You can estimate the boat's stability by measuring the roll period. The roll period is the time in seconds it takes to roll from one extreme to the other and back again. A properly designed trawler will have a roll period roughly equivalent to the beam in feet divided by three.

Has anyone noticed that Pascoe's estimated costs almost exactly follow the rate of inflation for the last 30 years? They say nothing about increased maintenance requirements of older boats, simply that replacement parts and labor are more expensive now than they were when the boat was new.

I would get a reliable estimate from the yard for replacement, to your specifications, and factor that into the purchase price. Get inspection/cleanout ports in every chamber and a sump drain. I think I spent about 15000 bucks on tank replacement in my Krogen trawler, not including waste tanks, just fuel and water. I did most of the grunt work myself.

Total estimated cost - design, material, fabrication, haul-out, installation etc around 8 B.U. They are using parts of the existing rudder. Hope to report back on initial impressions shortly. Full assessment only next year. But if resuts are anything like those achieved on the Nordic Tug, should be great. Good luck with your decision.

I've used one of these devices to measure the RPM of my propeller shaft and estimate boat speed by persuading the speedometer head to accept the calculated advance of my boat for each propeller rotation as the hypothetical bike wheel circumference. Larry Z ************** It's Tax Time! Get tips, forms, and advice on AOL Money & Finance.

There are several places in Annapolis that advertise their inflatable repair services, and I'll call them on Monday to get estimates. In the meantime, I'm looking at prices for new ones in the 11 foot range.

We loosely estimate we have a range of a 5 mile radius. Typically our outgoing exploration trips meanders all over the place and the return run is WOT and the shortest distance between 2 points.

The boat sold for about 20K more than the initial estimate once all the bilges were clean, leaks repaired, and some waxing and polishing was done. Did this all over one 3 day weekend... What i got for this? My fee for storage the following year was discounted a lot.

I have no direct evidence of some of the other benefits it is supposed to provide, like better lubricity, but I have tested with and without SPF in the truck's tank, and I estimate it improves towing mileage by something like 1/2 mpg (5%) - well worth its relatively minor cost (a case of six half-gallon jugs is some $90).

I have the dipstick marked as to what the level is when at 1600 rpm and with the level already marked when at rest, I can "estimate" how much oil I would need to add if I had to while underway. I am slightly adverse to these "gadgets" as it is just something else to break..