How big is too big ? How small is too small?

[captd]

Tow rigs, that is......
My 350 ford 2003 (Diesel) was just traded off for a 450 2008 (diesel) ford.
One problem after the other with the 350. Automatic transmission for one.
Turbo for two. Now an injector for three
I carry a 11.5 camper with slide out. That means an extended hitch of 4 to 5 ft.( with step up.) I weighed the whole rig last fall heading for Florida. My GVWR was about 23,000.with 22 ft. C-Dory. Takes special hitch made in Kent, Wa. 1000 lb tongue weight. 10,000 pull.
Turbo has been replaced once, looks like it needs it again. One injector quit. Transmission squealing. 53,000 miles on it. But I think it was rode hard and put away wet to many times. The 450 sounds like it can handle a pay load of 16,000 Lbs. If it don,t maybe I can find a used KenWorth. The Ranger itself is not a tough tow, A big suv should be able to tow it.
Capd
Ford, One more time
I have been wondering where I could put the moon.

[Ron on Meander]

Capt D,
I always wondered how big your rig was.... the truck and camper that is. I've often thought I'd like to try a truck, camper and the CD 25 for some extended cruises, land and water in the not to distant future. I've wondered if a 350 would handle the load of both a larger camper and a 25. Its sounds like it does, but just barely. Let us know how the 450 handles the load.
Ron

[thataway]

It will be very interesting to see what the C Ranger fully loaded on a tandom axel trailer weighs. My guess in the 10,000 plus range--considering that the Tom Cat is that or more, and some folks get close to 9,000 lbs on the C D 25.

I have seen some really great Monroe truck hauler conversions--but they are sure pricey--in the 1 1/2 ton. If I was serious about lots of towing, I would get a "Toter home". For example such as:
http://www.rvtruck.com/rv_truck_008.htm
http://www.rvtruck.com/rv_truck_007.htm (Volvo white with an older RV set on the chassis--scroll down)
http://www.sonnymerryman.com/pdfpages/PXToterhome.pdf
http://www.kibbi.com/ChassisM2.aspx
http://www.dynamaxcorp.com/

Ok some of these are a bit pricey, but you can buy a used Freighliner, Mack, Volvo etc tractor farily cheap and put one of these bodies on it--then you can haul 40,000 lbs with ease!

[captd]

Ron,
Ya, the 350 really has no problem with power pulling the Ranger and even the heavy pickup camper. I was going to get a shorter camper, than I could do away with the 4 ft hitch ext. That with 700 plus pounds of hitch weight, sets the back of the pickup down to far. I have air bags ajusted to 100 lbs psi. Not as good as the Canadian rubber mount extensions. Canuck something or another. I am going to order those for the 450.
I had those block with a Big Foot camper back a few years ago, and they really work good. Plus the are cheaper.
A pickup camper and a trailerable boat is a perfect life style to me. We stay pretty much out of camp grounds and Marinas. Great from Alaska to the Bahamas. I think the Ranger is capable of cruising all the Carribean islands. I haven't convinced Mrs. Dee of that yet. Those islands are not that far apart. Some day we will be able to cruise Cuba. Hope I live that long. I would sure like to see other Range people think about doing some of those longer trips. I think the C-Dory could do it as well. 300 mile range boats can handle it with no problem. Look at the charts. It would be interesting if 90 miles to Cuba would be the longest trip. I took a 300 mile, 15 knot boat all the way around Cuba to Jamaca to Caymans and beyond. Going from the Bahamas East through Turks and Caicos and Virgin Islands would even be easier. Some of you salty sailers that have done this kind of trip could fill us in, maybe.........
Captd

[patrick and linda]

capd,
i, also have a 2003 ford f350 dually, 7.3l diesel. purchased new, had 20 miles on the speedometer. driving back and forth from cincinnati to lake cumberland has racked on the miles and i'm now sitting with 104,000.
i've not experienced any problems to date, other than the front tires needing replacing after 30,000. the rear tires were replaced at 93,000.
i'm interest in seeing how your f-450 performs. if you think about it, update us on how things go. i would like to replace my truck with a new one prior to retiring. as far as towing, it's a mule, anything any
where.
thanks
pat

[Doryman]

[thataway]

Could a C Ranger 25 get to the caribbean on its own bottom? Yes, probably. You have to remember that there are some some parts of that passage are directly into the trade winds which go across the entire Atlantic ocean. Buy Bruce Van Sante's book on "Gentleman's passages South". Bruce has made this trip many times in a full keel sailboat and in a Schucker 44 Trawler(recently for sale). If you want to go to the Bahamas and Caribbean, spend $70,000 and buy Bruces boat--it is very capable and a great boat. Make that a one or two year adventure--you might stay the rest of your life--then buy the C Ranger for what it was designed for. There are two statments in Bruce's book which have to be kept always in mind: "Depart only when favorable conditions prevail and look like they will be sustained for 36 to 72 hours". "If you press on in 20 knot trades and 5 to 8 foot seas in a 35 to 40 foot boat with a small engine, you are pleading for diseaster...When it doesn't, you haven't cheated it---it will only be that much more of a diseaster the next time!".
These are very wise words. I know 80 footers which did not do well bucking into the trades, and I only did it at night (winds down) in a 62 foot full powered motorsailor for short distances.

As for going to Cuba--not a problem, but the C Ranger 25 probably does not have the range for circumnavigation of Cuba (which is a fantastic voyage). Getting diesel fuel on the back side could be a problem--at least currently, even if you could get the permit.

We have spent over a year cruising the entire Caribbean, and I would not be comfortable in the C Ranger 25, mostly because of the seas you run into and the comfort level. This is big ocean stuff, plus current against trade winds, makes very steep and nasty seas.

Once the boat is in the Windward Islands, or Puerto Rico, you should be able to go between all of the Islands and S. America. In some ways the Western Caribbean would be a bit more of a challange, but probably could be done with the 300 + mile range--the issue is that you will be fighting a current, especially since you cannot go thru Cuban ports, and the Northers are very severe storms, and not something that the C Ranger is designed for. If you must use the C Ranger in the Windward/Leeward Islands, then ship the boat on a barge to Puerto Rico.

Take care,

Bob

[PenguinPA]

Capt Bob,

As always thanks for your insight! My wife and I have recently being dreaming of a trip just as you and Capt D are speaking of. I have slowly been doing a little research into just what that trip would entail and if the R-25 would be made of stern enough stuff!

It would be really interesting if those with the local knowledge could lend more of the local lore and areas of concern to help us in achieving our dream.

I love this website and appreciate everyone who contributes. Thanks to all!

Drew

[Sawdust]

Like Dr. Bob, I have spent (mis-spent?) years in that area, and love it. Sure the Ranger 25 can do it, but certainly not my choice of boats for that -- and I absolutely love the Ranger 25. Trouble is, you are boating in big water. If you really take your time, pick your weather, etc., etc., the trip could be a blast. The last time my 85 Burger came from Miami to San Francisco via Panama, the wind was always on the bow, short, 15-25 ft. choppy, miserable seas - both going to Panama and north to California.

In spite of that, I'd do it again in a NY second!!!

Dusty

[thataway]

PenquinPA--what sort of information are you looking for? As Dusty, I feel that the seas would be the major issue. You would have to have the time( and this might mean waiting months in some cases) to get the weather window. This last March--as most every year--no one was mooving out of a number of the Bahama anchorages for weeks because of wind and seas--and this includes some very good sized boats..

As for the Cuba trip--it used to be that you could go to Great Iguana in the Bahamas, then enter Cuba at Baracoa, and pick up fuel at Santiago de Cuba, Manzanillo, Santa Cruz de Sur, the next place for diesel would be Cienfuegos. (this leg may push the range of the C Ranger). This side of Cuba is very rarely cruised, is unspoiled and very lovely. It is truely the Caribbean (which the Bahamas are not)--and protected from the Northers and colder weather which may come to the Bahamas. I have two friends who have cruised this area extensively for a number of years--but no more--at least not for Americans. (Not a problem with Cuba; you probably cannot check in at Baracoa). Niegel Calder's book on Cuba (Cuba a cruising guide) gives a lot of details on this trip--he went the opposite way, but doesn't make a lot of difference. This guide is 10 years old, but that makes little difference--except of local policies.

There are excellent cruising guides for all of these areas and they give up to date information. Some of the older guides are out of print. I have some of these. On the other hand in our early trips to some of these areas we had no guides or GPS, and no problems...just more of an adventure!

The old saying is "just do it"--but I don't think that the C Ranger 25 is the ideal boat....You want something a bit larger and with more range, just in case.....

Bob

[captd]

Pat,
Your truck being a 7.3 is a good proven engine. Mine was a 6.0 when it first came out and it had a new transmission. Must have had 4 computor updates. Fuel milage got worse after each one. Now I'm doing it again. Duel turbos, 32 valve. About the time they get the bugs out of a rig, they come up with a new one.

Warren,
I just looked it up. The mounts are made by Timbren Industries. in Ontario Canada. www.timbren.com A Dealer:
http://www.stengelbros.com/TimbrenRideControlKits.htm

I know there are better boats to cruise the Carribean than a C-Dory or a Ranger, But my 22 ft C-Dory crossed the Gulf Stream 4 times and I loved every minute of it. The 45 ft Chris, probably a dozen times. The Ranger will cross this winter or early next spring. I have gone all the way down the 750 miles or so of the Bahamas to Great inaugwa. Is that how to spell it? Anyway we fueled up in Mathew town on that last island south. Heading to Jamaca. From there we went south to Colon, Panama. This was with a 45 Chris Craft. I would not do that with a C-Dory or a Ranger mainly because they can't carry enough fuel. I used fuel bladders and plastic drums in 1992.
If I am not mistakened, you can go to Cuba, but you can not spend American money there. I have met Americans in the Bahamas ( sport fishing boats.) that spend Candian bucks when in Cuba. They said they had no problems. Bob, do you know anything about that?
All of Cuba should be a piece of cake with a good 25 ft boat. Just got to pick a good weather window. I don't care if I have to sit for two, three or four weeks, in fact, Miss Dee insists on it.
\
Oops , time for dinner.
captd

[captd]

Checked on spelling. Cheezzze, I have brain f____ts sometime. Great Iguana is in the Abacos. Great Inagua is the furtherest island So in the Bahamas chain. All 750 miles of this chain is good cruising ground for the ranger. After crossing the Gulf stream (at about 60 miles) All the Abacos is protected water on the banks. Leaving from Palm Beach. Going to Bimini, leave from Miami or all points south. 5 hours with a C-Dory or a Ranger. Some C-Dorys can make it over in three hours. It is easy to pick a good weather window to make a run that far. We on fishing trips go out 20 to 30 miles offshore fishing and don't think anything about it. Well thats half way there. May as well go the rest of the way as return back to Florida. Off Mexico, C-Dorys and lots of less sea worthy boats go 50 -60 mile out in the Pacific. Just pick a nice day. Waiting for a good weather window can be as much fun as the getting to where you want to go.

Hey Bob, Bruces boat will not go down the highway to my house. Bruces boat may be better in someways, but I have found we enjoy the smaller boat for the economy. Right now as I write, my storage barn is being built for the Mis Dee. Bruces boat won't fit. I'll post pics when done.

No need to fear going to the Bahamas, Just have respect for the sea. The Gulf Stream is probably one of the most dangerous bodies of water in our
hemisphere. Even Cruise ships will wait it out. But when we cross it is like a big duck pond. One time it caught us in the middle of the crossing. Wind switched 180 degrees from south to the north. Got a bit lumpy before we got to Palm Beach. The boat handled it fine, but we didn't.

Captd

[thataway]

Captd,
Until a couple (May really be 3 or 4 years) the government turned a blind eye to boats going there "sponsored". But recently have really clamped down. I was going in 1996, but then the airplanes were shot down, and I was comming up from Panama, and didn't have information. When I got to Mexcio, it turned out that several boats went with no problems.

But currently the Treasury dept has fined people $7,000 for going thru Mexico and Canada. Boats have been stopped, etc. I would not attempt it.

My friends who went as "missionaries" or "Reporters" in their private boats a few years ago, will not try it now, because of the political situation. There was a race and at the CG briefing the last time, the CG officer started by taking names of all present. There were CG boats to stop the race. Previous to that the government turned a blind eye, because Marina Hemmingway "Sponsored" the race.

The North side of Cuba is not as hospitable as the South Side (weather and shoreline). A close friend went there about 5 years ago, and tried to cruise the North side--He had some problems with the officials--just not being timely in clearances making it difficult to leave with a good weather window, and daylight to make the next port. Certainly all friendly and no "official" problems from the Cubans.

Yes, you can cross the Gulf stream in almost any boat, when it is calm--but you have to have the time to wait until the weather is good again to cross back.

The point I was making is that it is often best to buy a boat specifically suited to a voyage which will last several years. Do that voyage and then sell that boat, and get another for the trailering, and shoal draft. Most good cruising boats hold their value, and there will be little financial if any loss by owning that larger boat for the duration of a cruise, plus you will be far more comfortable and safer.

[captd]

Thanks Bob,
My info was a little old. Back sometime ago it was the American dollar that could not be spent there. I also knew that Bush tighten things up a bit.
Appreciate your input on the subject. Sounds like you have had a good life cruising most of the world. I use to dream about doing that many years ago. But you know The Bahamas chain contains allot of islands, and one thing, I never get tired of going back to the good ones. The wait for the weather window has never been a problem for us. Palm Beach or Miami down to the keys has always been a good place to wait, also from the Bahamas side. All water sports from fishing , snorkeling to scuba diving. Both sides allow spear fishing under water. Even at my age, I really enjoy.
And you are right about having a big boat if you are going to do extensive cruising. The 45 ft. Chris was a little more like that. To be honest with you the cost of having the boat got so expensive with dockage, haulouts and fuel. Twin 8V71's were said to be fuel efficient. To me 25 gal an hour kind of takes the fun out of it. Trawler is the only way to go for my pocket book. Or better yet a trailerable trawler. I'll drink to that.
Captd

[thataway]

This gets a little off the thread. But I ran into friends today who spent the entire winter in the Bahamas (Nov thru May). They have been there several times before, and the Western Caribbean--Mexico, Belize, Honduras, Rio Dulce. They are going back to the Western Caribbean next Winter, like it much better. Cheaper, better cruising (although it is also subject to Northers) and no where as crowded-- The distance is only a little over 300 miles from Key West to Isla Mujeres, but...it is straight into the Gulf Stream--and can be up to 3 knots against you..

We have been in the Western Caribbean three times, and we tend to agree--a path much less traveled, and delightful!