Alloy is the way to go...

[Jassman]

Now here are some beautiful cats.. and yes, I love the alloy.. Really liking this 21'

http://missionmarine.com/21.htm

[A Salt Weapon]

Here in West Aussie there is a mix of roughly half and half ally and glass. Lots of ally in smaller dingies and runabouts and more glass in the bigger offshore rigs. Generally the only way to get a good ride in ally is with a deeper vee, then the thing gets too tippy at rest. A couple of ways to fix this is to build a deep vee hulled RIB like the AMF jet boats( I`ve been in a 40 footer with trip 300`s in 45knots plus weather on the south coast of Tasmania and it was very very nice) or borrow an idea from the Kiwis and put a flooding chamber in the keel. http://www.surtees.co.nz/boats/7-3-gamefishersportfisher.aspx . Pretty much the concensus here is glass is more comfortable, better ride, looks better etc where ally can get beaten up a bit, until a weld splits ( it has happened here and people have drowned) or someone loses a hook/swivel etc into the hull and electrolisis eats a hole in the boat.

All my boats have been glass apart from 14 foot tiller steered dingies. We`ve got a 24 foot glass c/c at the moment and are looking at buying a dingy for launching over rocky beaches into shallow dirty water soon. Some places you just cant take a glass boat.

[frankieg]

Why???? One word comes to mind " FUGLY "

[frankieg]

Why???? One word comes to mind " FUGLY "

[OReely]

Let's see, we've got our choices - Clorox Bottle, Rust Bucket, Worm Food, or a Tin Can.

I've never been on a alloy boat in the water but I have been on a few at boat shows. I think one reason they are not too popular in the southeast is they get freakin hot. Now maybe there is an answer for that but what I saw (and felt) was unacceptable to me being from South Florida.

As for the comment about fiberglass molds costing hundreds of thousands, yes, that can be true. However, the cost of those molds can be amortized over hundreds of boats, so the mold cost per boat is fairly low. Also the high number is really only true for larger boats with lots of parts.

Quality of a fiberglass boat can be controlled quite well, even without the more technologically oriented fabrication techniques available today. The real question is does the company run a tight ship and make quality a priority? And that is a question regardless of the building medium.

Now, the question you really should have asked to start a conversation is "Why would anyone put Yamaha's on the back of their boat?". That ought to make some heads spin.

[wiley]

Overall... Alum boat sales are doing ok, no?

[Have Knots]

Overall... Alum boat sales are doing ok, no?

I dont know about sales, but if I had the cash to shop for a new boat, I would definatly consider an alum. Carbon fiber would be better, but....

[welder]

Oreely, YES, they get hot sitting on a trailer to fix that .....Put it in the water.

Boat sales have been down for everyone for the last 2-3 years . ALLOY down under is moving VERY WELL right now and the builders I talk to in the Southern and north western USA on a regular bases are building but would like to be busier.

Edited July 4, 2011 by welder

[Have Knots]

Oreely, how can you say this . You have never been on an alloy, you sound like a true nothing. A person who dont know jack. If you had the choice of durability/looks, You would take looks over anything. Looks aint everything. The most "Durable" stuff comes from the USSR.I say this, if it looks tough, Its gotta be.I would rather smack a shipping container aboard an alloy, rather than, a fiberglass/wood.Then again, you aint me. Dont make claims about something you no clue about. I brought up USSR only because they never cared about "Fluff" Put more glitter on yer toes. If I could go out and buy a new boat, for function, rather than "FLUFF" I would buy an alloy. Unless I only went out to please "My people" on holidays. Your just you.

[Kerry]

Look Alloy isn't everything to everybody, never has and never ever will be. Is it the way to go? Well now that depends on many many variables that nobody here has all the answers too.

As for this so called fluff or looks or ugly or whatever turns your fancy the good old mudguard principle (shining on top, sh!t underneath) applies to any boat building material.

Simply so many variables and some are trying to put everything in the one basket, not possible people.