CONTINUOUSWAVE

Hi all.

I just acquired a 1992 21 Walkaround [seen above] powered by a 2013 Yamaha 200. The helm has a Simrad Evo2 chart plotter with GPS. There is also RADAR and an autopilot. This 1992 21 WALKAROUND is in immaculate shape. I cannot wait to continue its history. The sale included two binders full of every service record and a full history of the boat. The seats were both raised about one foot with an additional storage compartment.

Hello and welcome to ownership of a Boston Whaler boat. The 21 WALKAROUND is a very nice small express cruiser, and is one of the first boats produced after a significant change in leadership in Boston Whaler design that occurred in c.1990. The old guard was out and a new design team came aboard, headed by Peter Van Lancker. The Boston Whaler boats took on a new look, and the 21 WALKAROUND is an example. The V-hull design is quite different, with more dead rise, no vestigial runners, and it takes more horsepower that the typical classic Boston Whaler. The 200-HP engine is really necessary for this hull--they need a lot of horsepower to get up and onto hydroplane.

On this particular boat the absence of any bottom paint is also unusual, particularly in a boat used on an ocean coast state like California. And to have a recent re-power with a newer engine is another big asset. Finding an almost 30-year-old boat in really excellent condition is always good fortune.

ASIDE: There is an interesting interview with Peter Van Lancker on youTube.

Thanks for the information.



Q1: in going through [a 1992 21 OUTRAGE that is in immaculate shape] what should I be looking for?

ASIDE: To [replace the canvas with a hard top on this 1992 21 WALKAROUND] be cool, but the [cost for replacing the canvas with a hard top] probably would not be worthwhile.

ocurtis wrote:Q1: in going through [a 1992 21 OUTRAGE that is in immaculate shape] what should I be looking for?

Look for rust on the swim platform hardware, as can be seen in Figure 2. It is probably due to saltwater use.

If you plan to change the name, investigate the decals used. Be careful when removing the decals. Below the decals the hull gel coat color will probably by slightly different than the rest of the hull, leaving a shadow of the old boat name. You will have to use a gel coat compound to remove the shadow and blend the hidden color into the remaining color on the hull.

I would not add to the boat the weight and the fixed height of a hardtop. The lines of this boat are exquisite. It is extraordinarily unlikely that some artisan could create a hardtop that would fit with the boat in a suitable manner in any reasonable time and at a reasonable price. Hardtops that are hacked onto a classic boat like this generally are not enhancements. Also, there is unlikely to be any suitable embedded reinforcements in the hull that will accommodate the new stress and loading of a hard top. The fixed height of the hard top will be a problem in highway towing and storage.

With the raised seats at the helm, it looks like the windshield no longer shields the occupants of the seats from the wind.

I had a 21 Walkaround and then upsized to a 23 Walkaround. The 21 had a soft top and the 23 has a factory hardtop. The hard top is heavy and the side walls of the cockpit aren't up to holding the weight. I had to take off the interior trim and then lamiate doubler plates onto the side walls where the hardtop's mounting bolts where. This reinforcement helped but in hindsight I should have made the doubler plates twice as large.

The boat [seen in Figure 2] looks to be floating happily.

I had a 23 [WALKAROUND] with a [Whaler Drive] and twin 200-HP engines; it was much too [stern] heavy. If I put aboard a cooler with one bag of ice the deck scuppers went underwater.

! always suspected there was a great hull in these designs, and [the 21 WALKAROUND] appears to be it.

Thanks to everyone for pointing to the disadvantages of adding a hardtop to a 1992 21 Walkaround. I will use it as-is.

The other night I took out the 21 WALKAROUND; it performed well.