Martini 21

R

Ron B

New member
M first post.
We recently bought from an estate a 2005 Martini 21 that other than a clear title,had no papers of any kind or an ex owner to question. I an looking for anyone who has knowledge of this fine type boat. I have owned numerous diesel displacement launches and sailboats over 50 years. But none quite like this unique tug style. It's condition is as new with a 30 Yanmar. Great boat for our SE Florida canals. A call at 954 809 1696 would be welcome. Ron B
 
That is cool! You might contact Ranger Tugs. It seems to me they are connected somehow to the old Martini line. You could just ask them on their forum The Tugnuts. They are a friendly bunch and a link to them is on our front page. But be sure and keep us posted here with what you find out!
 
The Martini 21 was built by Ranger Boats of Kent, WA. It is the same hull as the R-21 tug, but configured as an open launch. I recall seeing them on display years ago at the Seattle Boat Show. I'm not sure if these boats were built before or after the Livingston family acquired Ranger.
 
That is a super cool boat. It looks like the ultimate confused seas open boat.

What a hoot it would be to have that for fishing on Lake Powell or even to take to a c-dory gathering. Not a C-dory, but clearly a character boat. I hope you got it for a really low price so you can get it out on the water a lot.
 
I was at the Ranger Tug Rendezvous in Anacortes this past weekend. I heard someone say the Ranger 21 was the previous Martini boat, with the back end chopped off and redone for the diesel. I can't verify that, but it sure looks the same.

Jim B.
 
There was a Martini Ranger company in the Pacific North West--and that had its origins in 1958--and eventually became the Ranger Tug company--and they build the 21' Ranger Tug.

But, there is also a Florida "Martini" company who built 21 foot displacement open boats. The Florida Company built the open boats with pipe frame surrey type of cover and were powered by a Yanmar diesel. There are also some which are electric powered and were sold by Green Marine LLC. as "pump out boats".

If you have a 2005 Martini 21 with the Yanmar, you have a Florida Built boat and it is not a Ranger Tug, and was not built by Ranger--but the hull form may have been from a mold splashed off a Ranger or Martini Ranger.

What is the HIN--the builder's ID will be on there. I looked at the CG Database for Martini--and there is no "Martini" currently listed, so the boat was made by a company with another name...

I would post the question along with a photo on the" Tug Nuts" forum.
 
The picture in the last post is identical to my boat, but I do not have a surrey top.
The HIN on mine is FMLM2104A505.
I have no idea how to post a photo, but a Google search gives many.
There is a logo plaque on the combing above the bow locker which says "Martini"
The construction and detail of the boat is superb. The performance is pure displacement with the tuckup aft and tug boat stern.
Mostly I would like to talk to another owner who has basic knowledge. I believe it is a close relative , maybe a twin, to the Ranger R21. I have had no response from them. Ron B
 
Ron B":dlti2v26 said:
The picture in the last post is identical to my boat, but I do not have a surrey top.
The HIN on mine is FMLM2104A505.
I have no idea how to post a photo, but a Google search gives many.
There is a logo plaque on the combing above the bow locker which says "Martini"
The construction and detail of the boat is superb. The performance is pure displacement with the tuckup aft and tug boat stern.
Mostly I would like to talk to another owner who has basic knowledge. I believe it is a close relative , maybe a twin, to the Ranger R21. I have had no response from them. Ron B
Click to expand...

Ron-

Except for the Yanmar Diesel, it resembles a Duffy Electric Boat.

Code for manufacturer's code FML (No FMLM known) is:

"DETAILS FOR MANUFACTURER IDENTIFICATION CODE FML

MIC: FML Status: In Business
Company: FLUID MOTION, LLC Company Official: JOHN LIVINGSTON
Parent Company: Parent MIC:
Address: 25802 PACIFIC HWY SOUTH City: KENT
State: WA Zip: 98032
Country: Phone: 2538395213
Fax: 2538395218 In Business: Tuesday, March 27, 2001
Out of Business: Date Modified: Friday, May 11, 2012
Type: Inboards, Cabin Cruisers


Additional Address:
Comments: OLD INFO PRIOR TO 032784 - 220 VICTORIA,COSTA MESA,CA 92627- PHONE (714)548-8254030988 OOB MLS:N. 03/27/2001 FML WAS ASSIGNED TO FREEDOM MARINE PROD; CLIFF MOFFETT: 991 W 19TH ST COSTA MESA CA 92627. OOB 03/09/1988. MIC ASSIGNED TO FLUID MOTION LLC. SEE ALSO RFB. JOHN LIVINGSTON PURCHASED COMPANY FROM HOWARD SMITH"

(from) http://www.uscgboating.org/recalls/mic_ ... spx?id=FML

Fluid Motion was one of the manufacturers of C-Dory Boats in the historical sequence.

Your VIN number, FMLM2104A505, means (probably):

FMLM = Fluid Motion (not a perfect match, perhaps the M means Martini)

21 = 21 foot model

04 = number four built of this model

(build date)

A = January

5 = 5th of the month

05 = 2005 (year)

*** If Fluid Motion built this boat, how come we C-Brats didn't know more about it at the time, etc.???

Hope this helps!

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
I think the C-Dory owner was Fluid Marine, not to be confused with Fluid Motion. Also, not to be confused with Fluid Energy Group, which purchased Triton Marine Products, which has nothing to do with the Triton that also owned C-Dory... I'm so confused. :crook
 
Sea Wolf":3or5z8px said:
Your VIN number, FMLM2104A505, means (probably):...

(build date)

A = January

5 = 5th of the month

05 = 2005 (year)
Click to expand...

One note on the last four numbers of the HIN (boats call it HIN; cars etc. use VIN). The first number and letter have to do with what month and year the hull was commenced building. The letter is the month, and the number the year. In the case of the boat here, "A5" means the build was started in January of 2005 (A for January, 5 for 2005). (Then the following "05" means it is a 2005 model year boat.

The years of the last four digits don't always "match." For example, you could have the last four digits of J304. This would mean the boat build was started in October of 2003, and that the boat was a 2004 model year. This is obviously more common with boats begun toward the end of the year, but I recently noticed a C-Dory that had a build start of July and then was a next model year boat.

(There have been other HIN numbering/lettering systems, but this is the "modern" one.)

Sunbeam
 
JamesTXSD":36333qbi said:
I think the C-Dory owner was Fluid Marine, not to be confused with Fluid Motion. Also, not to be confused with Fluid Energy Group, which purchased Triton Marine Products, which has nothing to do with the Triton that also owned C-Dory... I'm so confused. :crook
Click to expand...

You're confused? Add me to the list!

With that Hybrid Diesel -Electric Drive, all the Martini 21 needs is a snorkel and maybe a periscope to serve as an submersible attack vehicle for the Navy Seals.

The Seals would look good coming in under water with the fringe on top! :note

Woud also be a great replacement for the one they terminated development on for the new Virginia Class Submarines.

Or was it the Vagina Attack Class for Submariners? (After 6 weeks of isolation they need instruction?)

Don Anderson would have known!

I told you I was confused…(too!)……

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
I am going to disagree with a couple of the posts above, including myself.

With the Hull number: FMLM204A505. The boat hull was made/molded by Fluid Motion LLC, the makers of the Ranger Tugs. (FML by HIN look up)
The next 4 letters probably stand for: M21= Martini 21, 05= Hull number 5, and A505=hull layup started in January 2005 (the 2nd number of the last 4 numbers is the year of lay up--not a day of the month, 05= model year 2005.

I wonder if Fluid Motion laid up the hulls and shipped it to Florida to be finished as an open boat. There are several different interior layouts.

I disagree, the transom of the boat is quite different than a Duffy electric boat--there is some similar lines of the shear and bow. But not a Duffy hull.

The hull looks like the Ranger 21 before the mold was changed. A little searching on the Tug Nuts sites confirms by Andrew Curtis that there were some launch style Range 21 were built with the old 21 mold, then the molds were sold to a company in the East--Green Marine of New York was mentioned as owning the hulls and making making either a pump out boat (one is for sale with electric power) or a launch version.

So the history is that it is the older ranger 21 hull, with a more slack lines aft. It is officially built by the Fluid Motion-who makes the Ranger 21. Most recently the molds were sold to Green Marine (probably in 2011).
 
In dec. 2005 I purchased the last 21' tug from Ranger prior to them starting to build the 21ec. The web still had a martini site that ranger had and I had them add a engine cover seat back that they used on the martini launch. You could get the martini launch with either an electric motor or the 20 hp ya mar that I ordered in my tug. I talked to John Livingston a couple of times during the purchase. They sold the martini line to someone in the east and I heard later thar no launches were built by that company. In discussion I had when getting the last pre-EC tug I feel that the 2005 martini launch could have built by the Ranger group. Scott Flick the Ranger salesman at the time left Ranger and went with Salene yachts. At this time is when Ranger and C-Dory joined in a marketing agreement but it did not last long. There was a short at calling the 21'tug a C- Ranger, All of this was short lived. Ranger then took off with the 21ec and then the 25.
 
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