New Carver owner

new owner

i too am somewhat new to carver owner, i passed through your area (iuka)this year when i purchased my carver 405(i have crusaders in mine )in paducah heading to my home just north of chattanooga. we brought her back made a mini vacation out of it and had a great time. coming up to chattanooga is very nice and a beautiful amount of scenery. we came out on the tennessee around mm25 and ended up at mm490. i plan on travelling furthur up the river to see the rest of it. i love these boats for the room and especially the stairs to the swim platform instead of a ladder, we have been very happy and our type of boating i think you will too

Hi Nomad,

I'm new to carver boats too and I had the same question. I think the people that trash Carver, Silverton and similar are the sport fisher crowd and maybe even the trawler folks. The sport fishers and trawlers are built to handle well in heavy seas. Most sport fishers and trawlers are more utilitarian on the inside where Carvers have beautiful wood work and spacious interiors. The reason that they are more utilitarian than luxurious is because they are built for fishing and living, respectively and Carvers are for entertaining and vacationing. I'm sure Carver could also handle heavy seas but not as well as the sport fishers or the big trawlers. That's due to the hull design. Carvers are made to be very stable at anchor and in calm conditions where the sport fishers are not as stable under those same conditions but are able to cut through chop with ease where you would have to slow down in a Carver. So I think it's maybe a little envy because the Carvers really have beautiful interiors and cost less. They want to let us know that even though our boats are beautifully appointed and less expensive they won't handle as well in heavy seas. I'm sure I'm going to get a lot of furious rebuttals but I think that is the issue, what else could it be? What it comes down to is you buy the right boat for the type of boating that you do. It's silly to trash someone else's boat because it wasn't designed to do what your boat was designed to do. I came from a SkipJack which is a very respected boat among the fishing crowd. When I mentioned that I sold it in favor of a Carver I got a few comments about how the SkipJack was a better boat. Yes, for fishing in the ocean but it was very tippy due to the deep V hull and the narrow beam. I was tired of that and wanted something more luxurious and stable at anchor. So I bought the Carver. The Carver doesn't cut through the chop as nicely as my SkipJack but it is much more enjoyable in so many ways. Bottom line is you buy the right boat for the conditions that you boat in. To put down a boat because it wasn't designed for what you do is just unproductive.

By the way - congratulations on owning your boat! I wish I could say the same.

Enjoy!

Add in the motor yacht crowd and you're pretty much on target. Carvers aren't made to still be a first quality boat 30 years after they're born, balsa coring, thinner glass, etc. They also can't handle seas like many of the higher quality boats. That said, it'd be a complete waste to have the 56 Hat that I'm currently on in a small bay or lake somewhere. Every boat has a purpose, and if it fits your purpose then it's a terrific boat. Thankfully today there are not many really bad boats built.

I would relate Carver to a Chevy, rather than a Mercedes or BMW. Personally Chevys suit my needs very well. They take me where I need to go, last just as long , and look good. Mercedes, BMW, Lexus, etc. are beautiful cars and have fun gadgets, but I'd rather buy a house with that kind of money and not worry every time I park at the grocery store who's going to scratch it.

Good luck with your Carvers. Have a ton of fun. Nothing at all wrong with them. Here on YF you're in with a serious yacht crowd though. I think you'll agree that a Carver will hardly be noticed if it's sitting next to something like Cakewalk or M/Y "A". That's why Carver has it's own section here.

When I started in this business I had my eyes on running the big boats like everybody. Then I realized that the big boats don't move very often because it's a major operation and expense just to take them off the dock, and the owners are too busy working so they can afford them that they have no time to use them. So instead I turned my career toward the smaller boats (generally under 80'). If I step on board the boat will be going somewhere, and I generally cruised about 200 days a year. I've run and taught on more than a few Carvers, Sea Rays, Silvertons, etc., because they move.

I can guarantee my Carver leaves the dock more than any other boat in my marina. In some areas it makes no sense to have a big battle wagon.

In the 900+ hours I have on my 370 I have never been scared that I wouldn't get home and always remained high and dry in some pretty nasty close together rough water on Lake Michigan. The people who think just because it is "Lake" Michigan were always in protected waters, most people who think that haven't experienced it first hand.

When delivering the 56' Hatteras I run we ducked in twice because it was simply too rough to continue or even try, it didn't matter what you were in that day.

Just because we have Carvers doesn't mean the boat will burst into pieces when it hits a wave. I have a 19 degree dead rise, a large forefoot, and a pretty large bow flare that throws water well away from the boat. Not all are like this but you can't generalize unless you really know.

I thought the Chevy analogy was pretty good but I believe that all of the different types of boats have their own section. To state that the Carver owners are in with the real yacht crowd is just laughable.

Personally I've never made a good snob. I've always found that as soon as I spout that I'm all that and a bag of chips someone bigger, bader, faster or prettier come along to put me in my place. My chest sticks out a little further running the Hat than the Carvers, but they're definitely yachts to the guy with the bass boat.

Correction: To the bass boat crowd these yachts are completely worthless.

I had a 355 for 5 years. Great boat. I was blessed with diesels so I can't tell you fuel mileage. The diesels did great. I have since upgraded to a 450 voyager. Love it. I looked at a couple hats but every one I looked at had blisters and bad windows. They can spout all they want but I have had good luck with carver and will stick with them.

I really like the look of the Voyager. I would love to have bought one but that is a million dollar yacht new! I don't know if you bought new or not but I did the used thing once and I wanted to experience buying new.

It's all very exciting. The warranty is OK but the extended warranty is very good. It was only about $5k for 8 more years, which is well worth it, IMO.

They have a crew go through the boat with a fine tooth comb to make sure everything is working properly and repair any dings, tares, scuff marks etc.. They wash and wax and detail the boat inside and out.

They supplied new lines, fenders with cloth cases, a full tank of gas (250 gal), 4 fire extinguishers (mounted), several new life jackets, replaced the bimini (SP?) top, salon table and a few other things. They even had the boats name (Ann-Elyse) put on the transom for free! They delivered the yacht from out of state for free! That was a $17k+ savings! They hired a captain to spend the day with me showing me how everything works and is giving me lessons docking and operation.

I can't speak highly enough about Silver Seas Yachts and Carver for the outstanding service. Also Star Marine. They have a great crew.

Cheers!

Nomad this will be our first season with our new (to us) 1995 Carver 355 Aft. We spent the past six months getting her ready for the season. We are excited and looking forward to a great season.

Looks like you are on season number 2 with your 355. How is it going for you? Are you happy with the fuel consumption? What are you averaging?

Have you had any window leaks?

Stay in touch,
AB

I'm loving the boat. The hull is sweet! It takes chop and big wakes from the ferries with much more poise than I would have ever expected. My SkipJack beat me up pretty good. The more I use it the more impressed with it I am. If It wallows a bit in following seas but increasing the speed takes care of that. But, the gas consumption is horrendous! I haven't done the math yet but it an't good. Our boats are about the same size what is your GPH at cruise? I'll have to get back to you on mine.

I had a 1996 355, and I used to have a review of it from one of the boating magazines--Boating, I think. You might find it if you google it. I remember best cruise (454 Crusaders) was at 3000 RPM, O.88 MPG, 21.6 GPH I believe. I had it 14 years, and loved it. Enjoy!