C-22 Porta Potti... why always "never used"?

M

maryvmcclain

New member
I know, I've been posting an awful lot of questions but you guys just make it so darn easy. I spent a lot of time reading Halcyon's website but couldn't find the answer to the embarrassing question of overnight guests and the porta potti. Then I braved it and got a great answer... which is basically... we all gotta do what we gotta do. I did see the nifty extra enclosure that is on the cockpit and we are for SURE going to do that!

But here's my question: why is it that all the boats we've considered always say "new porta potti, never used"??? Even on boats that have been used a lot. Is that because you are all mostly guys?

Also, just a comment from an analytical buyer... we've analyzed all the closed "for sale" postings (just like you would a "completed" ebay transaction).... how come there are so many 2006 for sale/sold compared to other years? I know, production Quality went downhill around that time... but could they perhaps have also been trying to produce a lot more (thereby having QC concerns)... numbers never lie (accountants and CEOs sometimes do, unfortunately)... So how can I find links relating to the QC production issues... oh wise C-Brats. I'm still learning my way around.

Thanks for all your help. We are definately close to buying but had a major pipe leak here today... so, now we gotta see what we're up against. Its always something, isn't it?

Mary
 
I think porta potties do get used but mostly by the more attractive sex and most buyers would rather have a fresh one and they are relatively cheap. I think those factors would account for some of the boats for sale with unused units included. They had a crummy abused unit they they just couldn't include with a smile on their face.

We had one on our 25 and it got used constantly, but... there was a little room to use it in and that makes all the difference in the world.

You see more 2005-2007 boats for sale because there are simply more of them. I looked at C-brats members and boat years and here is a sample of total boats for the peak years.

2008 134
2007 233
2006 250
2005 276
2004 51

Roughly 20-50 boats are represented on this site for each production year from 1993 to 2004 then you can see the numbers above peak in 2005 and remain quite high until 2008 when the numbers go down again.
 
I think that many of the 2003 to 2007 boats are people who are not necessarily dedicated boaters. It used to be that one got into boating, and stayed in boating all of their lives. We see examples (including some recent posts) where people got into boating--used a C Dory for several years, and then wanted to do something else in life. We seem to see lots of examples like buying a boat in 2010 and then selling it early 2012 these days.

There are many reasons for this--often the fantasy of boating is not the reality of boating. Often the wife does not share the enthusiasm that the husband does. Of the boats we have purchased this was often the case.

Another issue is the ride of the C Dory--it is not the same as a deep V--or many of the express cruisers etc--so some folks end up not understanding how to run the boats, and being disappointed. In reality the boats are extremely sea worthy, and will handle a lot of rough water, but you have to slow down, change course, and trim the boat correctly.

Yes, there was mass production of boats in the 2003 thru 2007 Era--some were better than others. The original workers left C Dory, and there were some problems. I have probably been as critical as any--having owned an earlier boat (1992) and then a 2003, two 2006 boats. Also remember that I have built boats, and restored boats, as well as doing some surveys, so I will be more critical than the average boater. The problems were relatively minor, and by this time should have been fixed. The 2006(actually laid up i Dec 2005) boat I recently purchased does not seem to have any serious issues. I will be cleaning up the wiring, and doing a few upgrades--but basically is as good--or slightly better than the 1992 boat I owned. So....don't be afraid of the newer boats. Any issue is fairly easily fixable--if even present.

As for Porti potties: Many don't use them--they go to marinas, or just don't stay out overnight. Agree that some may have been replaced. But we had one we have used for over 20 years in various vans etc--and it still is i good condition.
 
Aha.. that explains it. Crazily Increased production=sometimes bad QC...

And you are right that people do tend to buy first without knowing if they like boating... how else do you learn?

We STILL have not gotten to ride on the C-Dory but I think I can deal with the bumpy ride as long as I don't have to cruise for hours and hours and hours (see prior posts).

We are looking at only 2006 and later because, while I'm getting used to the idea of the lack of potti privacy and risk not having guests overnight... but I'm not giving in on the passenger facing forward. Glad to know that I don't have to worry specifically about certain years as long as we've check out the boat.

Thanks for the facts! I'm going to love being a brat!
 
My best friend, who I've known all of my life (since 6 months old), refuses to use the porta-potty.

This guy is smart, hard working (he crews Indy Cars), funny, a great fisherman, lucky at cards and ladies, and an all-around good guy.

BUT, I've never been able to shake his refusal to use the pp.

In spite of all of my powers of persuasion he is unmovable. :roll:

Luckily, his ability to "hold it" is simply amazing.

I've seen him go days.:disgust

However, all good things must come to an end and when a man's gotta go, well, you know.

So, I accommodate him when I must.

I remember bottomfishing the Boundary Buoy on the Canadian border one day when nature called.

Up lines and over to Patos where I put him off the bow onto a concrete wharf in a rolling sea. Nosed in, backed away. Repeated for the pickup.

This was an expensive, risky hassle but what's a skipper to do ?
 
Not long after our '04 was built at the old "very small" factory in Kent, the factory was moved to a very much larger factory site. Then the C-Dory production line expanded tremendously. (As you can see by the numbers posted....over 5 times the number of C-Dorys built in '04 were built in '05).
 
A mistake to limit to 2006 + boats (not all 2006 have the " Berber chair". My wife has always sat in the aft dinette seat, except in very limited visibility when she may be watching the radar. The ride is better aft, and she has the table in front of her. Try riding in both first. Again there are tricks to get the best ride!
 
Dr Bob

They are also looking at the cockpit raised floor. I made a trip to Brannan Island state park so they could see a C-Dory in person, they loved the cockpit liner and flat floor. The sea conditions were 17 gusting to 27 so I did not launch for a true test drive but at least they could poke around our boat for an hour. These are really nice people and will be a great addition to the C-Brats
 
Yes, the new boat (Dec 2012) has the raised cockpit floor. There are some advantages, but we had both "dry deck" and then a 3/4" closed cell foam mat in the 1992 boat, and that served a very similar function as the cockpit floor boards (or floor boards can be made for retrofit).

I am sure that these folks are going to be real positive members--and we welcome them aboard. They also seem to be dedicated boaters and are asking excellent questions. But for example my 1992 22 C Dory was also a very good boat, and served us well for a number of years as out "West Coast" boat.

For the most part when we own a specific boat, we tend to think it is the "best" model. When in fact all of the C Dorys have a very good features--and there are pluses and minus in each boat/year. For example some find the molded interior a negative, because one cannot modify it as easily. Others prefer the tabbed in (which we did on our 22 and 25) eliminating the "L" brackets (still present in the 2006 boat we just purchased. (When my back is better, we will tab in the bulkheads and longitudinals.

Thanks for showing them your boat--and "just 17 to 27"--could have made for an exciting ride!

Take care--and thanks for the comments.
 
Bob, you know how the Delta is when that wind kicks up, so you are right it might have been a wild ride. I was close to say lets launch when 1 boat came ito the dock sideways and it took 5 people to get it on the trailer, that's when I made the no go decision.

You are also correct that each of us thinks our boat model is the best. I did not buy ours for the cockpit enclosure, it just was the only boat on the market at the time and it had the options I wanted which was a plus. I do like my twin Suzuki's and the fact that I have the decragard cabinets, I am waiting for my rotator cuffs to heal after surgery before I start the under sink mods. It will go to the canvas shop as soon as I get a driver to take it in. All this time off after surgery is running up the Visa bill as I have time to search for new goodies to add to the boat.
 
I too am in the process of looking for a C-Dory and have found the forums here very helpful. I have only been able to ride/test drive one boat, a 2007 22 cruiser with twin Merc 40's. I wasn't overly impressed with that particular boat, and visual inspection suggested the operator used the docks more than the fenders for docking... ;-( However, I have yet to talk to a C-Dory owner that didn't love the boat, but the recurring theme is the ride. I currently have a 1988 Searay 268 Sundancer that is in the process of going up for brokerage, and moved up to that boat from a 21 ft Sun Tracker Party Barge. My reasons for the next changeup are pretty simple. Fuel and maintenance costs, and wanting a boat that is easy to winterize several times as we begin seeing freezing weather with ice still out. (Ie, the outboard, you just trim it down to dewater it. ;-) Most my boating doesn't involve overnights unless it's just my wife and I, and we still want something that can handle the big lakes around Door County, Wi and the Apostle Islands, while still being able to launch on smaller home town lakes. It may take me a while to go slower in chop than I can in the SeaRay, but once the Great Lake chop starts picking up pretty good, I'm down to around 8 kts in it too.... Doing some extended runs from land, the porta potta might be a necessity, and not sure how it will compare to a very tight stand up head on my current boat, but it's still probably better than a bucket or hanging over the gunwale. Seems to me like the 22 C-Dory Cruiser will give me the versatility I'm looking for, but sure wish the prices were a little more conservative. I suppose like everything else, the seller thinks they are already underpriced while the buyer thinks they are overpriced.
 
Colby, the ride and handling characteristics of the C-Dory hull are certainly unique but it has proven to be very seaworthy over time. Just a few weeks ago I came through Padilla Bay (shallow and ~7nm south fetch) in a winter gale with southerly winds of 30-40 knots gusting higher. It wasn't the most comfortable ride at about 6 knots (lots of green water over the bow!), but the boat never felt unsafe with some pretty nasty head seas and it would have been much more comfortable with following or quartering seas. Even when I had to run with beam seas briefly to dodge crab pot floats the boat was reasonably stable and I wasn't concerned about capsizing or taking any serious water into the cockpit.

As for the ports potti...we've had the boat for 3 and a half years and used it 360 hours and the ports potti is still in its original box at home. Overnight spots typically either have some type of toilet ashore or I make my own (responsibly, of course).
 
FYI...

We have devised a simple. inexpensive solution to the privacy issue.

I mounted coat hooks on either side of the aisle in the cabin, using the bolts that mount the exterior rails on the roof.

We have a 2' wide curtain that can be hung on these hooks.

This does not provide complete privacy when at dock. But it shields the view from the cockpit area, not only for using the Porta-potti but also changing clothes.
 
So far I have managed to leave the PP out on the "back40", except when in the marina or camp dock. Like the fresh air there :roll: Admitted, it does not get used a lot.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon
 
Re 20dauntless reply to me...thanks. Your comments are exactly why I'm looking for a C-Dory. I'm willing to put up with a rougher ride than my SeaRay on the choppy water, but want something that is also quite seaworthy. Again, every C-Dory owner I've talked to (and admittedly that's not a lot, but I've done a lot of reading thru the C-Brats site), has have many good things to say about their boats. Fortunately, I live near Brazo, and he has done some really neat things with his boat, to give me ideas when I finally get my own. Keeping this thread on subject, I"m sure there are many ideas out there for using the porta potty. It's not a matter if I'll need it, I will. ;-) It's just a matter of how most make the best use of it. Colby
 
If other options are available we don't use it. We use our boat in so many situations the PP has and will be ( no doubt about it) an asset.

I weigh 157 and wife (no one knows for sure) 125. So we are not large and able to have a workable program in the berth. It took us some time to work it out. Then the most amazing thing is we sleep on top of it and are so happy!

Be one with your PP. (seriously)

Primative
 
I wonder about the practicality of a product (designed for one time use?) which costs from $1.50 to $2.00 per use. There is then also the problem of where to dispose these (for example at Lake Powell--where all trash has to be carried out. There are porti potty dump stations situated all around the lake where there are pump outs. Also the porti potty can be dumped at home, where as pumping out the holding tank can be a problem at many homes.
 
WARNING ALERT. Do not read if you are about to sit down to supper.


I knew a guy (no it was not me) who used a small bin liner over a open bucket, the bin liner had a small hole in it. When finished, he would lift the bag of solids and place in another bag for disposal at a convenient time. The liquid in the bucket went over the side. Boating is full of compromises, each to his/her own.

Martin.
 
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