Dani-Lu
Well-Known Member
Ok, OK - I give - Diesels are king.
The cost of fuel is not what sold me, nor the longevity of the engines, since I could probably replace two gas engines for the cost of one diesel. Also, I do not do my own maintenance, so I think the cost of maintaining Diesels will probably water down the savings on gas (hope I am wrong here, but I hear the cost per hour for a diesel mechanic is almost double that of a gas mechanic).
The points that sold me are:
1. Close quarter handling!
2. The benefits of the diesels while cruising on a windy choppy day, will mean a lot less throttle work, due the torque from the diesels pushing the boat through the wind and chop (confirmation of this statement would be appreciated).
3. Once I go bigger than the 380, everyone agrees, including most gas boaters, diesels are the only opton.
With this said, and knowing I will have diesels on any boat larger than the 380DA, and the fact that my wife said, and I quote: "I want 2 bathrooms (heads) on our next boat. She said this while we were anchored off a beach on the perfect Saturday we just had here on Long Island, while my kids (girls) and their friends were swimming and having a great time in the warm Great South Bay. She said this is a great way to keep our kids close, and having a larger boat will make it easier for them to bring their friends, versus not wanting to be with the family on weekends. She said we need a bigger boat that the 380DA. Please note, I did everything possible to not smile and said "well if that is what you think we should do, I will start a new search, although I have spent a ton of time looking for the 380DA". This was one of the best moments in my boating history. While I now know my next boat will be diesels, I still have some concerns:
1. I use my boat alomost every weekend, but most runs are 45 minutes to an hour, aside from the 2 to 3 times a season we run 4 to 6 hours for a week long vacation on boat. Will this type of usage be a problem with diesels?
Lastly, now I may need to start a search on a larger Dancer. Please note I like to be able to pull the stern seat for fishing. Any suggestions?
Sorry for the long email, but when your wife asks you to get a bigger boat, than the already 8 foot bigger boat you are looking at, there should be very little delay in your actions - WAAAAWHOOOO! To avoid any nasty comments from those "I wear the pants in this family husbands out there", please note I bought our current 310DA, without my wife's buy-in. She did not even see the boat until after I docked it in our marina. So for her to make a 180 degree turn around like this, speaks tons to those that don't believe boating is a great family hobby, and worth every penny!
Jeff
P.S. I may still wind up in a 380DA, since I think it is plenty big for our needs, but I guess it is never big enough!
The cost of fuel is not what sold me, nor the longevity of the engines, since I could probably replace two gas engines for the cost of one diesel. Also, I do not do my own maintenance, so I think the cost of maintaining Diesels will probably water down the savings on gas (hope I am wrong here, but I hear the cost per hour for a diesel mechanic is almost double that of a gas mechanic).
The points that sold me are:
1. Close quarter handling!
2. The benefits of the diesels while cruising on a windy choppy day, will mean a lot less throttle work, due the torque from the diesels pushing the boat through the wind and chop (confirmation of this statement would be appreciated).
3. Once I go bigger than the 380, everyone agrees, including most gas boaters, diesels are the only opton.
With this said, and knowing I will have diesels on any boat larger than the 380DA, and the fact that my wife said, and I quote: "I want 2 bathrooms (heads) on our next boat. She said this while we were anchored off a beach on the perfect Saturday we just had here on Long Island, while my kids (girls) and their friends were swimming and having a great time in the warm Great South Bay. She said this is a great way to keep our kids close, and having a larger boat will make it easier for them to bring their friends, versus not wanting to be with the family on weekends. She said we need a bigger boat that the 380DA. Please note, I did everything possible to not smile and said "well if that is what you think we should do, I will start a new search, although I have spent a ton of time looking for the 380DA". This was one of the best moments in my boating history. While I now know my next boat will be diesels, I still have some concerns:
1. I use my boat alomost every weekend, but most runs are 45 minutes to an hour, aside from the 2 to 3 times a season we run 4 to 6 hours for a week long vacation on boat. Will this type of usage be a problem with diesels?
Lastly, now I may need to start a search on a larger Dancer. Please note I like to be able to pull the stern seat for fishing. Any suggestions?
Sorry for the long email, but when your wife asks you to get a bigger boat, than the already 8 foot bigger boat you are looking at, there should be very little delay in your actions - WAAAAWHOOOO! To avoid any nasty comments from those "I wear the pants in this family husbands out there", please note I bought our current 310DA, without my wife's buy-in. She did not even see the boat until after I docked it in our marina. So for her to make a 180 degree turn around like this, speaks tons to those that don't believe boating is a great family hobby, and worth every penny!
Jeff
P.S. I may still wind up in a 380DA, since I think it is plenty big for our needs, but I guess it is never big enough!