East coast, south bound delivery

The delivery of that boat on that route shouldn't be an issue. Are you looking for what stops/legs to do each day? Or?

I haven’t done that run in the last 6 or 7 years... fuel should be a lot less than $4 a gallon but it pays to call ahead and check as you will find as high as $1 differences within a few miles.

pt Judith RI, Cape May, Portsmouth / Coonjock always had good prices back then. Also Osprey Marina (south Myrtle on the ICW away from inlet).

commercial docks are always cheap like the one in Fernandina beach.

while active captain isn’t as useful as it used to be, it s still a good source of info.

I just did a delivery up there and fuel at most stops was $3, otherwise it was less. not more. We paid as little as $1.80 in Great Bridge, VA. But mostly was $2.75-3.

I would guess trucking it would cost the same or more because of having to remove, strap and secure the tower, then re-installing it. Also the outriggers, and you'd have to get creative on where to put the outriggers for the shipping. The big question is, is the boat well enough maintained or are you going to have a bunch of breakdowns. Trucking it, is the sure thing as far as expenses go.

I can't remember what 6v92's at that HP burn but remember it's a lot and 55 GPH seems to ring a bell. I'd guess it does cruise more around 23-25 knots given the HP. I'd figure 2.5 GPNM and an 8 hour range, so 180 or so NM.

There really is only 1 route, only difference would be whether staying on Ocean or popping in C+D canal and whether or not you take ICW or ocean further South, which weather will determine more than anything.

Portsmouth,RI- Hobokon, NJ approx 150NM
Hobokon- Ocean City, MD
Ocean City- Coinjock
Coinjock- Masonboro
Masonboro -Charleston
You can figure it out from here.........

The real question is "what is the definition of fall?" Technically it runs to December 21. Now early in the season, September and October you'll have no issues. Perhaps water turned off at some places and otherwise few problems. Late in the season you'll encounter water turned off and some places without fuel although can always find fuel. You'll also find it quite cold.

Assuming a daytime only trip, you're limited during fall to about 8-9 hours a day. That's a combination of your range and the time to fuel each day. Many of the marinas will have limited hours and you'll either have to hit them by 4:00 pm or fuel in the morning and not leave until around 9:00. It does add to mileage as you will be darting inside daily if you run at cruise.

Using Captain J's 180 nm per day, then you're looking at a minimum of 8 days. That time of year, you also face the possibility of some weather delays. 2.5 gpnm over 1440 or so nm with the ins and outs, you're talking 3600 gallons or about $11000 in fuel. About $7000-8000 in crew, food and transportation. Then there's some cost of wear .

While the trucking is likely less, by the time you add in all the permits and the yard work at both ends you'll be at least that high too, likely a bit higher, but the only way to be sure would be to get quotes on all the components.

Trucking advocates will argue reduced wear. I'll argue, boats are made for the water, not for trucks. lol

Every one of that boat I see does have a lot of rigging. I'm thinking half tower is just indicating lack of controls but still a ladder and rigging to deal with. Can you get a photo of the boat?

Now the good thing is once it's all removed, the boat has a low clearance.

On water should be cheaper for this boat. Besides the removals to get it under 14' you're dealing with wide load permits for each state and escort vehicles. By truck will be faster though although they could get hung up with Covid 19 quarantines along the way. Except for the section from NY harbor to Cape May the entire trip can be done inside however on the ocean (except for around Hatteras) is faster (and therefore cheaper). Theoretically the trip could be done in a week, but if forced to the inside (where there's a ton of slow speed zones) or held up by weather or breakdowns give yourself up to 3 weeks.
I consider running the coast a college education in boating. So if the owner can go along, at least for a few legs, I'd recommend he do it. Besides saving him the cost of a crew member he'd learn a ton about his boat and have a probably once in a lifetime experience.
P.S. I'm retired, but have someone I can recommend who's done the trip more times than I can count.

A half tower may well have controls. It's just shorter than a full tower. Has nothing to do with outriggers or ladders. On some express style boats it at about the same level as a flybridge but often 10' or so above the lower helm.

One thing to consider when pulling any boat apart for truck transport is who will be taking it apart and putting it back together (preferably the same person so you know who to blame if things go wrong). I seen more than a few boats turned into rattle traps.

We're talking about a specific tower on a specific boat. Now the ones I've seen still have ladders and rigging, have a small platform, have no controls. Doesn't mean they are all that way but I just looked at photos of three Viking 43 Expresses and all were the same.

This page shows several pics of full tuna towers and half towers. Difference is simply the height. Some may have ladders, but most use the corner steps.: https://www.bauschamericantowers.com/tuna-towers.html

I'm not discussing the universe of towers, only the towers on a Viking 43 Express. All those I can find are half towers as it's a small boat. Also, none of them have controls on the platform. Also, they all have ladders. This is only about that single model. Now, if the one Ralph is referring to is different, we'll find out. Ralph had a different definition of half towers which does not seem to fit this boat.

Or you just slow down to hull speed and save a lot of money if that s important. I used to do miami - nantucket and back with a 70 footer on 3300 gallons of fuel each way. I also anchored quite a bit and rarely spent more than $1000 in dockage along the way... took a little longer (two weeks) but owner wasn’t in a rush.

lot less wear and tear on the boat too

That's if your crew is salaried. If you're paying crew by the day then the fuel savvings is partially offset by the crew cost. By slowing down with the Viking 43 Express, you may reduce fuel consumption by $4000-5000. Anchoring vs. dockage is a choice and some expect delivery captains to anchor while others don't.

Trucking will be a huge PIA on several levels. Run her on her own bottom. Pick a good weather window with lots of offshore hops. I have done the round trip Annapolis to W Palm every year for the last 8. Nice boat ride. Like a box of chocolates
Charleston south I would layover for my offshore window and avoid the inside. The depth is fine now after lots of dredging.

This is my run. I'm headed south Mid October if you can slow to 11 knots. I pick a window and time my run. I stay outside and get to Ft Pierce in about 5 days. Last year I ran from Long Island Sound to Charleston, stuffed fuel and bounced back out. You'd likely need to hit Beaufort, too given limited tankage, but you can catch back up.

...you can run fast but stop more often, or run slow and stop fewer times. I don't think you'll get there much faster by pushing the speed. When I round Sandy Hook I set a course through the middle of the 4 naval buoys off the outer banks. I hedge a bit to keep my options open for weather, and it's a line that tends to keep me away from the really big gals headed for the ports. I round the shoal and head for the Frying Pan slue. Once safely through the gap I head for Charleston to stay inside the current. I can get there on a full load comfortably and still on my main. I think I can get all the way, but I also like an excuse to overnight and wander in to Oak Steakhouse. All depends on the weather and the window for the run. I bounced right back out last year because I was only a day ahead of a NE swing.

I think by 1/2 tower. What Ralph is referring to what we simply call a hardtop these days. The hardtop could most likely stay on, but radar and things on it would need to come off. A short tower would be called a Marlin tower, and a tall tower would be called A Tuna tower.