Is a C-Dory the right boat for me?

[thataway]

To address your complaint that the thread is not kept up: There are multiple new threads, and someone new has a question (at least once a week) and a new thread is started. The new guy does not have to dredge thru 10 pages and a hundred posts to get the information they want.

As a guy who has several hundred thousand miles at sea, and has skippered sailboats for over 70 years, I have also owned power boats. If I want a power boat which will handle the most you can take, then go with with a deep V. Bertam,Condtender Regulator or a multihull like an Invincible. . (There are limitations on the Tom Cat, because the tunnel height should be higher.). I sailed out of Long Beach, Calif. for about 50 years, including numerous trips to the upper Channel Islands. To use a C Dory there, pick the weather. I commuted to Catalina from Huntington harbor a couple of weeks during a summer (45' racer cruiser on a mooring with wife and kids aboard.) I had a Ray Hunt deep V design. I could run to HH in the flat seas in the morning at 40 knots. Coming back in the late afternoon, I went up to the LA gap in the breakwater, and then under the lee of Pt. Firman to get a better angle for the rough trip across the channel which took 2 1/2 hours! Just keeping the boat on a plane so I didn't get beat up to badly with a lot of helm and throttle work.

You might look at the Ranger tugs, or Cutwaters. A friend of mine just bought one of the Ranger Tug 29, inboard, but Mystery Woman is a Ranger 23 outboard boat and it does better into the chop.

Yes, some C Dorys have gone to the Bahamas. But pick the day. If you know the conditions between S. Florida and the Bahamas, you know that there are weeks when even a provern offshore boat will not make a comfortable passage. The C Dorys are not necessarily rough water boat, especially into steep chop. Down wind and seas, I'll put one of the 25s or 26's up with many other seaworthy boats. Going into chop, then you will put the bow down (trim tabs and Permatrim foil), and slow down. You will make the passage safely, but it will probably be wet.

The best example I had running down seas, was running South in Johnstone Strait (between East side of Vancouver Island and the general area of the Broughton Islands.) in 50 knots of wind against a flood tide. Bigger boats were not moving, but with helm and throttle responses, we had a safe run of about 20 miles.

I have sailed to the Bahamas, but not with a C Dory. I had no desire to. I could have gone; probably put a 12volt water maker aboard. I would suggest you try and get a ride on a C Dory on a rough day and see for your self.

As far as the Antares--I have never driven one, but it is a deep V, and will require more HP. (250 vs 150) This equates to more fuel use, but the boat probably runs better into chop. The windshield does not open--a disadvantage in fL., unless you put in AC. (Generator/inverter?? Li batteries)

The Jeanneau's 695/795 have some similar characteristics as the Antares. I don't like the sun roof, but I see its points. No opening windshield. Sliding door--plus and minus--great for locks, but I prefer a window that opens, rather than a sliding door. Personal opinion. I wonder about the bunk in the 795-encroach by the head?? Also nice wider side decks, at the expense of the beam in the pilothouse.

Draft is 3' ; more power going to be a better ride. Lots of gimmicks with sliding out seats and tables...these sort of things can get broken in rough weather, if some one gives them a body slam....

Beam is 9.25 feet, which means a wide load permit. I believe for this amount of wide load you still need the separate Monroe county permit. The rest of the state is not big deal, a yearly permit is cheap. A lot of Florida's roads in the country tend to be narrow, with trees overhanging, that can be an issue. (I have only trailered one 9'6" beam boat in Florida and I found narrow roads were a bit of a problem).

Good hunting--C Dorys are not every ones boat. I loved them, but understood the limitations. During a month in AK on our first 25, we only had one day we could not move because of weather. That day, even the 80 footers were not moving. There were times we would tuck in behind a larger fishing boat and ride the smooth water there, as the fishing boat proceeded at 6 knots or so.

[Jack@Ranch]

Thanks for your comments, Bob, I enjoyed reading them. In my mind, they make the point that it's not usually the boat nearly so much as the seaman. And please understand: My comment about this languishing thread was an observation, not a complaint. If it would have been twice as long, I just would have found it even more helpful.

I failed to make this point earlier but my main conflict when choosing the next boat is the diversity of its uses. For the sandbar beaching, protected ICW runs and skinny water trips so common here in SW Florida, a C-Dory's shallow belly seems ideal. A C-Dory should also be capable of longer outside coastal runs, crossing Florida Bay and slipping over to Bimini and, being selective with the weather, also fairly comfortable. The snag is that I will need to get back when conditions are 'do-able' but not ideal, as that's part of my domestic agreement now that my Mate won't be joining me. That's when the smaller Antares & Jeanneau hulls serve their purpose. With aircraft and boats, I've always tried to define the mission first, then choose the magic carpet. This time the mission is a bit more varied and I confess to being a bit stymied.

[Jack@Ranch]

FWIW here's a Youtube video covering a run by a C-Dory 22 out to the Dry Tortugas from Key West and return....plus its temporary foundering on the beach during a blow. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bBw-51P6Eo

[gulfcoast john]

Jack,

The design brief is a safe, protected, economical, comfortable outboard trailer boat that can be towed anywhere in the continent 24/7 WITHOUT A PERMIT. Therefore it must fit within the federal 8.5 foot beam and 13.5 ft height on the trailer. We trailer to upstate NY in under three easy 500 mile days at 62MPH, but we pass through parts of eight different states. Any oversize boat must obtain a permit from EACH DOT FOR EACH STATE. NY to Fort Myers is $900 in state DOT fees one way for a Ranger 29 in 2022. In FL you won’t get your permit until three days after you pay for it, it’s only valid for ten days following a prescribed route, and there are two FL counties we’ve never heard of that you can’t tow through. Multiply that by eight, rinse and repeat, then add the fact that if you think your own state DOT is not always instantly helpful with your urgent requests, it will be worse when you’re not even a voter in that state.

We’ve found the C-Dory Tom Cat TC255 to be the almost perfect trailer boat for a cruising couple for the past ten years. It has the best berth in class, a bigger than queen size rectangle rather than a V-shape. It’s stable like a barge at rest, and rides through the slop like a locomotive on rails while getting somewhat better gas mileage. We never go out in Small Craft Advisory conditions, but if they pop up we know we can get home safely. Last month we circumnavigated all of FL in 1,300 water miles over 35 days including to the Keys and a 125 mile open Gulf leg one day and 143 miles across the Gulf Big Bend the next day mostly at over 25 MPH. We have no current interest in Bimini…pick your weather and don’t cross the Gulf Stream if there is any North wind. I agree with Bob that the TC255 would do better in over true two foot seas, SCA and Gale Warning conditions if the bridge deck were higher. However, with a Coleman rooftop AC (needed in FL) and radar, we must fold over the anchor light because it exceeds the 13.5 hgt limit on the trailer, and you might want a SUP up there as well. Bob’s mod l would require less cabin headroom, or some other compromise we six-footers would not like at all. Note he also wrote it three times: Pick your weather in a C-Dory. You’ll have more picking in a TC255 than in any other. Our No-Go criteria in open waters is true seas over two feet (by definition every 100th wave will be over four feet), winds over 15 MPH sustained or gusts over 22 MPH. The boat won’t break, but your bones might. Even worse, you might need the wipers.

We get at least 2.0 MPG combined with twin Yamaha F150’s with 150g of gas for a range over 270 miles with a 10% reserve. That’s way more than needed for the longest leg on the Great Loop. BOATTEST.COM WOT was 47 MPH. We get over 11 MPG towing with a 4WD diesel F250. No non oversize trailer boats under 25 feet have an enclosed head (most also have a hand shower) if that’s important to you or the Admiral. The Ranger current 23 does, but her LOA exceeds 28 feet.

On a typical flat calm day the TC255 is much more boat than you need. A pontoon boat or jet ski will do. Other CONS: You will need an $80,000 truck and a $17,000 EOH trailer. One sold at the 2023 Seattle boat show for $289,000 with joysticks (totally un-needed) with no trailer. 150g of gas weighs over 900 pounds and affects handling on a 26 foot boat, so don’t cart it around if you don’t need a 270 mile range that day.

PM me if you have other questions, would like to talk by phone, or would like to drive up to inspect Cat O’ Mine.



Hope this is useful.

John