Old Gradys

[SmokyMtnGrady]

Guys and Gals,
We were down at Cape San Blas - St. Joe Bay last week and during my time there I saw two old Gradys...both the 204 ( i think ) Overnighters. One was a 1977 and the other a 1978. Funny I was admiring the old boats, both in great condition for being over 30 years old. One of the guys saw my boat in a slip and said to me, not knowing it was my boat, that he was eyeing that Grady over there. I walked away knowing if I care for my boat, the hull will likely outlive me (lol). There are not many boats out there which have craft still on the water over 30 years old. It is nice to know we have a well built boat.

As an aside, I have not been able to fish as much as I would like this year. I have fished in Fla in April, May and July and the trolling has been waaay off. I was wondering if others in the southeastern US have experienced the same or is it just my dumb luck?

 

[Cocoliso VI]

Hi Smoky
The offshore fishing in So Fla has been a bit off this year. We had better weather in March and April and the fishing was better then. I've had to go to the east side of the stream to find dolphin and tuna. I have heard reports that the dolphin fishing in the keys has improved in the last 2 weeks but I've been unable to get down there. I just returned from a 17 day trip to the Abacos and the best fishing there was blackfin tuna, we went out in the afternoons and once we found the birds the catch was guaranteed 3 to 5 fish every time. The bottom fishing was also very good. We didn't catch any dolphin. I agree with your assesment the fishing this year has been a bit off, I hope it improves. By the way I'm on my third Grady they are awsome boats.

 

[Renovator]

Up here in north FL. Jacksonville, the dolphin run was not it's usual as well. We did have the fish come through as normal starting in late April and peaking in June, but it was not the numbers we usually see, at least not for me and from what I have heard from others anyhow. That being said we did have a great wahoo season and the bottom bite has been outstanding since spring.Biggest problem that we have are trying to keep the baits from the big Red Snappers that you can't keep. Some are getting caught by guys slow trolling down deep for kings! Anyway, good luck and catch'em up.
Ron

 

[Legend]

Grady's like all boats need a lot of care and maintenance - some of the older boats with teak require even more, however it will be time and money well spent. I had a 1985 Seafarer and was and was launching her in the spring of 2003 and a person watching the launch asked me if it was a brand new boat - he wa shocked when I told him it was 18 years old. By the way it is still running today and looks great

 

[Gary M]

I just returned from a 17 day trip to the Abacos and the best fishing there was blackfin tuna, we went out in the afternoons and once we found the birds the catch was guaranteed 3 to 5 fish every time....... By the way I'm on my third Grady they are awsome boats.

How coincidental! We're on our third Grady (all bought up the road from you at Vero Marine Center), going back to 1997 and two years ago we did an 18 day Abaco trip, staying aboard our 2001 Marlin!

My boat's at the 10 year mark and over the last two years I've really had to keep on top of the things that break or wear out. It seems to be never-ending. Yesterday was a fuel line at the engine that let loose. Last week a thing that holds the overhead mesh bag at the helm let loose. Turns out that they only rivet those. :bang Today it will be replacing the worn out cockpit lights........

 

[SmokyMtnGrady]

Gary, entropy stinks :bang. My sister bought me a shirt many years ago that says B O A T and under those letters it says break out another thousand. To keep up a boat in good shape means work and money at times. I have to replace the cockpit shower housing and trouble shoot a potential electrical issue and my boat is kept under cover year round and used maybe 6 months out of the year. Out of all the work I do around the house, working on the boat actually brings me some joy, so I dont mind it much until it gets expensive (lol)....

 

[Cocoliso VI]

Gary the boating community is a small world. I also got my boat from Vero Marine and my trip to the Abacos was with the "Grady Bunch". Admiral Bruce and the whole gang was a lot of fun, we had a great trip, except for a blow from TS Bret who blew by while we were in Man o War.
I'm at the 10 year mark also and we just hit the 600 hr point on the engines, but so far so good "knock on wood" our Grady is holding up very well.

 

[Gary M]

Gary, entropy stinks :bang. My sister bought me a shirt many years ago that says B O A T and under those letters it says break out another thousand. To keep up a boat in good shape means work and money at times.

Gotcha. We probably average about $5-6,000 a year in upkeep and repairs. Half of that is normal upkeep and the other half is in repairs. It's rare that I need to visit my Grady dealer for Grady parts, but it's been mostly all the accessories, applicances and odds and ends that seem to break. From "Attwood" (cockpit lights) to "Yamaha" and almost every letter in between.

 

[Gary M]

I also got my boat from Vero Marine and my trip to the Abacos was with the "Grady Bunch". Admiral Bruce and the whole gang was a lot of fun....

We've known Bruce, Brian, etc at VMC since we bought our first Grady in 1997. Amazingly, we've never lived even near Vero but we've ended up getting all three boats from them! We took the 20 on a Grady-Bunch Abaco trip early on and then 2 years ago we caught up with the Bunch at Green Turtle Cay and did the rest of the trip with everyone! A great G-W dealership and great people there!