Hi. We are going to build a 26’ from the old Hourston molds and are debating all of the options. Looking for your ideas!! I’m pushing for a hardtop cuddy with glass roof or even a half tower with controls. a pod with twin 250 Yamahas and 25hp kicker. Blue hull , canvas and upholstery. option#2 is the classic island runner look single 425 on the pod. Black with red striping a canvas top.
Looking for help deciding how to setup 26’ Heritage.
- Thread starter RDale
- Start date
Rain City
Crew Member
Are you first in line? This is exciting.
This is going to be hull #1 or #2 if we build a 20’ first. These will be demo boats but it’s looking like they may be sold before we build them. We are working with the guys at NMI as our production shop.
Rain City
Crew Member
Oh right right you're the one building them duh. I thought you were just some guy that purchased one. Well cool either way.
Lots of those fancy new mounts would be awesome. 6 of them. Full Alaska cabin with a sliding door. Rear helm. Propane storage. Fold down seats on three sides. Insulated cooler locker. Speakers out back. Removable flush tackle storage with flasher slots. No less than 9 cup holders. 42" fish table with built in drains. Heater, could do propane. Propane on demand hot water. Propane storage. Raw and fresh water flush mount washdown hoses. Retractable sun shade. Net holder along the side somewhere. Plugs for downriggers at each mount location. Storage locker for prawn puller. Storage locker for hali anchor tub. Light bar at the back deck. Giant scupper drains. Ladder for roof top storage. Built in 300 watt solar panel with lots of batteries. Windlass. Fender storage. Life raft. Radar. Three 12" plotters. Shock absorbing seats. Private pooper. Sound dampening in the v berth. Good wipers. Window defoggers. Spotlight. Outrigger mounts. Lots of rod holders up top.
I think that's it... for now.
Rain City
Crew Member
Black errything fo sho.
zurk
Well-Known Member
missing the shower and cooking gallery, chief. also external BBQ.
if you want the works i would do the same setup i put on my 18ft kingfisher.
heres the list of some stuff i added :
-Simrad Forwardscan dipping sonar transducer for shallow water navigation.
-8 port Ethernet and dual band Wifi onboard network with fully managed ultra low power router.
-4K Bow waterproof camera with wifi/12 hour record capability at 4K/30fps.
-NMEA 2000 network with engine, chartplotters, heading sensor and radar integration (2 slots free for future expansion).
-VHF radio with AIS linked to chartplotter via network.
-Handheld VHF including aeronautical radio bands with on board charger.
-Debon bluetooth music system and speaker.
-Halo 20+ radar with dual band capability and chart overlay as well as MARPA target tracking.
-Simrad HS60 DGPS heading sensor and compass.
-Fixed mount searchlight with 8 x USB sockets through the boat.
-Low light night vision camera with wifi capability.
-Rear wide angle & Rear waterline & Passenger cameras linked to chartplotters.
-6 seats including captains chairs with suspension seating captains chairs for front 2 seats.
-7 Fenders and lines sized to the boat.
-Rocna anchor system with removable drum for chain and line storage.
-Electric trolling motor with wifi controls swappable for forwardscan sonar.
-Interior EVA Foam/SeaDek style carpet throughout.
-Para sea anchor ocean safety system installed.
-Gas fuelling vent canister included for preventing fuel overflow when refueling.
-12V generator (honda with bosch alternator) permanently wired in.
-Hailer with digital PA/horn and readback integrated into VHF radio.
-Sea Eagle 380X tender with Bixpy electric jet drive.
obviously you have more space. i would go for a quad 12" chartplotter set and keep a permanently wired forwardscan in.
if you want the works i would do the same setup i put on my 18ft kingfisher.
heres the list of some stuff i added :
-Simrad Forwardscan dipping sonar transducer for shallow water navigation.
-8 port Ethernet and dual band Wifi onboard network with fully managed ultra low power router.
-4K Bow waterproof camera with wifi/12 hour record capability at 4K/30fps.
-NMEA 2000 network with engine, chartplotters, heading sensor and radar integration (2 slots free for future expansion).
-VHF radio with AIS linked to chartplotter via network.
-Handheld VHF including aeronautical radio bands with on board charger.
-Debon bluetooth music system and speaker.
-Halo 20+ radar with dual band capability and chart overlay as well as MARPA target tracking.
-Simrad HS60 DGPS heading sensor and compass.
-Fixed mount searchlight with 8 x USB sockets through the boat.
-Low light night vision camera with wifi capability.
-Rear wide angle & Rear waterline & Passenger cameras linked to chartplotters.
-6 seats including captains chairs with suspension seating captains chairs for front 2 seats.
-7 Fenders and lines sized to the boat.
-Rocna anchor system with removable drum for chain and line storage.
-Electric trolling motor with wifi controls swappable for forwardscan sonar.
-Interior EVA Foam/SeaDek style carpet throughout.
-Para sea anchor ocean safety system installed.
-Gas fuelling vent canister included for preventing fuel overflow when refueling.
-12V generator (honda with bosch alternator) permanently wired in.
-Hailer with digital PA/horn and readback integrated into VHF radio.
-Sea Eagle 380X tender with Bixpy electric jet drive.
obviously you have more space. i would go for a quad 12" chartplotter set and keep a permanently wired forwardscan in.
Rain City
Crew Member
Please don't put any of that nerdy stuff on mine.
Rayvon
Well-Known Member
If it's going to be your demo boat,I think your better off concentrating on the basics.People are looking for quality and attention to details in that size (26) and price range.All fiberglass stringer systems,self bailing decks that actually work,well thought out electrical system with easy access to everything,non metal fuel tank for longevity,standard rear helm on fishing model.Your molds probably need work to achieve the high standard finish that people expect these days and all materials have to be high quality.If you expect to compete with the likes of Grady,Pursuit,Robalo etc.you'll have to produce a comparable product.You've got a great hull from waterline down to work with,so concentrate on quality above waterline.
kaelc
Well-Known Member
I would go with your hard top cuddy with a table bed on one side and a stand up head/galley on the captains side, same interior layout as C-Dory 25 Cruiser but a bigger bathroom to fit an American! I would invest in better rear doors and windows like New Zealand boats or Ranger Tugs to give it real spacious feeling. If you attend the Seattle boat show you can see and feel the money at the Ranger Tug and Grady and similar displays. You want the 40-60 year old making $150k+ USD or $200k per year who wants his wife/girlfriend comfortable but also wants to whip to the San Juan/Gulf islands or off shore for fishing.
Thunder21
Well-Known Member
I had a 26’ Hourston for a couple years. Here is what I would want.
- enclosed cabin with same sliding door as a Skagit orca.
-table that easily folds to a bed to sleep a second person
- oven with a cooktop(really handy for long trips to have pre made frozen oven meals)
-diesel heat
-small fridge
-toilet
-big fuel tank
-taller roof and windows by 3 or 4 inches
-sink with a decent size fresh water tank for washing hands and gear.
-self bailing deck with large scuppers
-engines on a pod
-rear steering
- rack on the roof for traps and gear
-windlass
-as cool as the 425 Yamaha is, I’d rather twin 200s for less money. I priced one and it was 50ish k. I got my entire twin 200 package for 43k.
-propane tank storage built into the pod.
-drains inside cabin for cleaning
That’s all I can think of at the moment
- enclosed cabin with same sliding door as a Skagit orca.
-table that easily folds to a bed to sleep a second person
- oven with a cooktop(really handy for long trips to have pre made frozen oven meals)
-diesel heat
-small fridge
-toilet
-big fuel tank
-taller roof and windows by 3 or 4 inches
-sink with a decent size fresh water tank for washing hands and gear.
-self bailing deck with large scuppers
-engines on a pod
-rear steering
- rack on the roof for traps and gear
-windlass
-as cool as the 425 Yamaha is, I’d rather twin 200s for less money. I priced one and it was 50ish k. I got my entire twin 200 package for 43k.
-propane tank storage built into the pod.
-drains inside cabin for cleaning
That’s all I can think of at the moment
tightlines
Well-Known Member
Imo the best way to seperate yourself from the pack is to focus on the enclosure sightlines. All the other bells and whistles are going to be specific to each client. You can add significant value by having a hard top with 360 degrees vis and nice clean glass modern glass. It will be standard in the industry pretty soon I think.
Here's an article from 2 years ago, I'm sure the windows are even better now.
www.sportfishingmag.com
Here's an article from 2 years ago, I'm sure the windows are even better now.
New Boat Windshields Offer Better Visibility and Style | Sport Fishing Mag
How boat windshields are evolving thanks to new glass technology
www.sportfishingmag.com
Gong Show
Well-Known Member
Agreed.
Same thing about staging a house for sale.
Make it look big.
People do not want to see all your junky **** all over the place.
They want to picture/dream about what their stuff will look like in the space.
You want to have the best platform available for all of us crazies that can't agree on the proper placement of an anchor roller.
You want to sell these to SWMBO, plumb in a nice crapper with some sort of privacy.
Don't even bother suggesting where to mount a downrigger!!!
Gong Show
Well-Known Member
Imo the best way to seperate yourself from the pack is to focus on the enclosure sightlines. All the other bells and whistles are going to be specific to each client. You can add significant value by having a hard top with 360 degrees vis and nice clean glass modern glass. It will be standard in the industry pretty soon I think.
Here's an article from 2 years ago, I'm sure the windows are even better now.
New Boat Windshields Offer Better Visibility and Style | Sport Fishing Mag
How boat windshields are evolving thanks to new glass technology
I like the look, but these minimal frame windows, in some of the provided examples, have to support the entire weight of the roof etc.
Tough first, fancy second. I find tough beautiful though.
ab1752
Crew Member
I think twin 250's is way over powdered for that hull. These things are really efficient and you will have no problem with a pair of 175's or a single 350hp. What is your design going to be for the windshield, curved or flat panes? Whatever you do, resist the urge to put an aft cabin and raise the deck with a step, keep it one level. Maintain the self bailing of the newer builds and such. There is plenty of room in the cuddy where the bulkhead is on our boat to the right as you enter. It would take up too much space from the deck to have the head in the cabin area but you could do it and add a shower if you wanted to go that far. Don't go too far "bespoke" with the demo boat, just build it to show it can be done and then the next clients can customize it from there at their leisure.
I would build it with a Tee top and canvas enclosure similar to a Pursuit 265 or an Alaskan Bulkhead.
I would build it with a Tee top and canvas enclosure similar to a Pursuit 265 or an Alaskan Bulkhead.
Aces
Well-Known Member
I agree with Rayvon and Gongshow...don't over load it with gadgets, allow prospective buyers to use their imagination.
I also agree with AB1752 that twin 250's are over kill. I built a custom centre console that i'm running twin 150's and there is plenty of power, although mine is stripped down a bit weight wise including a canvas top to keep the weight up high down and prevent excess rocking while fishing the west side of Vancouver Island 100 plus days a year. I also moved the bulkhead ahead to give me a 17 foot cockpit
I also agree with AB1752 that twin 250's are over kill. I built a custom centre console that i'm running twin 150's and there is plenty of power, although mine is stripped down a bit weight wise including a canvas top to keep the weight up high down and prevent excess rocking while fishing the west side of Vancouver Island 100 plus days a year. I also moved the bulkhead ahead to give me a 17 foot cockpit
ab1752
Crew Member
Aces makes a very good point, a center console in the spirit of his rig would do well in our waters with a nice Tee top. Not everyone wants or needs a full enclosed structure too, and when Chuck decided to build the Island Runner style soft top like ours, they sold well and continue to do so in the resale market. These are resort hopping boats with the ability to hold one or 2 overnight no problem. I was off on ours solo going from point to point for 10 days straight last summer with zero issues in terms of livability.
I would keep it simple, nothing too crazy for electronics but I would include a radar option and a diesel heater.
I would keep it simple, nothing too crazy for electronics but I would include a radar option and a diesel heater.
ab1752
Crew Member
Have you spent time on an IR before? I'd offer mine up for some future concession haha...PM me.
CBsqrd
Well-Known Member
I’ll add my $0.02...
Spend some time thinking about the helm area and usability / sight lines for the captain. This is the one thing that gets me, particularly with many of the aluminum boats, is you can tell it was an afterthought.
For example there is little to no room for flush mounting the electronics, so they chart plotter is mounter up top on the dash right in front of the captain’s view over the bow. Give me an unobstructed view any day. A 26’ boat should be able to mount two 12” screens side-by-side (or one 16”) with room for other accessories - including another screen (at least 5” or 7”) for the engines.
Binnacle and steering should be accessible without reaching from the driving position too.
Spend some time thinking about the helm area and usability / sight lines for the captain. This is the one thing that gets me, particularly with many of the aluminum boats, is you can tell it was an afterthought.
For example there is little to no room for flush mounting the electronics, so they chart plotter is mounter up top on the dash right in front of the captain’s view over the bow. Give me an unobstructed view any day. A 26’ boat should be able to mount two 12” screens side-by-side (or one 16”) with room for other accessories - including another screen (at least 5” or 7”) for the engines.
Binnacle and steering should be accessible without reaching from the driving position too.
