21 vs. 23 Opinions

alarie · #1 10-13-2006, 07:01 PM

Hi all,
Wondering if anyone has any time in both a 21 and the 23' SF? I have spent a lot of time in the 20 and 23, but I am considering moving up to the 22, but the 21 looks interesting as well. Deeper, wider, heavier than my SF 20.

Any comments on the ride of the 21 as it relates to the 23?

Thanks,
Peter

peterb · #2 10-13-2006, 08:53 PM

Peter,

What 22 are you talking about? I am confused (nothing new)

Peter

alarie · #3 10-14-2006, 11:34 AM

oops, I mean I am considering a 23, but the 21 looks nice as well...

peterb · #4 10-14-2006, 11:58 AM

I had a 21 foot Hydra Sport before my 23 foot SeaCraft.

The 2 feet is a very big difference, not in the beam or the rear, but in the front. A world of difference when you are driving. Since you mention it if you moved up to a 23 the ideal thing (IMHO) would be a closed transom and bracket setup. I still have an open transom. People who have closed them and put on the bracket have sworn that it makes it a much bigger boat.

The other thing to consider is that your costs move up as well (such as bigger engine and worse fuel performance, everything else being considered equal). But then again the 23 can probably handle certain water conditions better than a 20 or 21.

Good luck

Ikan Besar · #5 10-14-2006, 02:51 PM

I've spent a good bit of time in both the 23's as well as the new SeaCraft 21 and they are not nearly as different as the literature would have you believe. The 23/21' are very similar (think of the 23' with 2' chopped off the back of the existing hull). Neither the 21/23' have much in common with the 20'. Look at the weight alone and you'll see that the 20' is a significanly smaller and lighter boat than either of those two.

The 21' can take on much nastier conditions than the 20', significanly more freeboard, but you'll need a larger vehicle to tow the 21'.....and a bigger engine to push it. The 21' is a really nice boat that doesn't seem to get as much attention as it likely should and is layed out far better than the new 20's. If my current 20' was stolen, the 21' would be on a very short list of replacements.

As seen in the photos below, I have my 20' redone to mimic many of the layout features of the 21'. I simply didn't want to deal with towing the heavier boat. Costwise, it would have been about the same for me to buy the 21' or have my 20' redone. The similarities are pretty evident in what I was trying to do:

current issue SeaCraft 21' -

my 20' before completion -

Old'sCool · #6 10-14-2006, 08:10 PM

That's a really nice 20 Ikan!!

thehermit · #7 10-15-2006, 09:23 AM

Love those raised boxes at transom.

joey · #8 10-15-2006, 12:40 PM

I bought a 21 new in 98 and fished that thing hard for 5 years from OC Md. to La.,Central Fl and here in KW.I wish I never sold it.It's wet,but what little boat isn't? It's a big 21 feet,feels and rides like a tank.I think you would be very happy with one.

bj · #9 10-15-2006, 08:56 PM

I have a 2003 21'and have owned a 1977 23' Sceptre and also a 1969 20' CC. Like others have said the 21 seems like a 23 with 2 feet chopped off. It rides extremely well and feels like a much bigger boat than the 20 did. The 20 cc is a small 20 and and at the time I had it it was the perfect boat for both offshore and inshore. It was easy to trailer and to handle. For it's size it rides better than other comparable boats. The 21 is a fairly big 21 and along with that comes the need for more HP and tow vehicle, not to mention more fuel. I would love to have gotten a 23 but it was too much boat for me at the time. Now since I have the 21, I don't think I would consider moving up to the 23 because there is not all that much difference between them.

FELLOW-SHIP · #10 10-16-2006, 10:03 AM

If you got a SeaCraft you got a good boat. Both boats are designed well for what they are. BUT there is a difference that I see which is the ability to handle sea conditions. Now I know we all have preferences and I don’t want to say something based on my predigest although some one said there is no such thing as objectivity just varying degrees of subjectivity. That being said I think that if you are going to stay in the bay or go out a limited distance “light off shore” the 21’ is fine but if you have a desire to travel a little further into the ocean the 23’ is the way to go plus if you want 3 or 4 people on the boat the 23’ would be a better choice. Although the 23’ isn’t really that big either it does have more ability to stay on a plain going into 1-3 or 2-4 footers Stretching a little longer over to the next wave. Where as the 21 footer bow is going to go down just as the next wave is coming up to meet you. This is not a design problem it is a length of boat to span of wave problem. So the real question is What are you going to use it for and then go with the one that does that job the best.

FellowShip

_______________________________________________

My motto: Just for the Grins