Grady White Craziness on the Hull Truth...

[White Horses (Mike)]

I can't figure out the Grady White Insanity on the Hull Truth site. The typical post starts out with some well meaning person who is considering a few different boats and is looking for advice. One of them is a grady. Then a few people give intelligent responses about the pros and cons of the different boats. Step three (and sometimes they skip right over step 2) is for someone to post that Grady White boats are no good, and way to expensive, all as a result of their amazing marketing over the years... Of course this brings out some understandably defensive Grady Owners, and then 3 or four pages of venomous comments back and forth from one or more trolls. It always ends hatefully, and it happens over and over again. Maybe its because I am a happy Grady owner, but I don't notice this same issue coming up with other brands. Why is Grady so divisive over there?

Personally, I know that my boat is not some amazing wonder of perfection, and it was expensive compared to some other boats, but here is what is important: It was better across the board FOR ME AND MY SITUATION than any other brand I looked at including quite a few that were MORE expensive. ...and I looked at everything I could find for several years before making a decision. I've had her for 5 years now, and she continues to meet that same standard. When I had an issue (which was MY fault) the dealer took care of me immediately and I was so grateful for their support. They have been rock solid, like the boat.

BTW, I am amazed when people say that grady has a rough ride. Ours is a 22' and it handles chop extremely well. It can take bigger waves even better. Its a juggernaut. Maybe it could "slice" through chop better, but then it would roll too much at a drift. That's my point, everything is a trade off, and this boat is the right balance FOR ME.

Basically I know with confidence that my boat was worth what I paid, especially when I see the resale prices for the same model, and I see my boat aging so well. Also, I'm happy for everyone else who have other boats. I know the same thing is not for everyone, and I wish everyone happiness on the water and off...

In summary though, what motivates that anger on THT? I just don't get it.... and this nonsense about Grady marketing... as far as I can tell ALL manufacturers advertise in the same ways and in the same places. I can't see that Grady has a different marketing genius than any other brand.

OK... I feel better.... I hope everyone has a great weekend, and no trouble with Memorial Day yahoos on the water!

 

[SoutheastFL]

You bring up a great point about the outright rudeness and nastiness that's allowed to take place over on THT. It's not just limited to discussions about GW either, it frequently happens on many other topics as well. Ultimately it's simply about the money, running a fair forum that allows members to express their opinions without being personally attacked has totally been forgotten. I stopped reading it a long time ago because of this and even another moderator, THT Mod 3, quit because the rules weren't being enforced as well. IMO it's nothing more than a corrupt forum that's allowed to be run by a bunch of foul mouthed bullies.

 

[Fishtales]

It is a bit rough over there, I agree but it goes with the turf these days. I've found that all things today have become more casual and coarse and that site is no different. I also believe like most things in life 5% of the bad apples spoil it for the other 95%. It is all about the almight dollar as Southeast states, but I find that there are some good people with a lot of knowledge there too. Maybe they could enforce the standards better too.

On the Grady bashing, I feel that it boils down to a number of things.
- Success brings hatred and jealousy plain and simple. People hated the Cowboys and hate the Patriots NFL teams based on their success if they are not in the region. I think there is some of this out there. The GW brand is somehting most production boat manufacturers would kill for and some people since they can't/don't have they lash out with hatred. Some people can't afford them and they crap on them just for that alone.
- Quality. Whether they want to admit it or not, GW was one of the first production houses that differentiated itself on it. Others have copied and I could argue some have surpassed them in this area, but they do build a solid boat and stand behind it. Not many others out there do that. Some of the compares are a joke. People crapping on the brand based on the experience of a 20 or 25 year hold hull. How many others are even out there at this age?

I could give a rats behind what a few loud mouths think. I bought because it is a solid hull, the best engines hanging off it, the reputation of GW to stand behind their product and very good local dealer support. Buy what ever makes you happy is my thinking. I make decisions with my wallet not my mouth.

 

[ElyseM]

basically, if you don't have what they have or do what they do; your boat's a piece of junk and you don't know what you're talking about. and then, when enough people keep saying the same thing ("i heard that..."); it becomes the truth. :mrgreen:

i stopped posting on that board a while ago, but read it in case anything notable is posted (there are some good guys there).

i also don't "think that i have the best boat in the world". many brands out there that i admire, but this is the one i wanted for a list of reasons.

and btw, GW does have a marketing genius. he's called Eddie Smith and the genius part is he makes sure his people build a top quality product and support, support, support the customer. that's how awards are won in any business. ron

 

[Curmudgeon]

A bunch of keyboard Commodores over there. Fun to tune up on occasion, good for useful information when they take the ascots off ... :wink:

 

[SmokyMtnGrady]

I have wondered this before. The weird part of it is I have no animosity towards any other brand. Buy what you want I do not really care. It is clear some folks love to hate Grady. After reading this post I began to reexamine my boat. And here is what I found. Grady is clever in getting me to buy of all things a souped up Bayliner Trophy! I scratched off part of the gel coat only to discover a Bayliner hull under the Grady Creme gel coat! While I went further the Yamaha cowling is for looks only. Under it is a 200 hp Force motor! Due to years of clever marketing and a few cans of spray paint we have all been duped into the myth and hype of Grady White by some clever tricksters and we are really running Bayliner Trophy hulls! Oh those knuckleheads at Grady what will they dream up next? I need to ponder this while I take another glass of delicious Grady White kool aide...ahhh that hits the spot! Lol

 

[RUFcaptain]

Its like anything else, it comes own to envy. You have something that is considered top of the line, they can't stand it for whatever reason, then the bashing starts. I suppose it makes them feel better about themselves and their boat. You see the same thing on the car boards, sadly, it's very predictable behavior.

 

[Doc Stressor]

While envy plays a part in some of those posts, you have to realize that most of the guys beating their chests on THT like go fast boats or fishing boats that are based on ocean racer type hulls. So when they compare the ride of a Grady to a Yellowfin or a Regulator, there is something to what they are saying. Gradys are more of a general purpose boat than a hard core go fast fisherman. I've never been in a Grady of any size that was happy running at much over 30 mph in any kind of a sea. That's fine with me personally, but some people expect to run at 45+ mph. Gradys just don't do that very well.

The other form of bashing has to do with transom, stringer, and wiring issues. I loved all of my Gradys, but I had to replace a transom after 10 years and I needed to replace most of the wiring every 3 years or so in a warm and humid saltwater environment. I haven't had to pull the wiring on my latest Grady yet, so I can't say anything about the criticism that they don't use tinned marine grade wiring. My older boats certainly didn't and that was much of the problem.

One of the best things about GW is the constant refinement of each model over the years. My issues were with older Grady's. Grady has taken steps over the years to address most of these problems. Are they overpriced? I don't know. They look great and perform fine within their design limitations. But I can understand why some folks don't like them. They either had a problem with one in the past or prefer a different type of boat.

 

[NOTHING ELSE MATTERS]

Their mentality(THT), if you don't own a 24 degree (or greater) deep v center console with NO forward seating you own a POS and your boat is not a fishing boat and if that happened to be a Grady, you better run................
The way i see it people who bash Grady they can't afford one, that is why they say is overpriced. Also if you ever noticed, the majority of the people bashing Grady are from Florida.

 

[seasick]

Try reading some pickup truck forums and you will see the same behaviour.
Are folks really like that? You bet they are; bigoted, biased, ill-informed and plain ignorant. No respect for others opinions and only interested in themselves.. Wait, I am sorry, I was thinking of Congress.

 

[SmokyMtnGrady]

Doc, you are correct on the wiring. My 192 had issues and it was frustrating. With that said no boat no matter who makes it is perfect. However, some boats are perfect for the people who buy them like the original poster said. There are pros and cons to every boat on the water. I will likely not ever own a center console becausr I need to consider my family first. I suspect if Contender or Regulator or Yellowfin made a walk around or express model they would be very good boats. Grady's niche seems to be a solid built family oriented boat builder. Even their center consoles are not go fast boats. They are rugged battle wagon boats. In the end I can respect a Yellowfin Contender buyer and their boats. THT is an interesting site for sure and I do not surf it much because of the rudeness there.

 

[Pez Vela]

what motivates that anger on THT?

A deep dissatisfaction with life in general. The vituperative comments say more about the poster than they do about the particular boat. After a while, I found myself mentally building an amateur geographical and psychological profile of the forum members on THT, and I notice what they write about other subjects besides GW boats. It becomes amusing more than anything else, and it serves me well to keep myself in check when I'm tempted to say something uncharitable. All the above posts have said it well.

 

[jaydub]

I signed off of THT a couple of years ago and have never been back on that forum...it is out of control.

 

[cedarholm]

People that bash Grady-Whites are simply frustrated that there are so few used GWs for sale.

Most of the used ones are 30 years old. :mrgreen:

 

[192]

I know it took me months to find the right 192... and I had to settle for a 97 (my bank account) .... was looking for a 98-02... you all know why. That being said, I am a :noob GW owner and can't be happier with my choice. I have been out at least once a week for the past two months. All of my friends are vary impressed, ride quality, cleanliness, roominess, seating, and amenity's. Some are boat owners some not, but all have been on other boats before. I will add that I spent many hours refreshing her this winter... so she almost looks new. I have yet to take her out in the Chesapeake bay for some real testing but am excited to test out that SeaV2.

 

[RUFcaptain]

To listen to some of those guys you need a 34' YF CC to catch Crappie... Lol
Seriously that board seems to cater to the tournament fishermen or wannabes, can't compare those types of boats to GW. Don't get me wrong, I love YF boats buts it's not what I need right now.

 

[GulfSea]

I think there's really just a few that persist in slamming GW where/when they can. But it's still hard to let it go when they outright lie. I bought my 228 nearly 2 years ago and "fully" understand why so many people stay Grady once they own the 1st one. I had a non-boater onboard a few weeks ago; she really didn't know much about boats but as we were headed in, she went on about how nice the boat was (with no input from me) and that it just felt "smooth" and "solid." That is the most honest survey one can get. With no influence or knowledge at all of any boat, she simply commented on what she was experiencing.

 

[bhemi]

THT is a free for all. It can be fun but you can't take it all seriously. Grady's particularly older ones have their faults. I own a '92 Marlin and I think I've dealt with them all. If I could afford another boat right now I'd buy a +2009 33 Express in a heart beat. They fixed a lot of what I didn't like about mine with that up grade: better generator access, better finish in the areas you don't see and a higher windshield/helm area. I wish the dealer in Vancouver was better but the few times I've dealt with Grady or other dealers I've been treated well.

 

[megabytes]

"if you are seen too often arguing with fools, others may not be able to tell the difference"

I haven't posted on THT in years and rarely even read it. The National Enquirer has more useful information. :nicethread

 

[Nate@Daufuskie]

No, it's not unique to Grady White. I see the same sort of thing on the 1911 forum in discussions of various brands of high end pistols. Human nature, being what it is, causes a lot of folks to want to justify their decisions. A very common sort of thread is written by guys who feel good if they don't spend top dollar but still get a "good deal." Unfortunately, this often is expressed by bashing products they feel are too "high priced." Let's face it, Grady's fetch top dollar for a reason and these guys will never want to admit that. I also see a lot of guys showing up who are looking for confirmation of their decisions from others. All I can say is, if a Grady owner wants that, he should come here and stay away from THT. Or, better yet, get over it. I'd like to think that Grady owners can be confident in their decisions and don't need to go looking for the approval of THT posters.