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Bigger or Smaller


JackShaftoe

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In the process of buying a boat and have a choice between a lovely little 45ft boat or a much bigger but much roomier 67ft boat. My question is which is better for a first time owner? Also will be continuously cruising at least for a year and again is a smaller boat better or is there no real difference?

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Personally IF I was going to live aboard, even for a year, which I am not. I would go for the bigger boat. Downsides are, more expensive for licence, insurance and mooring etc. More hull to rust and less space on the canals for maneuverability although you shouldn't have too many problems with a 67 footer.

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We are assuming this is a narrow beam boat. What parts of the country do you intend cruising in? The 67' boat will be restrictive if you head up North. All the cross Pennine routes will be closed to you. (I know the Huddersfield Narrow is 70', but you can't go beyond Huddersfield to the rest of Yorkshire.)

 

Jen

Edited by Jen-in-Wellies
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56 minutes ago, Jen-in-Wellies said:

We are assuming this is a narrow beam boat. What parts of the country do you intend cruising in? The 67' boat will be restrictive if you head up North. All the cross Pennine routes will be closed to you. (I know the Huddersfield Narrow is 70', but you can't go beyond Huddersfield to the rest of Yorkshire.)

 

Jen

If I was to give up my widebeam, it would have to a 70 footer for me, I would go the same route again with electrification, the roof would be able to contain plenty of solar and the long length makes for better cruising through the water. I would want a separate engine room for batteries etc I think

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How many people (/animals!?) and stuff will you want aboard? For one person with not much stuff, 45ft sounds wise, but for two people I think 67ft; the second person will appreciate the space and makes handling the longer boat easier.

Also bear in mind the question of wide/narrow; wide gives you more space, but rules out lots of canals and in particular leaves you restricted to one side of the north/south divide.

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My wife and I live on a 55-footer, find the space perfectly adequate, and wouldn't even consider anything that would restrict our ability to cruise freely around the system. So I'm inclined to say the 45ft, unless you really think it's just too small.

 

Are we talking about two boats that are comparable in price here? Because if so, I'd expect the smaller one to be newer/better equipped/in better nick and hence cheaper to maintain and run (on top of the obvious savings on licence, blacking etc with a smaller boat).

 

Easier to find mooring spaces too.

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1 minute ago, magictime said:

My wife and I live on a 55-footer, find the space perfectly adequate, and wouldn't even consider anything that would restrict our ability to cruise freely around the system. So I'm inclined to say the 45ft, unless you really think it's just too small.

 

Are we talking about two boats that are comparable in price here? Because if so, I'd expect the smaller one to be newer/better equipped/in better nick and hence cheaper to maintain and run (on top of the obvious savings on licence, blacking etc with a smaller boat).

 

Easier to find mooring spaces too.

Actually it is the other way around. The bigger boat has recently been renovated and is immaculate with all whistles and bells and at the price is a bit of a steal. The smaller one is pretty basic but sound. It will need work. The difference is about ten grand.

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15 minutes ago, JackShaftoe said:

Actually it is the other way around. The bigger boat has recently been renovated and is immaculate with all whistles and bells and at the price is a bit of a steal. The smaller one is pretty basic but sound. It will need work. The difference is about ten grand.

Fair enough. If you're not planning to head up north maybe you should just enjoy the extra space and the time/hassle saved by not taking on the one that needs work.

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22 minutes ago, blackrose said:

When it comes to the dimensions of a liveaboard boat, bigger is better, there's not much debate about that. On the other hand the amount of fun you can have on a boat is inversely proportional to its size. 

Just this afternoon I met a guy from Texas who spends six months of the year over here aboard an Aintree Beetle he bought five years ago.  He originally bought it as a try out, thinking he would eventually progress to a longer boat but he loves it and has no intention of swapping now.

 

It's all about storage space really, you can adapt to a small kitchen/shower room/bedroom etc. but what you really give up on a boat is space to put stuff.  If you can deal with the lack of storage, there's a lot to be said for a small boat.

 

Once you get over 60 foot you will find boats become more bang for buck as the perception of restricted cruising kicks in.  Many will argue the point but personally I can't imagine having a boat that won't navigate the Leeds Liverpool.   

 

 

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1 hour ago, Neil2 said:

Once you get over 60 foot you will find boats become more bang for buck as the perception of restricted cruising kicks in.

 

Quite agree. For a given age, quality etc a boat gets more expensive as the lenght increases up to 57/58ft, then as the length increases further the price tumbles again as peeps worry about higher mooring and licence costs, increased difficulty in handling (false, but its what newbies think), and reduced cruising range. 

 

 

 

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1 hour ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

Quite agree. For a given age, quality etc a boat gets more expensive as the lenght increases up to 57/58ft, then as the length increases further the price tumbles again as peeps worry about higher mooring and licence costs, increased difficulty in handling (false, but its what newbies think), and reduced cruising range. 

 

 

 

Wot he said.

Our 63 ft is fab.

When we bought it we thought being over 58ft would be very restricted. No way. Lots of sewers to navigate south of Manchester. Wouldn't now go any shorter. The duck would moan.

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1 hour ago, Dr Bob said:

Wot he said.

Our 63 ft is fab.

When we bought it we thought being over 58ft would be very restricted. No way. Lots of sewers to navigate south of Manchester. Wouldn't now go any shorter. The duck would moan.

I'll guess you don't have a Calder & Hebble handspike onboard then ...

 

For what it's worth, you can still do the L&L if you go diagonally in the locks though.  64ft not sharing is doable.

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