size

[brunooliviero]

Hi there Searay owners
I am shopping for the biggest Searay Sundancer that I can tow from my house in Florida to various locations in Florida.
I live in Canada and fly down south various times of the year. I am prepared to buy a towing vehicle such as a dually or what ever will allow me to hall it to different spots and then when it is time to go home in a week or 2 on the water then I will bring it back to my home in Florida. I dont want to leave it at a marina and pay to store it all year.Thanks
Bruno

 

[chuck1]

Are you talking with or without special permits?? What type of tow vehicle do you have? More info please.

 

[Tonka Boater]

I think the general consensus would be the 2001-2009 280 Sundancer is the largest you would want to tow without a permit. The 280 is a very easy boat to trailer too. At 9'5" it has a wide enough beam to be roomy but not so wide that it requires a permit. Plus, the average loaded weight is under 10,000 lbs.

 

[brunooliviero]

I have a GMC dually deisel. As far as permits are required what would that entail. Could I go 320 or 2002 340 which is about 13,000 lbs.
Thanks

 

[Tonka Boater]

I have a GMC dually deisel. As far as permits are required what would that entail. Could I go 320 or 2002 340 which is about 13,000 lbs.
Thanks

It's also beam and height on the trailer. Not sure of the local laws in FL but where I live, anything bigger then the 280DA requires a semi or a special permit.

 

[chuck1]

I think the general consensus would be the 2001-2009 280 Sundancer is the largest you would want to tow without a permit. The 280 is a very easy boat to trailer too. At 9'5" it has a wide enough beam to be roomy but not so wide that it requires a permit. Plus, the average loaded weight is under 10,000 lbs.

Pretty much anything over 8'6" is going to require a permit in the South East, but have to agree the 280 would be a great boat.

 

[HUMPH]

http://www.yachtauctions.com/listing.php?vessel=5552

This is worth trailering to Florida....

 

[Tonka Boater]

http://www.yachtauctions.com/listing.php?vessel=5552

This is worth trailering to Florida....

Crap. It would be worth it to sell mine and buy that and pocket a bunch of cash.

 

[Sundancer]

A semi isn't required at all for any boat. It's just a nice luxury and will take a larger load much better than your standard diesel dually. I tow our 11 foot wide 300 DA all over the place. I have an Idaho and Washington oversize load permit and have the associated signs and markers. The only downside is that I can't tow at night or during the bookends of the holiday weekends. So, I go early and stay late! :grin:

The biggest concern is staying 12 feet wide or under. Above that and you have to have pilot cars front and rear. When you get to boats that size you need to watch the overall height. I think standard is over 13'6" is considered oversize, but I'm not sure on that one. At that point you'd have to have a hinged arch to reduce the towing height. Permits are required on anything over 8'6" which is a federal standard observed by all states. A lot of guys don't worry about it up to 9'6" because it's hard to tell how wide it really is.

My boat on the trailer loaded and ready to go is 13,500 lbs per the scale I weighed it on. That's about 80% of the GCWR and doesn't include my family in the cab. There is another 510 lbs of family when I add the dogs in there too. Adding another 6" to each side wouldn't really bother me at this point. It's so big it just wouldn't matter anymore!

 

[EricW]

I agree with the comments so far.

Go for a 270/280/290 with a beam between 9' and 9'8". Nice and big, but still easy to tow thru tight areas. Plus, you won't stand out too much on the road --- If you skip the permits, the chances of being stopped just for being overwide are pretty slim.

Most 3/4 ton trucks and larger can tow these just fine.

 

[EricW]

I have a GMC dually deisel. As far as permits are required what would that entail. Could I go 320 or 2002 340 which is about 13,000 lbs.
Thanks

Do you want Sterndrives or V-Drives?

If you REALLY wanted to, you could tow around a 320 with V-drives. The trailer will be big and expensive. The trailered height with arch could easily be higher than 13'6". The total weight of boat/trailer/gas/gear could be 17,000 lbs. Are you sure you want to take that to various boat ramps around Florida?

If you really want to go bigger than the 290, I would suggest stopping at the 300/310 with stern drives. Anything bigger just seems like a hassle to me for regular trips to the boat ramp.