Posted: Thu Dec 10, 2009 10:09 am
Yep Im firmly in the no covers camp. Yeah my boat has a few stone chips on it but the fish don't seem to notice.
Covered the front of my new 5.4m Trailcraft (white) with a tarp for the first trip out Gunn Pt Rd......an eyelet rubbed a hole the size of a twenty cent piece!
2 years later of travelling the same road without covers in all conditions and barely a chip to be seen. I don't get dust / mud inside the boat (although different boats with different aerodynamics will 'suck' dust differently). Pack well and lose nothing. Good mud flaps on the Tojo and sensible driving.
I do put a plastic bag over the lower leg (held in place with bungies) and cover the tranducer and deckwash intake with whatever I can find (rags / tape).
I will eventually invest in a motor cover (zip off lower leg leaving the cowling cover in place) but the cost of a respray will be considerably less than that of a full cover (if I start to get precious about her looks).