If you were to build a cope design...

[NDT]

If you could build any cope design, which would it be and why?

Whether it be a 16' centre console to a 35' offshore tuna fisher or day Boat to weekender style boats, let us know.

I've been looking at the winter harbour 23' with some mods (longer cabin, larger fuel tank). Being a family of 5, a larger cabin would be nice for the rainy days. Also the economy would break the bank with twin 115 or single 225. Would be easily trailered long distances as well.





If I lived closer to the coast, I'd consider the pachena 26' with the 10.5' beam. Twin 150 or 200. This would be a great fishing platform for salmon, Hali or tuna(which I look forward to trying one day). But not as easily trailered.





If you have another designer in mind, please post it up as well.

 

[1marko]

the manaro is a hot looking setup...

 

[Ceilidh69]

My dream would be to have Walker build me a Pachena Point 26 or a Quatsino Sound 25. I have fished on the Beverle (Quatsino 25) and it is a wonderful boat.

 

[trophywife]

i am in the middle of redesigning the cabin pilothouse on my 26' kingfisher.. sport cabin will be the finish , adding 30sq' to the tray. There isnt barely enough room on deck for 3 adults. And i dont need a bigger boat!!
calling it project sportparkerfisher.

go with the biggest amount of deckspace as possible, IMHO kingfisher has missed the mark on this. I cant afford a new boat or a custom build, so this is my plan to fit my budget.

so by the drawings you show, i would go with a winter harbour 26 or 27, but with atleast a 9' 6" beam... keep it to a big single.

 

[ReelSlim]

My concern on a 23’ boat with a euro transom is that you going to run out of deck space especially if your wanting a bigger cabin. Everyone has their wants and needs so no perfect boat. I tend to lean towards as much dance floor as possible and a cabin as short as you can get by with. If your going with a 23’ I would want it podded otherwise you will want it a bit longer. I had all the same thoughts your are having now and if you plan on making this a long term boat go with what you can manage comfortably. Bigger isn’t always better depending on the design and layout. Also not sure of your kids ages but if they are young they aren’t going to get any smaller...lol. They do have nice lines for sure!

 

[Rain City]

My concern on a 23’ boat with a euro transom is that you going to run out of deck space especially if your wanting a bigger cabin. Everyone has their wants and needs so no perfect boat. I tend to lean towards as much dance floor as possible and a cabin as short as you can get by with. If your going with a 23’ I would want it podded otherwise you will want it a bit longer. I had all the same thoughts your are having now and if you plan on making this a long term boat go with what you can manage comfortably. Bigger isn’t always better depending on the design and layout. Also not sure of your kids ages but if they are young they aren’t going to get any smaller...lol. They do have nice lines for sure!

Agreed. Mine is nowhere near the same design or layout but it is only 25' LOA and with decent bed, washroom and kitchen area that is just manageable for two people it leaves a tiny deck space for fishing. I'm really looking forward to jumping up to a 28'-30' boat. If I was only fishing off a 24' obviously it'd be fine but my wife and I treat it like a cabin all summer.

 

[littlechucky]

Here is a question (ok a few questions).

What is the cost of the aluminum for one of these builds?

What I’m getting at is....are they are any cost savings to be had finding your own design, sourcing materials, components, and having a reputable builder to the welding, etc vs buying one of “name” aluminum boats?

 

[ryanb]

Here is a question (ok a few questions).

What is the cost of the aluminum for one of these builds?

What I’m getting at is....are they are any cost savings to be had finding your own design, sourcing materials, components, and having a reputable builder to the welding, etc vs buying one of “name” aluminum boats?

Nope. Copes are good designs but there is nothing earth shattering or ground breaking. Not much, if any savings to be had building one of these.

Myself, that 23' winter harbour is just about the perfect boat.

My 22' Raider (24 with pod) suffers from too much cabin, not enough deck like trophy wife mentions about his kingfisher.

North River offshore pilothouses have a very similar generous fishing deck design to the cope 23. If I were buying or building new one of these two would be my front runners.

 

[paguy]

Look at the new Hewescraft 25 or 27 Alaskan, Very nice looking boat.

 

[ReelSlim]

Here is a question (ok a few questions).

What is the cost of the aluminum for one of these builds?

What I’m getting at is....are they are any cost savings to be had finding your own design, sourcing materials, components, and having a reputable builder to the welding, etc vs buying one of “name” aluminum boats?

Is there much savings overall? Probably not as I'm going through the build process right now. If you do go with a smaller builder however you will be more in control of where the money goes. Again everyone has their wants and needs. I can get on board with walking onto a lot and buying the biggest shiniest boat there or have a super rugged sparsely appointed boat for straight up fishing. The biggest thing I found when looking to build or buy off a lot was what you were paying for and only the buyer knows what's important to them. You will get a real sense of overhead on a lot if you get quotes for a factory build and start deleting or adding options. With some manufacturers it can be 4 times the cost just to add something and only save half the cost to delete it. Probably the biggest reason I went with a builder in the end. I think I will be close to the same cost in the end but the majority of the cost will be for materials and build time. There is the automatic 18% mark up on the hull and high priced options I didn't want. I have bought new off the lot with most things but with aluminum boats I couldn't do it. Everyone has to earn a living I just don't think the dealership...salesmen...mechanic.....manager and owner have to do it on every boat purchase....lol As far as production boats went in my case a NR2500 or 24' Duckworth Offshore were very close to what I wanted minus the overpriced options...IMO

 

[the fog ducker]

dont think "savin money " is what the thought process is when building a custom Cope ,
thers is zero comparison to the fancy name brand boats with built in cup holders ,
until yo go kick the tires on a Cope or Northwest , , you will soon find , there built to last a lifetime ,WAY beefier
definitely use the word "tinny" loosely on these , their heavy tanks that handle the big stuff

m2b
ive been in almost every fancy pantz namebrand tinny out west , some great , some not so great , love the 24 Weldcraft my buddy has !!
but , custom Cope , completely different animal , Smooooth....

fd

 

[RiverBoy]

dont think "savin money " is what the thought process is when building a custom Cope ,
thers is zero comparison to the fancy name brand boats with built in cup holders ,
until yo go kick the tires on a Cope or Northwest , , you will soon find , there built to last a lifetime ,WAY beefier
definitely use the word "tinny" loosely on these , their heavy tanks that handle the big stuff

m2b
ive been in almost every fancy pantz namebrand tinny out west , some great , some not so great , love the 24 Alumaweld my buddy has !!
but , custom Cope , completely different animal , Smooooth....

fd

Agreed. been on aluminum boats that ride and feel like your actually in a pop can. I was in my buddy’s Legend a few years back i was not impressed to say the least. i’m looking at his transom flex as we are under way; then he proceeds to tell me he thinks he has electrolysis issues as the tin seems to be eating away around the transom. sweet....
Then go jump in a Kellahan or a Cope or an Eaglecraft and you automatically feel like you’re in a tank

 

[the fog ducker]

cope ride blows away a Kellahan , just sayun

fd

 

[Pineapple Express]

Agreed. been on aluminum boats that ride and feel like your actually in a pop can. I was in my buddy’s Legend a few years back i was not impressed to say the least. i’m looking at his transom flex as we are under way; then he proceeds to tell me he thinks he has electrolysis issues as the tin seems to be eating away around the transom. sweet....
Then go jump in a Kellahan or a Cope or an Eaglecraft and you automatically feel like you’re in a tank

My family had a 19'6" Kellahan for about 20 years. A good ride was NOT one of it's attributes. It was a tough boat but it was a shallow vee and it pounded like crazy...so much so that the hull developed fatigue cracks. Every winter we'd be fixing fatigue cracks but new ones always reappeared.

 

[RiverBoy]

My family had a 19'6" Kellahan for about 20 years. A good ride was NOT one of it's attributes. It was a tough boat but it was a shallow vee and it pounded like crazy...so much so that the hull developed fatigue cracks. Every winter we'd be fixing fatigue cracks but new ones always reappeared.

ok good to know; i was mainly referring to build quality with my post; my neighbor loves his. he’s never had any issues with fatigue cracks etc

 

[NDT]

Here is a question (ok a few questions).

What is the cost of the aluminum for one of these builds?

What I’m getting at is....are they are any cost savings to be had finding your own design, sourcing materials, components, and having a reputable builder to the welding, etc vs buying one of “name” aluminum boats?

For the WH 23' hull. I got a price for all the aluminum sheet, extrusion, forming and bending, Cnc routing. Not as expensive as I thought, giving the trade issues of of lately. I don't want to post quotes on a public forum but pm me and I will share what I have.

If you hire a shop to weld it up, you are not saving any money, but you get a tank of a boat and can build it exactly as you like.

I've looked at many brand name boats, I like them, I'm sure they would suit my fishing habits for a long time. But I'm the DIY type and enjoy learning new skills.

Thank you for your input

 

[NDT]

Is there much savings overall? Probably not as I'm going through the build process right now. If you do go with a smaller builder however you will be more in control of where the money goes. Again everyone has the wants and needs. I can get on board with walking onto a lot and buying the biggest shiniest boat there or have a super rugged sparsely appointed boat for straight up fishing. The biggest thing I found when looking to build or buy off a lot was what you were paying for and only the buyer knows what's important to them. You will get a real sense of overhead on a lot if you get quotes for a factory build and start deleting or adding options. With some manufacturers it can be 4 times the cost just to add something and only save half the cost to delete it. Probably the biggest reason I went with a builder in the end. I think I will be close to the same cost in the end but the majority of the cost will be for materials and build time. There is the automatic 18% mark up on the hull and high priced options I didn't want. I have bought new off the lot with most things but with aluminum boats I couldn't do it. Everyone has to earn a living I just don't think the dealership...salesmen...mechanic.....manager and owner have to do it on every boat purchase....lol As far as production boats went in my case a NR2500 or 24' Duckworth Offshore were very close to what I wanted minus the overpriced options...IMO

This was my thoughts exactly, btw, following your build very closely!

 

[NDT]

I plan on keeping this boat for 5 years, then building a second, larger beam boat once I relocate to the coast... If my plans work out.

The cabin on the WH 23' is 5'1". Deck space is 8'3" useable space. With 3 kids, 7 and under, I'm was thinking the seating behind the two front seat would be tight. If the cabin was stretched to 6'4", that leaves a 7' deck. I would like the largest dance floor possible, but keeping the family comfortable will keep us on the water longer, which is the goal.
My last boat has a 5' foot deck with a doghouse, so it was tight. The though of a 7' deck with no doghouse sounds like a dream haha.

Thank you for the input everyone, keep the question/suggestions coming

 

[ReelSlim]

I plan on keeping this boat for 5 years, then building a second, larger beam boat once I relocate to the coast... If my plans work out.

The cabin on the WH 23' is 5'1". Deck space is 8'3" useable space. With 3 kids, 7 and under, I'm was thinking the seating behind the two front seat would be tight. If the cabin was stretched to 6'4", that leaves a 7' deck. I would like the largest dance floor possible, but keeping the family comfortable will keep us on the water longer, which is the goal.
My last boat has a 5' foot deck with a doghouse, so it was tight. The though of a 7' deck with no doghouse sounds like a dream haha.

Thank you for the input everyone, keep the question/suggestions coming

I like it! Planning on a bigger boat before this one is built...lol. I told my wife I’m not the only one with the sickness

 

[NDT]

I like it! Planning on a bigger boat before this one is built...lol. I told my wife I’m not the only one with the sickness

Lol a guy can dream. Definitely a few of us out there with the sickness Haha
in all honesty, a well built 23' boat will take on rougher conditions then I can handle and probably work well for my lifetime.

My dream would be a 10.5' beam 26/28' that my wife and I can tour from port hardy to Alaska. The coast has so much freedom to explore a guy could spend a lifetime finding that perfect honey hole. Maybe one day....