How to Choose Your First Powerboat [Illustrated] [Paperback]

Chuck Gould (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 23, 1999

After general consideration of size and design, the author explains how to choose a boat based on budget, intended use, and prefernces for personal comfort.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"For the first-time powerboat buyer it is a must..." -- The Ensign, February 2001

About the Author

Chuck Gould has lived his entire life in the Seattle area on Puget Sound where he began boating on a 26-foot sailboat.

Product Details

• Paperback: 188 pages
• Publisher: Sheridan House (March 23, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1574090569
• ISBN-13: 978-1574090567
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,189,666 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Powerboat basics, August 3, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: How to Choose Your First Powerboat (Paperback)

As an experienced sailor switching over to powerboats I have been reading both magazines and " How to Choose," books on powerboating.I figure with such a large purchase you can never be to well read.I found Gould's book to be too basic for someone with boating experience.The chapters are brief and often read like a text book.I also purchased Lamy's boat buying book and found it to be more detailed and loaded with interesting anecdotes. Gould's book does get into more details on boat accessories such as anchors, air-conditioning, refrigeration,and electronics and these topics are not well covered by Lamy.Lamy gives tremendous detail on the purchase process, but only briefly covers accesories and primary systems. I recommend this book as a quick read to inexperienced boat buyers,but recommend that experienced boaters also read a few other books to suppliment "How to Choose Your First Powerboat."

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Much too general, November 22, 2001

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: How to Choose Your First Powerboat (Paperback)

Might be somewhat useful for a used boat buyer. If your looking for information on what to look for in a new boat save your money. There is little or no information on what makes one boat better made than another. What information there is, is of the most basic kind ("drip pans under the engine should have no oil in them"..duh). Some of the information is outdated also. I finished the book in about 20min and will donate it to the library.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gould's Book Very Helpful to Beginner, September 30, 2000

By 

Karl Jonston (Bellingham, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Choose Your First Powerboat (Paperback)

I bought "How to Choose Your First Powerboat" before I spent much time shopping for a boat. I was approaching the project with no boating experience at all, and really felt the need for some general information about boats.

I thought "How to Choose Your First Powerboat" gave me a thorough overview of boats without getting into minute details. No way did I expect that any one book would make me completely informed, but I wasn't comfortable proceeding in complete ignorance, either. During the (successful) shopping process for a used boat, more than one seller or broker tried to make some fairly far fetched claims about different boats and I had learned enough from "How to Choose....." to avoid at least one carefully laid trap.

Gould does an excellent job of communicating important basic concepts. There are moments of humor, and the style is easy to read.

I would recommend this book to anybody getting into boating for the first time.