ISO Informaion on seaworthiness of Cutwater 242 SC Coupe

[captdavet]

I have a deposit down on a new Cutwater 242 SC Coupe. I have read all the reviews I can find and am aware of most of the pros and cons as published, but cannot find anything on how well this model, or the other similar 24ft models, handles choppy seas. Can anybody that has had first hand experience with this model provide any input? Does it pound or cut through the chop? Does it land softly or rattle when coming off a wave?

At my age (67) I have no intention of purposefully going out in rough seas, but would like an idea of what to expect should I get caught in less than ideal conditions.

Finally, dos anybody with first hand information know how this compares to other makes and models in this size class? Grady Whites, Pursuits, Whalers, etc.at the higher end, as well as others?

Thanks! Looking forward to joining this community.

 

[Bruce Moore]

Bumping post delayed in moderation queue.

 

[BB marine]

Your question is opinion based. My opinion is that any 24' boat is going to beat you up in big choppy sea's. Now the big question is what is considered choppy seas? If you are referring to 1' to 2' the 24 ' Cutwater will do just fine. It will match a Grady ,Whaler or Pursuit along with probably a much larger list of quality Bluewater boats. If your idea of choppy sea's is 3' to 4' the Grady, Whaler, Pursuit, Edgewater, Scout... are going to probably outshine the ride of the Cutwater. These boats are designed for one thing ,go offshore to fish. They are true blue water boats. The Cutwater can do that but maybe not as well. What the Cutwater will provide if you get caught in choppy waters is a comfortable dry place to cruise in. Find a nice anchorage wait out the seas in comfort. An open boat is not going to give you that. If you are looking for a boat to cut though the waves offshore and you like Bluewater boats . The Cutwater probably is not the best choice. If you are looking for a comfortable 24' boat that you can cruise comfortably in decent weather and know that if the weather changes you will get home taking your time. The Cutwater will be a good choice. I have rode in a 22' Whaler, 22' Grady and a 24' Robalo over a number of years. They haven't changed hull designs much over the years, Deep V . I had the pleasure of riding in a 24 Cutwater with a Volvo stern drive.(2016) For comfort I would take the Cutwater. For ride I would take the Robalo, Grady or Whaler. The Cutwater was bow light when hitting the waves. The day I was in the C24 it was 1' to 2' wind waves. Every 3rd or 4th wave it would hit hard. 25 to 30 mph it wasn't bad but I would not want to go that fast in 3 to 4 's in that boat. Good luck and congrats on the new boat.

 

[KKRCRACE]

Hi,
I have a C24 and we boat on the Chesapeake Bay. If it’s calling for 1-2 footers I know it’s going to be a bumpy ride most of the time. 2-3 we stay home unless we aren’t planning on going far.
KKRCRACE

 

[captdavet]

Thanks for the great replies. Minor point, but I need to learn the models' of these boats better as I am buying a Coupe not Sports Coupe.

I have lots of what I consider rough water experience (3-5ft+) during my charter years, but think this boat is a nice compromise between comfort and fishability. I do realize any 24ft boat has limitations, but fortunately most of my boating will be around the Sunshine Coast, BC and up into Desolation Sound where I can usually find protected waters. I have been caught in some short, confused seas during outflows that caught me by surprise, so at least with this boat I can close things up, slow down and look for calmer conditions.

With that said, by looking at the hull design it is difficult for me to believe that with proper trim and speed it cannot chew up a 1-2ft chop with ease.

 

[Remedy2]

Thanks for the great replies. Minor point, but I need to learn the models' of these boats better as I am buying a Coupe not Sports Coupe.

I have lots of what I consider rough water experience (3-5ft+) during my charter years, but think this boat is a nice compromise between comfort and fishability. I do realize any 24ft boat has limitations, but fortunately most of my boating will be around the Sunshine Coast, BC and up into Desolation Sound where I can usually find protected waters. I have been caught in some short, confused seas during outflows that caught me by surprise, so at least with this boat I can close things up, slow down and look for calmer conditions.

With that said, by looking at the hull design it is difficult for me to believe that with proper trim and speed it cannot chew up a 1-2ft chop with ease.

I have a C24 and I'm moored in Edmonds WA. We are year-round boaters in the Puget Sound and spend plenty of weekends on her. Additionally, I fish a lot and this boat does both of these beautifully. Our experience with a quick check of the NOAA Puget Sound forecast:

**Waves 1ft or less: with the speed of this boat it allows us to haul ass up to the San Juans for a weekend.
**Waves 2 ft or less: See above but usually go the 'inside' route via Deception Pass.
**Waves 2-3 feet: You're not going to go fast unless you just like getting beat up a bit. That said, we pick a spot an hour or less away and do a slow cruise.
**Waves 2-4 feet: Going to the movies or a bar LOL.

We've been caught in six footers and it was a lot of no fun. I never felt unsafe but my wife sure as hell did!

 

[dclagett]

I don’t know anything about the waters in BC. However where I am on the Chesapeake choppy waters and a small boats generally don’t mix unless you like to be thrown about. If you operate in shallow waters in general the wave period is short and you will get a reasonable ride if you slow down. In deeper water a short boat will not perform well due to the wave period being longer. On the Chesapeake if you want to travel in most conditions one would need a least a 35 to 40 foot heavy boat with a deep v hull. But even that size boat will be uncomfortable some times. If you have rivers where you are located where the water is not open, boat on the rivers when the wind is up. There is no substitute for a large boat in choppy waters that I know of to keep one comfortable.

 

[captdavet]

More great feedback. Much appreciated.

No doubt bigger is better as far as seaworthiness, but where I am not the number one limiting factor is dock availability with 2-4+ year waiting lists common, and the bigger the boat the longer the waiting list. The boat I am buying just fits the only available dock I found all along this stretch of coast, and it took a while to get that. In my old charter business off South Florida I had boats 33-50ft long and yes, there is nothing like length and weight to beat down waves. That was especially true when crossing the Gulfstream to get to the Bahamas from Florida.

Some great points were made about wave period and wave height being significant factors. A 2-3 ft confused sea with short waves coming from all different directions can certainly make life miserable. Off BC some of the roughest water I have seen is while fishing 25 miles or so off Ucluelet on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Big swells + chop on top makes for tough boating and yet I have seen literally dozens of small boats (25ft and less) of all makes out there. I won't be one of them!