Lost Faith

[Dave Jones]

I just did a cursory glance at the 2001 models for comparison. Interesting note about the strakes though.

The strake in my pictures are not on my boat i would not let hatt put them on they simply wanted to bolt stainles steel to bottom. I also checked yw and there are at least 3 boats there that have undergone " Hatteras upgrade" One of which was worse than my boat and my att and myself have talked to him.

[Dave Jones]

Before we start crucifying Hatteras on the internet, (without a single"Hatt forum regular" having seen the boat with his own eyes) there's one thing we should all keep in mind:
The right (wrong) operator can break ANYTHING, I don't care what it is or who built it.
I have a (computer) guy who could break an anvil with a rubber hammer! I keep him far, far away from all tools.
Captains are the same as anyone else, some are great, some are savages.

I'll reserve judgment until I (or one of us we all recognize as a competent observer) sees the boat personally.

Boat is in Fairhaven Ma Let me know I will show it to you

[Freeebird]

The strake in my pictures are not on my boat i would not let hatt put them on they simply wanted to bolt stainles steel to bottom. I also checked yw and there are at least 3 boats there that have undergone " Hatteras upgrade" One of which was worse than my boat and my att and myself have talked to him.

Sounds like the proverbial smoking gun to me.

[SunChaser]

At this point why even discuss it, other than to bad mouth Hatteras.

Is Hatteras in or near bankrupcy?

Why not let Hatteras put the stakes on, would they hurt anything.

What is the disposition of the other boats?

25 boats might be enough to start a class action suit, is that in the works?

I'd think this forum would have heard of this with 25 boats involved.

As stated you and your atty have talked to other owners with the same problem, how do they feel about it?

[Pascal]

"The damage done by the captain only progressed the problem making us aware of it sooner than later."

wow... so now you are admitting that the captain did some of the damage...

as to 4 to 6 footers not being able to do damage at 30kts... maybe, maybe not. one thing is sure is that in every 4 to 6 footer seas comes the occasional 8 to 10 once in a while. hit that at 30+ and as someone pointed out, the forces on the hull go up EXPONENTIALY!

many of those that are so quick to blame hatteras fail to comprehend the forces involved when you start pushing boats at some serious speed and above what "old Hatteras" owners are used to.

[newinlet]

I do not live far from Fairhaven I would love to check out that 50, Did the owner say he inspected the boat after the repair before it left the Hatteras yard ?

[SunChaser]

Hey, lets just start the post over, and rehash everything that has already been said.

[Bayside Bert54]

The longest trip I have taken was in my Bertram 28 shortly after I purchased it ... I made the trip from Hampton Bays NY to Northport ME through the Cape Cod Canal and then out on the ocean. During that trip, the seas were 4-8 feet at times and seemed (even as an inexperienced boater) to be quite clear when it was necessary to back off the power. When the boat would launch off the wave at 24 knots and slap down, there would be a big bang and it felt like stuff was going to break ... it only takes a couple of those to learn that lesson for good. I backed off quickly and gained a new appreciation for running slower without the massive jolt of crashing down off a wave.

Now, I suppose with a bigger and heavier boat, I understand that a big issue can be stuffing the bow into a big wave and the stresses in that ... and certainly at 30+ knots in a much bigger 50' or 55' boat could launch off a wave and come slapping down into the trough.

So ... yes ... surely, just because Hatteras puts big engines in a boat doesn't mean the boat can go full bore regardless of the conditions.

So ... who is going to take a look at this subject Hatt and report back?

[Tim Powell]

So how rough was that ride? 4-6 footers shouldn't make that boat flinch at 30+ knots but 8-10's could be another story. I do think that the boat should be capable of handling much more than the crew can at any speed.

As far as comparing a Hatt to a car, I've owned a few Porsches and they are built to run fast all day long, under normal operating conditions. A 50ft Hatteras SF designed by the factory to cruise in the mid 30kt range should be capable of doing that in not so great conditions, not just flat seas. The 1400HP 3412's were a Hatteras option, one that they pushed at the boat shows, and the boat should be capable of handling the power and speed in all but the most severe conditions. I also feel that if Hatteras hired a captain to run the boat and that captain damaged the boat, then Hatteras needs to take care of the damages. Let's not forget that Hatteras hired this captain because they were addressing problems with the boat. We can't blame the bad ride for all this boats problems.

The owner states that this boat has not been run hard on a regular basis, yet the boat came apart and so have several others. If all this is true, it is a sad day for Hatteras. But we need more details and proof before we damn such a legend as Hatteras.

Jack try driving your porsh on a very pothole road or better yet a bumpy dirt road at about 70 mph the same principle applies.

[SKYCHENEY]

I once cracked up a 17' Chris Craft Scorpion that I owned. We would launch that thing over a wave and have to stand with bent knees to take the impact as it crashed down into the next one. I was great fun..................until I pulled the boat and found the aluminum ladder to the bow completely broken through the two support pipes, the windshield frame coming apart, and the cabin top cracked on both sides under the windshield.

I was young and I didn't understand that you could tear up a boat like that. I had only run small Boston Whalers before and I had no idea that you could break fiberglass. I no longer have that need for speed, so I doubt I will have to worry about that ever again.

My point is that, as previously stated, you can tear up a fiberglass boat if you push it too hard. I did it on a small scale, but I'm sure the bigger boats will come apart too if the conditions are right and the captain is a hot rod.