Type of Boat
The main factor to consider when buying a boat is probably the style or type of boating that you intend to do.
Points to consider:
- What size is needed?
- How many persons at anyone time?
- How and when will your boat be used?
- Where will you keep her?
- How much can you afford to spend?
- Take into consideration not only the original price of buying your boat, but the upkeep; to run and maintain her.
- Will she be small enough to trail behind your car or will you need to consider paying the Marina to store her, when and where needed?
Whatever their size, sea-going motor boats fall into two basic types: Displacement and Planing.
Displacement boats have hulls which are pushed through the water by relatively low powered (inexpensive) engines: they are roomy but slow and, in general terms, are more seaworthy.
Planing boats (like sports boats) have hulls shaped so that they skim over the surface once a certain speed is reached, requiring powerful and costly machinery; generally providing less accommodation but a faster styling.
There is an intermediate type, called semi-displacement, which provides a seaworthy boat, of moderate speed.
Most boats found on the UK’s inland waterway system fall into four distinct categories.
- Sea going boats (displacement and planing) kept on a river berth and, for convenience, taken occasionally down to tidal waters
- Steel or aluminium narrowboats (canal longboats) kept mainly on the canal system covering the old industrial areas of Central and Northern England, and lately popular on rivers throughout the UK
- Glass fibre river boats (narrow beam and low air draft) suitable for all the UK’s inland non-tidal waterway system, both canals and rivers. Beam and height restricted by the size of canal locks and tunnels
- Glass fibre river boats (wide beam) suitable for all rivers and a limited number of wide beam canals in the south, but not suitable for the majority of canals, which will only accommodate narrow beam and low air draught boats.