R-23

SgtAlf

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 5, 2017
Messages
526
Location
Bayville, NJ
Fluid Motion Model
R-23 (Outboard)
I am new to this forum. I'm heading out this Sunday with my wife to look at a R23, outboard. I'm looking for feed back from owners regarding this model. Pro and cons. Thanks.
 
For our use there are no negatives. All positive. No issues with boat. Outboard way to go. Perfect size. Ranger tugs A+++ customer service before and after sale.

Only thing I would change is I would have purchased the on board generator if it was offered when we bought it. I hate hot and humid and would love to have AC while cruising. Use a Honda generator at times but very inconvenient.
 
Yeah, A genny would be nice, but I think the 5K price tag is a bit rich. The Honda was what, <1K?
 
I'm sorry, 15K for the Westerbeke Genny. I can live with the $1000 Honda.
 
SgtAlf":1eqkk8qs said:
I'm sorry, 15K for the Westerbeke Genny. I can live with the $1000 Honda.
Yup, $15K for the Westerbeke and it takes up most of the storage area under cockpit floor. For those reasons I am going to pass on the Westerbeke on the RT27 I have on order. I think you are going to need to step up to the $3000K Honda to drive the AC.
 
Jim,
Prompted by your post, I started looking at 3000w generators. I found this rather lengthy and detailed review of the Champion 75531i 3100 Watt Generator on Amazon. I supplied the link, scroll down to reviews, the first review.

https://www.amazon.com/Champion-Power-E ... 000i+Handi

A 4000w Champion Generator got me through "Sandy" running for 10 days straight, stopping for fuel and one oil change. I trust the product.
 
We love our 23 as we understood the space implications at purchase.

It would be tough for more than a long weekend for more than one person. Hard to carry a dinghy but we have gone with a Kaboat up top. Great fuel economy for the speed, which we love. I use the autopilot every time we go out, driving with the remote is awesome.

It is trailerable with our 2015 F150. Ranger has been great to deal with. All in all we love the boat!

We're in the PNW so don't understand using an AC while cruising but I know the heater works great !
 
The Honda 2000 companion runs the AC on our R-23 with no issues. Relatively quiet with little vibration. Will be mounting it semi permanently on the swim step for next year. Believe I will be able to use it while cruising when necessary.

Still would have purchased the factory installed generator regardless of price if it was offered when I bought. Taking up storage space not an issue as the only thing I've been storing there is the Honda generator.
 
We have had our R23 since mid July and absolutely love it! It handles extremely well at ANY speed, which is a big plus. While it is small you can get creative with how to utilize storage and make it work for longer trips. We spent 18 straight days on her this summer and would have stayed out longer if we hadn't had things to take care of at home. We keep a 53-pound Zodiac up top and can easily get it up and down from there (when at a dock). When we leave a mooring buoy we simply put it on the swim platform until we get somewhere that we can put it back up top. The only drawback that we have experienced is the fact that you can't see the holding tank. We have found a way of keeping track of how much the head is used and so far that is working for us and we haven't had any overflow issues.

If you're looking for a boat that you can "spread out" in the R23 isn't the boat for you, however, if you're looking for a high-quality, great performing, comfortable boat that gets you where you want to go quickly (or slowly)you may want to consider it. Happy shopping!
 
Add on to OlyGirl aka my captain, the dinghy is a Cadet Zodiac with air floor. Able to store on the roof rails as we do not have a solar panel. It is a small dinghy, planning on installing electric motor next year.
Ditto in extended cruising. Not sure I would go for several months but we are planning on going to Desolation Sound next year and spend around a month on Cool Mint.
 
The stock R-23 is an excellent value for the money IMO. A well looked after used R-23 in a few years from now will be good value as well.
 
Well, I bit the bullet on the R23, 2018 Forest green hull. Loan is approved, just waiting to schedule Sea trials before signing the papers. Some have said the R23 is a small boat. I prefer compact, LOL. We spent 10 years boating on a 14' Sea Eagle inflatable (For sale) , and 2 years on a 1860 Bass Tracker CC, (also for sale). The R23 is a BIG boat compared to what we're used to.
Most of the time there will only be the wife and I for day trips with a few overnight stays. Once in a while we'll have guests on board for day trips. I would like to motor from NJ to St. Michael's, MD for a week, or so. Barnegat Bay ICW to Cape May Canal, across Delaware Bay to the Delaware Chesapeake Canal, down the Chesapeake to St. Michael's.

Kind of a funny story. I had a 30 Hunter 12 yrs. ago. I bought a radar for her, but never put it on. Sold the Hunter and bought an Albin 27 Aft Cabin, never put the radar on her either. Last year I was cleaning the garage loft and found the radar. I pulled it down, and wondered if it even worked. I clamped the dish to the top of a step ladder, and powered it up with a 12v battery. It worked! I was able to see my neighbors driving down the street on the display. I dropped the radar unit off at the broker's to install on the R23. I'll finally get to use it after all these years.
I have a 9.9' inflatable and a 6700 Cruise N Carry. A few more trinkets and we'll be ready!
 
Well done..... you will love the R-23 and the green hull is very smart. 🙂
 
Thanks Baz, my wife picked the color. She said the green looked more tug like.
 
SgtAlf":crm7nw9l said:
Thanks Baz, my wife picked the color. She said the green looked more tug like.
Congrats SgtAlf, we're in the exact same boat as you and your wife. Put down our deposit, are awaiting the sea trial and chose hunter green too! We're well known in C-Dory circles for our affinity for the color green. It's nice we'll be representing new 2018 R23's on opposite coasts. 🙂

Peter & Caryn
 
Last year I fell in love with the R23 at the Vancouver boat show and that was our initial idea when we went to buy a new boat. Two issues killed the selection for us. The overall length with motors up would not fit in the boathouse and the lack of the enclosed head separate from the V-berth. We finally bought an R25SC and love it. Everyone to his/her own as long as they are happy with the selection.
 
Chimo":3ub9ba6v said:
Last year I fell in love with the R23 at the Vancouver boat show and that was our initial idea when we went to buy a new boat. Two issues killed the selection for us. The overall length with motors up would not fit in the boathouse and the lack of the enclosed head separate from the V-berth. We finally bought an R25SC and love it. Everyone to his/her own as long as they are happy with the selection.

"Everyone to his/her own as long as they are happy with the selection." Absolutely. 🙂
 
Peter & Caryn,
It's like the old British Navy toast, "To our wives and girlfriends, may they never meet." Unless you transit the Panama Canal
and come up the east coast, we shall never meet. Although we will be twins in spirit! Good Luck with your new RT!.
Tony & Kathy
 
Congratulations on your new R23! Sounds like you have some wonderful cruising time ahead.
Something to consider on using 12 year old technology is the how quick the technology changes, is your Radar unit still supported? I worked in the computer industry for over 30 years and know that technology generally will go unsupported after 5-10yrs. How will the Raymarine work with Garmin Chart Plotter or did you change that too?
We had the Garmin Radar installed with the Garmin Chart Plotter and it works very nice together. I am delighted with ease of use in the Radar Overlay feature with the Chart Plotter, takes the guesswork out of identifying where other boats are in relationship to you and shore.
 
Well Cool mint, I'm rethinking the radar thing. The old unit I have works, it was still new in the bow until last year when I hooked it up to a battery. BUT, no, it will not interface to the Garmin. I don't want to clutter up a new boat with cables, and the unit head. I'm considering the Garmin radar.
 
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