I currently have the order on the first Sedan. I have visited the site in China and talked extensively with George and Bill.
Both great guys and it was real pleasure to visit Bill and Stella at their shop, they were wonderful hosts. 462-2 was in the water and they were more than happy to let me walk through that and the others. Hulls 3-10 were in varying stages of construction. I have a lot of photos, especially of number 2,3 and 4.
Why Diesel Duck--
Kids--I have two young children and I wanted a very solid and seaworthy boat with well protected and comfortable inside and outside.
Style--I love the basic feel and style of the boat.
Build Quality--It is a tank and well built. The extra mile taken in safety and durability provides a level of security that is important to me.
Price--This is obvious. You can't get a similar design boat for the same price.
My Background;
I come from a sailing background and have done a fair amount of cruising. I'm looking forward to doing more and I've never been hung up on sail vs power. I believe you figure out what you want to do and then pick the right boat for it.
Why the Sedan?
I originally had a reservation on both the 462 and the 382. We were planning to do long distance cruising but our plans have changed to be more coastal cruising in the Puget Sound. I feel the Sedan is a better boat for this area. It has a more functional interior and exterior for coastal cruising than the duck.
Options that I choose;
1. Sedan (That is obvious from the post) 2. Layout--Bunks forward. Two permanent and two that are convertible from a couch. We have two kids and family that want to visit so the two stateroom layout doesn't make sense. 3. Flopper Stoppers. BIll has encouraged just the sail rig, and while he may be right (he often is) I know that there are many points of sail/power, where sails don't stabilize all that well unless a significant amount of heel is created, as well as not working much at all from a broad reach down. Also, they don't work at anchor. So in the end I'd rather have them and not use them, than not have them and want them. 4. Heart Smart Charging System. This should be standard in my opinion as no modern boat should come without a smart charger/inverter. 5. Dual high output alternators. 6. Prep for (generator, water maker and freezer. Though I will not have these installed. I'm not convinced they will be necessary for what I'm doing and how the boat is laid out. But it is important to have the proper wiring, through hulls and other fitting already in place.) 7. No AC. I've spent extensive time in much warmer locations and not needed AC. It necessitates extensive use of a generator, which I'm not a fan of. I personally believe that with a proper sized battery bank, solid charging system and a good regiment of daily charging broken up by days motoring the engine can do this with little additional wear and tear. Crunching the numbers with the systems I have on board 1 hour a day running the engine is about right. A few days at anchor and then motoring longer distances followed by a few days at anchor and the system will be more than adequate. I know many people believe that large generators are a requirement. With AC, Electric water heat and other large consumers that may be the case. Without them I don't think it is. I will have a very small emergency generator that I can use if for some reason the system is dead and I can't start the engine. Or I need to use some higher draw AC tools (compressor or welder). Also, if the engine is only used to charge the banks for a short period of time followed by longer run times you don't have an issue of buildup in the engine. I have believed that for some time but the John Deere reps confirmed that when I spoke with them. What they discourage is running the engine under low loads for very long periods of time, say 6 hours a day, or more, for 1 week at an anchorage. 8. Webasto Heating System. Puget Sound and the layout of the Sedan necessitates a multiple compartment heating system. The 462 and 382 could get away with just one local heater in my opinion. Unless you are going really far north. 9. Fly bridge. For coastal work I think it is a real asset, though not necessary. 10. A bunch of other little electronic stuff. I'm still deciding on the best communication system though I will probably have SSB and not satellite. No TV for me. 11. Redundant Auto-Pilot. This is a requirement for long distance work. For what I'm planning to do it is just a good idea. 12. Stainless package. This is mostly for the rails. With line work I think there would be too much touch-up required on plain steel rails. However, for those interested, the plain steel rails are a larger diameter and have noticeably less movement. That is not to say the stainless rails aren't strong, they are very strong. However, when you shake the plain steel rails they don't move at all. The stainless will move a little. I also recommended to Bill that the rub rail be a sandblasted 316 pipe(left bare) not painted steel as the paint will get scratched and worn off every time you rub whatever. Which is the point of this railing anyway. He is planning to do this. You can weld stainless direct to carbon steel so this isn't a problem in a corrosion sense.
I'll try to post more later as I have a lot of questions and comments based on my goals and what I have seen.
The simple fact is that Seahorse builds a very good boat and George has designed a very good boat. All of this at a great price.
