Offshoreonly.com - ocean express

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Keitha, everyone did know. I was surprised the place didn't empty out.

daaaaaammmmmnnnn madcow . . . . that was low:rolleyes: . . . . :D ya know to make an omlet ya hafta crack some eggs :D . . . oh sure i think you can paint those panels on the avalanche. . . .course i might hafta do them twice :rolleyes: . . .let me know

yup the 39 is all painted now . . .started the deck at 9:00 saterday morn and painted and taped and painted and taped and painted and taped and painted and taped and painted and taped and painted and taped and painted and taped and painted and taped and painted and taped and painted and taped and painted and taped till 9:00 am on sunday norn . . . . well atleast thats what I did . . .tizbad was in charge of making sure there was no capt'n morgans left anywhere in the building , job well done too i might add. :rolleyes: :D . . . well i better get some sleep, i been up for bout 40 hours now . . .yikes . . .oh well , sometimes thats what it takes. :cool:

OOOOOOK. That's it no credit to me, I think I started before you dave, and as to the captain if you think my job is soooooo easy you try drinking a half gallon and still kind of function. It's hard work but sombody's gotta do it. Practice :p

By the way thanks dave you have done a GREAT job. Anyone needing graphics out there this is your man!!!!!

TIZ

Boy I could tell yous guys was inda boathaus doin da paintin thing.Dave you let this thread get way down on the list. Quit trying to make money and keep your thread up where it belongs! comon guys.By the way the pics look real nice. Not as nice as the seagull idea I had:p but someone has to be structured and conform to standards!:D And Adam must be putting the finishing touches on a new one. Don't make too many Adam . We don't want the market flooded. That will drop the price of the used ones!;) Gotta go watch a camera show Bye

well tizbad locked me in da shop an there aint no computer out there . . .so i couldnt keep up on da ocean x thread . . . . yea an adam must be bizzy he hasnt posted in a while. . . i need a drawing of the seagull idea for da next one :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :D :D :cool: :cool:

First bring me a dead one. I have an aversion to bird bites!

Wow were back had to drink some thinner to get the paint outta my lungs:confused: well Im off to the store to rent a floor sander to sand the deck. :eek: Next boat that get's paint is gonna be 16' 7' beam open bow. Power next week can't wait!!!!

later:D

Hey TIZ didn't glassdave tell you your paint is catalized and it may never get out of your lungs....just ask Gene

Hey Nagivator, Dave didnt tell me about that. Go figure good help is hard to find. :mad:.......................:D

Had to resurrect this thread in celebration of Adam being back at OX, what have you been up to for the last year? Talk to you soon............ I will post some pics of my 26 total redo when I get to the scanner....... I love my Ocean Express !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:D :cool:

wow . . . .blew some dust of this one huh :D . . . so Adam is back at OX huh, hafta give him a call. got some tech questions for him. yea jolley they build one hell of a boat. i take it yours has been treat'n ya well. :cool: :cool: cant wait to see pics.

WOW!! I thought this was gone forever. Good ta hear Adam is back.:D

Quote:

Originally posted by glassdave
so Adam is back at OX huh, hafta give him a call. got some tech questions for him.

REALLY!?!:rolleyes:

:cool: Big , old cats rule ! It's like an Apache doing a split !! :D :D

Great threads never die, they just keep finding there way to the front page.:D :D :D

Wasn't this the first REALLY BIG thread?

yea mika . . i think it was a pretty good one in its day . . .dont think theres any catching that apache thread now though. . . :D :D :D :cool: . . .kinda cool to see it resurface. brings a tear to my eye . . .ahhhh the good ol' days. :D :p

Ross Always Builds Quality Boats. I've Been Around Him For 25 Yrs, He Knows The Business And Yes, They Run Better With Arnesons. I Had My Locked As Far As Trimming Because These Were The First Ones On His Cats. We Formed The ,what We Called The Porta Potty, On The Transom To Hold The Steering System.it Looked Strange, But It Worked. Now Ross Builds It Into The Mold.

Anyone know about this Ocean Express. I am just hearing about this brand recently. Love this layout and the fact that you can fill it full of people and run over 100.

What about them for longevity. I have been burned on old boats before, but really like them. They don't make them like this anymore.

http://www.offshoreonlyclassifieds.c...o17532-en.html

Quote:

Originally Posted by glassdave (Post 2269995)

:cool-smiley-011:

?? :readinghelp:

Quote:

Originally Posted by glassdave (Post 2269995)

:cool-smiley-011:

Another blast from the past!:violent-smiley-045:

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeff1000man (Post 2269973)

The boats have been built in Michigan by a guy by the name of Ross Focht for many years. They were one of the earliest race cats. Originally called ACTIVE, they later became Express and then Ocean Express. Ross has had diferent financial partners from time to time.

The pleasure versions are well-built boats- a bit on the heavy side and basically the same hull as the early boats- lots of freeboard. Very nice ride but there's a substantial speed penalty when compared with something like a Skater or Nor-Tech of equivalent size & power. Alot less expensive though. I've never see or heard of a hull breaking on an Express pleasure boat. In the early 80's, they had some issues with the new AME resin and I seem to recall several hulls that had to be re-decked. By now, any boat with one of those issues has either been remedied or is gone.

Some might think that the hull and interior may be dated- especially in comparison with some of the MTI/Nor-Tech designs. I guess for the additional 500 grand, you should get something fancy. I like them just fine- they have sort of a classic, timeless look. If you like a 35 flatdeck better than a Cafe, you know what I mean. Most have Arneson ASD-8's with the drop boxes but I've seen a few with 6's. The Arneson's work very well and are definitely trouble-free. The Express has a distinctive transom- It has a little doghouse extending back from the actual transom, the same approximate width as the tunnel. This is for mounting the steering componentry for the Arneson's While it's called a 39, the boat is actually a 37- 39 feet includes the transom box. (hey, if it works for Reggie, it should work for Ross.)

I've never spoken to anyone who owned one who regretted it or had anything bad to say about the boat.

The boat in the classifieds certainly looks clean and appears to be all original. As far as 100MPH, well, that might be a bit optimistic. Maybe low 90's with light fuel and a little chop.

An early Active-

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e123/CTS1489/xprs.jpg

The Menace's 39 "Pure Adrenaline" is for sale. It is picture pefect. The way it is set up now it is 120 +.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Queenruler (Post 2270424)

The Menace's 39 "Pure Adrenaline" is for sale. It is picture pefect. The way it is set up now it is 120 +.

The one in question, at 90+MPH, is probably insurable for an experienced performance boater/first-time cat owner. At 120, fast cat experience would be a pre-requisite for any of the few remaining insurers to even talk to you. I'd actually be afraid to buy a cat without experience. It seems more and more these boats are getting written by insurers just to be cancelled shortly afterwards. It would suck to have an uninsurable boat.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeff1000man (Post 2270003)

?? :readinghelp:

yep . . . i started this thread a LONG time ago . . . .ahhh yes . . . . the first of the superthreads(back than 20+ pages was somethin) soon to be over shadowed by Apache, whats in a name :D :D glad to see it pop back up

Quote:

Originally Posted by suncat (Post 141673)

Vonwolske, I will answer your question with the information that I know. If I have left anything out or omitted anyone’s name then I apologize in advance.
Back in the late 1970’s, my dad (Ross E. Focht, Sr.) ran a division of Active Homes. His boss at the time showed an interest in a vee-bottom that my dad and his brother (Larry Focht) had bought (The Super Banana – a 27’ magnum as I am told it was) so, under instructions from his boss, my dad went to Florida and purchased an old vee-bottom that they first raced – the original green Activator. As my dad raced he met different people, and since his background was in construction (albeit homes, not boats) he was able to lend his talents and learn a lot about designing vee-bottoms from different people (I am told that the main people he listened and learned from were the late Don Aronow, and the late James Beard) My dad was convinced that he could design a vee-bottom that ran better than the one they had so they went ahead and lofted a plug, then built the mold and finally built their own first vee-bottom race boat – again the Activator. My dad saw people’s interest in racing and decided to sell his new vee-bottoms to the public as pleasure boats. It was at this time that James Beard of Cougar of England brought over one of his first wooden cougar cats and my dad went for a ride in it and was convinced that the catamarans were better. Now one thing you have to understand is that at the time vee’s were built of ‘glass and cats’ were built of wood. There was no comparison, the vee’s were stronger and held together in rough water whereas the cats did not. This is where the stereotype that vee’s are better rough water boats than cats started. This was only due to the fact that no one had ever built a cat out of fiberglass. My dad realized that even though cats were faster, more stable and required less throttle to achieve the same speeds as the vee bottoms, they needed to be built of the same material to really outshine them. So, he along with guidance from the engineers at Dupont came up with a laminate schedule and built the first all composite, cored catamaran in the world. The first time they raced the boat a lot of people had their eyes on that cat to see what it would do. When they dropped the flag, all the waiting, planning and work came to its fruition as the Express cat (which later went on to set a kilo record, national title and world championship all in the same year – a feat which I do not believe anyone has since done!) as it was called left the fleet behind and performed remarkably. Over the years many things have changed in cat designs, Skater came along and after experimenting with smaller boats, they looked at my dad’s first designs (PLEASE NOTE THAT SKATER DID NOT COPY OUR DESIGNS, HE ONLY STUDIED THEM AS REFERENCE AS ALL DESIGNERS DO WHEN COMING UP WITH SOMETHING NEW) We like to call Skaters first designs the second generation of cat designs, with our all new 38’, 43’ and 49’ the third generation designs. My dad over the years has had many partners under varying names: Active Marine, Active Catamarans, Image Boat Mfg (which built over 30 cats for Baja Boats), Express Marine, Express Catamarans, Ocean Express, Ocean Express Catamarans and finally today Ocean Express Powerboats. We have almost thirty years of experience in designs and just as importantly laminate schedules. (The main reason many of you are skipping around out there on boats of ours that are over 20 years old) I thank everyone who takes the time to read this; I hope that I have provided an accurate description of the beginning of composite catamarans. And again, if I have left anyone out I should have mentioned, please email me with your story and I will be more than happy to edit this post. Thanks all,
Adam
;)

[ 01-27-2002: Message edited by: Adam Focht ]

GREAT READING ADAM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeff1000man (Post 2269973)

I have one for sale cheap. 2002 38, trailer, arneson 1600's, 572 CI 750 hp, paint, cabin, seats 7. 125,000. Let me know if you are interested.

Quote:

Originally Posted by anchor (Post 2329159)

I have one for sale cheap. 2002 38, trailer, arneson 1600's, 572 CI 750 hp, paint, cabin, seats 7. 125,000. Let me know if you are interested.

I am interested. I will PM you my email address.

Jeff

This 48 OE will be for sale next year with or with out power.

Just reread this whole thread. :) :) :)....... I STILL LOVE MY 25 with Twins !!!!!!!!! Ocean Express boats live forever......... :) :) ( I also see Sunkin put his two stolen cents in as well ) :(

Jolley can you post some pics of yours?

Can't post pics anymore( pay up, I know) But it is all white now redone, runs and looks great............ :)

Here's where it all started;
http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/g...-ride-1-a.html

http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/g...ass-lk-mi.html

http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/o...n-express.html

man this is an oldie . . . . and i believe one of the first really BIG threads . . . . . my how far we've come lol.

I see the very first page mentions the new 48 . . . . . shame that thing never hit the water . . . . or has it :confused:

Indeed..... :)

I saw it back at the St.Clair races a few years back. I know it was for sale somewhere

http://boats.oodle.com/ocean-express/detroit-area/

http://www.oceanexpress.com/model_detail.php?mid=9

Look what I just found;
http://flint.ebayclassifieds.com/boa...ph/?ad=9203076

C Ya............ :)

man they should'a left that thing white . . . that is hideous. Course it was probably period correct for back when they built it :D

I just cant imagine building such a great looking boat and never getting it wet.

Quote:

Originally Posted by glassdave (Post 3566992)

Strange they call it a 2010. I swear I have seen it around at least 3 years.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wahoo ATV (Post 3567269)

Strange they call it a 2010. I swear I have seen it around at least 3 years.

A lot longer than 3 years.

I saw it on display at the St.Clair race in 2005:eek: