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Post by footy3 on Jun 15, 2023 6:45:54 GMT -5
My 245 DC is spending more of its life down in Key Largo so I want to get a cover mostly to protect it from the sun. Curious if anyone with this, or another DC model have gotten any covers, looking for something that goes down to at least the waterline. I priced out a sunbrella cover with a bag on TTcovers.com, come to almost $2300 before shipping. I think the brand has a good reputation, but wondering if I should be looking at some other things. I expect this cover would not cover the top actually, but fix to the pipework under the top. I feel like that makes installation much easier, at the expense of having my hard top completely unprotected. I would probably be taking the cover on and off any time I expect the boat, which is always stored on a trailer, to be laid up for more than 3 or 4 days.
Any thoughts are appreciated.
Thansk.
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Post by hookedup on Jun 15, 2023 11:38:39 GMT -5
My boat came with the cockpit and bow cover and I installed them once to make sure they fit. It doesn't go anywhere near the waterline, but does protect the cockpit, bow seating, etc. It's $2,175 with a new boat. Since you'd have to install the snaps I'd suspect it would be less, but who knows?
Got to admit it wasn't thrilled with it and since I store in a boatel the only time I might use it is when I have it in a slip overnight, or when staying overnight in the boat. It is not simple to install, but it is functional.
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Post by footy3 on Jun 16, 2023 7:25:08 GMT -5
Richard - thanks, I do have the cockpit and bow cover, really looking for some protection against the sun for the hull and potentially the hardtop.
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Post by fishnfool on Jun 16, 2023 8:30:40 GMT -5
I'm going the TTop boat cover route this year. My cover finally had enough after 9 yrs.
Price put having one custom made by a local canvas shop.
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Post by Joe G on Aug 20, 2023 21:19:57 GMT -5
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jerryk
Captain
When not online I'm likely on Knot Online
Posts: 597
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Post by jerryk on Aug 21, 2023 7:43:35 GMT -5
For my 275 DC I also have the bow and cockpit covers from Sailfish. They withstood 140 mph wind through the direct hit we had from hurricane Ian...no damage other than they had some rubber strip on the bow cover near the windshield that cracked/tore for about 2 inches near one end. And both covers were somewhat unsnapped from the boat by the time the storm was over. The boat itself had a few loose snap screws where the covers attached (easily fixed) so I was lucky but I also prepped the boat putting the covers on and the support poles up as tightly as possible which I sure helped keep them from flapping until well into the storm. I consider myself lucky. They don't do anything to protect hullsides or the top from the sun. I did jury rig a gunnel cover meant for a 272 CC along my side hulls to provide some shade there...it doesn't look pretty but is fairly functional and I can keep the gunnel covers on when removing the cockpit and bow covers if I want to access the boat interior while still on my lift. Credit goes to a fellow forum member for his old 272 CC cover that made it possible. Attachments:
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Post by bradcrerar on Oct 25, 2023 6:52:58 GMT -5
Thanks Joe G! I bought the Budge 1200 denier cover off of amazon for my 2018 245DC with the windlass and radar and it works great! I stuck some hard foam from furniture packaging box over the anchor and the cover looks almost custom. It has a 5 year warranty so I 'm debating whether to shrink wrap or just use this?
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Post by DMBekus on Nov 5, 2023 20:34:04 GMT -5
I agree with Jerryk, I have a CC down the road from you and by far the hardest part of putting the boat away is the one piece cover. One of the things I liked about the 245dc was the two piece cover, here in NJ my boat is garage kept, but the winter the 245 was in the keys, I liked the two piece.
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Post by pxl357 on Nov 6, 2023 11:21:52 GMT -5
I got a 200 dollars full cover on Amazon for my 236. It's not perfect but the fit is good , i got a few spares parts/fabric and i know i will have to make a few tweaks in the long run. The best local deal i was able to find was over 3000 dollars for a product that would last 5 years. So i was happy to get something cheap that ( with a bit of work ) will likely last 2 years. I used 303 Marine protection for additional UV protection and waterproofing as well.
Just my 2 cents
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Post by boatfly on Nov 15, 2023 21:19:05 GMT -5
I had 3 different boats, all with covers from ttopcovers. The boats with ttops, the cover attached on the rails, with a U-shape, 10 minutes to install or remove. A 19 ft CC without a t-top was supported by the windshield handlebar, but I also installed telescoping poles fore and aft to promote drainage off of the cover. I also installed vents to promote airflow under the cover. If you need poles or vents, I highly recommend these folks, www.vicomarine.com/The ttopcovers product was strong and durable, and great customer support for any issues. One of those covers had extra long sides that covered down to the waterline of the boat, preventing sun oxidation to the hull. It’s amazing to me that many boat owners will spend tons of money on a boat and won’t protect it with a quality cover. The wear and tear is evident when they want to sell it and they lose a lot more money than the cover would have cost.
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Post by luckydog on Feb 11, 2024 15:24:32 GMT -5
TTop Covers out of South Carolina is the way to go. ttopcovers.com/ I had one on my previous Whaler and it held up perfect. I bought a new 2023 Sailfish 245 and the first upgrade was a new TTop cover. It covers down close to the water line on mine. Since it connects to the hardtop frame it can be put on while on a lift. It is a little more challenging than a center console TTop since you need to pass the cover around the outside of the hard top frame. Mine is in a boat house on a lift in Florida. Sun is rough on any boat here especially if not white. Even under the house, I cover during the work week and she is clean and ready to go come the weekend. The cover also makes a big difference in reducing the oxidation on the sides here in Florida. My Whaler was 17 yrs old and looked better than most boats that are 3-5 yrs. Of course you still need to polish/ wax every year or two.
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Post by footy3 on Feb 12, 2024 7:51:18 GMT -5
TTop Covers out of South Carolina is the way to go. ttopcovers.com/ I had one on my previous Whaler and it held up perfect. I bought a new 2023 Sailfish 245 and the first upgrade was a new TTop cover. It covers down close to the water line on mine. Since it connects to the hardtop frame it can be put on while on a lift. It is a little more challenging than a center console TTop since you need to pass the cover around the outside of the hard top frame. Mine is in a boat house on a lift in Florida. Sun is rough on any boat here especially if not white. Even under the house, I cover during the work week and she is clean and ready to go come the weekend. The cover also makes a big difference in reducing the oxidation on the sides here in Florida. My Whaler was 17 yrs old and looked better than most boats that are 3-5 yrs. Of course you still need to polish/ wax every year or two. I got a T-Top cover for my 2018 245 DC and have to say I was less than thrilled. The quality seems excellent for sure. Where they put the zipper to get out of the boat after putting it on is really tricky because it is a little forward of the rear hard top support, that I can work around a bit. What I really don't like is the way it attaches to the top. Because there is no space between the fiberglass hard top and the pipe framework I have to rig up a series of straps going over the top and then another set of straps going around the first set, but under the hard top, then attach the cover to the second set of straps. It's a PITA to set up the straps and I find it very difficult to get the cover up high under the fiberglass top, in the front the cover hangs down a solid 9 inches below the hardtop allowing the weather to blow right in, for this reason also need to leave my cockpit cover on while ttopcover is in place. If you've come up with a better way of attaching it to the pipeframe/hardtop please let me know.
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