The most unique feature of this surfing drone video by Stu Gibson is the variety. It’s not simply amazing footage from one location. It’s amazing footage from many places and it tells an almost entire story about a waterman’s lifestyle. From surfing, to fishing, to kiteboarding, to paddleboarding, you get it.

The framing and exposure itself is spot on. I also see familiar faces like that of Dave Kalama on the SUP. Then, whoever the dude on the Naish pointy paddleboard is. I know I’ve seen him before even though I’ve been somewhat away from the surf scene for a while. Regardless, what is being done lately with a GoPro and a drone is great. Not to mention when one is brave enough to fly an expensive DSLR.

While I’m a fan of scratch-built multi-rotors there’s no denying what great things can be done with a DJI Phantom or the new DJI Inspire are put in the hands of someone really talented. My only beef with DJI is not DJI itself, but that off-the-shelf stuff also puts drones in the hands of idiots.

All that said, this surfing lifestyle video by Stuart Gibson is an example of drones done right. Enjoy.

Update – With all the love we are getting for drone aerial photography I’ve decided to start a whole blog about them, namely multirotors for aerial photography, but with an emphasis on racing drones and mini quads. For that, go to PinchTune.

The post Amazing Waterman Lifestyle Surfing Aerial Video appeared first on FloatWays.

Earlier this morning I adjusted some of the PID settings on Cleanflight for the Naze32 to tune the craft a little more. I had originally done hybrid settings comparing my friend’s PIDs to those of PFV superstars Metalldanny and Boris B. Then this morning, I adjusted those settings a little more.

The first flight was LOS (line of sight) in order to check the new PIDs. After flying my tricopter so much last year, I’m truly amazed at how locked in this mini quad flies. It’s amazing to fly line of sight, although you can’t go too far or you start losing orientation. After a few hover-only flights to test out the BO Mini H Quad a few days prior, this would be one of the very first forward-flying sessions. I can tell you, I was flying just fine. I was doing figure eights and ovals as comfortable as I’m on the tricopter.

Once thing though, I’m using PID controller 1 on Cleanflight (Rewrite from MultiWii), which apparently is not great in self-leveling mode (angle mode). That said, I fly rate mode 99.9% of the time. However, I like to set a switch so that I can easily flick to angle mode in case I lose orientation to save me from a crash. Unfortunately, with PID controller 1, angle mode flies like the quad’s epileptic with the currents PIDs. What I did notice though is that is does self-level decently enough at least. Because I only want that mode for emergencies, I’m going to continue tuning to rate mode and disregard how well it flies in angle mode as long as I can self-level it in an emergency upon losing orientation or something.

The ground was wet as it rained a lot yesterday. I was trying to make sure not to touch the ground. For take off, I used a pair of yoga mats to fashion a makeshift heli pad. That worked out alright. Taking off and landing on the mats while flying line of sight was a breeze.

However, I knew I would likely not be able to land on the mats while flying FPV. The following two flights would be only my second and third FPV flights, ever. I just passed my HAM tech exam a week and a half prior and has just finally started flying in 5.8Ghz.

The two follow up FPV flights were a smashing success. I did touch the ground once, but I managed to recover with no further incidents. Even better was that I was forward flying FPV, not just hovering. What I did to land was I lined up the quad in front of me, looking out – With of course, help from my spotter. Once lined up in front of me I quickly took my goggles off and once adjusted to the searing light, I would land line of sight on the yoga mat landing pads. I did this just to avoid landing on the wet grass.

I haven’t crashed or broken any of my HQ 5040 props yet. Which means, like usual, I’m taking things slow and being extra careful. Once I get more comfortable and start doing stupid things, then the story might change

Update: Fast forward a year… In an effort to keep things focused I’ve decided to open a separate multirotor and mini quad blog. I did this for various reasons. For one, I’ve gained tons of experience and learned a lot about RC flight, FPV mini quads and racing drones. The new blog will help to share that experience. Also, it will help keep things on the correct topic across sites. To find it go to: PinchTune Multirotor Blog.

The post Blackout Mini H Quad Progressing into FPV appeared first on FloatWays.

We have a very popular article on FloatWays about radio control boats. At the moment, it’s roughly 3 years old, but the information is still very relevant.

For some time now I’ve been considering opening FloatWays to more than just boats. Since I’ve been doing so much RC stuff lately, I figured the FloatWays mantra of “A Million Ways to Float” really lends itself to such a thing.

I’ve run RC boats for many years – since I was a kid actually. But, on and off. I’ll spend months without running my boats and then come back. Like a real hobby actually. You do it when you have time off. Lately I’ve been flying RC planes and building both planes and multirotors. This has opened up many doors to new and exciting things.

I have to acknowledge the guys at Flite Test . Chad, Josh Bixler, Josh Scott, Alex Zvada, Dave Windestål and now Peter have been doing an amazing job. Their grasp on the radio control hobby world is unreal and inspiring.

Since I got into flying RC I’ve learned so much. I’ve been flying fixed wings, delta wings and multirotors. I’m now getting into FPV. I figured that it might be a great idea to use this FloatWays website and social media channel to not only share some of the knowledge that I have gathered, but also help somebody that might be looking for advice and information.

I’ve been writing so much about cars on my car enthusiast website RallyWays that I sometimes feel I have cars coming out of my ears. I love cars. Sometimes however, it’s nice to take breathers and write about other things and do other things.

Watch for changes on FloatWays. Most likely there will be a section dedicated to the boating and sailing articles that are currently on the site. That said, I’ll open a whole section for radio control planes, drones, boats and FPV.

Update – Well, as it turns out, the section on RC drones and FPV is not happening on FloatWays. I decided it would be best to create a whole other separate blog for that topic. That way we keep things around here in check and on topic. So here’s what’s happened. I’ve gained a whole wealth of knowledge about RC, multirotors and racing drones over the last nearly 2 years. I’ve been looking for an avenue to share that knowledge. If you are interested in multirotors, racing mini quads or drones in general then head on over to PinchTune… a site about multirotors.

The post RC Hobbies – Going Beyond Boating appeared first on FloatWays.

See, boats are ingrained in me. I’m always going to be an ocean-going guy. Even if I take a break from boats, I always come back at some point. There is one other thing that I’m hugely passionate about though, and that is, cars.

For the last 3 years I’ve been working on a car enthusiast brand called RallyWays. Given that I live in Southern California, covering car culture is relatively easy. I mean, there are car events going on weekly, sometimes daily. It’s also quite interesting that some of the boating folks are also into cars. It’s to be expected. Boats ain’t cheap. Neither are cars.

The other reason for the focus on RallyWays is a monetary reason. Many people believe that when you run a website you make bank. Well, that is not true. With this type of website, you usually put in a lot more time and money into it than you get in return. If the expectations are to make extra money with a side-job website, you’re better off getting a part time job at night to go with your day job.

Focusing solely on RallyWays has helped me develop the brand in a much better way than I could if I were splitting my energy and time between that and FloatWays. This is the reason RallyWays is currently about 32 times more popular than FloatWays… and counting. We have many thousands of followers in social media too – particularly on Instagram and Google+.

Having said all this, I’m keeping FloatWays open and live. There are many popular and relevant articles within the site that are still very much helpful to people. The Antifouling Paint Guide is one such article. People frequently visit and take reference from it.

The RC Boats Guide is another popular article, it’s also one of the most visited pages on FloatWays. This is because it’s one of the best guides for learning about high-end RC boats out there.

Additionally, we have a number of boating sunglasses articles that have become mainstay on the website and are visited many times every single day.

Last but not least

You may have noticed that I recently completely redesigned the FloatWays website. I wanted to make sure the site stayed live. For this reason I upgraded the platform to the latest technology. The site now looks better, is easier to navigate and runs on a robust framework.

So that’s it for now. FloatWays is open and running as usual. Now with a better and much nicer website. If you are interested in contributing, I’m open to ideas. I’m also open to investors or even to sell the brand to the right person or firm. If you are interested, you can use the contact page.

Happy sailing.

The post The Long Awaited FloatWays Alive Post appeared first on FloatWays.

There’s a reason we went with the Maui Jim HT lenses for this review. If you’ve been following our sunglasses guide you might have noticed we are Oakley fans around here. But of course we can’t stick with just Oakleys if we want to offer a good, well-rounded view of what’s out there. Oakley has Bronze and Smoke lenses readily available for their lifestyle line, but no green tints – at least not on most models. So naturally, we wanted to try something different. Additionally, we’ve been looking to experiment with higher light transmission lenses for situations like sunrise, sunset or cloudy days.

Another reason we chose Maui Jim is we keep hearing all these comments about how incredible their optical quality is. How much better they are than other brands, yada, yada. Of course, the best comments are for the SuperThin (ST) Glass lens ones, or the Maui Evolution lens models and we ended up going with the Lighthouse model, which is none of those things. These have the standard polycarbonate lenses – which by the way, are also polarized.

Danny has been using the Lighthouse for over 2 months now. This should allow for very good insight as to what these sunglasses are all about. Read on to find out his take on the very first Maui Jims on FloatWays.

Looking closer

Most of the sunglasses reviews we do are boat-themed. Meaning, we usually try and review sunglasses as to how good they are for sailing, fishing, or just regular boating. Well, let’s just say the Maui Jim Lighthouse sunglasses are probably not the best option for active sailing or boating. They seem extremely delicate and lightweight. This is a good thing, unless you are actively running around trimming sails and ducking to clear lifelines for extreme hiking on an upwind leg. In which case, you will most likely break them.

The temples on the Maui Jim Lighthouse sunglasses are incredibly thin and everything is held together by the lenses – there is no frame! The nose pieces protrude from the centerpiece that holds the two lenses together by means of little plastic stems. They are covered at the end by a neat little rubber bit on each side of the nose-piece. The temples themselves feature a little rubber insert in the section that fits right after your ears – This to aid in keeping the sunglasses from slipping off. The entire thing only weighs a mere 13.9 grams!

However, before you go and think this is all a bad thing, no it is not! In fact, this is all good! It’s all about using them for their intended purpose. Some of us may be hardcore sailors and active fishermen that see very little relaxing time while on a boat. However, we still spend plenty of time in the sun in less active situations. Apart from that, unless you live on a boat in the middle of the ocean 24/7, we actually spent a whole lot more time on solid ground that we do sailing. So, that’s when the Maui Jim Lighthouse come into play!

These polarized sunglasses are perfect for boaters and sailors, but not when they are sailing. With their high-transmission lenses (HT), they are meant for walking the dog in the mornings or at dusk. They are excellent for driving – again at dusk, dawn or during somewhat overcast days. The Maui Jim Lighthouse sunglasses are so incredibly light and comfortable that you will quickly forget you are wearing them. This means they are the perfect pair of sunglasses for wearing during long periods of time. While other bigger and heavier shades will end up giving you a headache after a few hours, you could probably wear these even longer with no discomfort whatsoever.

If you are a leisurely boater, don’t let me say you should not use them while on the water. As long as you are careful and your activities are not too intense, you should be fine. Just be careful. In my case, I have other sunglasses that are more robust. Those are the ones I take out sailing. I’m sure Maui Jim makes plenty of those. But these are not.

The Maui HT lenses

Given that the Maui Jim HT lenses was one of the big reasons I was so interested in testing these out, I’m putting a lot more emphasis in fully understanding these lenses. Maui Jim, doesn’t really say what percentage of light transmission the Maui HT lenses are, but it’s quite obvious they are lighter than most. My guess however, is that they must be between 18%-25% light transmission, give or take. When you think about that and compare it to most dark smoke lenses for bright light, which are rated at around 10% light transmission. This means they are quite light and let lot of light through. If you are the type that requires sunglasses to be super dark, these are not for you. But if you like having the option of a good pair of sunglasses for low light situations, these are amazing. In fact, I found myself carrying around 2 pairs of sunglasses in order to be ready for any situation. I would have a pair of the Oakley Plaintiff reviewed earlier and use that during the peak of the day, then switch to the Maui Jims HT when the light lessened. I thought this was awesome because it allowed me to optimize my view of the world depending on the light conditions. I’m a fan of sunglasses, so if I can find an excuse to use them I will.

Down here in SoCal we get lots of bright sunny days. But during the May Grays and June Gloom, you can use the Maui Jim Lighthouse with Maui HT lenses to brighten up your mood.

I found these great for driving in the rain. In fact, I would look forward to rainy days to take these out. Sometimes, the sun peaks out between showers and that glare off the wet road can easily blind you even if it’s cloudy. However, these lenses are polarized. The combination of polarization with high light transmission makes them ideal for situations like this. They let enough light through to allow their effective use in overcast conditions, but the polarization cuts glare from the wet roads. If you use them to relax on the boat during morning light or when the sun starts to set, you get the same benefits – cut glare and optimize clarity in low light.

These might be high transmission lenses that are not optimum for super bight light, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use them at noon, when the sun is scorching hot. There are plenty of people that love the bright light even if it’s not very good for them. Many of these folks don’t even like using sunglasses. Well, these might be perfect for you. They protect your eyes, yet let lots of bright light in. I’d say that’s perfect for those that hate dark sunglasses.

Are the green lenses contrast lenses?

I wouldn’t consider the Maui Jim HT lenses contrast lenses, but they are definitely not fully neutral. The green tint is evident, but it’s not too dramatic. You sort of notice it when you first put them on, but your eyes very quickly adapt and everything looks perfectly normal. This is very different than the typical bronze or yellow-ish contrast lenses that offer much more dramatic contrast, but also screw with the colors quite a bit more. Another perk to the green Maui HT lenses is that they will not tire your eyes like some extreme contrast lenses do. This allows you to use them for extended periods of time with little to no fatigue. Some of the more dramatic contrast lenses are only meant to be worn for relatively short periods of time, otherwise they fatigued your eyes too much.

So they’re good then?

In one word, yes! Definitely not cheap at $159.00 – But totally worth the price tag.

One final note about the Maui Jim High Transmission Lens on the Lighthouse sunglasses model is that it’s very popular with golfers. Now, I don’t play golf. I sail boats and drive cars. Not sure if it has something to do with the green tint, or the fact that you can see more than you can with darker lenses, but yeah, they’re popular golfing sunglasses. I know a lot of you play golf too, so this might be quite interesting to you.

Sometimes, when we are done reviewing a pair of sunglasses we’ll get rid of them to make way for new ones. Well, I’m keeping these! I have lots of sunglasses, but I’m pretty much in love with these. The combination of the HT lens that allows me to wear them in low light situations, and the fact that they are so incredibly comfortable and lightweight won me over. It’s not a pair of sunglasses I use all the time. It’s also not the pair I take out sailing. But for all other situations, these are perfect.

Where to buy: Of course you are wondering where it would be best to buy them! Making your life easier is key. For that reason, below is a link to buy them from Amazon:

Watch out for the lens color – They come in Maui Rose, Neutral Gray, HCL Bronze and Maui HT (the one here) — Lens color seems to vary depending on availability. Once you go to the sales page via the link, if these are not the color you want, search around as they likely have them in another listing.

The post Maui Jim Lighthouse Sunglasses Review with Maui HT High Transmission Lenses appeared first on FloatWays.

The Dubrovnik International Pursuit Race Regatta is a pursuit style race. It’s held in one of the premier sailing venues in the Mediterranean. This area also happens to be a unique and amazing tourist destination. Thanks to that, competitors and spectators can enjoy the sailing during the day and the exciting nightlife after the racing is over. This makes for a complete sailing vacation. You can come sail and also bring along family and friends as they will enjoy all the touristy things they can do while you’re out racing.

The neat thing about the event is that the organizers realized many participants would be flying in for the event – Many without boats and not knowing anybody there. The organizers have understood this and they have an interesting setup to deal with this. They encourage individuals to register as well as teams and they say they will place sailors aboard chosen boats, essentially creating new teams. Of course, if you are a skipper, you can also register as such.

…they will place sailors aboard chosen boats, essentially creating new teams.

The organizers of the regattas, Adriatic International Regattas, were inspired by the uniqueness of the Croatian coastline. They recognized the opportunity to create a new event for the world sailing calendar, and thus the Dubrovnik International Regatta or Croatia Regatta was born. The competition will be a 3-day event held from May 10^th to May 14^th, starting in 2012 and continuing every year after that.

This international regatta is Founded by Dalmatian Destinations, dedicated to chartering fully crewed boats in the Adriatic Sea. Which sort of tells us where the boats used in the event are coming from. Also involved is Earley International. They have been involved for 30 years as promoters of yacht racing events in the Caribbean, Phuket and Ireland.

As if all that wasn’t enough, the America’s Cup and GWM Racing race management consultants, whose people are internationally qualified race officers, plus the Chairman of the International IRC Owners Association are also involved.

ITC Sports, the largest UK independent sports tour operator, will be working with Adriatic International Regattas to ensure a well-run and organized event for participants and spectators. A successful first year should ensure growth of the Croatia Regatta for years to come.

Participation in the event will allow chartering of race boats for the competition as well as entering of private vessels.

Participation in the event will allow chartering of race boats for the competition as well as entering of private vessels. In conjunction with ITC sports, you can book flights and accommodations in local 5 star hotels for the days leading up to the regatta as well as afterwards. Of course, they can answer all your questions pertaining the availability of sailing positions, skippers, teams and sailboats.

Adriatic International Regattas and ITC Sports say they encourage skippers and crew to attend, as well as individuals with crewing experience. They are looking forward to making the Dubrovnik International Regatta in Croatia a permanent fixture in the international sailing calendar.

You can contact the organizers about the regatta thru the official regatta page on ITC Sports as well as Adriatic International Regattas.

The post Sailing in Croatia at the Dubrovnik International Croatia Regatta appeared first on FloatWays.

Meals got bigger – and so did the bellies. Cars got bigger – and somewhat shrunk again. The most popular trucks on the market all got bigger too. And what happened to yachts? Well, they got bigger too. Back in the 70’s and 80’s many popular small yachts would range between 22 to 32 feet, give or take. They were extremely common in both sailing and motoring circles. Nowadays, the demographic of people that buy those types of yachts looks to the 40 feet and up range.

But first of all, what is a yacht?

A yacht is basically a recreational vessel – In other words, something that could be considered a luxury. The term was originally given to sail driven crafts, but now is just as common with motorboats. Some consider that a boat, to be classified as a yacht, should be at least 26 feet in length. But of course there are exceptions. To help define the line a little better, a yacht is better suited for longer distance trips in relative comfort, were a cabin cruiser or small sailboat is better suited for short trips and small stints aboard.

When someone refers to a small yacht, the person is generally referring to a cruising boat, sail or motor powered, that’s designed for long passages in some way or another. So in a comparison based on purpose, the small yachts of decades ago can easily compare to larger yachts of today as being destined for the same purposes.

Given that boats that are well taken care of last a lot longer than cars, seeing those old small yachts alive and kicking today is not uncommon. The only difference is that they are not being used for long distance cruising as much as they used to. Don’t get me wrong, there are still a lot of sailors that take these small yachts in extended voyages, but these days, the people that are dedicated to long distance cruising and can afford it, go for considerably larger yachts. It’s more common now to have people cruise in 40 foot plus yachts than the 30 foot ones that were more common before.

Looking specifically at small motor yachts…

…most boats under 30 feet today are not really suited for long distance traveling. In other words, they don’t make them like they used to.

Small motor yachts from back in the day have all grown in size too. A lot of the design cues present in some of small yachts around 30 feet are much more common now in yachts 40 feet and bigger. For example, think about a Bertram 30. A 1986 Bertram 30 had all the design cues of large yacht, in a relatively compact size. Things like a flying bridge, dedicated inboard engines and large fishing outriggers – all cues that are now much more common in larger boats. Given those design aspects are nowadays more common to larger boats, most of these small yachts where overbuilt, strong and reliable. For that reason they were able to take on heavy weather and were considered safe enough. These days, even though technology has taken a huge step forward, most sailors can agree that most boats under 30 feet today are not really suited for long distance traveling. In other words, they don’t make them like they used to.

Other interesting mentions are:

• Cape Dory 28 Flybridge Trawler
• 1975 Chris Craft Tournament Sportfish 30
• Blackfin 32 Flybridge from the late 80’s
• 1985 Tiara 3011 Open

All fine examples of the bread and butter of small yachts from the 70’s and 80’s.

Sail powered small yachts

For sail-powered small yachts there are even more options. Small sailing yachts tend to favor the long distance cruiser more given there are plenty of designs specifically made for cruising that outright outperform small motor yachts of the same size. One good example would be the Pacific Seacraft Flicka 20 – a sailboat that at only 20 feet at length of deck, is designed to cross oceans. While hardly considered a yacht, the little boat can tackle the job of the giants with ease.

Of course, many consider today’s larger yachts to be safer and better. This is probably true, but it doesn’t change the fact that many of the older small sailing yachts have been proven hundreds of times.

Some notable mentions are:

• Hurley Folkdancer 27
• Contessa 26
• Pearson Ariel 26
• Pacific Searcraft Dana 24
• Tartan 30
• Nicholson 32
• Compass H28
• Allegro 33
• Alberg 30

As you can see there is no shortage of seaworthy sail-powered small yachts. I could keep listing boats until I’m blue in the face. Sorry if your favorite boat is not there.

At the end of the day, we are back were we started. What used to be luxury ocean-going small yachts a few decades ago, such as the ones mentioned above, have evolved into larger, much more luxurious yachts. Names like Jeanneau, Beneteau, Luhrs, Sabre and many others have all been evolving the term “small yacht” more and more. As the small yachts grow in size, so do the large ones. While the average buyer that used to focus on 30 foot boats is now buying 40 foot, the 50 and up crew is up in the ranks of 80 plus. It doesn’t look like we are going to get over the “bigger is better” deal anytime soon.

The post Small Yachts for Cruising Have All Grown Up appeared first on FloatWays.

As you’ve probably guessed, neither is necessarily better, they are just different. A tiller and a steering wheel both possess a number of pros and cons.

Tillers are good

As far as simplicity and lighter weight goes, you can’t beat a tiller for steering a boat. There are no mechanical pulleys, chains, wires, gears or hydraulics to complicated the steering system. Of course, this yields a more reliable and maintenance free system. For this reason tillers are ideal on small and simple boats. However, they are also used in larger racing sailboats because they provide an unparallel direct feel in the steering. The water flowing through the rudder can be felt all the way up the tiller, not to mention the pressure and immediate return in steering input.

Tiller steering downsides

Having stated the benefits of tiller steering, of course there are downsides too. Tillers are very simple and only provide a limited amount of leverage and mechanical advantage. On small sunfish and laser sailboats that problem is non-existent. But as soon as you start to go up in size, or have a boat with too much weather helm for example, a tiller can be fatiguing. And that’s not exclusively to large boats. I used to sail a Hobie 14 that when up on one pontoon required the strength of Hulk to keep straight.

Steering wheel advantages

The main advantage of a steering wheel on a sailboat is that they offer a lot more mechanical leverage. You don’t need brute force to hold on and to steer. The size of the wheel and the level of the gearing or hydraulics can provide all the leverage needed for the boat size. Some people will also feel a steering wheel looks better than a tiller – but of course that’s up for debate.

Unfortunately for steering wheels…

As far as simplicity and lighter weight goes, you can’t beat a tiller for steering a boat.

The problem with steering wheels is that they require more maintenance. The system is also comprised of more parts that can wear and break when compared to their tiller counterparts. Additionally, steering wheels, especially those on large sailboats, can take a whole lot more space on deck. On some boats, the steering wheel makes the cockpit feel cramped quick. In some cases, it makes accessing the helm much more of a chore.

In the end, I love the look of a good giant steering wheel on a sailboat, racing or not. But tillers are great too when installed on the right boat. Neither is a “better” option in general. But one can be a better option than the other depending on the boat.

We wrote a piece about the boat steering wheel a while back. Pretty interesting – you might want to check it out.

The post Tiller Steering Vs. Steering Wheel on a Sailboat appeared first on FloatWays.

Let me tell you right away… I’m biased. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t listen to me. At the very least, it’ll give you another angle – perspective, if you will, as to which might be better for you.

For me, asking whether I would buy a jet ski over a boat is completely relevant. Why would I even consider a jet ski over a boat? It’s like comparing a convertible roadster to a pickup truck – or apples and oranges. They’re both cars; they’re both fruits.

Now, before we go any further… I know, the term Jet Ski belongs to Kawasaki… They are called personal watercrafts, or PWC… There are also models by Yamaha and Sea Doo called Wave Runner and Bombardier… Polaris and who-knows-who else makes one too, yada, yada… I know. Save it.

True Story

Back in 1993, the legal age in Puerto Rico to drive a motorboat, jetski, or any other gas-powered floating vehicle was 14. Yes, 14 years old! At the time, I was about to turn 14. My father, given the boat-head he was, offered to buy my brother and I a boat or a jet ski for my birthday. Keep in mind, he was offering this to a pair of kids that had been sailing and driving boats since they were 9. …On them, since age 0. He trusted us not to be stupid.

Well, for me, it was a no-brainer… Boat all the way! Yes, I liked jet skis, but there’s no way I was going to get one of those over a boat!

Why… well. Here’s what when through my mind at the time.

1. I could fit more girls into a boat than I could into a jet ski
2. I could crank the tunes on the boat – with the girls
3. I could waterski and wakeboard in the boat – with the girls
4. I could sail to more remote beaches – to find girls
5. I could carry gear to set up beach camps – with the girls

Of course I was being reasonable. I was a teenager! Girls were all I could think about.

Yes, you can argue that girls will be more close to you on a jet ski, and all girls want a ride on a jet ski. But those are all moot points in my book. The boat trumps the ski every time anyway.

Now, after a bunch more years, less of a hormone time bomb, and a whole new level of maturity, I can still bring up a bunch of good points as to why the boat is better:

1. I can fit more things in the boat
2. My whole family can enjoy the boat at once
3. The boat will take me further than the jet ski
4. The right boat will hold value better than the ski
5. I can fish from the boat much more comfortably
6. The boat will carry scuba gear
7. The boat is more reliable
8. It’s more convenient, more practical in every way

There it is… No question the boat is better. BUT… it is better for YOU?

Of course I could argue all day that the boat is better and just leave it at that. But rather, I’ll show you the other side of the coin.

1. The jet ski is smaller, lighter and much easier to tow
2. Jetskis are generally faster than boats (of similar value)
3. Jet skis can be cheaper
4. You can use them to tow surfers (uncool unless you’re Laird)
5. A jet ski fits in a small garage
6. They’re fun. Yes I said it. They are fun.

If you are OK taking turns with your friends and family, then a ski might work for you. If you don’t care about not easily being able to travel far, get a jet ski. Don’t tell anyone, but I have island-hopped in a jet ski (Should’ve used a boat though).

As I said in the beginning… I’m biased. I’ll take a boat over a jet ski any day.

Do your research. Find out what your priorities are. Better yet, draw a list with 2 columns, one for the boat and one for the ski. Write under those columns the pros and cons of each. Then count how many pros to each and how many cons. Do the math and see who wins. That might be your next ride, right there.

If you’re considering a boat or a jet ski while keeping the budget low… Find out why small boats are better than big boats here.

The post Buying a Jet Ski Over a Boat – Why Would You do That? appeared first on FloatWays.

Back in the day, and I mean about 15 years ago, the most common ways to have graphics applied to your boat was via plotter-cut vinyl or by hand painting them on.

The biggest problem is that most boat owners that are looking for graphics for their boat don’t realize that designing the graphics is as important as the actual production of them. They go hand in hand, but they belong in 2 different steps.

Boat vinyl graphics alternatives

Most of the time, a boat owner will say, “Ok, I want to put the name Easy Living on the side of my boat.” So, they go out to a sign shop, choose a font, and the guy at the shop cuts out the lettering in whatever vinyl color the boat owner chooses. However, that is VERY limiting. If only the boat owner knew that he has at his disposal many more tools for a more unique set of graphics for his boat.

First of all let’s talk about the most common methods of producing boat graphics in use today:

1. Cut Vinyl – This is the tried and true method talked about above. A design is cut in a solid color sheet of vinyl. Individual colors are then combined and layered to create more layers of color. It’s simple, durable and works well. However, due to the lack of print you can’t easily get away with doing gradients or fades in the design. Yes, there are things you can do to achieve those effects, but they are not easy or cost effective.
2. Printed Vinyl – This is one of the most exciting ways of creating boat vinyl graphics these days. Similar to standard cut vinyl, the designs are cut into sticky-back vinyl. But, the main difference is that there is no layering necessary to achieve complex colors. Instead, the base vinyl is white and the design is printed onto it allowing for more flexibility in design than with standard cut vinyl. Recently I had some graphics cut for the official FloatWays RC racing boat. A sign shop quoted me $100 for the decal set using the traditional process of layering 3 sets of cut colored vinyl to achieve a 3-color design. The shop that ended up doing the graphics made me all the stickers I needed using printed and cut vinyl for only $40.
3. Paint and Airbrush – Of course, this is another tried and true method of creating boat graphics – painting those graphics on. There are many way of painting graphics onto a boat, such as by brush, airbrush, stencils or masking. The downside is, it’s really expensive and you have to get a hold of a painter that knows what he or she is doing. Plus, due to the expense of such paint job, you’ll need to clear coat the design to preserve it, adding hundreds more to the cost.

No matter the medium you choose for the production of your boat, yacht or sailboat graphics it’s important you separate the design method from the production method.

Next time you want to create a sticker with the name of your boat, don’t simply go to the sign shop and select a font.

Next time you want to create a sticker with the name of your boat, don’t simply go to the sign shop and select a font. No, be more original. The fact is you can hire a graphic designer to create an original piece for you. This means you can have exactly what you want, or the designer can suggest a custom design just for you. If the designer is good, you’ll end up with something more unique and better looking than anything the design shop would’ve offered in standard fonts. It’s important that the graphic designer know what the final medium will be. The designer needs to prepare the artwork so it will work with whatever method is chosen for the final production. Be sure to ask the sign shop about how the stickers will be made, then relay that info to your designer. Otherwise, you could have your designer communicate with the sign shop.

If you choose to go the route of printed graphics, your designer can go nuts on color and everything should be fine. Note though that colors on the printed boat vinyl graphics are not as crisp as they are in standard cut-colored vinyl. But it’s the price you pay for the flexibility of design. Also, make sure that the sign shop can guarantee the ink they will use is UV and fade resistant. Otherwise, you’ll end up with cool boat graphics that will disappear in a matter of months. You definitely don’t want that.

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