best long-distance boat hauler?

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MitchM

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Jan 20, 2005
1,022
Nauticat 321 pilothouse 32 Erie PA
Having had a pretty dreadful experience with uShip brokers, I seek advice from the knowledgeable souls on this board. The last boat haul , 1200 miles, was not well done. Ship , a freight broker, charges a fee to you to put your job up for bid on its board. UShip has member-brokers who low- ball your bid. some are completely incompetent to fulfill the transport contract.. (per 'ripoffReport.com, some bidders on UShip may not even be currently FMCSA or DOT licensed. )

the carrier showed up with a trailer that was NOT the low-belly 'LoBoy' specifically requested to accommodate a keelboat. the yard of course charged for getting the boat ready to haul, then standby time as the yard crew watched as the hauler brought the wrong trailer. eventually the right trailer showed up-- a week later.. totally inconveniencing our yacht yard on the receiving end.

so this time I am hoping to get names of reputable boat haulers from those of you who have successfully contracted recently for a long distance boat haul .

thanks, and fair winds
 
Skipper

Skipper

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Oct 9, 2008
1,739
Bristol 29.9 Dana Point
Seven Seas Marine Group. (Edit)
Used them to haul from Annapolis to So Cal.

Guy shows up 3 days late. I had made it clear that the boat needed to be at its destination within a certain window, for I had a plane scheduled to come back to VA to complete our move. They promised. I had enabled 6 days for the haul. Now we had 3.
Also, guy shows up with a 3 axle powerboat trailer, with custom stands to convert it for the sailboat. It worked ok, but no accommodation for the mast, so had to have the yard (Bert Jabin's - very helpful) build a cradle for it to ride on top, and not beat itself and the boat to death for 2,800 miles. 2 hours more delay.
Driver was good. We made it in 3 days. I drove my car. Boat was undamaged, except for an insignificant 1 inch gouge in the hullside gelcoat from where a tie-down had busted and hit the boat. Driver heard it and pulled over to fix. A lesser driver might have lost the boat. Wrong trailer I think. Too much stress on the tie-downs.

The cost was $8,000. But with the added cost of the cradle, and the layover cost at the yard's dock, it was closer to $8,500. Still less than the $10,000+ quotes from others, but too stressful and risky in hindsight. I mean we just barely made it, plus the obvious risk to the boat and others. Also not enough time to get the mast stepped. Had to wait for the 2nd trip. Luckily King Harbor manager let me store the mast for free.
 
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MitchM

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Jan 20, 2005
1,022
Nauticat 321 pilothouse 32 Erie PA
Thanks for this tale of woe. at least your boat got there undamaged? I've heard nothing but good about Jabin's yard. I wonder if Jabin's have any recommendations? I'll ask my friend who keeps his Hinckley there...
 
31seahorse

31seahorse

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Aug 2, 2005
1,155
Pearson 33-2 & Typhoon 18 Seneca Lake
+1 for Lockview Marina and Transport. They moved our boat from the upper Chesapeake Bay to Seneca Lake, NY. Good communication and easy to understand instructions. The boat arrived safely and was unloaded and floating before we arrived at the marina destination.
 
Skipper

Skipper

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Oct 9, 2008
1,739
Bristol 29.9 Dana Point
Skipper said:
http://www.sevenseasus.com .
Used them to haul from Annapolis to So Cal.

Guy shows up 3 days late. I had made it clear that the boat needed to be at its destination within a certain window, for I had a plane scheduled to come back to VA to complete our move. They promised. I had enabled 6 days for the haul. Now we had 3.
Also, guy shows up with a 3 axle powerboat trailer, with custom stands to convert it for the sailboat. It worked ok, but no accommodation for the mast, so had to have the yard (Bert Jabin's - very helpful) build a cradle for it to ride on top, and not beat itself and the boat to death for 2,800 miles. 2 hours more delay.
Driver was good. We made it in 3 days. I drove my car. Boat was undamaged, except for an insignificant 1 inch gouge in the hullside gelcoat from where a tie-down had busted and hit the boat. Driver heard it and pulled over to fix. A lesser driver might have lost the boat. Wrong trailer I think. Too much stress on the tie-downs.

The cost was $8,000. But with the added cost of the cradle, and the layover cost at the yard's dock, it was closer to $8,500. Still less than the $10,000+ quotes from others, but too stressful and risky in hindsight. I mean we just barely made it, plus the obvious risk to the boat and others. Also not enough time to get the mast stepped. Had to wait for the 2nd trip. Luckily King Harbor manager let me store the mast for free.
Click to expand
I made an error on this.
The actual shipper was
sevenseasmarinegroup.c
They're both in Florida.
I know I made an error, because the company whose link I first posted sent me a PM, under the forum name seven_seas_y-t. Member since yesterday.
They must have some creepy software that snoops for reviews. Beware. You're on the internet.
Anyway it was my mistake so fair enough.
 
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C

Crazy Dave Condon

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Jun 8, 2004
10,068
-na -NA Anywhere USA
Triton' s Yachts out of Oriental, NC. Has been hauling for many years and he the equipment to includes a hydraulic trailer which he launches and takes out boats of the water up to 50 feet . Has the experience, equipment, insurance and so on. Family affiliated with VMI and if you know that college, then you know the type of person he is. On time and professional. As for Jabin's yard in Annapolis, I worked with them for 35 years and have the highest regards for them.

When you try to get others who do not know boats to transport, expect trouble to include the lack of equipment, experience and so forth. Had to throw one company not to be named out of my yard showing up with the wrong trailer, no insurance, lack of experience and so forth. You get what you pay for when trying to save a few bucks.
 
F

fdr14127

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Apr 23, 2012
20
C&C 29 MKI Niagara on the Lake Sailing Club
ATL (aka Andrews Trucking) has long delivered most of the Canadian built yachts. C&C, Hinterholler, et al. They also haul in most of the boats sold into Canada. But they cover all of North America and they are into our yard with delivery's a couple of times a month. They have the equipment, know the permits, and the experience. Quite often they will give you a deal on a backhaul of one of their delivery outbound. They are also the only people I know that can effect a trip in or out of NY city to Long Island. They have been there, done it and have the T shirt to prove it.
http://www.andrewstrucking.com/
 
Stu Jackson

Stu Jackson

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Feb 26, 2004
22,783
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
Ach, I "may" be moving my boat. From SF Bay to the PNW.

I'd almost ask the same question, but I'd do my own homework & research first.

I've read good things, many, about San Diego Hauling.

But everyone has a different situation.

"Boat hauling" would be a good start.

"Trucking" would also work.

Here's one:

http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,5969.0.html

Stay engaged

There is no BEST of anything in boating. Boating, in and of itself, IS a compromise.

Even in other forums, like pressure cookers and guitars, there simply ain't no BEST of anything.

Good luck.
 
B

bgary

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Sep 17, 2015
53
1985 Ericson 32-III Everett
Stu Jackson said:
Ach, I "may" be moving my boat. From SF Bay to the PNW.
Click to expand
I moved a new-to-me Ericson 32 from Marina del Rey to the PNW a couple of months ago. I called (and got bids) from over a dozen different haulers. Learned a lot more than I ever wanted to know about the boat-hauling industry.
I ended up using Dudley (based in Gig Harbor, WA) and then they ended up subbing it to Piazza and Sons (northern CA).
Have to say I was *delighted* with the way both companies did their business. The Piazza driver, in particular, was absolutely meticulous in the way he loaded my boat and it arrived in perfect shape. Would unequivocally recommend both of these companies.
Rambling blog-post - with links and contacts - here: http://www.ericsonyachts.org/infoexchange/entry.php?354-Boat-haulers-a-long-strange-trip
Bruce
 
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