Boat Sank

[megabytes]

http://fryingpantower.com/ftopict-15853.html

This fellow posts a lot on this site and is a class guy. I really feel sorry for him. Maybe the GW bashers on THT will lay off for awhile.

 

[Grog]

That really sucks for him, on the good side, nobody was hurt. I'm suprised he didn't notice the bilge pump going on and being unusually sluggish should have raised a flag but doesn't matter anymore.

Now how much is the transom flexing that the caulking (4200) would have a problem sealing?

 

[ElyseM]

Now how much is the transom flexing that the caulking (4200) would have a problem sealing?

poor guy. i always wondered about "composite" transoms with ob's. i guess if you layer a ton of glass in there you should get the strength, but how do the mfg's actually lay it up? the gw's transoms are trashed for the wood, but when all that motor is attached in about a 1 sqft area, i want strength. ron

 

[BobP]

GW bashers at THT will exist as long as GradyWhite exists.

Any boat can succumb to faulty build, service, or repair, or impact damage, theft, etc - be sure insurance premiums are paid on time, nothing esle you can do after the fact.

I consider him fortunate boat didn't sink with crew on it.

Another reason to have bilge water hi level alarm, forget trying to keep up with it with installing multiple pumps, first need to know about it as soon as possible - more important.
A rag stuffed in position may have been all it took. I'd sure like to give it a try in saving my boat.
Be surprised how much a hole can be stuffed with a sweatshirt.

 

[ElyseM]

Any boat can succumb to faulty build, service, or repair, or impact damage, theft, etc - be sure insurance premiums are paid on time, nothing esle you can do after the fact. .

all things can, and do, fail; no matter how much engineering is involved (we've had two very tragic shuttle disasters that show that).

an mfg trying to do the best they can to produce a good product is all i ask for. don't give me cheap; give me solid. looking at a solid piece of wood transom at the gw plant, you can see strength. yes, it has to be properly installed and protected, but what doesn't need that care in any product?

anyway, i digress. we don't know why the thru hull failed -- but my non-engineering background agrees that too much flex won't help any. ron

 

[Daman858]

A 63' Bertram ($2 million plus) went down off Myrtle Beach last month. They suspect hull delamination which reportedly is a Bertram problem.

You just never know....pays to be vigilant and keep an eye out for potential problems.

No injuries to the professional crew taking the boat south for the winter.

 

[CAPT. DORADO]

wow this sucks.... last october in my cuzins 54 ft bertram out of freeport tx we took on over 1000 gallons of water n were going down but my shirt sure made a good tampon n sealed it up.... at about 35 miles off shore we had the coast guard land aboard off the helo... pretty cool sight after we figured we werent going to sink.... the bildge punps didnt work properly aftre getting it out of the shop so they got a second chance at fixing it with their money this time lol.... as we pulled in the port side tranny went out due to the salt water it was filled with... were itching like crazy batteries were up side down, with acid everywhere. the whole engine room was full of water.... but thank god we were all safe...

my mothers first trip offshore was in the cabin in the ac allll day sick but when we started taking on water she went straight to the top.....lol

 

[sel1005]

lets be thankful that everyone came out OK, boats can be fixed, people, especially this time of year, need to be highly protected and always aware of whats going on with the boat and your surroundings

a few years back I had a 26' Pursuit CC and was fishing offshore with friends when I noticed when we stopped over a reef that the cockpit drains were under water and would not drain several inches of water in the aft cockpitk which was getting deeper as I watched. After manually turning on the pumps, I immediately pulled anchor and put the boat on plane and drained the cockpit and started investigating why; I never found out. Back at the dock the cockpit was totally dry, I flooded the bilge a bit and pumps came on just as expected, but at sea, nothing was working and I am convinced to this day that another 15-20 minutes of fishing and we would have sunk 20 miles out and never knew why. Gremlins? Who knows. No one could ever replicate it again, yet I was 20 miles out and the boat was sinking and in multiple tests later, she rode as high and dry as you could ever ask for.

Builders can only do what they do, the rest is up to us. We have to be always alert to issues, how the boat handles, how she feels, watch for warning signs, little things. As the Capt, you are totally responsible for the lives on board, no matter who built the boat, its on your watch and be sure you have the expertise and equipment on board to handle whatever comes your way.

 

[Kenlahr]

Watch your Grady Bilge

While running home from the Baltimore canyon last year one of the anglers asked if all of the water comming out of the bait well was "normal". He was sitting on the hatch and water was pouring through the closed hatch onto the deck. I pulled the throttels back opend the bait well and it was filling faster than it could drain. The pump was off but the sea cock was open because we had live bait and we had been using it.

I pulled the stem to help it drain and started looking around. Opened the access to the bilge and it was FULL! The bait well is NOT sealed along the edges at the top of the "fiberglass bucket". When it overfills it will fill the kill box (melting ice) and then flow over the sides, between the cracks and into your bilge and below deck areas. When I opened the access from the aft cabin I found it soaking wet, water had been pouring down there.

I suspeect that while on plane we created a suction and water blew past the pump and just kept filling the live well. I have since replaced the pump just in case and I close the sea cock when we are getting ready to run. Its a PIA, but ..... I don't want to learn that lesson again.

 

[megabytes]

More info. I'll bet the response from GW would be different based on numerous accounts of problems past the warranty period.

December 7, 2009
<name>,

We received your letter upon returning from Thanksgiving break. We are certainly sorry
for the recent issue with your 2000 Regulator 26. When you purchased the Regulator 26,
your expectation was to enjoy the boat with family and friends and it sounds as though
you have enjoyed many fun and productive fishing trips off of the North Carolina coast.
All boats, Regulators included, require a certain amount of maintenance to stay
seaworthy. We started building boats in 1989 and you can still find many of these older
boats on the waterways today. However, water intrusion can enter the boat through thruhull
fitting and scuppers and engine bolts as the caulk ages, if these areas are not
adequately maintained. It is strongly recommended that these areas receive annual
inspections to ensure the integrity of the caulking prior to the launch date, just as it is
recommended to have the engine oil and water pump impellers changed annually.
The boat is out of its warranty period. As such, no assistance can be offered from
Regulator Marine to help resolve this issue. However, we would like to offer you an
APPRECIATION coupon of $4000 towards the purchase of any NEW 26 or larger
Regulator, purchased from Atlantic Marine. This coupon can be applied after you have
received your best and final offer from Atlantic Marine. This offer is valid for 12 monthsfrom
the above date. (Expiration: 12/07/2010)
S1£C
Al Partin
Regulator Marine
.,~.

 

[Tashmoo]

The bottom line here from my eyes is that it is a crappy design that would allow this to happen. Why was any portion of the scupper installation under water in the first place? Second, a nine year actuarial life on the installation of a critical component is what I would expect from the likes of Bayliner not Regulator Marine. Third, if the scuppers were of a design that required periodic service it is incumbent on the manufacturer to disclose this fact and post it in their owner’s documentation to do so. I wonder if they did so? Forth and the one that blows me away is why does one of the most expensive production boat builders in the market use plastic fittings period.
The failure of this component (if not caused by the actions or misuse of the owner) is inexcusable and is a latent manufacturing or design defect not a service issue.

Finally, what a letter; your boat sank due to a failure of our design that you did not service properly. Tough luck we are not going to help you at all. However, since your last experience was such a smashing success here is four grand to try it again.

What is the definition of insanity? Doing the same thing over and over and each time expecting a different result?

When I purchased my first boat back in 1995 I looked hard at Regulator and disqualified them due to the quality of their fit and finish and an attitude at the dealer and the factory that I did not like. I don’t see anything in this issue that would change my mind.

 

[RAINMAKER]

I looked at a Reg. 23 at the Raleigh NC boat show several seasons ago. Nice looking boat . It had a flip down transom gate. The gatehad a 3/4" to 7/8" gap on the starboard side and about a 1/4" gap on the post side . When I brought this to the salesman attention, he basically just brushed me off to get rid of me. He said that was ok and there was nothing wrong with it...... This was a 23' single engine center console boat for over 80,000.00 . :shock:

That encounter left me with a couple of impressions, That was pretty sloppy work on a part of the boat that was going to be seen by alot of potential buyers .
If that was the best they could do for a boat show , what was lurking in areas that were not readily seen.

I've owned three Gradys and can honestly say that the service and support I've recieved from the local dealer and the factory has been above the call of duty in all cases.
I don't see any Regulators in my future.

Had to go back and re-read this post as I've fallen victim to too much multi-tasking this morning. LOL!!

 

[SmokyMtnGrady]

Customer service is paramount to me and in my own business I give what I expcect and that is partially why I own a Grady. When I was in college back in 1991 I bought my first brand new car a Mazda 323 hatch back, white. I lived in Orlando and my folks were in Tallahassee and we drove that car alot. In 2 years I put almost 38,000 miles on that car and in that time the white paint started peeling away in sheets the size of notebook paper.

The car was 2 k miles out of warranty. I contacted Mazada of America, the president of Mazda asking them to repaint my car. I sent pictures and sheets of the paint back to the American corporate offices in California. I was told it was acid rain and not their problem, but they would give me $1k off my next Mazda. I thanked them and told I would never buy a Mazda for as long as I walked the earth. Today I have a 2008 limited Tundra and a 4Runner.

When we bought our left over 08 228 this past March about a week after delivery my kid chewed on the side of the companion seat cushion. Then about a month later the strap on the cushion failed. The dealer noticed the chewed seat and did not think the cushion would be replaced. So we called Grady and within 4 days a new cushion was at my door free of charge. Not a scupper problem or sunk a boat or peeled paint, but Grady did take care of it no questions asked.

Anyway, sorry to hear the guys story.

 

[Grog]

If it was a 1989 boat I could see there being seal issues but a 2000? Oh and $4000 off a $100K+ boat what a sport. Looks like Regulator will be off the list of a few people.

Newer Bertrams seem to have lamination problems, the number of problems I've heard of is up to 5. A problem you should never see on a 8 figure boat.

 

[gradyfish22]

If there is air in a composite transom its junk, if paid up correct they are great, but air pockets allow it to vibrate and beat the insides to dust making it worthless and having little strength. Its scary not knowing how your boat was built, you trust the builder that is was done right but never know. such a shame this happened, does seem like there were some warning flags but not everyone takes note of smaller details all the time. Would never wish that on anyone though, regulator is a good boat too, but just about ALL manufacturers have issues sooner or later with something, they cannot all build perfect boats, otherwise we'd never buy new ones!! I like when guys buy new ones, it keeps me in a job since I design them for a living. Hopefully regulator does the right thing in this instance, its about all that can be done now. hopefully they step up and stand by there product and satisfy the customer and make sure the problem is taken care of for good.