Hehe, I meant no point in re-writing what he did.

But I thought it might help the original poster to know that there was
someone who shared that view.

"Jeff Morris" wrote in message
...
And yet, you did.

"Paul" wrote in message
. rogers.com...
I agree with everything Ed said in his post, no point in me repeating
it.

"Ed" wrote in message
...
USED.... First boat... don't really know what you want... will
probably
trade in 12-24 months. New boats smell nice and look pretty but
without
any real experience you will bang up a new boat to look used in about
a
month. When buying used, it will be tough to find 4 stroke because
of
the newness of them. If you not mechanically inclined, get one 5
years
old and have a surveyor or a mechanic check it out.
SFlorida... OUTBOARDS are the only way to go for a walk-around or any
boat that is left in the water.

Questions:
Where do you want to go...
ICWW, 2ft seas....inside the reefs in the keys? pick almost anything.
(Wellcraft, Bayliner, Searay etc)

10-20 miles out in search of the April Dolphin bite? Stick to the
better boats in that size: Pursuit, Grady, Whaler, Mako etc and go
Twins.

Bahamas Twins are a must, get into the 25' range if possible... I took
a
24 to the abacos with a single when I was 23 years old but of coarse
at
23 you are invincible....

Also... take a boating coarse and then have a boating friend show you
the ropes for 1/2 a day.


Kharlosan wrote:
Hi all, I am not a boater yet but I am planning to be one very soon.
I live in South Florida and I think the kind of boat that fit in my
desires is
a new Walk Around between 22 and 23 feet.
The advice I need is about the manufacturer brand I should consider,
Outboard
or I/O, 4 or 2 strokes. Please let me know the reasons of your
recommendations
and share your experiences.
Any other suggestion will be greatly appreciated.
Regards.
Carlos

On Sun, 09 Nov 2003 18:19:13 +0000, Kharlosan wrote:

Hi all, I am not a boater yet but I am planning to be one very soon. I live in
South Florida and I think the kind of boat that fit in my desires is a new Walk
Around between 22 and 23 feet. The advice I need is about the manufacturer brand
I should consider, Outboard or I/O, 4 or 2 strokes. Please let me know the
reasons of your recommendations and share your experiences.
Any other suggestion will be greatly appreciated. Regards.
Carlos

I agree with Ed that you should buy used. Your first boat is almost NEVER your
last. You might try chartering a few to see what you like before you buy at all.
Also, as he said, a boating course is a must.

It sounds like things are different in the SE US, but most larger boats here in
the Pac NW are I/O. One reason is that they're all 4-strokes. I personally
prefer I/O: I feel they are quieter (and I like the lower-pitch sound better!),
I like the 4-stroke, I like being able to work on it when the boat's in the
water. Of course, my REAL preferance is a "true" inboard...

Add a small 4-stroke kicker as a "get you home" motor and for trolling.

New twin 4-stroke O/Bs are pretty nice if you can afford them, though...

Lloyd Sumpter
"Far Cove" Catalina 36

On Sun, 09 Nov 2003 18:19:13 +0000, Kharlosan wrote:

Hi all, I am not a boater yet but I am planning to be one very soon. I live in
South Florida and I think the kind of boat that fit in my desires is a new Walk
Around between 22 and 23 feet. The advice I need is about the manufacturer brand
I should consider, Outboard or I/O, 4 or 2 strokes. Please let me know the
reasons of your recommendations and share your experiences.
Any other suggestion will be greatly appreciated. Regards.
Carlos

I agree with Ed that you should buy used. Your first boat is almost NEVER your
last. You might try chartering a few to see what you like before you buy at all.
Also, as he said, a boating course is a must.

It sounds like things are different in the SE US, but most larger boats here in
the Pac NW are I/O. One reason is that they're all 4-strokes. I personally
prefer I/O: I feel they are quieter (and I like the lower-pitch sound better!),
I like the 4-stroke, I like being able to work on it when the boat's in the
water. Of course, my REAL preferance is a "true" inboard...

Add a small 4-stroke kicker as a "get you home" motor and for trolling.

New twin 4-stroke O/Bs are pretty nice if you can afford them, though...

Lloyd Sumpter
"Far Cove" Catalina 36

One reason for not going I/O in florida is that fact that we have a 12
month season. An I/O has a finite time in the salt water and since our
boats are in the water 3x those of northern boats, the I/O will get
trashed faster. An outboard can be lifted 100% out of the water when
not in use. MANY people have I/Os in FL but on a walk-around cuddy
fishing boat the resale value will be much better on an outboard because
even if you don't keep the boat in the water all year round, the next
guy may want to.

I grew up on a lake in IL and no one had outboards, big change down here.


Lloyd Sumpter wrote:
On Sun, 09 Nov 2003 18:19:13 +0000, Kharlosan wrote:


Hi all, I am not a boater yet but I am planning to be one very soon. I live in
South Florida and I think the kind of boat that fit in my desires is a new Walk
Around between 22 and 23 feet. The advice I need is about the manufacturer brand
I should consider, Outboard or I/O, 4 or 2 strokes. Please let me know the
reasons of your recommendations and share your experiences.
Any other suggestion will be greatly appreciated. Regards.
Carlos


I agree with Ed that you should buy used. Your first boat is almost NEVER your
last. You might try chartering a few to see what you like before you buy at all.
Also, as he said, a boating course is a must.

It sounds like things are different in the SE US, but most larger boats here in
the Pac NW are I/O. One reason is that they're all 4-strokes. I personally
prefer I/O: I feel they are quieter (and I like the lower-pitch sound better!),
I like the 4-stroke, I like being able to work on it when the boat's in the
water. Of course, my REAL preferance is a "true" inboard...

Add a small 4-stroke kicker as a "get you home" motor and for trolling.

New twin 4-stroke O/Bs are pretty nice if you can afford them, though...

Lloyd Sumpter
"Far Cove" Catalina 36

One reason for not going I/O in florida is that fact that we have a 12
month season. An I/O has a finite time in the salt water and since our
boats are in the water 3x those of northern boats, the I/O will get
trashed faster. An outboard can be lifted 100% out of the water when
not in use. MANY people have I/Os in FL but on a walk-around cuddy
fishing boat the resale value will be much better on an outboard because
even if you don't keep the boat in the water all year round, the next
guy may want to.

I grew up on a lake in IL and no one had outboards, big change down here.


Lloyd Sumpter wrote:
On Sun, 09 Nov 2003 18:19:13 +0000, Kharlosan wrote:


Hi all, I am not a boater yet but I am planning to be one very soon. I live in
South Florida and I think the kind of boat that fit in my desires is a new Walk
Around between 22 and 23 feet. The advice I need is about the manufacturer brand
I should consider, Outboard or I/O, 4 or 2 strokes. Please let me know the
reasons of your recommendations and share your experiences.
Any other suggestion will be greatly appreciated. Regards.
Carlos


I agree with Ed that you should buy used. Your first boat is almost NEVER your
last. You might try chartering a few to see what you like before you buy at all.
Also, as he said, a boating course is a must.

It sounds like things are different in the SE US, but most larger boats here in
the Pac NW are I/O. One reason is that they're all 4-strokes. I personally
prefer I/O: I feel they are quieter (and I like the lower-pitch sound better!),
I like the 4-stroke, I like being able to work on it when the boat's in the
water. Of course, my REAL preferance is a "true" inboard...

Add a small 4-stroke kicker as a "get you home" motor and for trolling.

New twin 4-stroke O/Bs are pretty nice if you can afford them, though...

Lloyd Sumpter
"Far Cove" Catalina 36

Your comments are wise.
Actually I am taking a basic navigation course. I have a friend with a 22 ft
boat that I use for practice, to get familiar. I will use the boat for little
cruising and fishing from the FL Keys to West Palm Beach. I believe 23 ft will
be the maximun length that you can put on a trailer with some confidence. I am
not pretty sure, but 25 ft maybe requires a special permit for trailering it.
Should I said "ropes" or "lines" ??
Thanks a lot for your comments

Your comments are wise.
Actually I am taking a basic navigation course. I have a friend with a 22 ft
boat that I use for practice, to get familiar. I will use the boat for little
cruising and fishing from the FL Keys to West Palm Beach. I believe 23 ft will
be the maximun length that you can put on a trailer with some confidence. I am
not pretty sure, but 25 ft maybe requires a special permit for trailering it.
Should I said "ropes" or "lines" ??
Thanks a lot for your comments

Yes, you are right it helped

Yes, you are right it helped

On Mon, 10 Nov 2003 21:18:48 +0000, Ed wrote:

One reason for not going I/O in florida is that fact that we have a 12 month
season. An I/O has a finite time in the salt water and since our boats are in
the water 3x those of northern boats, the I/O will get trashed faster. An
outboard can be lifted 100% out of the water when not in use.

Nope, not so. Here on the West Coast our season is pretty much 12 months as
well. I was referring to the boats in the marinas, that are in salt water 24/7/364
(one day a year to scrape'n'paint). Don't know of anyone that pulls their boat
out "for the winter" - winterizing is mainly put a tarp on it, maybe add a
heater.

However, one difference might be that due to lower water temps, the drive
doesn't gunk up as fast. Also, there seems to be a feeling in SE US that salt
water is like acid - perhaps your water is saltier?

Also, based on pics I've seen of SE US, the average age of boats around here is
MUCH older, so for most of these, the only way to get 4-stroke was to go I/O.
I'm slowly seeing the workboats converting to 4-stroke outboards, but most of
them are still I/O (those that aren't true inboards or diesels)

Lloyd Sumpter
"Far Cove" Catalina 36