Tri-Hull Boats

[slasmith1]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

I think it woul be a beautiful picture to see a tri-hull with a force outboard being pushed off a cliff.

 

[Paul DuLaney]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

I've had two of them over the years,Steury and Silverline. Both good boats but in the waters here in Ohio they rode like a log wagon on a road with nothing but pot hols.They were great when stopped for stability and did they give a good wake !!!!

 

[wildmaninal]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

I've had two of them over the years,Steury and Silverline. Both good boats but in the waters here in Ohio they rode like a log wagon on a road with nothing but pot hols.They were great when stopped for stability and did they give a good wake !!!!

Paul? where is your insignia, it isn't below your user name .

 

[Tail_Gunner]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

 

[DJ]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

Gee, my Boston Whalers are tri hulls.

They don't ride like Contenders but they are unsinkable.

Nice car!

 

[david_r]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

tell you what guys they may beat you to death in the choppy stuff............but go up a creek in 3ft of water in a v-bottom with three grown men standing up bass fishing and tell me which on you prefer......

 

[Campylobacter]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

What do you think about tri-hulls? Personally I think they are full of character and wish they were still produced. Not to mention the stability.

They still make them, now they have just be re-badged as deck boats. Check out the hulls on the hurricanes:

 

[redfury]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

We got back just seconds before the rain started. Funny thing is there was a boat that was anchored out in the same area we was just at, and they didn't seem to be to worried about the freak storm moving in.

You weren't fishing in MN at the time, it might have been my buddy and me! little 14ft tinny with a 7.5hp 'rude on it, rode between 2 waves back to the bay the launch was in...took us 20 minutes to get back at WOT between those two waves. The front wave was just getting broken by the nose of the boat, the back of the boat was below the wave behind us . Scary ride!

That deck boat has a very similar looking hull as my Glastron. It's been so long since I've been in a tri hull, I couldn't say one way or another about the ride, but I'm rebuilding this trihull of mine because of stationary stability for fishing with the wife and kids. IF the boat puts up a good wake, then I'll be even happier when I get the kids out Tubin'!

 

[Docknocker]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

My first boat was a 1976 16' Sea Sprite, with a 100 h.p. Merc. No tilt/trim. I had it 3 years, and sold it to get married. (To second wife. Should have kept the boat).

Nuf said. Amen

 

[Docknocker]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

messed up the quote edit. Quote from "204 Escape"

 

[mphy98]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

who rought this oldie moldie back from the dead?

 

[Dusandjurisic]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

Does anybody know where I can find some more detail information about the power catamaran stabillity and resistance?

 

[reelfishin]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

Since my last reply here, about 4 months ago, I've acquired another trihull and let go of two of my V hull boats. I found another clean, solid, 1973 Starcraft Capri. After a few trips fishing in the V hull I replaced my last trihull with, in the river and back bays, I found I really prefer the trihull for fishing. You can't beat the stability while at rest, and you cant beat the room. I missed all that extra space. This one is nearly identical to my last one, but this time I have nothing invested at this point. I'll leave the original 50 hp on it, keep it light and keep it simple. I already gutted all the interior and carpet out and plan to fill all the holes in from all the padded trim. When it's done, I'll have gotten rid of all the bad points that made me get rid of the last one. This one is also on a newer roller trailer which no doubt makes a huge difference in it's ease of use.

The ride is fine, within a reasonable speed. It's just not meant for crashing through big waves or the surf. To get the kind of room or stability out of a V hull that I have with this boat, I'd have to go with a much larger boat, and run a much larger motor.

Something that I realized with my last Capri 17 was that I don't need a big motor to push it along. It does just fine with a 50 hp and is far better on gas and I don't gain all that much usable speed with the 70 hp or 110hp Johnson motors. The added weight of the larger motors nearly offsets any hp gain and certainly hurts fuel consumption. I can run all day on about 5 gallons of gas with the 50hp, probably more. With the 110 hp, I need to carry at least two tanks, one won't make the whole day of fishing.

 

[grego]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

The tri-hulls were great,"for a NO! wake zone!" When you poined it into the wind the nose ran high, when you ran with the wind, control was difficult! Slow to come around and loading with a breeze was like "dammit"!

 

[tboltmike]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

I have always thought that they were unique & very neat. I have a tri-hull, haven't had it in the water yet so I can't speak about the ride quality. Your description is very good, I agree that they are full of character.

Turbo, Your Cheetah looks familiar.

Second the Cheetah. Not a shallow water runner, but the kids love to ski and tube behind it. I use it for bay fishing, but a anchor the water slaps between the hulls. It has a pretty pronouced Vee all the way to the transom.

 

[grego]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

I talked to my father's old fishing buddy and he lives in elgin ill. He says they were build for RIVER fishing and still owns the starcraft they fished many years ago. He said that for river fishing that there "WAS NONE BETTER!" And HE should know!

 

[reelfishin]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

Mine is so light that even with the 50 HP Merc, it hops right up on plane and at that point, the outer hulls are pretty much out of the water, at that point it rides and handles no different than a V hull. It takes corners like it's on rails and don't seem very much affected by the wind, not any more than any of my other V hull boats. The low profile makes it less likely to be blown around on windy days. It handles just fine at low speeds too, but yes, it takes take a bit longer to change direction when all three hulls are in the water.
The Starcraft is really a pretty deep V compared to most but it's got about a 4" wide flat area that the very rear, but with a pretty steep dead rise overall. The hull is smooth though with no steps or chines.

 

[nrf414]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

I posted Love Em. I sold mine, but loved it for the duration. It was my first boat providing me the opportunity to fish many new spots and learn a lot of things about outboards and boating. I have since bought a Deep V hull for cruising / fishing in a large man made lake nearby. I caught air a few times last year on some wakes, and that was fun, until the windshield busted off. I agree they can be a rough ride, but they can be a gateway to novice boating.

Overall I dig them, but couldn't be my only boat.

 

[gregg g]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

I've been out on friend's boats, most comfortable on a fairly large lake (Lake St Clair- Michigan) was an old 21 ft Chrysler cabin- that hull was so heavy that nothing moved it.

Another buddy had a 16 ft Tri Hull, he never took it out on Lake St. Clair after he got caught in a summer storm. Said he thought the boat was trying to beat him to death for being stupid. Very nice on small lakes, and a terrific fishing boat.

I just got this one

Not a tri- but it does flatten out quite a bit at the transom. Hope it's going to be comfortable on the water....

 

[beermunk]

Re: Tri-Hull Boats

I think a Boston Whaler counts in this question, right? If so - I love my first boat and subsequently my first tri-hull. I fish a lot of shallow water areas on the Wisconsin River and you can't ask for a better boat than a Whaler with a short shaft 35hp motor.

That said, the one time I attempted to take this boat out on lake Winnebago that had some chop on it - WOW. Wrong boat for that. The wife was sea sick in about 10 minutes and I could keep a line in the water because of all the drifting.