Gibson Houseboats

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Gibson Houseboats

A great bow on Gibson Houseboats.

We chose Gibson houseboats because of the space, speed, and the comfort they provide. I can cruise at hull speed, or I can put the throttles down and get up and go at planing speed to get away from incoming storms.

One of the major advantages of a Gibson houseboat is that they have a good sized catwalk so that my wife can easily get around the boat for docking purposes, which makes my life much easier.

It has a good sized cuddy cabin down below, so we can have guests stay over for those weekend parties, and they can sleep in comfort without feeling like they are in the way.

Overall, my wife and I love our Gibson house boat.

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Gibson Houseboats

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A houseboat taking on water?
by: Orangetoy

I bought a 1973 Gibson houseboat and it is now taking on water and I cannot find where it is coming from. I do not have a trailer for it and right now I don't have the cash to have it removed out of the water. Anyone had problems with their houseboat taking on water and where was it at?

Reply - Answer
Well Orangetoy, you may have water coming from the fresh water tank, outdrive seals, packings on the driveshafts, or with a through hull fittings.

IAN from www.all-about-houseboats.com

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Gibson houseboat, 42' Standard
by: Anonymous

We have had a 42' Gibson Standard for several years, has twin 350's, wet exhaust. Other boaters have hailed us down just to get close and hear the sound of our engines just off idle. No one can believe how the boat planes out at only 2800 RPM.

She sleeps six people or twelve good friends. For over five years now, the houseboat had not given us one minute of trouble and looks like brand new with its aqua trim and off white Gel Coat:
750 total hours :)

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Hull ID Number #
by: Anonymous

Where is the hull id # on 25 year old Gibson? I cannot find it on the transom. Thanks!

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Gibson houseboat in Florida
by: Monarch

I'd like to have a 5900 Gibson (new or slightly used houseboat) in Florida. Where is the best place to put it where I can live on it 6 months a year?

Thanks, Monarch, Arizona

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Gibson Houseboats are A+
by: Anonymous

I have had a 1992 50 foot Gibson houseboat for 9 seasons now, and we love it !!

We've done many upgrades, and we run the boat !!!

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Gibson houseboat - Love her!
by: justcyn

We are new houseboaters and haven't even got our 1974, 42 ft Gibson out of dry dock yet. We already love her to pieces and can hardly wait to sail her on her maiden voyage (for us) down the Tombigbee River to her new home in the Mobile Alabama Delta.

Thanks to the miracle of the Internet we found her and got to look at and compare hundreds of boats before deciding. We didn?t impulse buy. We looked at hundreds more after we looked at her too just to be sure she was the one.

She's old and also a fixer upper. She has deck and hatch problems and the engines have sat up for 2 years. We are putting one new engine in and hoping to restart the other. She's got dual inboard Chrysler 318s.

The seller ran out of money and never got to sail her at all and knew little of her previous history. Somewhere a previous owner redid the interior very nicely and somewhere that nice cabin received some minor storm damage and somewhere the last owners did more harm than good trying to fix the deck and engine problems. But its all good and we?ll get it all back together.

We knew the Gibson was a nice boat when we started looking at the different manufacturers. We really knew when we saw her. We really wanted a walk around and we really liked the sturdy railings that Gibson uses. We knew this was a quality boat when we saw that the steps to the roof decks were made from plates molded with the Gibson name.

The interior layout is well thought out, spacious, and for us, the split-level wheelhouse and salon is a magnificent design. A lot of care went into the details. There is still much of the original woodwork that is still in beautiful condition. And the glass, oh the glass! ?WOW,? is all we could say when we first saw it.

And there is something to be said of the older models. The wall-to-wall glass is clear and not tinted. It is like a big floating Florida room!

All the repairs won't be done yet but we?ll have the engine work and everything below the waterline completed in the next few weeks for the launch.

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Submitted by: justcyn

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We are new houseboaters and haven't even got our 1974, 42 ft Gibson out of dry dock yet. We already love her to pieces and can hardly wait to sail her on her maiden voyage (for us) down the Tombigbee River to her new home in the Mobile Alabama Delta. Thanks to the miracle of the Internet we found her and got to look at and compare hundreds of boats before deciding. We didn?t impulse buy. We looked at hundreds more after we looked at her too just to be sure she was the one. She's old and also a fixer upper. She has deck and hatch problems and the engines have sat up for 2 years. We are putting one new engine in and hoping to restart the other. She's got dual inboard Chrysler 318s. The seller ran out of money and never got to sail her at all and knew little of her previous history. Somewhere a previous owner redid the interior very nicely and somewhere that nice cabin received some minor storm damage and somewhere the last owners did more harm than good trying to fix the deck and engine problems. But its all good and we?ll get it all back together. We knew the Gibson was a nice boat when we started looking at the different manufacturers. We really knew when we saw her. We really wanted a walk around and we really liked the sturdy railings that Gibson uses. We knew this was a quality boat when we saw that the steps to the roof decks were made from plates molded with the Gibson name. The interior layout is well thought out, spacious, and for us, the split-level wheelhouse and salon is a magnificent design. A lot of care went into the details. There is still much of the original woodwork that is still in beautiful condition. And the glass, oh the glass! ?WOW,? is all we could say when we first saw it. And there is something to be said of the older models. The wall-to-wall glass is clear and not tinted. It is like a big floating Florida room! All the repairs won't be done yet but we?ll have the engine work and everything below the waterline completed in the next few weeks for the launch.

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Older Gibson Houseboats
by: Robert

My wife and I own a 1972 Gibson houseboat 36x12.
We purchased this houseboat 5 years ago as a fixer upper, the price was right and it came with a trailer.

It needed both mechanical and structural repairs, all of which I was able to do with the help of family, friends and a very helpful marine mechanic. Yes it took time, and some cash but it was all worth it in the end.

Both V-8 Mercruisers I/O were rebuilt, the velvet drive transmissions were rebuilt, newer outdrives were installed.

The entire deck was all replaced using treated wood for beams and supports, marine grade solid core 5/8 decking was used, and hand laid cloth and fiberglass resin and epoxy paint finished the deck.

Having Mercruiser manuals for the mechanicals proved to be a very smart buy. The repair manuals tell how to fix everything mechanical.

Finding parts for a 36 year old Gibson houseboat can be trying at times, but so far knock on wood...no problems yet.

We boat on the Mississippi River, and enjoy our Gibson immensely and wouldn't have any other boat. Robert.

Reply - Answer
Well Robert, I wanted to thank you for posting an excellent review of older Gibsons. Many of my houseboater friends have Gibsons, and they also are very happy with them.

Lastly, hopefully other readers will share and post comments about their Gibson houseboat experiences for us all to read.

Thanks again, IAN - from www.all-about-houseboats.com

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Submitted by: Robert

Title

Comment
My wife and I own a 1972 Gibson houseboat 36x12. We purchased this houseboat 5 years ago as a fixer upper, the price was right and it came with a trailer. It needed both mechanical and structural repairs, all of which I was able to do with the help of family, friends and a very helpful marine mechanic. Yes it took time, and some cash but it was all worth it in the end. Both V-8 Mercruisers I/O were rebuilt, the velvet drive transmissions were rebuilt, newer outdrives were installed. The entire deck was all replaced using treated wood for beams and supports, marine grade solid core 5/8 decking was used, and hand laid cloth and fiberglass resin and epoxy paint finished the deck. Having Mercruiser manuals for the mechanicals proved to be a very smart buy. The <a href="http://www.jdoqocy.com/click-2683268-10540053?sid=repair+manual&url=http%3A%2%2Fwww.westmarine.com%2Fwebapp%2Fwcs%2Fstores%2Fservlet%2Fproducte%2F10001%2F-1%2F10001%2F265359&cjsku=8620783" target="_blank">repair manuals</a><img src="http://www.tqlkg.com/image-2683268-10540053" border="0" width="1" height="1"> tell how to fix everything mechanical. Finding parts for a 36 year old Gibson houseboat can be trying at times, but so far knock on wood...no problems yet. We boat on the Mississippi River, and enjoy our Gibson immensely and wouldn't have any other boat. Robert. <b>Reply - Answer</b> Well Robert, I wanted to thank you for posting an excellent review of older Gibsons. Many of my houseboater friends have Gibsons, and they also are very happy with them. Lastly, hopefully other readers will share and post comments about their Gibson houseboat experiences for us all to read. Thanks again, IAN - from <a href="http://www.all-about-houseboats.com/">www.all-about-houseboats.com</a>

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Like New - 1984 Gibson Houseboat
by: Anonymous

We have had a 36x12 Gibson houseboat for 25 years, and it still looks like new.

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Fiberglass on Plywood
by: Beached

I can tell you from personal experience. Fiberglass on any Plywood, even the best stuff is a disaster in waiting.

Fiberglass is N O T vapor proof, once the moisture gets into the wood, it will rot, slowly or fast, but it will rot and by the time the glass is delaminating you are too late.

Solution. Solid glass fiber layup or glass over closed cell foam.
Glass epoxy on wood is much better then polyester resin/glass on wood.

Straight wood or ply with a clear UV finish, you can see any problems before they get out of control.

Marine Aluminum.

Rating

Maintenance makes sense
by: Anonymous

Thanks to both anonymous and Beached for your comments. It makes sense that when you maintain a vessel properly, and take care of little problems before they get to be big ones, all will work out, whether you're talking car, boat, house or anything else.

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Gibson Houseboat Construction?
by: Anonymous

My wife and I attended the 2008 Houseboat Expo in Louisville back in March. We talked to a lot of people and we have learned (both from this show and other places) that a lot of people love their Gibson's. OK, so it's a very popular boat.

Understood and accepted. We also heard that there were some problems to watch out for such as the hatch covers and decking material being made of plywood which can get wet, waterlogged and eventually will rot.

Any comments, pro or con, from Gibson owners?

Thanks so much from a houseboat newbie.

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Gibson Houseboats

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Gibson Houseboats