Floatation, Safety, and Your Thoughts

[CarolinaBurt]

I've got a few questions for you guys regarding hull floatation and how important you think it is. How many of you have ever seen an XB2002 fully swamped with the engine attached?

I am a lone fisherman. My favorite time to fish is in the early morning on Sunday or on occasion - a weekday morning. No traffic, no noise, and pretty much - the whole big lake to myself and just a few others. This brings about some concerns over "what if" - what if I hit a submerged log, a dock that's come apart and adrift, stuff it into a large wake, get caught in the "perfect storm"? I'm sure most know that the rear steps (sponsons) are submerged already sitting at rest on an XB2002. If you were to get caught in the lake and a dead engine or battery - waves could easily break over into the back of the boat. - long shots I know, but what if?

I bought my boat back in 1997 new. I did all of the rigging of both motors, first my loved, trusted, old Johnson GT150 "White Heat" motor, then it's current Promax short shaft. I've been inside, underside this XB2002 and I have yet to see floatation material. I've assumed those small boxes in the rear sponsons are foam filled, but a serious question - where is the foam? On the 13 boats I had before it, the foam was in the bow, the gunwales, around the lockers front and rear, and one even had additional foam beteen the hull and the floor.

Some of you may remember a story on Scream and Fly about a guy that stuffed his brand new Mirage/280SS into a wake at Cane Creek in on Lake Keowee, SC several years ago. The boat was not broken or structurally damaged, but the water immediately swamped it and over the course of 2-3 minutes quickly sunk outboard first. I know this story well because I was the guy who went and found it using my sonar and Aqua-Vu camera. The Spring rains had left the lake muddy and visibility of 2-3 feet at the boat's 58 foot depth. Divers had searched for it an entire day, but could not locate (worsened because it drifted while descending and he was guessing where it happened and at 58 feet - the bottom time is limited to an hour per diver). Anyway, I was in complete shock that his boat looked a lot like mine - bare. It had some floatation - but nothing near what it needed to hold up the lightest outboard made - the short shaft Mercury 2.5L.

I ask, do we have floation, is it enough, how important is it? If I'm going to be in the lake - cold and wet, I think I would like my white friend floating partially beside me - just so the next boater might see the odd looking white parts, upside down or end up and come for assist. I am 30 pounds over weight - I'll gladly shed that for floation material

Thoughts/inputs please.

Thanks,
Gordon

 

[22R]

All good questions. I don't have a definite answer for you but about 7 years ago a guy that I worked with hit a Crew Boat wake on the Intracoastal canal near Morgan City, LA. The boat flipped backwards untll the tip of the bow hit then flipped forward two times, then it dove straight to the bottom with him in it. He was pinned under the front console but broke loose and swam to the surface. He told me that after he came up the boat came up ( upside down ) right after him. I guess something made it float. Maybe trapped air in the upside down hull ??
Be careful and have fun.

 

[froggy]

The ABote is CORED with Klegecell foam. This stuff floats. Take a look under your front deck and note the little squares, in the glass. All that stuff floats. It's in the decks, floor and hull. PS, this kind of foam doesn't absorb water and makes the boat stronger. Also, if I'm not mistaken, all outboard, recreational, boats newer than say 1982 are required, by federal law, to have upright flotation. "Race" boats are excepted in this law, but the XB 2002 is not classified as a race boat.

froggy

 

[lundy02]

I put some foam in the jack plate keeps the water out helps it pop out of the hole faster .dont know if it realy works but seems to..

 

[msethsmile]

I swamped (actually stuffed) a xb2002 a few years back. I had a 260 on it and the powerhead never went completely underwater despite the leak in the hull. Everything was cool until the DNR people dragged the motor up the cement launch ramp.

 

[RedAllison]

Gordon you're right, the "boxes" in the rear storage boxes of Allison's are filled with foam to provide floatation for the heaviest part (the stern) in the case of being swamped. Also, along the entire length of the top cap inside the top of the gunwales is injected closed cell foam. This provides the "upright and level" floatation for the entire length of the hull in the case of a submersion. Also as was said, the synthetic hull materials of our boats also floats so there is a small chance of the boat "going to the bottom" unless it was literally shattered into umpteen pieces in a violent wreck or collision with something like a dam/lock wall or something monsterous like that. Even then I doubt anything would sink, instead you would see chunks/pieces of floating debris.

I feel COMPLETELY safe in ANY A-boat on any water you would safely use such a sized craft. If I'm heading 30 miles offshore or deep into the Great Lakes I'd rather have something about 30ft or better anyway!

:at the bar
RA