Boat Weight (Dumb Question)

[swingnamiss]

I''m looking to buy a trailerable boat but need to be mindful of weight for towing purposes and the limited capability of my tow vehicle. In the spec''s you seen on sailboats, is the "displacement" category the approximate weight of the boat, the amount of water that the boat displaces or both?? If the boat weight is not the displacement weight, how can I tell?

Thanks in advance!

[thomasstone]

displacement is weight of boat

[Jeff_H]

As has been noted displacement is the same as weight. A boat at rest displaces (occupies a volumeof water) equal in weight to the weight of the boat. The problem with published displacements are that they are not consistent in what is being included and do not account for differences in design weight vs production weight. It is not all that ususual for even a small boat to vary by as much as several hundred pounds between design displacement and actual displacement. Beyond that with trailerables, the weights do not include such items as the trailer and spar storage equipment. Trailerables often include a ''towing weight'' which is perhaps more useful to you.

Regards,
Jeff