Quality of a 96 Carver 380 Santego

[Jeff5]

I’m in the market for a boat. Saw many boats. I keep going back to the Carver 380 Santego. It has a great price along with excellent amenities. The 454 is easy to work on, general maintenance would be a breeze and all parts are less than half of a diesel. So I see a lot of perks.

But... I’m constantly being told not to get a Carver. There are claims of thin hulls that easily break apart in rough seas. Claims that Carver uses low quality parts in order to keep costs down.

From reading here most everyone seems very satisfied with their Carvers. Im on the West Coast and seas can get rough at times. I will occasionally go 60 miles off shore. Most the time I’ll use it to go to Catalina island.

What is your opinion of your Carver? Have you had hull issues? Quality issues? Safety issues? How do they handle rough seas and what exactly are rough seas? 2’, 5’, 10’ or more? Would you buy another?

Please help me make a decision on a boat! Thanks

[tomschauer]

I love my Carver 355. That said, I would never take it 60 miles off shore. I don't think I would take any gas powered boat 60 miles off shore unless the weather was pristine. Although I am on the east coast and have been 60 0r 100 miles out and came back many times through 10 -14 footers. Not on my Carver, but on custom sport fishers. Even on the boats built for it, its not fun after the first hour.
I don't believe the Carver hull would break apart, but in heavy seas it would make a mess of anything in the cabin and take a bunch of water over the bow, and maybe have water intrusion through the operable cabin windows. These boats are made more for pleasure than long distance off shore travel.
The Santego is a great layout for pleasure, but is pretty much and express bridge design. two footers wont be an issue. i am sure it will take five footers all day long without any damage but you will be working hard to run it and be slamming hard. Ten footers, would be no fun at all. But any boat under 60 will get tossed in 10's.
Would I buy another? Yes. They are built pretty well, are very roomy and ride nice in smooth to medium seas.
I dont think you will find another boat with more usable "creature comfort" space.

[Eleighana]

We have owned a 570 for 3 years now. We have several large sail boats prior to this carver. The carver is built very well with all quality parts. The electrical system is 2nd to none I have ever know. Every thing is 1st rate; VacuFlush toilet systems, engine and shaft hardware, choice of hoses throughout boat, kitchen appliances, furniture, bridge hardware, etc. I cannot speak of hull thickness as I have not yet replaced any thru-hulls. I have had her in 6 footers and she was just fine. I agree I would not take this far offshore as I did my sail boats. You must remember this is a flat bottomed boat.

[waybomb]

The boat is not going to fall apart. Your rumors you hear are from some guy by the name of pascoe that only considered large offhsore fishers with giant power as seaworthy boats.
We had a 2807 Carver Riviera for many years, 3 of which were based in Ventura harbor. Just about every weekend we went someplace. Usually to Anacapa island, Santa Barbara island, Santa Baraber port, or south. Went all the way to San Diego on vacation.

Here's the deal - I went out once in 8 footers on 20 second intervals. The boat does have a bit of a workout going up that wall of water. If you lost an engine in that, I would expect some problems, with ANY boat.

Pick your weather. Just like flying, safety is first. If the sea conditions turn bad, stay put and enjoy another day or two wherever you happen to be.

You'll be fine.

[Cooler]

Carver is an excellent mid-level vessel. It is not a Hatteras, or Bertram, but it is a great value for the price point. You may recall the boat industry having huge challenges in the early 90's because of the economy issues and a 10% luxury tax on boats. Many boat builders reduced quality level to save money. Carver did not. The 93 - 94 production years were bad for a number of builders. 95, 96, 97, were the years everyone dramatically improved quality levels to get the industry back on it's feet. Call Carver with the hull number of this vessel, and they will give you info from the build log of this particular vessel. There is solid FG below the water line, with a minimum 2" thickness on the bottom. The hull is strong, and the joints between the hull and topside are real strong. I would not be afraid to take her offshore, but I would not exceed 5' seas. Remember, that is actually 7 to 8 feet when considering the swell. Use common sense. That model weighs around 20,000 lbs., so it is substantial. My Mariner is similar to the Santego, as they both have a modified fly bridge. Lower profile. The parts Carver used were all well known marine manufacturers. Finally, look around at how many 80's and 90's Carvers are still on the water. That number, in itself, is testimony. I would buy another in a heart beat. Especially if it had Crusader engines! Having said all that, she will be a result of how she has been maintained. That is the real key! Make sure to get a survey, no matter what the price point. Good luck! er

[Cooler]

Final footnote. RIP David Pasacoe. We know you did not intend to throw Carver totally under the bus. And few people saw your follow up article to the review. er

[Mississippi Voyager]

Jeffs, as Cooler said it was David Pascoe who single handedly gave Carver a bad rap and it was mostly based on 2 43 to 47 foot Carvers that were damaged in a hurricane in Florida around 1995. He gave many other manufacturers severe criticism as well. Unless you were Bertram or Hatteras everything else was substandard in his view. He did make some good points, but he seemed to consider his mission in life to severely criticize anything that wasn't built like a tank. He passed in 2018 and rumor had it as he got to the pearly gates he took exception to the quality of the welds holding them together and nearly wasn't let in!

I am very familiar with trips to Catalina Island and what you will experience on the voyage. I made that round trip at least 60 times in my last boat. I was slipped in Huntington Harbor (Now live in Minnesota) and that made it about 26 miles each way to Catalina. It is easy to plan around the weather and make those Catalina trips in reasonable seas. And as you get closer and closer to the island it gets calmer and calmer as you are shielded from the prevaling swell. I don't know what harbor you will be slipped in, but generally in socal you go straight into the swell on the way there and surf them all the way back. I am very familiar with the 380 Santego and it would be fine for that run. When you say 60 miles offshore I assume you are talking about going to San Clemente Island. I did a lot of scuba diving out there, but only on commercial boats. I considered it too far to go in my own boat and a lot more potential for weather and larger seas.

So, my bottom line....Catalina trips fine in a 380 Santego. San Clemente trips...get something tougher with diesels. I don't have a sense of how much experience you have out there. I sure had a ton of fun, including a face to face 3 feet away with a 25 foot Killer Whale.