Sport Cruisers (Sundancer 260 - 370)
Bow Riders (all open bow boats)
Sport Yachts/Yachts (all boats over 370)
Marine GPS/Radar/Sonar
Marine Electrical - DC & AC Power
Gasoline Engines
Diesel Engines

I don't think more specific forums are necessarily helpful, neither are the mega-threads. Audio/visual feels like a general post-specific topic (but not mega thread) for the models sections since they will likely have common issues, like original equipment, speaker placement, wire runs, common to their models.

What I really wish was if there was a way to pay somebody to cull the forums and translate it into a wikipedia-type site for all the specific information.
I find the best way to search for info on this site is to Google my inquiry with "club sea ray" at the end. It usually gets me to a bunch if threads with some pertinent info in each.
And, I wasn't complaining about the site at all, just trying to shed some light on the reason my visits decreased as possibly the reasons others have too. There were some real A-holes here a while back. Got tired of their BS is all.
I still check in, especially when I find a topic relevant to me.

Sent from my SM-J320V using Tapatalk
 
I check in here at least once a day, usually from my phone. I have learned a great deal over the years and try to help others when I have an answer to a question. Thanks Jim for all you do! As to personal attacks and civility, this site is very well mannered. I moderate a collector firearms forum and as we have grown so too has the level of improper posts and personal attacks. I can tell you first hand that this site is VERY well behaved. I rareley see a mod have to shut somebody sldown or lock a topic. I'm a tough mod on the gun board and have locked plenty of topics and banned a few jerks so I can say with confidence that we are a good group here. I'll have a few pics to post in the classic section later tonight.
 
I check in daily, answer questions when I can and occasionally reach out to other members, which has been invaluable.

Maybe because I am on a Mac, but searching the site does not work well for me. No results or too many.

Other than that, this site has been an enormous help to me when I have issues I cannot figure out.

As far as having fun, not sure everyone is ready for my sarcasm and lack of PC! So I behave myself here.
 
I find the best way to search for info on this site is to Google my inquiry with "club sea ray" at the end. It usually gets me to a bunch if threads with some pertinent info in each.
And, I wasn't complaining about the site at all, just trying to shed some light on the reason my visits decreased as possibly the reasons others have too. There were some real A-holes here a while back. Got tired of their BS is all.
I still check in, especially when I find a topic relevant to me.

Sent from my SM-J320V using Tapatalk

The best way to search CSR is to put the following into the Google search bar: site:clubsearay.com search term

For example: site:clubsearay.com "blue smoke" will only search clubsearay.com and find posts that contain phrase blue smoke. If you remove the quotes it will find posts with blue and smoke.
 
Hmm. Lots of posts. One by one, which is the best way...

You guys want me to post a question about Honda generators on swim platforms???
Please! Those were always my favorite!

Can someone share the name of this other forum for the big boat/diesel guys?
I could, but it's a secret so then I'd have to... you know the rest. Must I elaborate? Didn't think so.

Wait a minute……..a lot of those you mentioned really haven't gone anywhere. Life and business happened……..Gary started a new health care company and is spending more than full time running it; Hampton is building a new house, and I really mean building it, like he and his wife are doing the work themselves, when he isn't flying for Delta….I saw his boat yesterday in fact; Turtle bought a house in the 'burbs, and is remodeling it while still running TurtleTone Studios; Frank (FC3) still posts from time to time, and this Frank is still here nearly every day, and most days, several times a day.

I think a lot of folks have moved on up the learning curve and it is time for them to answer some of the questions so I'm not as active as I once was, but if I miss something and you guys need me, PM still works. I frequently post when I can add something or keep someone from heading down a wrong path. However, one rabbit hole you guys are not going to lead me down again is the danged portable generator subject.


Meanwhile……it s pretty day in Florida; I'm going boating!
Dang it! Just when we're about to get a good portable generator on the swim platform thread going, Frank pours water, salt water probably, all over it. Which is precisely why you don't put portable generators on the swim platform where salt water can pour all over it. See what I did there? Clever, no?

I don't have a new house excuse, but I do have a new kitchen and backyard excuse, so I'm playing those cards, plus I have the 34 year old, wanna get back on the road car excuse, so I'm playing that card, too.

FRANK, YOU ARE SOOT ON ! :smt038
Frank! Are your Cats running rich? Soot on your transom? OMG! Say it ain't so!


Thank for the memories!

But basically, I think and could be wrong, but don't think that I am wrong.... It's all Gary's fault!
But on the other hand, Gary got to enjoy the whole 510(k) PMA thingie, so there's that. :)

Thank you very much!
Best regards,
Frank
 
The other, other Frank sold Impulse III and is enjoying OPF.
 
We miss Impulse III and his 410. Fortunately he is our "neighbor" in SW FL and we look forward to seeing him and Karen this fall when we and Reward are back in Cape Coral.
 
Hi guys,

I've only been a member for a year but I can tell you that I would not leave this site for anything since I can deal with nasty people when necessary (perks of being a business owner for so many years - nothing phases me!). We came from a 30' gas engine Chaparral and moved to a 450DA (diesel with pods) which is a HUGE change. I've learned so much here and I can personally credit those who reached out to me while we were working through a significant issue last winter with Mercury Marine with having that situation turn out to be very successful for our boat and for our family. As a result I am eternally grateful for the knowledge, the willingness to share and the fun experiences shared here as well (hello Rob in Australia!!).

My company has been extremely busy for the past month but we're fully back into our regular cruising season so I'll be popping in more frequently in the months to come. I do try to respond to threads where I have knowledge to share and can potentially help someone else so my participation is not just limited to what I can get out of the forum. I agree that the large threads for each boat type tend to evolve into forums of their own so if there is a thought to reorganize threads or forum sections, I would love to see some of those larger threads go away. I'm sure there is a ton of good information in there that I'm missing out on threads where it's not my type of boat and so the thread appears to be not relevant to me.

Regarding the "Women of Sea Ray" bikini threads - eh, I'd just as soon not see that stuff here. I'm a woman and most of the time I'm the captain of our vessel and those threads feel degrading to those mechanically-inclined women who are here for knowledge and not for looking at someone else's boobs (I have my own thanks!). Just my two cents and another perspective for those who might mistakenly assume that this is a men's-only club. (Aren't there enough bikini and boating related sites out there without cluttering CSR?)

At any rate, I'll do my best to participate more frequently and I do hope that the tenor of this site more or less remains the same. Thoughtful and free sharing of information about our Sea Ray's that we love so much.

Thanks guys,

Sandy (yes - I'm a woman!!)
 
Nice thread to get people discussing the site but as Frank said, people are busy, life gets in the way and there are fewer things to ask for help with for me personally. I am in for helping as much as possible since I received so much direction, instruction and guidance here on CSR. I am happy to have gained the knowledge here to where I can share it with the newer crowd. From advice on buying my boats, engine maintenance, polishing to operating in close quarters. I have learned so much here that I will never forget. Not to mention, we have people like Frank and Rusty (first mention I have seen here of the captain) that can spin a yarn, help with any problem as well as provide sound advice to all of us!
 

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