Why Grady?

[Bigfoot]

Why Grady?

For me I have a been addicted to boats since my 1st 10 ft Jon boat. Working my way up the food chain owning many always with am eye for the GW brand. The reputation GW has built had my neck turning and always wishing..

I asked this question as I was reminded this weekend while on anchor. All of us swimming, I look back over at the boat and she makes me smile. I'm proud to own such a great vessel.

We get more compliments on this 204c than any other rig we have owned ( over 20 boats). The only other one that came close on the compliments was a 1966 Classic Boston Whaler restored. Really almost without fail every time out someone motions how nice the boat looks. As we cruised back to the dock Saturday pm, my wife said without solicitation " I really like this boat"

How about you guys, why Grady?

 

[onoahimahi]

I used to look forward to checking out the Grady section of the boat show every winter but never thought I'd ever be able to afford one. Then I found this 94 Sailfish with E-TECs and made it happen. I really like the way it and other Gradys are laid out.

I get more complements on this boat at my yacht club than on any other and more people are stopping to talk to me than with my other boats. People think I am a better fisherman now and pay more attention to what I have to say... I feel like I have to "up my game" all around to be the owner of this boat...

 

[Bigfoot]

I used to look forward to checking out the Grady section of the boat show every winter but never thought I'd ever be able to afford one. Then I found this 94 Sailfish with E-TECs and made it happen. I really like the way it and other Gradys are laid out.

I get more complements on this boat at my yacht club than on any other and more people are stopping to talk to me than with my other boats. People think I am a better fisherman now and pay more attention to what I have to say... I feel like I have to "up my game" all around to be the owner of this boat...

Shows your a man of distinction, a Gentleman would of course own a GW. Says allot about the Captain IMHO.

As Clint Eastwood says " you are what you drive"...

 

[Average Joe]

I liked the Grady lines dating back early seventies. When the time came for me to buy (2003) I settled on the 20'-21' range and went looking at the different brands/models at the boat show. I kept coming back to the 208 based on those lines, layout and quality. Nearly ten years later I have no regrets.

 

[ReelRowdy]

I have always known Grady to be a highly regarded boat, but never looked at one since they are not prevalent down here. The last 15 years I have owned a bay boat and fished with friends offshore. When we decided to get a big boat, I wanted a cabin for overnighting at the barrier islands we have off the MS and LA coast plus both our kids are under 3 years old, good for naps and getting out of the sun. I looked at old Mako's and every other cabin boat and kept coming back to the Grady, the fish box, live well and cockpit layout fit everything I wanted in a serious offshore fishing boat, family friendly for the kids and overnighting on a wade fishing trip. I have owned mine for a year now and have zero regrets, cant wait to get started on some projects this winter in recoring my fuel tank hatch and a rotten cabin bulkhead.

 

[SmokyMtnGrady]

Back in 1989 or so, my brother moved to Wilmington, NC and owned a Renken bow rider made in SC, I do believe and he wanted a more coastal boat. He found an odd looking 190 Grady White. At first glance I saw this boat it had peculiar lines to it. We then took her offshore to a wreck in about 90 to 100 feet of water off Wrightsville Beach and fished for spanish and kings. The boat rode well to me and it was so practical and clean. Those odd lines became something of beauty to me. One day I said, if I ever own a boat it will be a Grady White.

I have been other boats and enjoyed them all. I rented a number of center console boats in the Keys, like Anglers and other brands and after a day going to the reefs we would come back wet. We never seemed to get wet on the 190. So on that day we pulled the trigger on a boat, I bought used 192 and never looked backed. We always seemed dry or drier on the Grady than any other boat comparable in size I have been on. The build quality is there and while no boat is perfect and Grady Whites are not perfect, they are perfect enough for me and my family.

Serious fisherman seem to go the speed of giant center consoles. I want a boat that is family friendly I can fish, fast but not a speed demon, Solid built and sea worthy. My 228 is now over 5 years old, though I bought in 09 and the gel coat is shiny, the boat has very little problems. We do get folks complimenting her and though nice, I did not buy a Grady to impress others, I bought Grady because I like it.

Last year on Lake Fontana here in the Smoky Mountains over the 4th of July we were stopped by a NC wildlife resources guy and of all things so he could check out the Grady White on the lake and not much more (lol)...he did ask for life jackets and fire extinguisher stuff, but at the end he said thanks and by the way, you have a very nice boat....

 

[onoahimahi]

I don't know if it is just in my head but Gradys seem to have a mystique about them that other great boats like Mako, Pursuit, and the larger Whalers just don't have.

 

[zimm]

I was in the used market and there are way more Grady's to choose from vs other brands here in Virginia. Not too many Pursuit/Edgewater/Hyrda-sports compared to Gradys in this area- and the resale is great.

 

[jasonburrwc84]

I've got a 1999 223 Fisherman. We just completed a trip through the Santee Locks down the river to Charleston and back. We received many compliments on how well the boat looked and many people were amazed that it was a '99. However, as we rode across the Charleston Harbor with 20+ mile per hour winds, she cut through the mess like butter. Don't plan on spending my money on any other brand.

 

[toolguy73]

The shear lines appeal to me and they serve a purpose, primarily safety. The storage area. The cockpit size. The overall layout. The gunnel depth. Most everything drains naturally overboard. The bow flare kicks ass when it needs to; it's still amazing to see water deflected horizontally that would be in your face on other boats. The blue stripes. Yeah, the blue stripes. :mrgreen:

 

[Graybeard]

I must confess I was a real anti-Grady guy for many years. I thought they were too expensive and didn't ride that well. I had a Parker 21 walk around cutty, which was bigger and a whole lot less expensive then the 20' Grady WAC. The dealer where I got my Parker also sold GW's so I really got a chance to compare. Plus I had several fishing buddies with GW's and others with parkers. One had the GW 20' center console and the other had the GW 20' WAC and I felt the ride on my Parker 21 was superior. But the wife always wanted a GW because they were very pretty and well appointed. My mind on the ride thing was changed a bit after I fished on a couple GW 22's, especially the one with the engine bracket. The WAC platform served us well when the kids were young, but with them all grown and out of the house, the lack of deck space and permanent seating kept us from using the boat the way we wanted to. I wanted a bigger sport cabin or duel console boat with an enclosed transom, engine bracket and 4 stroke engine. My wife wanted a Grady White. I put together a short list of boats including the Freedom 225. We saw one at a boat show we went to but the price scared me off. But the die was cast because the wife had already made up her mind. 2 boat shows later I found myself signing the paperwork for a 2013 Freedom 225. For a lot less then I paid for my Freedom 225 I could have had a fully loaded Parker 23 Sport Cabin, but that's not what the wife wanted. So far there is nothing about my GW that I don't like better than my old Parker. Our new GW is just a more comfortable better riding boat. Plus the local Chesapeake Grady White Owners Club is a good group and we have been having a lot of fun on club activities. You get what you pay for

 

[stray current]

Like the OP and probably others I started with a cartopper and worked my way up or so it seemed,those bigger wooden boats were rarely better and had me understand a lot better 'boats are holes in the water you throw money in'. Today I'm not sure if I miss those tin boats as much as the fun times I had with them and my kids as they grew yet somehow I ain't goin back....
So why Grady? The previous boat I owned in this size range was a SeaRay Sundancer 270,it treated us pretty good but was the wrong boat for us and I'd heard before buying it that sea ray was shorthand for getting wet,it seemed true but some people like that as well as a boat that runs through the air.I first fished a Grady in the early 80s and was impressed with it completely,I'm not sure the model but a small walkaround,friend of a friend.I knew nothing about boats then (and even less now) but I liked it!Nice lines,good layout,"carolina flair and attitude" and all that.The worst feature I could find was their price was fully disconnected from my wallet.
Time passes,kids grow and wives change,sometimes even for the better.My last wife passed,I remarried and finances steadied and I got my Grady! It took work blood sweat tears heartbreak anger frustration and some things I can't post here but I got one....and then another! With luck and at 62 I expect it to last and be the last of it's type I buy,I'm still learning it and expect I still have some time to go with that.
And yes my wife loves it runs it from time to time.She does well,has had some training and didn't think she knew it all from the beginning like me......