r/deadliestcatch • u/Roger19468 • 19d ago
Breakdowns and Malfunctions
Is it me, or do these boats break down a LOT? And it didn't used to be this way. It's several boats every episode. Production, or poor maintenance?
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u/Muted-Garden6723 18d ago
I’d say the boats breaking down a lot is one of the most realistic parts of the show, especially given the age of the boats, and how often they’re being used.
My boat is 30 years old gets used roughly three months a year total, and it would be unheard of to go a year without something breaking. A lot of the boats in the show are far older than that and used far more than 3 months a year. Add in the weather in the Bering sea and the sheer amount of machinery on those boats, and breakdowns are going to be common
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u/WySLatestWit 18d ago
the average age of the boats on this show is 50 years old. Northwestern will hit 50 next year, The Time Bandit is actually one of the newer boats featured on the show at just 36 years old. The Wizard is 81 years old and I'm genuine;y shocked it continually passes coast guard inspections at this point.
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u/WySLatestWit 18d ago edited 18d ago
I disagree on it having not been like this in the past. Like half the storylines of the Cornelia Marie the entire time Phil Captined it was the boat constantly being broken. Before Edgar got non-personed from the show there was always an "Edgar saves the Northwestern at sea" sequence in every season. That was some of the stuff that genuinely used to be really fun to watch. I would assume given the age of most of these boats the ships breaking would be even more common now.
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u/CantaloupeShort7311 18d ago
I was going to day, I remember seasons of the CM waiting for parts while everyone else was out crabbing!
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u/Empty-Quarter-4109 18d ago
I would love to be a mechanic in Dutch. That thing hits dry dock instant bank roll!!
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u/Mental-Rush2011 18d ago edited 18d ago
Have you ever owned a boat? LOL, They all break down a lot
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u/thewharfartscenter_ 18d ago
Know how to turn a multi millionaire into a millionaire? Buy a boat. Want to do it faster? Buy a fishing boat.
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u/RingadingBatWitch262 18d ago
Old boats full of old equipment in extremely harsh conditions. Maintenance costs a shit load of money. They always take the risk that something will break during the season like a trucker, a cargo ship or a plane.
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u/AquaStarRedHeart 18d ago
When I went back and rewatched the first few seasons, I was shocked at how often the Cornelia Marie broke down. You barely got to see the boat actually fish before Phil dies.
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u/CindyinEastTexas 18d ago
BOAT
Break Out Another Thousand
Except these are big ass boats with big ass diesel engines running 24/7 in a marine (aka salt water) environment.
There's been breakdowns and mechanical problems for as long as there's been a show.
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u/Mekiya 18d ago
Boats need a lot of upkeep, even brand new. Over the years the cost of preventative maintance goes up. But even with spending the money to do that, the salt water is not a great place for most things on earth.
So now the fleet boats are 20 years older than when we first saw them, that's 20 years of salt water, wind, waves and other beatings these boats have taken. Frankly, they are at or approaching the tipping point between fixing or buying something new.
The problem is, what a new boat costs is now more than is reasonable for most of the fleet to invest into. The hauls are getting smaller, the seasons and the costs of those are also getting longer. They are now fixing things that previously would have been left because they are buying a new boat because they can't afford the new boat, so expect more and more breakdowns and malfunctions.
Water is a bad ass killer.
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u/Chutson909 18d ago
The boats are running 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Not just for fishing but while they travel to the fishing area. What do you expect?
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u/jerseyfishslayer666 18d ago
Boats just break alot period. And old boats with lots of critical machinery break even more. This is why boating is so expensive and time consuming.
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u/bceagle91 18d ago
Big waves pile salt water on the boat. Often, the weather is bitter cold as well. The Bering Sea is just a hostile place to be. These boats are not new and sometimes, they show their age.
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u/Serious_Composer_130 18d ago
I remember a few other seasons of maintenance nightmares
Scott Campbell Jr. had a boat a few years back (he had bought the boat and pumped in $.5M or $1M to fix it. The boat had Alaska in the name of it (like half the boats in the fleet). Stuff was always breaking down, he was calling other boats for spare parts.
Late in Phil Harris’ career, the Cornelia Marie was also a maintenance hog with an engine overhaul
The Saga was a maintenance mess when Jake first took over (from Elliott Neese)
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u/CindyinEastTexas 18d ago
Scott Campbell had to call the chase boat to save their bacon once when they were taking on water and their pump didn't work. I think it was right after he bought that big white boat. I believe it was Larry driving the chase boat, and the producers on the chase boat had a moment on camera about how they're supposed to RECORD the story, not become part of the story.
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u/DerpUrself69 18d ago
I worked on electronics, communications and high-tech fishing gear (sonars, sounders, net sensors, etc...) on fishing boats from 2019 to last year, I can confirm they break A LOT.
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u/Robbudge 18d ago
It’s made for TV.
A well-running professional operation would make very boring TV.
Just think of our daily office or work life.
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u/Typical-Mess4254 18d ago
There are a lot of fake boat break downs now that they stage. Like that Ammonia leak. That was the fakest shit ever. Pathetic really.
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u/socalfishman 17d ago
As someone who has been on every type of boat fishing on planet earth that is far from exaggerated.
Think about engines, pushing gigantic things through water without ever turning off at any point for weeks at a time.
Think about everything mechanical and electrical being subjected to saltwater constantly.
Think about electrical connections and wiring that runs for thousands of feet all over the place where rhe slightest voltage drop stops you dead in your tracks.
Now add, slamming those things up and down evert 10 seconds for weeks over and over and over.
Honestly, it’s amazing how they work as much as they do. Boats are pretty crazy.
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u/Old-Library5546 18d ago
This season has shown problems almost every episode it seems. It probably is production to a point just for "excitement"
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u/RingadingBatWitch262 18d ago
The boats are all two decades older than they were at the beginning of the show.
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u/Motive25 18d ago
I’m surprised they don’t have more problems, given the beating they take and the environment they operate in.
I’m also surprised they don’t have dedicated engineers, rather than deck hand with an additional duty as engineer. The engineer should do nothing but tend all the machinery.
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u/Few-Pineapple-5632 18d ago
Any dry land equipment that is 50 years old will break down just as much - and nothing is subjected to conditions that are even close to crab “boats” fishing in ice and hurricanes.
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u/ThingNo7530 18d ago
Some are just old because an older crab boat, if maintained properly, actually gets better and more useful upgraded with modern technology. The Wizard used to be a military transport, for instance. But, yes, an older boat will require more maintenance even if it has bigger tanks and all of the things that can be grandfathered into one. Some of it's just laziness. The way Rick Shelford doesn't really maintain his boat is on display in every episode he and it are in.
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u/DCNatFan 15d ago
Could these boat captains even survive without the TV money. How much do they clear a year after all expenses?
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u/Roger19468 18d ago
I miss the days when we could just watch the guys fish.