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. . . I have read that these are really wet riding boats and squirrely in a following sea. What are your thoughts and opinions?
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You read some bogus info! These boats are VERY stable in following seas. The vertical steps act like keels, making it virtually impossible to broach a SeaCraft! Moesly raced the old 21 in offshore powerboat races in all types of sea conditions and dominated the outboard classes; he could not have done that with a "squirrely" hull! A naval architect has tested the 25' Seafari hull extensively in very rough seas and proclaimed it one of the most seakindly hulls his firm has ever tested in it's research for the US Navy. He owns 3 25's and a 21!
The early
Moesly 21 and 19' Bowrider are probably the best riding and wettest models, although the 25 probably matches the 21's ride because of it's similar deadrise. When Moesly developed the 20' hull from the 19' molds for Carl Keikeifher to enter into a 20' racing class, he did so by cutting the 19'mold down the centerline at the bow and also along the chines. He spread the hull sides out about a 1/2" on each side, adding a flat at the chines to deflect spray. He also flared the sides outward and added the clipper bow to tie it all together. It came out at 19'8" and I guess that was close enough to meet requirements for the 20' racing class. The 20 is definitely a drier riding boat in big seas than the 19 due to that extra bow flare, although those flats will develop more lift and possibly hurt the ride a little relative to the 19. However the 20 is quite a bit heavier due to it's full inner liner, so that probably offsets most of the effect of the chine flat. Moesly may have included the narrow chine flat on the 27' and 25' Seafari hulls, but I'm not that familiar with those hulls. The 23' and 18' hulls were designed by Potter who didn't have Moesly's technical and racing background. Although the 18 and especially the 23 are still great riding hulls, the flat "spray deflector" step that Potter added at the front of the inner panels would generate a little more lift, making them ride a little drier at perhaps a very slight penalty in ride. (ALL boat designs are a compromise . . . you don't get something for nothing, although Moesly's VDH hull probably offers the best combination of soft ride/good lift/minimum drag of any deep V hull design!)