Boat Reviews

Would you opt for triple 300hp or twin 450hp on this offshore weapon? This Regulator 34 combines strength, weight and hydrodynamics to deliver a real go anywhere platform for the boys. You could put her to work in the fishing role but ...
View the Boat Review

Galeon is a new brand to this channel so I was happy to have this opportunity to discover the Galeon 440 with diesel shaft drive Volvo's.

The impression I was left with after a full day aboard was that this design was done by ...
View the Boat Review

If you liked the Scimitar 1010 but felt she needed a little more luxury then you will appreciate the Scimitar 1010 Platinum!

She's the same boat - just better!

Big, comfortable, safe and remarkably easy to operate by yourself are the takes aways I took from a day onboard this Boston Whaler 405 Conquest. When you add the latest power option it then becomes a seriously great boat for a unique ...
View the Boat Review

I will openly say that electric boats don't make sense for 90% of boaters today. Cost, range, speed are all factors that make it a poor decision for the common man.

But Frauscher is not designed for the common man and instead ...
View the Boat Review

Iron 827 Coupe might be the nice fit that you're looking for in between a RIB and an Adventure Boat. It does a bit of both and is incredibly fast, fun and looks kinda cool from most angles.

Obviously being a cabin boat she's ...
View the Boat Review

If a rugged exterior and beaching the boat is of interest to you then this XO DSCVR 9 T-Top may be the boat for you. Military grade alloy hull combined with a GRP lid and super plush interior these boats are unique, fast and fun for the ...
View the Boat Review

If quality, longevity and sporty looks are what you seek then it's hard to go past this Sunseeker Manhattan 55. Everywhere I looked it was evident that the build quality was top notch on this boat and with the brand pedigree that comes ...
View the Boat Review

My first video of the Saxdor 270 was on a lake in Poland and many of you asked me about how she performed in waves so this is for you!

How does shaft diesels, full keel, shallow draft and long range sound to you? If it's a capable platform that's already proved herself with around 70 hulls built then this Scimitar is worthy of your attention.

This is a boat for ...
View the Boat Review

The Numbus C11 is an outstanding hull and in a previous video I was able to experience this in NZ on an inboard diesel version. In this video we had outboards and some lumpy offshore conditions which was just awesome to be able to trial ...
View the Boat Review

This is a design that I believe is going to cross over a few different categories and appeal to a wide audience. The Nimbus W11 will sleep the whole family, she'll belt along at over 40kts and she'll comfortably entertain a large group ...
View the Boat Review

This is the CLB65 by CL Yachts in Hong Kong, but many of you will know them as Cheoy Lee Yachts. This is a company that's been around for a long time and is responsible for some memorable yachts over the years.

The CLB65 is an ...
View the Boat Review

The Navan C30 is the first attempt by Brunswick Corporation at entering the Adventure Boat market.

I believe they have taken a slightly different approach to the category by building a boat that has a lot of the Adventure Boat ...
View the Boat Review

This is the first tour and test of the Riviera 6800 Sport Yacht Platinum which was recently premiered to the public in Australia at the Sanctuary Cove Boat Show.

For a vessel of this size I am amazed that the operation of this ...
View the Boat Review

The Bluegame BG42 is the original classic from this brand and such a great welcolme into the world of ultra luxury day boating with a real rugged twist.

This is a boat that makes you feel special and it does that by providing ...
View the Boat Review

The Iron Boats have been captivating my attention for some time now and in this video we had acces to the Iron 647, 707 & 767! So we took the opportunity to take all three for a run and finish the day with a little ...
View the Boat Review

This is the FIRST tour & test of the all NEW Fjord 39XL. She's a new design from the ground up and she'll please a wide market of luxury day boat lovers. Fjord pioneered these cool looking yet practical roof designs and this new ...
View the Boat Review

Speed, engineering, Italian style and a whole lot of WOW factor is what sums up the Centouno Navi Vespro. This is a machine that will cruise easily at 40kts and sit on a fast cruise of 50kts with more speed to play with!

The ...
View the Boat Review

This was a super fun opportunity to play with the all new Sterk 31 with the wet bar option in Mallorca, Spain. I had Sol and Carlos from Sterk with me for the day so we decided to turn it into a bit of a fun experience while hopefully ...
View the Boat Review

I think this is more than just an Adventure Boat now and we need to think of a new category name for it. The Saxdor 400GTO has all the hull characteristics of a fast and efficient twin stepped hull. But this new design with the roof, ...
View the Boat Review

Here is a boat that will appeal to many of you who are looking for a high quality, convenient and easy to use vessel that gives you just enough luxury and no more. I suspect people who have had bigger boats before and looking for ...
View the Boat Review

I attended the Jeanneau media week in Cannes and had this brief opportunity to run the new DB37 with Yamaha outboards.

These media days are designed for traditional media where 5 - 10 journalists all jump on the boat for 1 hr ...
View the Boat Review

Head turning looks and a delight to be aboard. The Toy 51 by Toy Marina in Savona, Italy is a luxury niche builder making small volume, high quality boats for a seriously exclusive club of owners. These boats gave me the impression of ...
View the Boat Review

If you have owned an outboard powered day boat or sterndrive sports cruiser and you still want some speed but now require enough living space for day trips with between 8 - 12 people and overnights for up to 6 people then this Schaefer ...
View the Boat Review

I think the Jeanneau 350 Sun odyssey is a mass market yacht that will appeal to the mass market (surprise, Surprise 😅). But seriously it has some excellent design ideas from a sailing perspective to social and living ...
View the Boat Review

Fast, agile, powerful and stylish. This Schaefer Yachts 660 is a big boat with lots of moving parts yet with modern tech she feels at about the limit of what most competent owner operators would feel comfortable using without the ...
View the Boat Review

If it's space, style and adventure boat like performance you seek then pay attention.

This is a boat that you'll feel comfortable entertaining 12 people and you'll still have space to invite another 10 for drinks at the raft up. ...
View the Boat Review

I believe this is a design that will appeal to Aussies and Americans who love their beach days and sand bar access. By utilizing the full beam but designing it in a way that the boat is still manageable short handed this Schaefer 375 ...
View the Boat Review

The Schaefer Yachts 770 is one of those yachts that surprises you when you step aboard. With the wings deployed the space available to enjoy in the saloon feels similar to what you get on some 90ft yachts!

She's sleek, she's ...
View the Boat Review

Jon Olsson's a Swedish Vlogger with great taste in boats first introduced me to Iron Boats (his video below) and ever since I've been trying to get a ride on one.

So wow... this is a boat that has achieved simplicity of design, ...
View the Boat Review

I'll be interested in your thoughts on this but it occurred to me that many of you don't care for overnight accommodation because you have a perfectly nice house you like to sleep in or you have another more luxurious boat that fits ...
View the Boat Review

Here is a boat for all you Lobster Boat lovers! Shaft drive diesel, bow and stern thrusters, classic good looks and super neat accommodation for a couple. I know for so many of you that in your mind this is exactly how a real boat ...
View the Boat Review

Head in close and pick the best spots. Thats what you can do when you add outboard power to the Beneteau GT36. There is also a lot to like about the layout of this boat and I see it appealing to the 'work from boat' people along with ...
View the Boat Review

What a pleasant surprise this was. I dropped by Thailand in January to check out what's been happening in Asia and the answer is a LOT! Thailand is growing into a world class boating destination with a huge base of skilled Thai's who ...
View the Boat Review

If it’s the perfect couples cruiser with simply stunning Down East styling you seek then this Sabre 43 Salon Express could be right up your alley!

I reckon for anyone transitioning from sailing or moving up from a smaller ...
View the Boat Review

Welcome to the Riviera 58 Sport Motor Yacht. This is a brand spanking NEW model from the Aussie builder and worthy of your attention if you are seeking one or all of the following:

- Offshore capable hull
- Extra real ...
View the Boat Review

The Beneteau name is 140 years old this year. So whenever I get an opportunity to jump on these boats I feel that these guys have a very deep understanding on how the people of today like to live and enjoy themselves on the water. It ...
View the Boat Review

Some designs are all about pushing boundaries and this Hydrolift X-32S is firmly within that category. She's fast, fuel efficient, and built to an very high standard. I think this is a cross between the Cigaratte Boats of the 80's and a ...
View the Boat Review

What is it about the Azimut 60 Fly that has made this boat such a hit Downunder? Azimut is a very well know Italian brand in Australia, somewhat of an icon on Sydney Harbour as their designs are always unmistakeable and unique. But I ...
View the Boat Review

Twin Mercury V12 Outboards on this BRAND NEW Model from Fjord means that high speeds, shallow water and toy storage are some of the new experiences you can now add to a large and luxurious Med Style Day Boat!

With epic weather ...
View the Boat Review

PREPARE YOURSELF.... Prepare your imagination to run wild with the countless places, activities and adventures you could have on all corners of the globe with a hull form like this!

This Molokai 47 by Aquila Yachts has to be one ...
View the Boat Review

After touring the Majesty 72 in Dubai she has now arrived and operating a successful charter business in Sydney and all along the East Coast of Australia. This yacht is part of a whole new breed of options for you to consider that come ...
View the Boat Review

If you have a clear understanding on how you best enjoy your boat life and value things like, FAST transit speed, QUIET and COMFORTABLE ride and LUXURY accomodation for 2 - 4 adults then this boat may be very interesting to ...
View the Boat Review

The Sabre 58 Salon Express is special. This is a boat that has been crafted in Maine which is up in Northeastern, United States. This is the home of Lobster Boats and a rich boating culture which whispers style and elegance. The homes ...
View the Boat Review

Trendsetter is a word that comes to mind when I stepped aboard the Four Winns TH36. This is a style of boat that will provide so much extra value when compared to a monohull that I believe many families will look to new designs like ...
View the Boat Review

If you have a large CENTER CONSOLE boat and want SPEED, LUXURY & STYLE with WEATHER PROTECTION and ACCOMODATION then this Back Cove 390 could be the boat for you. Made in the USA up in Maine this Down East style boat will give you ...
View the Boat Review

This is the opportunity I was waiting for after discovering the Nomad 101 in Dubai earlier this year. Since then she has already cruised the Australian East Coast and is now operating a successful charter operation in Sydney Harbour. In ...
View the Boat Review

This Maritimo M55 has the potential to be the ultimate mothership for those of you who enjoy mucking about with water toys. The design has allowed for a pretty cool aft deck they are calling the Adventure Deck which features a handy ...
View the Boat Review

Google reckons Tesoro is an Italian word for Treasure? After spending a very enjoyable day aboard the Tesoro T40 I can see why one would associate this boat with the word 'Treasure' because after your wife and kids this boat will bring ...
View the Boat Review

If you need a tough, fast and cosy commuter that you can squeeze into any dock then the XO DFNDR 8 could be perfect for you!

With a toilet, all weather cabin and aluminium hull she is a superb way of getting out to your remote ...
View the Boat Review

Valhalla Boatworks is a spin off from Viking Yachts Company so the pedigree was already established when this Valhalla 41 first hit the water. But hype does not always stand up to the test so together with the boats skipper and a Viking ...
View the Boat Review

The Riviera 585 SUV is in a class of her own making. This NEW model for Riviera on the Gold Coast, Australia is so full of intelligent ideas it took me an hour to explain them all to you! This is a boat that inspires confidence in any ...
View the Boat Review

First Duchy 35 to land Down Dunder and she has a bunch of intelligent options along with a layout that I feel would suit many Aussies and Kiwi's looking to add a modern yet timeless classic to their Boat Life.  We had some ...
View the Boat Review

First Duchy 35 to land Down Dunder and she has a bunch of intelligent options along with a layout that I feel would suit many Aussies and Kiwis looking to add a modern yet timeless classic to their Boat Life. We had some decent swells ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review.  Sea Ray is a brand known to most Aussies and for good reason. They build great boats that do what they say they will do. This 230SPX says it will take you and you family or mates out for a cracking ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review.  Join me for a simulated day out on the Invictus TT420 where we discover the operational side of this super cool Italian day boat and show you how a day on the water might work for you. It's not often you ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review. Is this a fishing boat or a luxury sports car for your waterfront house? In this video we tour this absolutely gorgeous Chris Craft Catalina 30 with some of the sexiest helm seats I've ever seen! She's a real ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review.  WATCH BEFORE you buy a BEACH HOUSE! This boat could achieve everything you wanted to achieve by buying a beach house but save you the travel time and mucking around to get to the other house! She's very ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review.  This Ryck 280 is ideal for a specific style of boating and in this video we discuss who would be best suited to to owning one of these German made adventure boats. Independent Boat Review. Having sold 270 ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review. I believe this Fairline Targa 65GTO will be perfect for a select number of you who truly enjoy the raw power and feedback that shaft diesels provide, but you also require a boat thats managable short handed ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review. Perfect for a specific type of boater! This Wellcraft 355 is an impressive, functional and fun piece of kit that has the ability to expand your areas of operation by extending your boating season or oppenning up ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review. Jeanneau Merry Fisher 795 Sport Series 2 is the all rounder of boats that will meet many different needs. It looks to me like an attempt to capture some of the Adventure Boat market thats so dominated by the ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review Grady-White Freedom 325.  If your life revolves around ocean based activities then consider this Grady White Freedom 325 a lifestyle upgrade. Yes we all know the Grady\'s are focused on fishing but this is ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review Flipper 900ST.  This is an alternative to buying a bigger adventure boat. Made in Finland, outboard powered and sleeping for FOUR people in TWO cabins on a boat thats under 30ft and totally rips with a ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review Sterk 31. In this video we put the prototype of the New Sterk 31 to the test in very challenging conditions with large steep waves that were coming into the bay with a very short wave period. The kind of ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review Pearl 95.  Here is a yacht that will give you and possibly your mates options. Pearl very kindly invited me back for a sea trial of the 95 which unfortunatley gor cancelled due to the weather but I was ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review Princess M48.  Steep waves with a short period can be the most uncomfortable conditions to drive in a boat so in this video we test the Prestige M48 in 1 - 2m of steep waves with a very short period ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review Frauscher 1017GT. Modern Gentlemans Racer is the best way to describe this Frauscher 1017GT and cool - sexy - powerful was how this boat made me feel. You really just need to watch the video to appreciate the ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review Chris Craft 35GT.  This Chris Craft 35HT has the looks of what many of you would dream a beautiful modern classic boat should look like. She's well constructed, beautiful from every angle and does ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review Quarken 27 Cabin. This is a brand to pay attention to guys. The Quarken 28 Cabin looks like a boat that will appeal to the family boaters that want something fuel efficient, offshore capable, all-weather ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review Pearl 72. I first discovered Pearl Yachts at the Cannes Boat Show last year when I had a tour of the 62 and 95 in their range. I was fortunate to be invited on the press day for this new Pearl Yachts 72 over ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review Princess S66.  Join me for an inshore sea trial of this absolutely gorgeous Princess S66 where we test her speed and fuel flow in mostly flat inshore conditions with a final run at wide open throttle. ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review 2023 Fjord 41XL.  Has Fjord created another icon with this cross-over of a design? The original Fjord 40 brought Sexy Med Style Day Boats to the massess and I believe this 41XL may be the first ...
View the Boat Review

Independent Boat Review Chris Craft Calypso 35.  This is jewellery for your waterfront house! This Chris Craft Calypso 35 adds some serious practical design into an exciting and fun package that could easily replace many 40ft ...
View the Boat Review

The Aurora Adventure V650 is a well-equipped rigid inflatable that has an attractive price. It achieves that with no obvious cheapening. The hull fabric is German manufactured Mehler/Heytex with a five year warranty, and the fibreglass ...
View the Boat Review

Chivers Thresher 620, like others in the Shark series, is offered in centre console, sports fisher and, as the review boat, runabout versions. Inevitably, it will be used for fishing, and the runabout probably gives more elbow room for ...
View the Boat Review

Here is something unusual: a small fibreglass boat that was made in Australia. The Vantage 4.85 is a product of the Haines group, which gives it a sound pedigree. Its construction uses the good techniques that developed as fibreglass ...
View the Boat Review

As centre consoles go, in Australia at least, 10 metres is big. The word from the Miami boat show is that 15 and 18 metre centre consoles have stolen a big piece of the US market from cruisers. The consoles contain toilets, showers and ...
View the Boat Review

With its 2.45m beam, the Coraline 580 handles the walk around layout well. The cabin is a useful size, there is space between the seats to get to it, and the decks alongside it are wide enough for painless passage forward or for fishing ...
View the Boat Review

Surtees is the New Zealand boat builder that pioneered auto water ballasting for trailer boats. It also carries on the New Zealand tradition of superb welding techniques: the company employs a lot of welders, but just one of them does ...
View the Boat Review

The Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPW) wanted a trailable multi-purpose vessel for operations at Northwest Cape. In this 8.5 metre boat from Cordina Marine they got just that. Only 7.7 metres in hull length it is packed with ...
View the Boat Review

I had never driven a boat with a tiller steered 115hp outboard, and probably never will again. It was definitely interesting. I was in a 5.5 metre Coraline, a boat that can be ordered in any layout. The owner chose the mega dinghy look, ...
View the Boat Review

The 5.5 centre console is down the bottom end of the Chivers’ size scale, but in its fit out it is punching up there with the big boys. Everything about this one says it is a serious fishing boat. The evidence starts with ...
View the Boat Review

At eight metres the Brig 8 rigid inflatable is too long for the now traditional Rottnest tender role, but practically any other role is within its capabilities. Its people carrying capacity alone is outstanding, being rated at 16 ...
View the Boat Review

Driving the occasional basic boat is good for the soul. It makes you realize that bigger and more expensive is not necessarily going to make a proportional improvement in your pleasure. The FunYak 12 with a six horsepower two-stroke on ...
View the Boat Review

The biggest concern of buyers of rigid inflatable boats is probably the life of the inflatable tubes. A minor industry has grown up for the early replacement of tubes on cheaper imports, so a RIB with a ten year tube warranty seems ...
View the Boat Review

The term variable deadrise used to mean just one thing: it varied from sharp at the bow to, usually, much less so at the transom. With a Haines hull it means that, for the whole length, the bottom each side of the keel is concave. This ...
View the Boat Review

The buyer of this Caribbean 49 is a dedicated game fisherman and he wanted maximum cockpit space for his sport. Caribbeans are known for their big cockpits in proportion to overall size, and the 49’s is big indeed; made ...
View the Boat Review

Sea Jay is an unusual builder: it is nominally a production line operator but (possibly because it is family owned) strives to make custom changes where possible. These are not just add-ons but even modifications to the hull. This has ...
View the Boat Review

The Tournament 1900 is unquestionably a fishing boat, but is more unobtrusive about it than most. Actually it could equally well be a dive boat, sharing the properties of room and good water exit.

An open hardtop aluminium 20 footer – hull length – with a 130hp four-stroke for $63,000 is pretty attractive. Being pressed rather than plate aluminium has something to do with the price, but it is still attractive. It is ...
View the Boat Review

There are inflatables, rigid inflatables and, perhaps, rigid rigids. A Blackdog Cat is a catamaran by definition, but its hulls have much in common, certainly in their provision of buoyancy with, say, a rigid inflatable with a foam ...
View the Boat Review

All the Jeanneau Merry Fishers pack a lot of boat into their dimensions. The 895, near the top of the size range, with just a metre more hull than its next smaller sister (reviewed last May) has the presence and capacity of a ten metre ...
View the Boat Review

If Bombard is an unfamiliar name try Zodiac. They build them, and Zodiac is to rigid inflatables what Esky is to ice boxes and Hoover is to vacuum cleaners. The hull is the same as a Zodiac’s but the finish and fit out is claimed ...
View the Boat Review

The first thing to be said about the Tournament 625 is that it is built by Haines, so in sea keeping especially it has a name to live up to. Or perhaps it should have been the second thing. It is worth saying that the boat’s name ...
View the Boat Review

Like all the other Stessls I have come across the 525 Seatruck runabout features a basic simplicity combined with strong construction and thoughtful detail. Unpainted, as many Stessls are, the combination makes a roomy fuss free inshore ...
View the Boat Review

The MAC 420 Fisherman is promoted by its New Zealand builders as a family fishing and diving boat but, driven one up, it was pure fun; a sort of grown up jet ski. Or it was if you drove it like one. Driven with the respect due to a real ...
View the Boat Review

Power cats are not that common, although they are the next-time boat in the minds – or dreams – of a great many fishermen. The reasoning is sound: within a given set of dimensions they offer more deck space and stability ...
View the Boat Review

There was a time when fibreglass boats incorporated a lot of timber: bracing the bottom and decks, the deck itself, the core of the transom and so on. Eventually the timber absorbs water, swells and finally rots. One legendary builder ...
View the Boat Review

A clue to the quality of Shockwave’s boats hits the eye on entering their workshop (calling it a factory would hardly do it justice; perhaps studio would be a better word). The team responsible for the fibreglass work averages ...
View the Boat Review

There is much about this ten metre Naiad that catches the eye, but nothing exceeds the impact of the two immense outboards on the back. This is Australia’s first installation of the 425hp Yamaha, the all-new motor that is crammed ...
View the Boat Review

Stessl is best known for its small pressed aluminium boats. The 550 Funseeker bow rider is large by those standards, and even by the standards of other 5.5 metre boats. A 2.5 metre beam and high freeboard are ...
View the Boat Review

The American leisure marine industry is not the power house it once was, but one boat builder has thrived and dominates the manufacturing of fishing boats: over 2,000 a year -  Robalo. Their products are a long way from the cheap ...
View the Boat Review

The last three-wheeler I had been in was a 1936 Morgan; this was new, bigger and marginally slower. It was also a boat. Boats on wheels were commonplace in World War Two, but they were essentially trucks that floated; this was ...
View the Boat Review

The Chivers 620 Thresher RB (short for runabout) is about mid way up the size range of Chivers’ Shark series of water ballasted boats and, together with its centre console and sports fisher variants, probably the most popular.

For a boat with a Spartan image the Stessl 460 Centre Console is pretty much a complete fishing rig, although a few conditions apply to “complete”. In a 4.6 metre hull you cannot expect the likes of kill tanks, deck wash and ...
View the Boat Review

The Coraline 460 runabout rig is dearer than it was a year or so ago, but this has nothing to do with the hull price. As standard it was offered with a 40hp two-stroke that is no longer available, so a 60hp four-stroke is ...
View the Boat Review

For a given size catamarans are usually noticeably more expensive than monohulls. There is more metal, more cutting and more welding required, and normally two motors to pay for. The Blackdog 5.1 is dearer, but gets by with a single ...
View the Boat Review

In the smaller sizes side consoles are becoming more numerous than centre consoles, and for good reasons. Beam is the main one: a narrow beam means squeezing room past the console rather than fishing room. The side console sacrifices ...
View the Boat Review

A basic Coraline 525 centre console costs around $40,000; this example would set you back another $15,000. It is indeed a special example, unsurprisingly built to the personal specifications of the Coraline company’s owner.

The buyer of this Chivers Thresher 620 (the number meaning a hull length of 6.2 metres), a keen fisherman from Albany, had a clear idea of the boat he wanted – as locals tend to do with Antarctica next stop and poor weather always ...
View the Boat Review

When a man has been building boats for 28 years, the perfect boat he builds for himself will be an object of interest. Considering the boats Rob Kirby has specialised in for 18 of those years, it will not surprise that its basis is a ...
View the Boat Review

Next to dugouts and coracles dinghies are about as basic as boating gets. And there are thousands of them around because they suit what thousands of people want from their boating. Things like easy to launch and recover, draggable along ...
View the Boat Review

Caribbean rarely introduce entirely new models, concentrating instead on approaching perfection in the existing designs. Local agents Mansfield Marine, the managing partners both being shipwrights, have been responsible for many of the ...
View the Boat Review

Runabouts are not the flavor of the month, but there are people who will accept nothing else. They want more shelter than a dinghy or even a centre console can provide, and they want the ability to seat all the occupants. Stessl offers ...
View the Boat Review

The Cypriot builders of the Karnic 1851 (descriptive of its imperial hull length) call this the Open version of the hull. A near literal name for what is known here as a centre console. An adaptable boat, it is ...
View the Boat Review

The Chivers’ Hammerhead name has been around a while, always with 670 after it. It still has the 670, but although the overall length remains at that figure the hull length has increased by 200mm. Quite a lot else has changed in ...
View the Boat Review

When Kirby Marine is asked to create a very special one off, the process starts with selecting a proven basic design. This removes a lot of expensive and unnecessary development work. When asked to create an all weather, long ...
View the Boat Review

A basic but important feature of the Chivers Reef Shark is that the bow rails are all within the coaming’s perimeter, meaning they are not accidental fenders – although Chivers have left then unpainted anyway, as they did ...
View the Boat Review

Whittley has two ranges of fibreglass boats: their renowned cruisers, and the Sea Legend sport fishers. They are quite distinct; cruisers emphasizing roominess in the hulls, and the Sea Legends with sharper lines for pressing on in ...
View the Boat Review

WA is the spiritual home of the fly bridge cruiser, with the sport yacht concept a comparative rarity; yet the latter has at least two advantages going for it. The social area is all on the same level, so there is no barrier between the ...
View the Boat Review

Coraline has used this hull before, but never fitted with a cuddy cabin. Like many Coralines this one was built to order, and among a list of wanted custom features the owner specified a cuddy. The resulting boat looks as though it ...
View the Boat Review

One of the most striking features of the Searano 500 is its price: $29,950 for a painted and pretty well equipped five metre bow rider. Learning that its birthplace was China could cause a sucking in of the lips of a few people, but ...
View the Boat Review

The recently developed Quintrex Frontier range is squarely aimed at serious fishers. The design of all the boats shares the Apex hull form that maximises space within the overall dimensions and has ride and stability ...
View the Boat Review

The ten metre Naiad hull is not new – it has been used for several Water Police vessels -  but most features are different. The builder, Kirby Marine, wanted to create a leisure vessel capable of operating safely in the ...
View the Boat Review

Caribbean is one of Australia’s oldest established fibreglass boat builders, producing boats that command well above average resale prices. Part of the reason for that is a deserved reputation for quality, part for generally ...
View the Boat Review

SmartWave Is a New Zealand manufacturer of moulded plastic boats, with emphasis on the smaller end of the market. The range of five hulls spans 2.4 metres to 4.8, with the larger models available in open, centre console and cuddy ...
View the Boat Review

Western Australian-built small fibreglass boats are rare and, at one time, possibly endangered birds. The one-man band builder of Oz Runners though is fully employed constructing boats that have established their niche in Mandurah. Key ...
View the Boat Review

After a couple of years without reviewing a plastic boat – more specifically polyethylene - three have come along in quick succession.  Where the other two were unmistakably plastic products, this one is far more traditional ...
View the Boat Review

Most people’s definition of a dinghy would be along the lines of open, tiller steered and probably a tinny; and small. But a minor trend is seeing much larger boats that are open and tiller steered. Purist fishermen are buying ...
View the Boat Review

Fury Custom Boats launch just a handful of boats each year, and company principal Scott Fury is all over every molecule of them. Every Fury, although using the same hull moulds, is subtly or significantly different. The review 282 DC ...
View the Boat Review

The 6.7 Naiad has been a popular rigid inflatable under the rules for Rottnest tenders; this reviewed version has moved upmarket from the purely tender role. It has also moved further up the horsepower scale. It mounts Suzuki’s ...
View the Boat Review

Plaka has been building roto moulded boats for 20-odd years, and a 2.8 metre model has featured for much of that time. Internally it was about as tight a fit as a length of 2.8 metres might suggest, and that was because the design was ...
View the Boat Review

Jeanneau, by far the world’s biggest yacht builder, is heading towards power boat stardom with their Merry Fisher series: 2,000 a year is the current production. Perhaps oddly, the reviewed 795 Marlin is the first in WA to be ...
View the Boat Review

Brigs are European-built fibreglass rigid inflatables, built to a standard rather than a price, and making a place for themselves in the West. As with other rigid inflatables most of them are of a length to suit the role of Rottnest ...
View the Boat Review

The 490 Renegade is practically definitive Quintrex. Its length, 16 feet in old money, is the same as the Quintrex a lot of people aspired to in the sixties and seventies. Its hull, though with a lot more shape than the original, is ...
View the Boat Review

The review boat has a standard Coraline 550 hull, which sounds no more than reasonable, but this one was built for commercial use and had to abide by survey rules. That it complied with only comparatively minor additions and ...
View the Boat Review

Larger centre consoles tend to be pretty versatile boats, and versatile is a word that sums up the Karnic 2251. Big enough for a day out with the whole family plus friends, roomy and stable enough for a bunch of fishermen, and with a ...
View the Boat Review

It is always a pleasure to review a new WA-built boat, especially one built in fibreglass: this is almost an endangered species. The builder, Shockwave, is already known for its highly capable cats – think Cockburn and Fremantle ...
View the Boat Review

Blackdog Cat is a New Zealand company building, unsurprisingly, nothing but aluminium cats. Cats, of course, are many people’s ideal of a fishing boat. The inherent stability and the sheer space available within their dimensions ...
View the Boat Review

US imports are probably thought of as mass produced products aimed at giving value for money, but in some cases the finishing and fitting out are lacking. The review boat, a Robalo R20, is not one of these.

There was a time when trailer boats were either dinghies or runabouts – or memory suggests there was. Consoles, centre cabs, cuddies and others are now more fashionable, but runabouts are still holding their own. The five-plus ...
View the Boat Review

In the late 1960s the Caribbean Reef Runner was the “one day” boat of every offshore fisherman. It was legendary for its poor weather performance and for its stability. In those days Caribbean licence-built Bertrams in ...
View the Boat Review

There are not a lot of genuine cruisers on the market for a price around, say, that of a caravan and something to tow it with. Genuine cruiser? Carrying on with the caravan analogy, offering similar standards of accommodation and ...
View the Boat Review

If the Quintrex 550 Frontier side console were yours, you would never miss it in a car park; not with that colour scheme. The colour is supplied by vinyl wrap, not paint. If that sounds fragile and perhaps short lived, think again. It ...
View the Boat Review

Kirby Naiads are well known as rigid inflatables with aluminium hulls that are built like ships. This week’s Naiad under review is something different: it has a pressed aluminium bottom, and the chief reason for this is weight ...
View the Boat Review

One of the big and increasing problems with offshore - and even around the buoys - racing is simply assembling a crew. Nine is a common number sought, and it is hard to find such a complement with the necessary time and commitment; ...
View the Boat Review

Jeanneau called this series of boats Merry Fisher. You could cast a line from the 695, but perhaps a name suggesting something about weekending and raising the odd glass would be closer to the boat’s real intent.

Jeanneau ...
View the Boat Review

Like most Coralines this 700 was finished to the exact specifications of its owner. Clearly he intended doing some serious fishing but equally, judging from  the quantity of seating provided, family and social days afloat are also ...
View the Boat Review

Here is an unusual combination: an all new Quintrex teamed with a nearly all new Evinrude. Traditionally, Quintrex announces new models that take an expert to tell apart from those they replace. The 630 Freestyler, though, is blindingly ...
View the Boat Review

Launching and recovering the Bluefin Wrangler was almost a pleasure, which is saying something for the Deepwater Point ramp. Most of the reason was the Dunbier Glidon trailer. It did not lay on a glide, but it was pretty slippery. It ...
View the Boat Review

Karnic calls its 1851 (5.65m) an Open. The rest of the world would call it a centre console. Names aside, it is an exceptionally well thought out and fitted out boat. Unlike the majority of this style of boat it appears intended less ...
View the Boat Review

Six metres is pretty large for a runabout, especially when the measurement is the genuine hull length. But the Coraline 600 Runabout gives the impression that it is half a metre longer still. There are several reasons. The volume ...
View the Boat Review

Aluminium’s share of the trailer boat market is dominant, yet the fibreglass builders continue to introduce new models despite the significant cost of producing the moulds. Queensland builder Whittley has come up with a boat that, ...
View the Boat Review

The Esperance Volunteer Sea Rescue Group has a huge area of responsibility, including the whole of the Recherche Archipelago and as far east as Israelite Bay. Their boat needs range and speed, and the ability to use both of them in ...
View the Boat Review

At 5.75 metres this Falcon RIB is smaller than the maximum Rottnest tender length, but there is an advantage in the more modest size. The typical garage is 6m x 6m; the Falcon will fit in it, reducing deterioration from the sun and ...
View the Boat Review

They were not the right conditions for a fun day’s boating whatever the boat: an onshore wind of 15 to 20 knots, probably nearer 20. On the other hand, if you decided to bite the bullet one of Chivers’ Shark series boats ...
View the Boat Review

There are still many people who refer to any RIB as a Zodiac, in the same way that an earlier generation called any vacuum cleaner a Hoover. Both of them dominated their market. Neither does now, but after a period in the doldrums ...
View the Boat Review

It was the right sort of day to chug up the Murray or to find a jetty to fish off. Instead we took a Baysport 600 out on the ocean. There was a sizeable swell and plenty of wind to create a nasty sea on top of it; a boisterous day. The ...
View the Boat Review

A boat certified to carry nine people, able to operate at speed in less than good conditions, and costing less than $50,000 is well worth a long look. The boat is the Brig Navigator 520. A fibreglass RIB, it is one of a trio of ...
View the Boat Review

The Whittley SL22SD is biased towards fishing, but can fairly make claim to be a genuine all rounder. The internal finish, quality of furnishings and choice of materials should appeal to any family member. Divers not only have a ladder, ...
View the Boat Review

Like probably the majority of Coralines this 550 runabout was subjected to considerable customising. And, as usual, the owner is a strong minded fisherman.  His special requirements started with a complete absence of decorative ...
View the Boat Review

The initials that get placed after a boat’s name can sometimes be mystifying; the Brooker 420’s XTD triplet reportedly means ‘extended’. Not its length but rather the height. With sides measuring 720mm from ...
View the Boat Review

The hull plating of this 550 Centre Console Coraline is the standard item, but almost everything else was subject to some form of customising. Understandable with an owner who is single minded in his devotion to a narrow fishing ...
View the Boat Review

Purposeful boats, and the Bluefin Scoundrel 5.00 is one of them, are handsome in their simplicity. An unadorned and unpainted centre console, it screams out its purpose as a fishing machine. It was exactly the kind of vessel its buyer ...
View the Boat Review

The Whittley CR2080 is one of a dwindling family: the Australian-built fibreglass trailer boat. This brand, though, seems to be here to stay, winning awards and staying at healthy levels of production. Within its hull length of 5.3 ...
View the Boat Review

The New Zealand-built SmartWave SW4200 is that most durable of small vessels: a roto-moulded, double skinned boat with foam between the skins, skins that have colour all the way through them. Since the “Titanic” builders ...
View the Boat Review

Almost everyone looking at the boat for the first time said variations on the same theme: ‘what a great fishing boat’. And they were right. Apart perhaps from some cold storage, all the ingredients were there. But, more ...
View the Boat Review

Runabouts used to be the default style of boat for fishing or family fun. They have more competition nowadays from other layouts but they remain popular, and for good reason: they do the job. They also have benefitted from technological ...
View the Boat Review

If a Brooker has C in its name it means it has either a side or centre console. The Brooker 510C I reviewed was the more common centre console.

Statistically, a 5.1 metre boat is very close to the current average length of ...
View the Boat Review

The walk around Coraline 700FX is probably the definitive fisherman’s version of this much built hull. It gives all the rail access of an open boat but a lot more of civilization’s comforts. Its beam allows decent foot ...
View the Boat Review

When Baysport got their hull form right they stayed with it, essentially scaling up and down for different length boats. Scaling rather than simply shortening or lengthening. Doing it this more expensive way has resulted in a range of ...
View the Boat Review

The  Blaze Ripper 4.5 from the Bluefin stable is the size and style of boat that many people start out with, and that probably just as many finish up with in retirement. The reasons are simple: price, simplicity, ease of launch and ...
View the Boat Review

The review boat, a Coraline 750 SF, is a fine example of how far this builder will go in customising to suit a buyer – he even increased the beam by 350mm.

This boat is destined for a life in the Kimberley and a prime need ...
View the Boat Review

The Baysport 545 is one of an apparently dwindling breed: the Australian-built fibreglass trailable boat. Baysports themselves are far from disappearing: for years they have set the pace in value for money with sales to ...
View the Boat Review

For a hull length of a trace over five metres and sporting a roomy cockpit, the Brooker 535R Cuddy has a big cuddy indeed. The reason is simple: no foredeck, no side decks; everything in front of the wheel is cabin. This is one of those ...
View the Boat Review

Most builders with a large range, and that of local builder Coraline rivals Quintrex’s, sell a very small share of it at the big end. Coraline is different: their seven to eight metre range has a sizeable following that mostly ...
View the Boat Review

The Barcrusher’s main selling point – that of all of the boats in the range – is its ability to punch above its weight as the sea conditions worsen. It copes exceptionally well from the comfort point of view and also ...
View the Boat Review

Custom Oceancraft have long been on the WA scene, building both commercial and leisure aluminium boats. Their latest product, one of the most eye catching boats of the past few years, is a new departure in design.

The design ...
View the Boat Review

Taiwan has long been a prolific builder of commercial vessels, but in the leisure market only a few one-offs have made it to Australia. Morningstar, a new brand of trailer boat retailed locally by Searano Marine, might change ...
View the Boat Review

The Fury 282 DC in common parlance is a bow rider. Builder Scott Fury calls it a double console (hence the DC) and, fair enough, this boat deserves a special name. A year in creation it oozes quality and thought; this is a worthy ...
View the Boat Review

The 27 is Caribbean’s most-built hull, over the long lifetime typical of the brand. They have been built in a range of layouts but the review boat is in a class of one: the first to be powered by outboards.

The owner ...
View the Boat Review

Whittley’s Sea Legend range is a little less well known than the builder’s cruisers but, like their stablemates, they are superbly well fitted for their intended task. They are about as close to the epitome of all rounder as ...
View the Boat Review

For a boat of only five metres the Robelo R160 centre console is equipped with exceptional completeness. Every part of the internal space is well and cleverly used, but there is no suggestion of crowding: this is a roomy centre ...
View the Boat Review

The Coraline 525 centre console Custom demonstrates how much easier it is to get the exact boat you want if you get it built in WA. The buyer of this one wanted a fishing boat that almost always would be beach launched and retrieved. ...
View the Boat Review

Cruiseabout is Quintrex’s house name for bowriders, which tend to be a polarising type. Some offshore fishermen worry about the exposed open forward cockpit; serious fishers, inshore and off, may not be rapt with the divided ...
View the Boat Review

One of boating’s growth segments is RIBs: rigid inflatables. Once regarded as inshore tenders or as boats for eccentrics, they are now in boating’s mainstream: RIBs are used for everything conventional boats are. A lot of ...
View the Boat Review

Like every other Coraline the 700FX Oceanrunner Series II, before it is anything else, is a fishing boat. That it is also a comfortable, sea kindly boat is due to the builder’s opinion that fishing boats should be that ...
View the Boat Review

The Stessco Tornado SFX 470 is technically a dinghy, and that is what its builder calls it. The dimensions are right for a biggish dinghy – hull length 4.7 metres, beam 2.2 – but the structure is pocket battleship tough and ...
View the Boat Review

The Karnic 2050 is very much a part of a family of fibreglass boats; the hull design and proportions are closely related throughout the range. All share the pleasant feature of value for money.

The 2050 is one of the bigger ...
View the Boat Review

Cyprus is known internationally more for ship owning than boat building, but the country was producing boats before Euclid drew his first triangle. Nowadays they build them in fibreglass, and are confident enough in them to give a ten ...
View the Boat Review

There is nothing flash about the Coraline 550 centre console. It goes further and makes a virtue out of the lack. What it does have is immense practicality, and everything else it has works well.

Tinnies are often seen naked, ...
View the Boat Review

This model of the Baysport 640 is called Sports; it might better be called Convertible. A combination of an extension to the Bimini, curtains and clears turns it from a competent fishing boat into a camper. This ability is as likely to ...
View the Boat Review

Baysport’s range shares a strong family resemblance. This is understandable: economy of scale comes into it, but mainly the reason is the builder got his concept right and he is sticking with it. Getting it right and sticking is a ...
View the Boat Review

The flood of American imports has reduced to a trickle, probably influenced by the shrivelling Aussie dollar, and for the most part only the long established brands are turning up. The review boat, a Robalo 222 centre console, is the ...
View the Boat Review

Add a couple of metres length to the average sized boat and you have doubled its effective size. The Coraline 750 is a lot of boat and with a standard layout its cockpit area would have been even bigger. The owner though wanted a 100mm ...
View the Boat Review

The Whittley CR 2600 offers genuine week long on-board living for four in a package, with full load and trailer, that weighs in under 3.5 tonnes. This is a rarity. To fit that much accommodation into a boat with just 6.75 metres of hull ...
View the Boat Review

I seem lately to have been reviewing a high percentage of fairly stark boats; boats to be worked, boats to not need a lot of attention. My sort of boats, frankly, an attitude earned from an early history of varnished timber boats. The ...
View the Boat Review

To some extent almost every Coraline is different to every other one, but this 750 special is very much a one-off.  Coraline built it for as dedicated a fisherman as you are likely to find. For instance, the bow rail-mounted Jabsco ...
View the Boat Review

Some people’s ideal big boat is an ex cray boat. There might be some minimal accommodation, but far more importantly there will be lots of open deck adaptable to whatever the owner wants to do. The Brooker 510 XTD puts the spirit ...
View the Boat Review

Runabouts have the potential to be the most boring of boats because, over the years, they have probably been the most built of boats. Of course, most built has a suggestion of most popular and, certainly, their market remains ...
View the Boat Review

The boat I learned to sail in, early in the 20^th century it feels like, had a standing lug rig and a timber hull; very Swallows and Amazons. That is why the Legacy 12 struck an immediate chord with me: this is a ...
View the Boat Review

The name Whaly is not too exciting, but it is the one owned by perhaps the most accomplished of 12 footers: the Whaly 370. As the number suggests there are Whalys of other lengths, all of similar layout. The form resembles a RIB but ...
View the Boat Review

If ever a range of boats stayed true to a theme it is Barcrusher, and clearly it is a theme that has struck a chord with boat buyers; this range is enormously successful across Australia.

Aimed squarely at the fishing buyer, ...
View the Boat Review

There is a steadily growing number of sports boats on the Swan; sail craft around six metres long, essentially big racing dinghies with ballast keels. Terrific fun, but needing athletic dinghy-style crews to sail them well. And they are ...
View the Boat Review

Plate aluminium trailer boats are enormously strong. They typically have 3mm decks, 4mm sides and 5mm bottoms – which is the same as a 30 metre ferry would have. The Coraline 800 goes beyond the ferry with a 6mm bottom. The owner ...
View the Boat Review

The average size of trailer boat appears to be reducing; perhaps a temporary thing at a time of financial nervousness, but certainly manufacturers are paying a lot of attention to the smaller end of their ranges. The review boat from ...
View the Boat Review

Coraline builds such a huge range of hulls in a variety of styles that every one of them delivered is virtually a custom boat. The review Coraline, an Oceanrunner 620, is no exception.

The 6.2 metre hull length is one of ...
View the Boat Review

Those who thought fibreglass boat building in WA was dead and about to be buried will be surprised to learn the news from Fury Custom Boats. Not quite beating customers away with sticks, but busy enough to move to bigger ...
View the Boat Review

A great advantage of buying a WA-built boat is the opportunity to have it finished to your specifications. A high proportion of Coralines are built to order, and the review 750 is a distinct one-off for a buyer with a clear idea of what ...
View the Boat Review

Caribbean is probably better known for its larger boats, but there are plenty who remember their 21ft Reef Runner as the best all round trailer boat of its time. Caribbean has never stopped developing a trailable range, and the 20ft ...
View the Boat Review

The 6.3 metre Signature 632F is the current stage in the evolution of one of the Haines Group’s most popular fishing boats. All the accoutrements expected in an angler’s special are here, but one that particularly appeals to ...
View the Boat Review

Probably the best selling model range in Quintrex’s vast portfolio is the Renegade. These are boats for the fishing purist and built with an eye on holding down price: buy a standard Renegade and it will have no paint on ...
View the Boat Review

LeisureCats have always practically defined the active side of boating, and the review boat more than most. The owner of this 350 Sportscruiser is now on his fourth built to order LeisureCat and is confident he has achieved his version ...
View the Boat Review

The 670 in the Coraline’s name refers to hull rather than overall length, so this is a big trailer boat by most standards. Its size was one of the owner’s reasons for choosing it: to suit his tow vehicle he wanted as much ...
View the Boat Review

The 520 is the smallest in the Seacat family imported from South Africa but, in the way of cats, still has the characteristics of a larger boat. The price though, especially for a twin engined boat, is modest: $49,900.

For the ...
View the Boat Review

The concept of building in moulded plastic a boat that otherwise resembles an inflatable is not new, but the Whaly has a whole set of design features that make it unique. One possibly unique feature is its place of origin: I can’t ...
View the Boat Review

The buyer of this boat had owned several previously, some large. When he analysed what he enjoyed doing on the water he realized that a lot less boat would do the trick. And while he was downsizing he might as well simplify too. He ...
View the Boat Review

Among the fleet of Rottnest cruisers a 46 footer does not loom large; but a 46 foot catamaran? It is enormous. Lloyd Powell of local builder The Cat Factory usually builds sailing cats, but he admits he willingly went over to the dark ...
View the Boat Review

Whittley are probably best known for their excellent cruisers, but they also have a parallel line of boats for more active pursuits: the Sea Legends.  Unlike many builders Whittley give them completely different hulls to similar ...
View the Boat Review

Jeanneau is best known for its sailing vessels, but has also been a long time builder of power boats. They named their 855 a Merry Fisher although most people would call it a cruiser. The ability to sleep six in comfort (seven at a ...
View the Boat Review

Coraline modestly call their 500 Wahoo a dinghy. In the sense that it has no windscreen or steering wheel they are agreeing with tradition, but this is a dinghy par excellence. Five metres hull length, built of three and four mil plate, ...
View the Boat Review

A few weeks ago the West ran a news story on a boat that broke loose off the metropolitan coast and was next seen, still in excellent shape, the other side of Madagascar many ...
View the Boat Review

At the small end of the Cyprus-built Karnic range of fibreglass boats, the Smart 1-48 is offered in no less than 20 claimed versions. You can have this 4.8 metre boat tiller steered, side console, centre console midships or aft. Then ...
View the Boat Review

NZ aluminium boats are generally built to high standards, but the Blackdog Cat 5.1 sweeps the board. High structural strength is obvious even at first glance. To the more lingering look the welded seams are works of art, the list of ...
View the Boat Review

Recently we have reviewed boats with centre consoles in various positions on the centre line and, a current trend, side consoles. Here is a compromise: an offset console. This Coraline 525 Series 2 was built to the specifications of a ...
View the Boat Review

The Whittley CR 2600 is called a cruiser, but it could also be a beach shack or caravan on other occasions; or all three on the same holiday. It provides comfortable sleeping for four, has a bathroom, kitchen and dining space. A useful ...
View the Boat Review

The Stealth side console is another in Brooker’s series of high sided vessels. With a deck to coaming height of 700mm it is a visibly taller boat than others aroud its 4.55 metre hull length, and to the occupants it delivers the ...
View the Boat Review

I have always thought the Whittley CR 2800 was a first class combination caravan and cruiser. The more usual compromise of caravan and roof top tinny works for inshore fishing experiences, but this vessel gives nothing away in ...
View the Boat Review

The Tattoo range of pressed plate boats, produced by a long-established Australian builder, has not a single rivet between them. All boats over 4.3 metres are in 3mm plate, completely welded inside and out. They are all bulky boats, ...
View the Boat Review

One of the magnets at the Hillarys Boat Show was the Seacat 636. A power cat is the boat every fisherman is going to buy one day, and this one was more affordable than most as well as very much looking the part. It is the big brother to ...
View the Boat Review

The Sea Ray 205 is what many would think of as the archetypical American boat: a sterndrive powered, thoroughly equipped bow rider, with an emphasis on getting numbers on board. A difference is that this is not a boat ...
View the Boat Review

The newly introduced Princess 39 is the smallest vessel in the British company’s range, yet once on board only the name indicates its real size; the 39 is a marvel of space efficiency.

It is also a very ...
View the Boat Review

In not too vibrant a market, rigid inflatables (RIBs) seem to be doing better than most, and the choice in these craft has widened with the introduction of the Northstar brand to Western Australia.

Northstars are built in fairly ...
View the Boat Review

The Maritimo 470 Offshore Convertible is a modest vessel: masquerading as a 47-footer its hull length is actually 54ft. And being Australian-built it uses a well-judged share of that for the cockpit; local preference is some open air ...
View the Boat Review

There was a time when the idea of inflatable fishing boats was in the same category as inflatable dart boards; perhaps the prejudice had more validity in the era of the hand line, but it is long since extinct. Large rigid inflatables ...
View the Boat Review

The customer for the Kirby Naiad RIB (rigid inflatable) wanted it within the Rottnest tender limits, but he also wanted a Tardis – bigger inside than out – something particularly difficult to achieve within ...
View the Boat Review

A new yacht hull is a complicated and expensive item to put into production, but Jeanneau keeps producing them – perhaps that is why they are by far the world’s biggest builder of yachts. Their latest is the Sun Odyssey ...
View the Boat Review

The Jeanneau 42DS is an unashamed cruising boat, and it is good to know that the owner of the first one in the state has serious plans for it: a year of familiarisation, then a leisurely year circumnavigating Australia. ...
View the Boat Review

Perhaps the biggest reason why more centre consoles are not sold is the partner will not give buying permission for a boat without a toilet. That reason is a non starter with the Hydra-Sports 2500CC: its console houses an ...
View the Boat Review

There are bigger bow riders around than the Hydra-Sports 2300DC, but I doubt that any of them contain more ingenuity, capability and surprises. Whoever heard of a bow rider whose toilet is equipped with a standard magazine rack?
View the Boat Review

 ‘Cygnet V’ is the first large patrol boat to be built expressly for WA Water Police, and over a seven month planning period they made sure that she would redress the shortcomings of earlier vessels. Multi functional is ...
View the Boat Review

One of the endearing properties of a tinnie was that grazing alongside something hard seldom made any visible difference. But as aluminium boats grew up they started getting painted and that advantage largely disappeared. ...
View the Boat Review

Many people associate the bow rider layout with sheltered waters. This is fair enough for many imported examples with low freeboard and not even a decent anchoring system, but the Coraline 525 is in a different class: ...
View the Boat Review

What put the Concept 30 Sport Deck’s top speed into context for me was the realisation that it was the same as my old Beetle managed in its youth – 65 knots or 75 mph. Still, the Beetle did it with 50hp ...
View the Boat Review

Any of the Chivers Shark-series boats makes the basis for a class fishing boat, but the Hammerhead 206 has possibly the combination of size, affordability and capability to suit the most. The buyer of the review boat was more interested ...
View the Boat Review

The Caribbean 27 Runabout is the sort of boat many owners of smaller sports cruisers probably wish they had bought instead, with its primary virtue of space. Going boating implies being out of doors, but getting outside ...
View the Boat Review

The Bluefin Bushranger 4.8 centre console is about as tough a boat under five metres as I have come across. It concentrates on the essentials and does without the rest – a windscreen for instance, and paint. It is ...
View the Boat Review

Belize is the name Riviera gives to a new line of boats built in Taiwan (a country with a long history of first class boat building) but under Riviera’s direct supervision. The first Belize hull is a 52, available ...
View the Boat Review

Where some fishermen practice catch and release, the trailers for all Bar Crushers do the same; but not with fish – the trailers have an excellent system allowing easy one-man drive off, drive on of the boat.
There is much ...
View the Boat Review

The name Stacer brings to mind smallish pressed aluminium boats, which is reasonable because that is what most of them are. The review boat, though, is something new and different: 6.49 metres long in plate aluminium, with 5mm bottom ...
View the Boat Review

Fibreglass construction in WA has been an endangered species for some time, but now a fresh face has appeared on the scene – Waveline Custom Motor Yachts of Pinjarra. With their first vessel a 5.8m the Motor Yacht in the title ...
View the Boat Review

With a hull length a whisker less than six metres the Signature 602F is not a big boat in outright terms, but measured by its presence on the water it definitely punches above its weight. Making way or at rest there was nothing flighty ...
View the Boat Review

The Riviera 53 Flybridge had been fitted out to order and it showed: this boat has as nearly everything as I could think of. More, actually - I had never before come across a Riviera with a gyro stabilising system. One item the owner ...
View the Boat Review

The description ‘power cat’ generally brings to mind a boat built with speed in mind, and that is not at all what the Prowler 10.4 is. And a 35ft cruiser powered by outboards is not main stream either, but this boat ticks an ...
View the Boat Review

The first thing to say about the Mako Craft 450 Fisherman is that it is good value for money. The package, with a 40hp four-stroke and a respectable amount of fruit is $28,500. With the same power provided by a two-stroke the price ...
View the Boat Review

The Fury 282’s 2.7m beam has been a stumbling block for some prospective owners. These are the people who tow their boats to far flung locations, and for whom a boat too beamy to tow after dark is a no-no. For them, the good news ...
View the Boat Review

The Squadron 60 is Fairline’s latest model. To some extent it is a development of the 58, but has a lot of clever new ideas. I particularly like the midships master suite. Full beam with windows both sides, and mirrors in most ...
View the Boat Review

The aluminium Coraline 550 SF has a feature I cannot recall seeing on another centre console: side and front clears instead of a windscreen; brilliantly simple and giving much better protection than the average boat of this style.

With just a 9.45m metre hull the new Catalina 315 has far more internal room than such older and longer classics as the S&S 34 – and sails better than most of them too. All the usual reasons for the spaciousness: more beam ...
View the Boat Review

Caribbeans are built in chilly Melbourne, but they speak to the souls of Western Australians: their cockpits are huge, and that of the 2400 Hardtop is no exception. Having a towing-unfriendly 2.69m beam helps here but, if unrestricted ...
View the Boat Review

The Mustang brand name has had several homes over the years, but is now securely in the hands of Maritimo. The review boat, the Mustang 43 Sports Cruiser, has no links at all with any previous models; this is a completely new design by ...
View the Boat Review

Whittley are probably best known for their trailable cruisers. Their range of more fisherman-friendly boats, the Sea Legends, features a sharper deadrise hull, a finer bow, a lot more cockpit, and a mass of features to make anglers ...
View the Boat Review

The review boat has the same aluminium hull as the 2011 Imported Boat of the Year. The upper works, though, are abbreviated to make more cockpit for fishing; hence the blokey name Surtees 6.7 Workmate. It works for ...
View the Boat Review

$30,000 is the line a lot of boat buyers will not cross, and today’s review boat, the Stacer 489 Bay Master, offers an attractive package for – just – under that figure.

The 489 is a runabout, and the Bay is ...
View the Boat Review

Creating a new model fibreglass boat costs a great deal of money, and currently also faith plus crossed fingers. Being a Signature, the 575RF does not look especially new; once Signature established its hull design ...
View the Boat Review

The bad news first: this 7.1m boat costs $129,000. It is the only bad news, though, and the good news is very good. The boat is the Sealegs 7.1, the only brand offer genuine amphibians in Australia.

64ft is a lot of boat, but the Princess 64 packs in an abundance of features and still manages the open spaces of something larger. A dozen people could sit in the saloon and it would not begin to look crowded.

And that only ...
View the Boat Review

The builder describes the Magnus Craft Aeron 31 as a unique luxury waterjet sports cruiser, and I cannot dispute a single word. The boat is 9.5m over all, but only 2.48m beam so it can be towed anywhere at any time (or more likely kept ...
View the Boat Review

Not a lot of 35-footers are powered by outboards, but the review LeisureCat 350 Sports Cruiser makes a convincing case on catamarans at least, cost being one of the more striking reasons. Fitting a pair of Volvo diesels – the more ...
View the Boat Review

Kirby Naiads are for the few who both lust for them and can afford them. And it is probably as well that the numbers are not large because they take an astonishing number of man hours to build. Every buyer has strong ideas on the detail ...
View the Boat Review

While most builders are marking time Jeanneau, the world’s largest builder of yachts, is steadily revamping – and in many cases replacing – its entire line. The latest new model had its worldwide release at the last ...
View the Boat Review

There are a lot of automotive brand names that stir the blood, but just a handful of boats. Haines Hunter is one of them. They have the pedigree and the mystique, they all have hulls happy to work on the ocean, few fishermen ever found ...
View the Boat Review

At 6.5m the Gemini 650 rigid inflatable (RIB)fits the size rule for a Rottnest tender, and the review boat’s equipment level suggested that was where it was destined. Genuine seats for half a dozen – plus untold numbers of ...
View the Boat Review

A financial curiosity is that as builders of trailer boats withdraw into their shells, new builders of luxury craft get introduced into Australia. The latest is new only here: Dominator has been a major player in Italy for many years, ...
View the Boat Review

You see very few trailer boats bigger than the Coraline Outsider 800: 8.6m overall and massively constructed with a 6mm plate bottom and a forest of framing, which made me wonder what would be needed to pull it. A weighbridge ...
View the Boat Review

The Coraline 670SF is at an interesting mid-point between centre cabin and centre console. There is no pretence of accommodation, but the level of shelter is infinitely better than a centre console normally provides.

The console ...
View the Boat Review

Coraline build some very flash boats up to eight metres in length, so it was interesting to review the one the builder had made for himself: an unpainted five-metre centre console. It was not that he had a hair shirt complex – it ...
View the Boat Review

Chivers Marine continues to expand its Shark series of aluminium boats downwards in size to probably the smallest model of all, the 4.7m Bull Shark. It is also the only one without the water ballasting feature, and this is ...
View the Boat Review

Some months ago I reviewed a version of the Chivers Bull Shark retailing at around $34,000. If that seemed a bit on the high side for a 4.7m boat then just under $20,000 for this version is verging on a bargain.

It’s all a ...
View the Boat Review

The Chivers 206SF is the hard core offshore fishing version of the Hammer Head in Chivers’ shark series. Layout is raised deck runabout, which gives good protection to the driving position and ensures a big share of the length is ...
View the Boat Review

It was an experience I can’t recall having before – being in a boat with a motor bigger than the recommended maximum. There was an innocent reason: the dealer had reconditioned the motor and was taking the opportunity to ...
View the Boat Review

Belize Motor Yachts, once an independent luxury boat builder, is now a member of the Riviera group. But unlike the tradition of the car industry they do not build disguised clones of the parent. The latest Belize, the 52 Hardtop, is ...
View the Boat Review

The Bar Crusher 670HT does not have drink holders, carpet or a glove box, and not because the builder is paring the dollars: items that do not help, or even impede, a good day’s fishing do not get a guernsey here. Not that you ...
View the Boat Review

The Sirocco 350 Air Hull is an innovative inflatable tender which overcomes many of the storage problems associated with dinghies on cruising yachts.    With a 10 or 15Hp ...
View the Boat Review

The Sirocco 310 Aluminium RIB is an ideal tender/runabout.  It is more than just a ship to shore inflatable.  With a 10 or 15Hp engine the Sirocco 310 is a strong, practical, seaworthy vessel capable of those extra surf, dive ...
View the Boat Review

Cruiser might seem an adventurous title for a boat with an 18ft hull length, but the Whittley 2180 Cruiser uses the space within that hull very well, and ...
View the Boat Review

This week’s review boat is something very special in bow riders. Custom built from the first line on paper, it was designed to be at home on the ocean, to be versatile even by bow rider ...
View the Boat Review

In the heyday of trailer sailers, 30 and more years ago, cheapness and internal room with a few exceptions took priority over high quality and sailing ability. In particular, a minimal cockpit for a ...
View the Boat Review

An 18ft power cat for under $63,000 is good going, and it does not have to be a stripped-out Spartan job to reach that figure. The Seacat 565FC is anything but bare bones and still achieves it, ...
View the Boat Review

When a boat has the 7.6m length of the Haines Hunter 760R a lot of the compromises typical of trailer boats disappear. Despite being essentially a roomy fishing runabout, it still has ...
View the Boat Review

It takes courage to introduce a $2 million-plus boat into today’s marine market, but this entrant looks the part. And having once overcome all those zeros, it is easy to see value for money ...
View the Boat Review

One of the most welcome features in the latest generation of big boats is the large windows in the hull. It’s extremely pleasant to lie in bed and look at the sea, and just as pleasant to have ...
View the Boat Review

WA, which used to export large numbers of aluminium vessels around the world, now sends far fewer completed ones but a lot more kits for assembly overseas. A minor trend is for local prospective boat ...
View the Boat Review

To some eyes a Caribbean looks old fashioned, and that’s just how the legion of Caribbean lovers likes them. In their view, if you build a boat to suit how ...
View the Boat Review

For the most part, monohull yachts do not have as friendly a set of accommodation as power boats of the same size. Entering is generally down a long and steep ladder, and you are then isolated from the outside world. Half or more of the ...
View the Boat Review

Princess Yachts is one of Britain’s big three luxury boat builders. It is in the same corporate group as Louis Vuitton, Moet and Chandon, and De Beers Diamonds, so it should ...
View the Boat Review

 One of the current best selling categories of boat is the small rigid inflatable, and not just for the traditional tender role. People with no space to park a trailer boat can ...
View the Boat Review

 Due to complex survey rules it is difficult to make a centre console legally acceptable for commercial work. When On Strike Charters of Exmouth wanted such a boat for their big-game tag and ...
View the Boat Review

The Signature hull, and the shape is consistent throughout the range, ensures that the bit that is deepest in the water gets the most deadrise: 33-deg. The bit that barely touches ...
View the Boat Review

In their Targa 50, Fairline are reversing the trend of recent years. The model this boat replaces, the 48, had the master cabin amidships; the 50 has it forward – to the benefit ...
View the Boat Review

The Explorer Sea Cat 565 Centre Console is an off the beach power cat from South Africa’s east coast. Which means it is tough because they literally launch off the ocean beach ...
View the Boat Review

 Runabouts are not the most fashionable of boats, but they still account for a large share of boats under about 5.5m. And the reason of course is because they account pretty ...
View the Boat Review

The latest in the Chivers Shark Series is the 250 Great White, and the first example of the model is probably the most thoroughly fitted out 25-footer I ...
View the Boat Review

The Mk2 Caribbean 40 has the same hull the Mk 1 has had for many years, and that will make a lot of people happy: this hull has long been regarded as a bench mark in sea keeping. On ...
View the Boat Review

The Squadron 65 has been one of Fairline’s most successful boats in WA, and to sell any $2.7 million boats at all in the current economy suggests the builder must have got it ...
View the Boat Review

Catalina has a practice of making the cockpit side benches long enough to sleep on and the 355 seems to have added a few more inches. A great space for a twilight racing crowd, with a ...
View the Boat Review

Probably every Leisurecat ever built had a fisherman for an owner, but the Islander 6000 is the purist’s fishing boat. This is the boat that can head offshore in almost any ...
View the Boat Review

Air conditioning and an inverter to drive it were about the only conceivable items missing from the reviewed Campion 825 Allante, and they are both options ...
View the Boat Review

You mostly see the skippers of centre consoles standing up to drive, and the designer of the Tattoo centre consoles presumably made a note of that because the 550 I was in had no seat. That’s not the whole truth: there is a wide ...
View the Boat Review

A 20-odd footer may be your idea of either a big or a small boat, but the Sea Ray 220 Sundeck crams an almost impossible quantity of features into its 6.71m. Many of them require a search before ...
View the Boat Review

 The hull of the Coraline 580 Ocean Runner has the re-design common to many of the brand’s newer models: more deadrise, and reverse chines to balance the low down buoyancy ...
View the Boat Review

The aluminium Chivers 190 Thresher hull has been around for some time in centre console and runabout form, which has suited the majority of buyers who want a fishing machine. But for those who take ...
View the Boat Review

It is no surprise to anyone that boats currently selling in any numbers are at the smaller – and of course cheaper – end of the scale. Finance is not easy to ...
View the Boat Review

There is a sameness about many of the plate aluminium boats built in WA – inevitable when most are very similar Jackman designs. The Velosity 580 rings the changes by being a Dennis ...
View the Boat Review

It’s curious that Fairline, building boats up to 85ft long, should choose to build them in the geographic centre of England. Perhaps the cost of oceanfront land outweighs the ...
View the Boat Review

Tournament is the current name adopted by the boat builder formerly called Mustang. This at least clears up the confusion there used to be when two separate companies were both called ...
View the Boat Review

AMF must be the only boats whose options list does not include a choice of colour. In fact they are not even painted: their naked aluminium is finished with a coat of ...
View the Boat Review

The Arvor is not a run of the mill boat, and given its French origins that is not surprising. It is the kind of boat that people either dismiss out of hand or become fascinated with. The ...
View the Boat Review

Azimut is an almost unknown brand in WA, but this Italian company claims to be the world’s biggest builder of luxury motor yachts. There is no hard and fast ...
View the Boat Review

The Bar Crusher 760HT was the first boat I have driven powered by the completely new Yamaha V6. Offered in 225, 250 and 300hp forms (we had the 250), this is an impressive motor. It has a capacity of 4.2L compared with ...
View the Boat Review

There are plenty of 28 footers that are considered trailable, but they do not have 2.99m beams, or weigh four tonnes even without the trailer. The Bavaria 28 is more suited to hardstand or rack storage, or to an owner ...
View the Boat Review

If I had not been told, I would not have known I was boarding a Bavaria: this one looked like something off the Farr drawing board. And it had more presence on the water than you expect a boat called a 32 to have. I was wrong about the ...
View the Boat Review

Value for money is the key feature of the 175 Bayliner bow rider; $33,890 gets a turn the key and go package that ticks most of the boxes for the family buyer. And that is the typical buyer, particularly the first ...
View the Boat Review

Brigs were square-rigged sailing workhorses, nothing like the current batch of vessels using the word as a brand name. The member of the new generation I reviewed, a Brig Eagle 780H is a 45-knot rigid inflatable – ...
View the Boat Review

At one time if you bought a Bertram in Australia, International Marine would have built it in Victoria. They are the builders of Caribbean, and for a long time the names Caribbean and Bertram were interchangeable, as were the designs. ...
View the Boat Review

Perhaps it is because Catalina yachts are designed in California, with such a similar climate to WA, that they work so well here. All models have an extra-big cockpit and an airy interior to cope with the warm to hot ...
View the Boat Review

The Americans are strong on trailable boats with genuine cruising ability. They are often not pretty, and almost as often balance day and night use poorly; but they use every available centimetre to the utmost.

I recently trialled Chaparral’s new wake board-ski boats on Victoria’s Lake Eildon, which incidentally gave me a taste of what Wellington Dam might be like if it was ever opened to recreation.

In Chivers Marine’s new Shark range of aluminium boats, the 6.6m or 220 models rejoice in the name of White Pointer. The review boat is a walk around version that was specially built for a customer who specified ...
View the Boat Review

As the Chivers range of water-ballasted aluminium boats expands, the builder must be searching the reference books for more names of reputedly fierce sharks to name them after. The 232 Tiger Shark hull has been around ...
View the Boat Review

Wake boarding is definitely a growth sport, and wake board towboats are one of the hotter items in marine dealerships. It is possible to spend well over $100,000 buying one, and there is no question it would be a ripper, but more modest ...
View the Boat Review

Commodore Marine are constantly coming up with new versions of their established boats – and no wonder: when you have a competent hull, you make the most of it. They already had centre console and cabin versions ...
View the Boat Review

Coraline finish their boats in two distinct styles. One has the bells and whistles, linings, upholstery and paint, and the other very much does not. It’s all about making boating affordable to a wider range of ...
View the Boat Review

If Coraline has a motto it must be along the lines of ‘Leave no niche unfilled’. Their vast range runs from 8m down to 4.6, with constant redesigns and refinements ensuring that few are the same. The range ...
View the Boat Review

With a range apparently as large as Quintrex’s, the relatively tiny builder Coraline has expanded it again to include a 4.75m runabout. There seems to be a small resurgence in the runabout’s popularity and, ...
View the Boat Review

Wherever Coraline catch a glimpse of an unfilled market niche it seems they immediately fill it. The latest of their products I tried has to be the only self-draining plate aluminium dinghy on the market: the 480 Wahoo. ...
View the Boat Review

There are not a lot of plate aluminium bow riders around. This is possibly a result of a bow rider’s need to be a bit flash; it is the boat style that lends itself to elbow on the doorsill driving, one ...
View the Boat Review

Coraline has logic for most of the name of their new bream boat. The 550 is logical because it is 5.5 metres long; similarly the Tournament – this is a competition boat – but the Stealth inserted between ...
View the Boat Review

Paintwork on an aluminium boat probably encourages you to be more careful when parking alongside jetties, and perhaps it gives you a finer feeling of ownership. But a graunch in the two-pack would give you an infinitely worse sensation ...
View the Boat Review

The ‘long’ in the name of Coraline’s Long Runner 700 does not mean a stretched seven metres; seven metres hull length is what you get, but an unusually narrow beam gives it a long boat’s ...
View the Boat Review

The side console layout is normally chosen for a hull that’s a bit squeezy for a centre console and, perhaps because standing to drive in a smaller boat is less of a good idea, it is normally set up ...
View the Boat Review

The Epic Captiva is a rarity among plate aluminium boats: it has barely a straight line in it. It seems it is a foible of builder Todd Lubbock, who gives his glazing contractor nightmares with double curves ...
View the Boat Review

The Explorer 465 fits several unusual features into its 4.65m. Fibreglass yet, possibly unique for its length, it has a self-draining deck. With a hull weight of only 350kg, it has closed-cell foam buoyancy of 923kg. ...
View the Boat Review

The first impression of the Fairline Squadron 42 is of the space it contains. Compared with the Fairline 48 of a few years ago there is little or no visible difference in elbow room in the public areas. Admittedly it ...
View the Boat Review

When you plan to build 250 boats a year it pays to make sure the design is right – scrapping and rebuilding moulds is expensive. Fountaine Pajot, the French power and sailing cat specialist, spent a year getting ...
View the Boat Review

Catamarans generally need plenty of breeze to give stimulating sailing, conditions we did not have on the review day, but probably the majority of people who buy them are more interested in their other qualities than in ...
View the Boat Review

$2.975m is a lot of money in outright terms, but compared with what you get in the Horizon 65 it looks more like a bargain. The builders call it a motor yacht and it is hard to argue with them: the ambience is more small ship than ...
View the Boat Review

Jeanneau yachts have traditionally been seen as cruising boats that get raced rather than racing boats that get cruised. Enthusiastic racers would buy something else. The 44i Performance Jeanneau changes things, and the ...
View the Boat Review

The Kirby 10m Naiad is the fastest boat I have driven: 58 knots. That’s what a pair of 350hp Yamahas can do for you, but only on the right hull. This hull has a 27deg deadrise, a pair of steps in the bottom, and ...
View the Boat Review

LeisureCats come near the top of any offshore angler’s wish list. That not all end up buying one is more the shallow-pocket syndrome than the wish drying up. Like all power cats, LeisureCats are more expensive to build than the ...
View the Boat Review

Occasionally I get the chance to review a boat with its owners already in place. Lots to be said for this: you find out about reasons for buying; about views on how well it does its job; their opinions on ...
View the Boat Review

To many Australians the greatest shortcoming of imported big boats is the small size of their cockpits. The English Sunseeker company has fixed that with an Australia-only version of their new Manhattan 52. They removed ...
View the Boat Review

The Meridian 441 Sedan Bridge is fairly unusual among American fly bridge boats: it has just a single, outside driving station. The builders have clearly woken up to Australian ...
View the Boat Review

40ft catamarans, power and sail, seem to have suddenly become fashionable. There are excellent reasons why it should be so, ranging from the ability to use shallow water moorings to a lot of useable space within the ...
View the Boat Review

At a time when other Australian builders’ sales were faltering Mustang actually increased sales. The model that led the way for them was the Flybridge 43, and its very successful hull underpins ...
View the Boat Review

Sometimes simplicity can be more impressive than ingenuity, and Plaka boats fit into that category. Half a dozen or so roto-moulded pieces of polyethylene, variously welded and bolted together, some ...
View the Boat Review

The vast Quintrex catalogue includes boats of over 7m-hull length, but illustrating the current tight financial times they are currently building hardly anything over 5m. Not only that, but the big ...
View the Boat Review

If you want a boat offering decent shelter combined with maximum room then runabout is the style for you. It is not terribly chic – currently walk arounds seem to have cornered the market in chic ...
View the Boat Review

WA-built plate aluminium boats seem to be unstoppable, or more accurately the people who build and sell them are. At a time of a less than vibrant marine industry, a new brand has appeared: Reef ...
View the Boat Review

On Wednesday the Dockers will hold their annual auction at the Burswood Ballroom, and Chivers Marine will donate the star lot - as it has for many years. A very special donation: this boat missed winning ...
View the Boat Review

In the same way that fly bridge cruisers developed hardtops and eventually converted the fly bridges into a second storey saloon, some express cruisers have converted their upper deck areas into backless ...
View the Boat Review

Enclosed flybridges, that are currently all the rage, add interior space but automatically reduce open-air opportunities. Not to worry because this one is Australian, almost definitively ...
View the Boat Review

The Sea Ray Sundancer 285 fits an astonishing amount of liveability into eight or so metres. It’s not a boat the dedicated fisherman would buy, but for the growing number of ...
View the Boat Review

The Seaswirl 1851 Striper, at 5.64m overall, is probably a bit small for all the features it has built in. They are quite impressive, but since the main purpose of a walk around is ...
View the Boat Review

When Signature put an F in a boat’s name, they are saying this is a boat designed around fishermen. Our review 542 had an F, but it also had a lot more comforts built in than most ...
View the Boat Review

Who would have picked earlier this year that an English boat costing $3.7m would drop to $2.85m in time for Christmas 2009? For most people it’s entirely academic, and the price is still going to ...
View the Boat Review

The usual progression with boat ownership is to start small and then replace with progressively bigger boats until the reverse process takes place. The reverse can be just a single step down to something ...
View the Boat Review

It’s no wonder the Sunseeker Predator 64 has a 13KVA genset, considering the number of electrically operated devices on board. From the obvious air conditioning ...
View the Boat Review

One of the stars on Aquasports Marine’s stand at the Fremantle Show is the New Zealand-built Surtees 6.1 Centre Console. New Zealand imports generally ...
View the Boat Review

New Zealand does many things well, sauvignon blanc effortlessly springing to mind, and plate aluminium boats are up there with the wine any day. The review Surtees 7.3 Sports Fisher is a ...
View the Boat Review

Transcontinental Maritime Services is a big name (although usually shrunk to TMS) for a builder of small leisure craft. It fits better with what the company mostly does: ...
View the Boat Review

The Tournament brand name is getting known in its own right, but anyone wondering about its provenance should be reassured by hearing that it is a re-badging of the well-known ...
View the Boat Review

Tournament boats are the successors to the trailable Mustangs, most of them using the original moulds. Mustangs made themselves a lot of friends and that amiability has carried over to ...
View the Boat Review

At first and second glance the Wakemaker’s hull looked like almost any run of the mill WA plate aluminium boat, and the judges of the Boat of the Year were expecting a similar performance on the lumpy ocean. It ...
View the Boat Review

Westerberg is one of the oldest, perhaps the very oldest, WA plate aluminium leisure boat builders, and until a couple of years ago it was run by Mr Westerberg himself. New owner Paul ...
View the Boat Review

A hull length of 5.3m and a beam of 2.2m is not much to accommodate the trappings of a cruiser, but Whittley’s smallest cruiser, the 2080, makes a good fist of it. Using ...
View the Boat Review

The Whittley 2600 Cruiser is the smaller sister of the 2800 Cruiser, the boat that won the national award for Trailable Cruiser of the Year in 2008. And like the 2800 it is genuinely trailable: no ...
View the Boat Review

One of the quieter achievers of the 2011 Boat of the Year awards was the Yalta 2000 De Luxe. It was the winner of the Imported Fibreglass category, and it won handily. The word ...
View the Boat Review

The name of this boat is its least memorable feature; it deserves something more gripping than AMF 610. But just about everything else about it stays in the mind without any ...
View the Boat Review

In many ways Trailcraft is the Quintrex of the plate boat world, building a model and a length to suit almost any trailer boat buyer. They are no longer the old Ford equivalent, though, ...
View the Boat Review

One of the Seacat 510’s key features is its extremely good value for money, although that is only one of its strong points. This 5.1m catamaran gives you tough construction, twin motors, ...
View the Boat Review

The lightweight 1.9L Mercruiser, putting out 120hp, started a minor trend a few years ago for diesels in trailer boats. The current 2L motor, with no significant difference in weight but 30 more ...
View the Boat Review

The Rottnest Boat Par Excellence. The best way to test a big boat designed for how West Australians most use their boats is to take it to Rottnest. And since the Jackson 47 emphasises space, you ...
View the Boat Review

A 21^st century trailer sailer. It might not have the catchiest of names, but I found everything else about the West Wight Potter 19 delightful. The concept of trailer sailers has always struck me as a good ...
View the Boat Review

Bow riders have a lot going for them, but one thing they generally don’t have is genuine offshore capability. The bottoms are usually on the flat side of sharp, with freeboard sacrificed for ...
View the Boat Review

The owner of the Fury 280 Hardtop had just taken delivery of it, and was towing it to Shark Bay soon after he had got rid of me. Buyers of Furys seem ...
View the Boat Review

Nature laid on the right weather for our boat, bearing one of the revered offshore names, to show us its mettle. The boat was a Haines Hunter 650 Classic Offshore, and the weather a 20-plus knot breeze ...
View the Boat Review

Peter Stagg builds only custom boats, with lines and scantlings individually crafted by naval architects. This inevitably means nothing cheap comes out of ...
View the Boat Review

Here is one trailable sailing boat whose most distinctive attraction is not its ability to sail. Instead it is its great ability as a fast power cruiser. That it sails well ...
View the Boat Review

The Maritimo A50 Agean Enclosed is an impressive boat in its own right, but the really special feature of the review boat was its manoeuvring system: the new Twin Disc ...
View the Boat Review

The Reef Hunter 630 is a beefy boat, both the bits you can see and gauge and those you can’t. The 4mm sides and 5mm bottom with all frames fully welded to it you have to take on trust, but ...
View the Boat Review

Freedom Sport is the name Quintrex gives to bow riders, perhaps their most popular type. The review 510 Freedom Sport is modestly named, as its hull length is 5.33m.

The Chivers 1900 hull scored very well in the 2010 Boat of the year competition, performing brilliantly in the atrocious weather conditions nature laid on for the judging days. I was more than happy to revisit the hull ...
View the Boat Review

Vessels from Fury Custom Boats have typically been thought of as the epitome of the centre console style, and with good reason: centre consoles were all they built. Until now, with the ...
View the Boat Review

Campions are built in Canada and, indirectly, that’s why their hulls have a 10-year warranty: the likelihood of meeting floating logs is so high in Canadian waters that large quantities of Kevlar ...
View the Boat Review

Coraline’s 670 Walkaround’s aluminium hull features an item from the builder’s seemingly endless list of options and continual improvements: a deep knuckle. The presence of this has allowed the ...
View the Boat Review

South Africa’s population of leisure boats has one of the world’s highest percentages of rigid inflatables; the South Africans appreciate ...
View the Boat Review

A 50-footer is a lot of boat but, just the same, Maritimo seem to have created disproportionate space in their C50 Sports Cabriolet - an achievement considering the saloon also has to ...
View the Boat Review

The 240 Lagoon is called a LeisureCraft, even though renowned boat builder LeisureCat produces it: because it is not a cat. It is actually about as far as it could get from a cat, being a Pacific-style ...
View the Boat Review

8.5m might not seem small to a leisure boat owner who had to pay for it, but to a rescue boat crew that has to take it to sea in all weathers it can feel tiny. That 8.5m needs to be ...
View the Boat Review

People who buy an Air Rider hull are looking for very special performance. Abalone divers, sea rescue groups, and discerning private owners seek out these designs by naval architect Gavin Mair; they are looking for ...
View the Boat Review

Large rigid inflatables (RIBs) generally cost a lot more than conventional boats of the same size. Even RIBs with vinyl tubes - that sound like they should be cheap - are expensive. Which ...
View the Boat Review

On the face of it the IMG 400 is the boat for a buyer who does not much like boating – at 60 knots the experience is over pretty quickly. On the other hand it could also be the boat for someone who wants to spend ...
View the Boat Review