Addicted To My Motorcycle, it has to go!

Apex; You must be a far more sporting individual than some of your postings suggest. The 'Busa is not a gentle machine, it is a fearsome one.

Way back in the 50s and 60s I was a BMW and NSU dealer. I always wanted to own a NSU Rennmax but of course I never could have. the BMW people persisted in Teutonic single mindedness. Their bikes were available in one color only; Black! and Oh yes, they must have Earles Forks. Must be a new breed at BMW. Now they have produced the RS1200 which can actually compete with the Hyabusa for sheer performance.

Sorry folks I did not mean to Hijack the thread, but it is about a guy and his motorcycle.

 

A widespread error. The Busa is very gently and by no means a demanding bike. The power comes in a very predictable manner and is always there in abundance. That makes her very handsome and easy to drive.
Of course, when you pull the cable like no tomorrow the beast has something to respect, endless power. But she always behaves sovereign and sleek.

You can see her in my Gallery btw.

The RS 1200 cannot compete. But she has the better brakes and handles a bit "lighter".

(sporting has quite different meanings you know?)

Ja, and sorry for the (slight) sidestep.........

 

Higgins draft too much. You can get much better LCs these days, custom aluminum that draft less and ride much better. Check out Bill Munson boats out of Washington. You can have similar boats built at localized boat builders for less money.

 

Some sort of bow loading craft , surplus and cheap.

Put in a 20 ft container as a protected storage are , and drop a small airstream (old ones are complete and about $3,000).on top of the container, the weight would be no problem.

With a hundred locks to get thru the robust hull would be a big plus.

FF

 

I don't know nuthin', but it would seem to me that it would be far more practical to add lift eyes onto the motorcycle at needed locations, and build or modify a boat that had a crane and a spot just big enough to place the motorcycle in.

If you insist on a roll-on, roll-off type of boat with the motorcycle on the rear of the boat, you have two major problems: most [smaller] boats aren't built to do that, and most docks aren't built to do that either.

With the crane, you could just pull up along (or back up to) the dock as usual, and lift the motorcycle on or off. And you would not waste any deck space by needing room to roll the motorcycle around on the boat, since you could lift and lower it right into its onboard storage location.
~

 

As I said,

from about 22 meters upward we are talking..............

 

Check with Clark boats out of Bellevue, IA. He could probably build you a nice aluminum landing craft for not much coin (relative to other boat builders). Utilize the extra deck space toward the front of the boat by throwing a few beanbags in there (best lounging boat seats for the money).

 

Yea but he said "motorsailer".....
I have read enough to know what a landing craft is. They probably do what they're meant to do well, but I have yet to see one with sails on it.
~

 

If he does a large amount of boating on rivers, he will need power more than sail; otherwise, you can put a sail on about anything. Change/Add a few bits and pieces here and there to make it handle better with a sail.

So the question becomes...
Would he be better served by a sailboat with a motor, or a motorboat with a sail? If the latter, a small LC would still be beneficial as a tender boat.

 

Man, I could ride right up on that tri! Doug, you're close, FF, LOL!

I was going the crane route, more like a small hoist, lol. I'm hearin 22 meters and I had 22 feet in mind...well. I think I have it:

Sa the forum post on the freighter conue, now this thing has to be built to handle the wight and stress at the gunnels of an A frame that could swing to the mid section to the rear. Hmm hard to explain....pivots mounted at the stern, extend the height of the A structure, lift the bike or any load, use a hydraulic push piston like those used on hay bails on the back of a pick up....OK, hook the load and rig it, lift the A frame and swing it to the rear over the stern and set it down, reverse to load.

Deck the bow, raise a small cabin above to midway. 2' bow storage, 6 1/2 ft. for the berth, three feet for the galley, 3' on one side for seating, head on the other side, cabin ends, 10' open, 2 1/2 ' behind the bike...that's roughly 27'....hmm like that cut down 5'. Would that put the mast step behind the V berth? Outboard, may 25 to 40 Hp? Would that do it guys?

I'll use a propane camp stove, small sink with marine pump, 25 gal fresh water, solar shower bag, gotta put my Icom 707 and marine transceiver on, couple HT rigs, 20 gal gas tank (all ready have that), port-a-pottie and an ice chest of Bud light. Actually I'd like an electric motor for power, but that's certainly another forum! Will that work????

 

Say a 22/24 footer, 5/6 ft beam, 48" at the bow? Hmm, probably won't be stand up headroom....well maybe in a short distance, will it work? Thanks

 

You might find one of these boats will fit your needs.

http://www.billmunsonboats.com/

Best regards, Jim

 

Hey Riverrat, those would do it!

I should buy that 32' but have a custom cabin built, should be but about 200K. Then take off on my venture, do the great loop and tour on my bike. When I'm done, that adventure would be over and the rest of my boating would probably be around the rivers in the south and mid west....hope the draft on my 200K boat isn't more than a couple feet without that additional 420 pounds! I'll be on sandbars. Probably the thing to do would be to sell the boat at that time, probably get a good 100K maybe 125K with such light use. That is, if the market isn't saturated with comparable fishing boats from bankrupt fisherman around the gulf, then I may have to drop the price another 25K....ah hell, it's only money! So, my little summer/fall adventure with my bike will only cost about 77.5K, worse case 127.5K! The additional 2.5K is for fuel and having the boat hauled.

Oh, wait a minute, I found some poor slob in Viet Nam hauling his motorcycle down the Delta on a freakin raft tied together with rope, looked like bamboo! Well, that's a little extreme, even for me, but gee, maybe there is a more economical way.

By the way, I have three power boats, a 14' jetboat, an 18' old tri I/O with a 4banger, long story how I ended up with that, and a 24' cuddy cabin, I/O.
That bike will fit in either of the two larger boats. It would be easier to put it in the old tri-hull, with a simple ramp over the bow I can ride it off and on!
Since someone said I can put a sail on a power boat, guess I could use a mizzen! After all, maybe half the trip would be down wind. That tri is stable enough to hug the shore and still be in the water, faster than many larger boats out there with it's fuel sipping 140hp. Just need a tent on it. Don't even know it's back there when I tow it! Just one problem.....that would look like hell! I'd only be laughed at in southern Florida and north of Gerorgia. If I took it on the Arkansas River, I'd probably be admired!

A Jarcat is a catamaran, sail with an outboard, small forward cabin that could hold the weight too. The is another small cat, an Eco 6. There are also a couple of trihulls that could be extended for a 9' cockpit, just have to remove the outboard to get it off and on. A 24' freighter canoe with amas will move that freight as well.....inflatable tubes can also be used along the gunnels and decked, unsinkable, self righting and best of all inexpensively acomplished.

I've never been in the eastern ICW, but I've seen pictures of boats there, 12 foot aluminum open fishing boats, seems to me if I don't venture out too far, go in fair weather, there shouldn't be much of a problem. I have been in the gulf of mexico in fair weather, the chop is rougher at 2 nearby lakes. I'm not sailing to England nor crossing Lake Superior.

I did say I'd like to do the Gulf of Mexico and maybe stretch out to the Bahamas, I may have been misunderstood, the primary need was to do the Great Loop, rivers and lakes. Not the Northern Pacific or Atlantic, sorry I didn't make that clear.

Long ago I did some auto racing. 911 Porsche, Ford GT and Corvette. Road racing the two big V8s was like drifting a motorhome on tight tracks, like Hockenheim and the srtaights were a drag race, little physical stress other than more Gs. The Ford GT was like driving the interstate, very smooth, floating along. Then there were Triumphs, MGs, Austin Healy and Morgan 4+4. These could beat you to death compared to the bigger cars and were much slower, expect your left thigh and knee to be brused. The most fun was the smaller classes, under 2 liters. A favorite was the Bug Eye Sprite! You will feel the track, the pressure of the wheel tells you waht's going on. The ride is rough. I mention all this because my approach to boating is much the same. I would rather be running rappids in my Perception Kayak than sitting on any 40 footer made on any ocean. While I have nothing against 40, 50 or 60 footers, unless there is a purpose to own one, like circumnavigations and livingabord, it's plain silly to do so as an ego trip, IMO. It's a depreciating asset, just like most cars. So, my last boat, which I am now ready for, will be the smallest boat to fit the bill.

My motorcycle requirement is nothing more than dead weight that will not roll around or shift two inches in any direction after I have it secured. The idea of hooking lift eyes to the bike is a good one! The crash bars and rear rack can easily be modified to lift from. I can pick up one end and then the other. a lever, hoist, or ramp can be used. getting it in or out might be easier on one boat than another, it's not an impossibility on any boat big enough to float it. Not really worried about the mechanics of that task.

So, think just a couple of levels up from the guy in Viet Nam who does his bike/boating adventure poling a bamboo raft! Something that holds a motor and a sail, a small sail, no more than a hobbie cat 16. Simple, efficient for what it is and the task at hand. It's not to sit on deck drinking pina coladas. Only two people on the thing at one time. Enough storage to stash provisions like a backpacker, that means no baking of fresh bread or having six for dinner below with ice cream for desert. No storage is required for extra sheets, the bed will be rolled up and placed to the side, maybe.

Now that I have read some other forums, I can do a better job describing requirements...see, I am learning!

A watermaker, maybe...a manual contraption. Genset? Maybe, 2.5 or 5 KW portable. Solar? Sure if there is room for a couple of panels and a battery or two.
Galley, sure, a propane stove. Ice chest, maybe 12V cooler.
Manual water pump in a sink would be nice, collapsable water tank maybe. Portapotti, no room for a holding tank and I can ski on my *** if necessary, even if the boat does not palne!
Fans are nice for ventilation, if it's enclosed anywhere, I need ventilation.
I want 20 gal. of fuel.
I can bath in a cockpit under a tent, doubt I'll be doing this in December, but a seat inside to bath would be nice.
Heat, if ever needed will be a propane camping heater.
Airconditioning, it could happen with a small gen set, especially using a camper unit or adapting an auto airconditioner.
No big picture windows, small secure ports.
The bike will not always be on board, so self righting, say without the bike should be doable, at least easily righted.
Draft, just the boat empty, let's say no more than 18 inches.
Beam, must be trailerable so no more than 8 foot, 5 or 6 is better, and yes, it may use amas that exceed that, no more than 12 feet.
Length, less than 26, yes I just bumped it up 2 feet, but I'd like it about 20 to 24.
Outboard, about 25hp should be plenty.
Rigging, simple, that's up to you, but not lose footed.
Equipment? Laptop, Notebook computers. Handheld GPS, Icom 706 which means an antenna, a simple loaded verticle on the mast, a radar deflector, an Icom marine transceiver, and a couple of handhelds.
Battery bank 12V with an inverter.
Just a fire extinguisher.



Thanks to all who posted suggestions and gave it a try.

Any ideas now?

 

I'd still go with aluminum, either 25x60, 25x66 or 25x72, depending on space requirements, 7- to 15-degree deadrise depending on your comfort needs, well-designed tunnel on the back with a Merc 115 4s or Merc SportJet if you can affort it - this rig should carry around a ton of weight and still get around fine in 18 inches of water (or less). When I say 25, I mean 25', not 24'1" like many boat mfrs. are fond of doing, so you need to specify 25 FEET, or 25 FEET and 6 INCHES or something like that. If I needed space, I would go up to 96-inch beam (still easily trailerable while staying within 102-inch limits of most state regs). Line forward deck with rod lockers for storage, with lower narrow center portion for wheeling your bike back towards center of boat, with console/pilothouse/cabin in the aft third of the hull. Have a dropdown gate at the bow, similar to landing craft, for easy beaching and loading/unloading of motorcycle.

As a checkpoint, I run a 25x60 boat that drafts 9 inches (in freshwater) with 2000-lb cargo on board.

Again, check with Clark boats in Bellevue, IA - he will probably build you about anything you want for quite a bit less than Munson.

 

I always wanted to do this.

Maybe in my next life?