this is a great boat......your money is well-spent, in general, on a
parker, as they are both designed right and built right by a knowledge
able boater who puts HIS NAME right on the hull of each one.....
that said, the real wisdom of your purchase will be the DURATION
you have the boat.......like cars, once you have paid them off, they
progressively become very inexpensive......as the enjoyment ADDS
UP and the money output RECEDES, you win big.....thus, if you keep'
the boat for 15 years, you win......if you sell it in 2-3 seasons for either
a bigger boat or a different style, you are losing....like wives, it pays
to get the right one the FIRST time, as changing can be hard on the
wallet, if not the heart.......
one other observation: i always advise folks to allow minimum 20% of
their budget for post-purchase fitting out......canvas, electronics, spares,
tools, foul weather gear ( dont get me started!......i have gone with
west, land`s end, henri-lloyd, and all the other fancy-shmancy foulies
over my four decades of boating actively......they are grotesquely over
priced and lack durability=poor choice and poor investment.....i have,
on the advice of my alaskan-commercial-fishing-son gone 100% to
GRUNDENS.....a fifth of the cost, and THESE BABIES ARE THE REAL
DEAL......in short, get a MAN`S suit of foulies!)....but i digress.....
to be fiscally comfortable, as well as physically comfortable, allow
20% to fully outfit your boat for you personal likes and needs.......
the advice #1 and #3 are somewhat in conflict......ie get all the boat
you will ever need AND pull out 20% of your budget for "fitting out'....
the answer lies in the simple fact that "moving up" rarely, in retrospect,
yielded more fun, more time on the water, or more of anything but
maintenence and headaches (pun!....i have a porta potti, but the poor
devils with built-ins, who either have a "backup" or some insufficient
hose which is inaccessible to your hands but so aggressive to your
nostrils, can have head-aches literally, as well as figuratively)....
keep it simple!.......keep it fun!
my last advice for the sealorn concerns your power option.....i would
disagree with the conventional wisdom about how much horsepower
is NEEDED.......i traveled at 18kt in my 17` whaler with 85 johnson
for 20 seasons, and i have been traveling at 18 kts for 14 seasons now
in my 25`scmv........i hear people (not the sharpest knives in the
nautical drawer) ask first off, "how fast will she go"?......you dont need
or want to go more than 25kts, at most.......yes, ocean or other "heavy"
water will soak up horses, as will your deep vee (they actually dont get
on a true plane on top of the water.....the keep dragging their "keel"
throught the water) designs......but in general , a v-6 engine is plenty
for your boat, JUST PROP IT INTELLIGENTLY, ie use less diameter by
at least 1/4 to 1/2 " than the dealer recc (they think you want to reach
the max SPEED) and at least 1-2" less pitch..........PROP IT DOWN, and
you will have a smoother engine with reserve it needed.......so here is
dr dan`s prop formula: find out (the mfr and/or dealer will know) what
is the IDEAL RPM for that engine to run (which will be the most econo
mical AND the most years/hours of service to you).......for a two cycle
that will be about 3300 to 3600 and for four cycle about 2600-2900.....
now find out what speed your boat is most comfortable with, ie not
only a good clean plane with flat (not heaped up) wake but overall
solid feel......USE THE PROP , MOSTLY PITCH REDUCTION, TO PUT THE
IDEAL ENGINE SPEED ONTO THE IDEAL BOAT SPEED........a boat does
not vary speed much vs say, a car....thus, matching up your ideal boat
speed with your ideal engine speed is the success of propping out......
between rough water, loading up with hominids and their appurtenences
you will use more rpm if and when you need it.....i think your power
is just great!.....dont fall for the "guy thing" (you know what i mean) dan