My First Real Sea Craft Experience

[GradySailfish]

All right guys, so some of you know I have an entire page on this site documenting the restoration of my 1978 Master Angler. I plan to splash in the spring and the project is going rather well so far (knock on wood).

Although I have the Sea Craft, I never really rode on one in rough water. The only time I ran and rode on one was this past summer on my neighbors 84' 20SF and that was mainly bay fishing in nice conditions.

Yesterday, we took his 20 out bass fishing and I was truly blown away by its sea keeping abilities. The seas were a tight 3-4 foot in the inlet and she blasted right through them....all landings were soft and the boat felt solid upon touchdown ! All I will say is that I was imperssed with the boat...she ran like something much larger then her. Plus she raised fish on the troll...we landed a couple bass including one 32lbs fish for me. All in all, I'm excited about getting my Master Angler in the water and fishing next year.

I heard about how Sea Crafts perform in rough water, but never experienced it first hand....and boy it was impressive.

[askipper3]

Took my 20SF out in 3-4, occasional 5 the other day.....piece of cake.

[htillman]

I had an old MA that I fixed up, cosmetics, new fuel tank and general repairs. Was a great riding boat - powered by an old Merc 150 and ran like a champ. You will be very happy with your MA when done. I have seen your pics, nice job.

[GradySailfish]

Eddie, thanks for the compliments. I was actually wondering whether she will ride the same as the SF since the MA's lack the same inner liner setup like the SF's do.

Like I said, the boat blew me away. I hear the best riding of the bunch is the 23....I can only imagine what she can do.

[Old'sCool]

I hear the best riding of the bunch is the 23....

The 23' rides VERY nice!!

[GradySailfish]

My next one will be a 23.

BTW I was wondering if the MA will ride the same given it does not have the same innter liner setup as the SF. I figured the SF is a bit more sturdy then the MA. Anybody have an opinion.

[peterb]

I had my 23 out last weekend. Went to a blackfish spot 9 miles offshore in some pretty snotty weather. We were the only boat at this spot (which kind of surprised me), considering it is a great reef with a lot of large wrecks. I guess the other boaters were scared off by the conditions.

We limited out on the blackfish (as well as caught some very nice seabass) and cruised back home at around 30 miles per hour.

[htillman]

I have had both 20' boats. I do not think there is a real difference in the ride. I used both for play so no real large water use, but they were both great rides. Have had two 23' boats and they are such a good ride, all have been Potter hulls, the 23 has weight on its side that certainly helps out. On my third 23 (all Sceptres), a complete restoration that I did not plan on. Already thinking about my next project which will be a full transom enclosure.

[Bushwacker]

My experience is that the old Moesly 21 rides even better than the 23! It has the racing pedigree that no other SeaCraft can claim! The old "Unohu", which I posted pics of a few months back (it's also on Carla's moeslyseacraft website), made annual runs to the Bahamas for 27 years in all kinds of conditions; Bob would not hesitate to make the 50 nm crossing from Palm Beach to West End with winds east at 20 kts! He only cruised at ~18 kts on the early trips due to low power (I-6 Mercruiser), but he ran that speed ALL the time, regardless of sea condition, sitting down! (No provision for standing in the 21 to allow using legs as shock absorbers as in the cc models; it HAD to ride well!) Owner claimed that the 23's had trouble staying up with him when it got really rough!

Boat was a little wet however - rumors circulated that Bob has been seen crossing the Gulf Stream wearing mask & snorkle! (Probably true - he had a prescription mask, so unlike glasses, only 1 side of glass would get wet!) Unfortunately there aren't many 21's around these days! Skip & Carla - we're all looking forward to a ride in yours when you get it done! Denny

[htillman]

Moesly 21 sounds like the first sportfish I ran, a Bertram 31, it was also common to hear one had to wear a diving mask with this boat. It was a very comfortable ride, large cockpit and very fishable, just very wet. This boat led me to experience my first Seacraft.