Boston Whaler 160 Super Sport | Palm Beach 55 | Abandon Ship Gear
The redesigned Boston Whaler 160 Super Sport skiff retains some of her notable classic attributes, with the bow still rectangular to provide added space, the side console aft as well as still being foam-filled and unsinkable, of course. The classic thwart seat aft is replaced with several seating options, including comfortable twin bucket seats with reversible backs. Gone is the cathedral hull design made famous by Ray Hunt, replaced by a better invention of Hunt’s, the V-hull form. With a 15-degree deadrise at the stern, the boat retains much of its former stability. Now, she handles better and is much more comfortable at planing speeds in a light chop.
The Palm Beach 55 displays classic Downeast style and the lavish use of finely-crafted solid Burmese teak for which her sister brand, Grand Banks, is famed. She hides some interesting technology under her all-teak decking, including a tender garage that’s completely out of sight beneath the aft deck. The garage houses a 10’ 8” (3.05 m) inflatable with outboard included as standard equipment. When the deck is raised, it also lifts the stern of the tender into position to slide out on rails and transition right into the water. A system of lines and pulleys makes launching and retrieval reliable. The aft railing is easily removed to provide a clear path to the water.
The BENETEAU Monte Carlo 5 is designed with entertainment in mind, with food prep and refrigeration facilities not only in the main galley area but also on the aft deck and on the flying bridge. There's seating at a table on the aft deck, and this area can be shaded at the touch of a button. A large electric grill and sink are found under a cover accessed from the swim platform. There's seating for 10 topside, a fold-out teak dining table, electric grill and sink. The entire area can be sun-shaded with a large Bimini.
Evinrude E-TEC G2 200 H.O. 2-strokes develop impressive torque and power, as demonstrated in our recent test of a 26' (7.9 m) Yellowfin bay and offshore center console. Even though the boat was equipped with a wind-resisting tower and upper control station, the muscular high-output engines pushed her to 62.5 mph. At 3000 rpm and 29.7 mph, the direct fuel injection engines burned just 9.7 gph, giving her a range of nearly 500 SM. And turning Evinrude 4-blade props, the boat planed in just 3.8 seconds, a big plus when trying to jump out of the hole in a shallow basin.
Today’s boats of almost any size rarely sink offshore. But occasionally it happens, particularly with older boats for a host of reasons we’ll cover in other reports. For now, let’s focus on what all boats that go offshore should have. Yes, one of those items is a life raft, something required in Europe, but not in the U.S. Find out about the other things you should have aboard.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Sometimes it's not what you know, but what you've forgotten. We have the perfect solution for you. |
Based on the feedback we’ve been getting about BoatTEST.com's Video Boating Course it’s clearly not only for beginners, but also for veteran boaters as well. Perhaps that is why the NMMA started promoting the course after just one look. It's the most complete boating course available… period. Order your 4-disc box set...
|
BoatTEST.com, LLC |
|
All articles, Captain's Reports, video content or other |