Hargrave Custom Yachts’ new 76-footer does a masterful job of getting four staterooms – all with en suite heads – plus crew’s quarters aft, into 76’. Look around and you will discover that there are not many motoryachts with so many accommodations. This boat was designed for a couple who enjoy cruising with a large family, but she would be equally comfortable for friends and grandchildren. While the boat shown here is the first 76 Hargrave has built, you can customize a new Hargrave anyway you want. Best of all, the price is hard to beat – $4,499,220, fully equipped and ready to cruise. You won’t believe all of the equipment that is included in this price (make the jump, it is all listed).
To see detailed drawings and pictures of this boat, find out a bit about the owner of this boat, and to view her complete list of equipment, step into our saloon --
The Boston Whaler 370 Outrage (with an 11’6” beam) was first unveiled at the Miami Boat Show early this year, but the engineers at Whaler were concerned that she was too heavy. So, for the next five months or so they carefully examined and tested the boat, re-engineered it somewhat, and were able to get 1100 pounds – or about 8% -- out, now bringing her in at around 13,500 lbs. (6136 kg.). (All builders are faced with the challenge of making a boat both strong yet fast and as fuel efficient as possible.) At the Norwalk Boat Show Whaler finally had the 37 Outrage ready for prime time and we took a look. She is undoubtedly the most tricked-out center console on the market with more innovations and exciting functionality packed in than we have seen on any boat this size -- repeat, on ANY boat this size.
Take a look at this video and you’ll see what we mean --
It’s no secret that offshore fishing boats are being used more and more as offshore cruising machines. And why not? They’re built to take on just about anything, and they look fantastic. But while it’s easy to maintain fishability in the cockpit, making an attractive cruiser is mostly an affair with the interior. This week we look at the Viking 45C which has been around awhile and is in the size “sweet spot” for boats of this type. Viking has made its reputation on building tough boats for mean anglers who like to blast their way out to the canyons, but how good is the Viking 45C for cruising? This is a class-act cruising battlewagon. Let’s take a look and see if she’s got the right stuff for both worlds.
It’s not called a convertible for nothin’ --
It is not unusual for one of our testing captains to get their head completely wrapped around a boat, and we’re afraid that has happened to Capt. Steve with the Meridian 580. Now we don’t know what he has been doing with the Meridian 580 during his daytime reveries, but an article we ran in last week’s newsletter opened up some interesting possibilities. That’s right, going TA on her own bottom taking the northern route (Labrador-Greenland-Iceland-Shetlands-Orkneys). The longest run going that way is 596 nautical miles. Run this boat like a trawler and it has surprising range. Or, for just following the yacht club cruise it’s nice to know that her best cruise speed is 20.1 knots, which is our favorite coastal cruising speed when we’re running a boat down to Florida.
Join Capt. Steve and watch his love-in --
In our opinion, Formula Yachts has found the sweet spot in the compromise between displacement, size, fuel economy and speed with its 400 Super Sport. By nature, we tend to view this size boat as a cruising boat, not something that you just blast around in for an afternoon, although you can certainly do that in fine style. But why waste a large, well-designed, pedigreed yacht like the Formula 400 SS on cocktail runs when you can seriously cruise her? To do so is a little like owning an Indy Racer and only taking it to the country fair. Why not put some isinglass on this yacht (if you are in the north) and take her anywhere you please for a week or two? Let her strut her stuff. Best cruise is at 30 knots and there she gets 1.32 nmpg (1.52 smpg).
Join Capt. Rob Smith in his video test of the Formula 400 SS --
Vive la difference! At first glance the Cruisers Yachts 447 Sedan and the Sea Ray 44 Sedan Bridge might look pretty much the same. But upon close inspection the differences begin to emerge, and a few are quite important. Both builders are expert, experienced, and are trying hard to deliver what the market wants. Which boat you should buy depends upon you, your needs and mission for the boat. BoatTEST.com was designed to make it easy for people making a substantial expenditure on a boat to be able to compare products, their features and benefits, and their differences.
Let’s compare the Cruisers Yachts 447 Bridge and the Sea Ray 44 Sedan Bridge --
The Azimut 82, which replaces the Azimut 80 Carat in the Italian builder’s line, is a muscular, feature-rich yacht with flash and flair—a testament to those indefinable things that make guys in Italian suits stand out from the crowd. But it’s not for everybody. If you are the kind of person who boldly walks through life, then she’ probably your kind of package. If you’re a stogie, old moss-backed traditionalist, you might not appreciate her more European aspects.
To find out more about the Azimut 82 --
Sabre’s 42 Sedan, introduced in 2000, remains a breed standard in the “Downeast” style cruiser market. Designed to carry two in luxury, four in comfort and six in a pinch—and to get there in a hurry and look good in the process—the Sabre 42 Sedan is the quintessential waterborne Downeast weekend mobile home for empty nesters and small families who don’t have the time or the patience for slow going.
To find out more about the Sabre 42 Sedan --
If you have a problem getting isinglass squeaky clean with a cleaner that won’t damage the material, then BoatTEST can recommend a combination of products for you. The Shurhold “Serious Shine” and microfiber towels will help you clean, polish, and protect virtually any solid surface in one easy step, leaving no greasy, artificial residue. It also contains UV inhibitors and anti-static properties. When we used it we confirmed that it did not leave a greasy film or filling and did actually repel water. The microfiber towel will help dry and clean the surface better than a cotton towel, saving you time and doing a better job. Learn more here --
Special Offer for BoatTest.com Readers:
Get a FREE Microfiber Towel with each can of Serious Shine purchased.
In the upper right hand corner over every BoatTEST Report is a little red box that says “Read Owner Reports on --” whatever brand. Boaters who are thinking about buying that brand of boat can click on the button and see what owners of that brand have to say about their experience with specific models. BoatTEST.com has been asking its readers to help us help other boaters for years and we have hundreds of reports from boat owners from all over the world – all unedited. The editors of BoatTEST.com are asking you to take a couple of minutes of your time to let prospective buyers know of the strengths and weaknesses of your SPECIFIC model and we’d like to hear about your experience with both your dealer and manufacturer. Your fellow boaters will thank you.
To help --
Cat’s C-9 has a 510-hp output, but with the addition of the ACERT technology is boosted up to 575-hp. This makes her a competitive engine in the mid range of boats using diesel power. This 8.8 L, inline 6 engine is turbocharged and after cooled and weighs 2,086 lbs. (946 kg.). If you are buying a new boat with diesels in the 500 to 600-hp range you need to carefully consider your options, and Caterpillar is a good one.
Watch Capt. Rob’s video of the Cat C-9 --
BoatTEST.com is dedicated to helping marine consumers find the right match of boat and engine for their boating needs. You can help us help our readers by sharing your experiences with your diesel engines. Please take just one minute of your time to fill us in on how your engines have performed in a specific model of boat, and please give any guidance you can that would help our readers select the right engine, or how to take care of their engines to head-off maintenance issues. Future boat and engine buyers will be thankful for your help.
BoatTEST.com is asking our readers who have owned an inboard engine built by one of the three brands shown above to share your experiences with our other readers who are considering the purchase of a new or used boat, or repowering. Please take a few minutes of your time to help steer our prospective buyers in the right direction by telling us your experience with SPECIFIC brands and models with SPECIFIC applications. The three brands are:
A few weeks ago BoatTEST.com conducted a comparison test on two Volvo marine engines run with conventional mineral-based engine oil and Royal Purple Synthetic Oil. We found that the boat we tested in Long Island Sound had at WOT speed of 4.3% more with Royal Purple and got 6% better fuel economy. At best cruise fuel economy with Royal Purple was 9.6% better. Actual in-water apples-to-apples testing is challenging and we wanted something more. “More” in this case meant testing in “Lab Conditions” and that means on a dyno. We passed that request on to Royal Purple and they commissioned the folks at Horsepower TV to do just that. The test is done and the video of it is up on the Royal Purple website.
Take a look and see the results --
Imagine cruising along in the same waters that you’ve visited a hundred times before. You’re in a high-end tournament fishing rig cruising at 30+ knots. Only this time, swimming somewhere below in the deep blue is a whale about to breach, and you’re on a collision course. Or, could it be that what lurks below was sick and tired of you stealing his finny friends and decided to attack, just as a famous white whale had done in the Pacific nearly 200 years before? In any case, forty tons of whale was heading straight for forty tons of Viking 60 at a 90 degree angle. Who’s going to win-- the whale or the boat???
Place your bets and check this out --
That the Good Lord looks after children, drunks and boaters is proven once again by the picture above which has been taken from a USCG video which you can see on the jump. The rescue above was undertaken in May of this year off Cape Disappointment, Oregon, near the mouth of the Columbia River. As most people know, this area of the Pacific Northwest coast is one of the most dangerous anywhere and recreational boaters plying those waters must be prepared. These folks were lucky.
See the rescue video --
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New Boat Tweets
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It’s not much discussed but more and more women are showing up at boat shows, marinas, and on the waterways these days with a six-pack – and we don’t mean beer. We had the pleasure this spring of being aboard a motoryacht with a female captain who was only 5’ tall, but carried a 200 ton license. Pretty impressive! She knew her stuff, and went by the numbers, no short cuts, or good enoughs. If your spouse, daughter or friend down the street has a nautical bent, why not encourage her to become a Captain?
Start her out with this basic video from Nuts and Bolts Fishing TV program --
When we specify life rafts for boats that we plan to take offshore, we always choose the Givens Buoy life raft. The reason is simple: its patented ballast chamber is a huge bag that keeps the raft from being overturned by high wind and seas. We feel that all boats going offshore should have life rafts, and if you are going to have one then it might as well be the best. Forty years of reading and interviewing survivors has convinced us that Givens is the best way to go.
To see a video showing the Givens raft in extreme conditions --
BoatTEST News
BoatTEST Keyword Search:
The Whole Boating World in Your Hands!
Just below the BoatTEST.com banner on the home page is our “Keyword Search” functionality. Around the BoatTEST offices we just call it the “library,” because it is a marine library data base which is as large as the whole Internet. Type in any marine subject and our software instantly searches through the thousands of articles and tests that BoatTEST has published and displays that material on your screen. At the same time our software hands off your “keyword Search” to Google’s monster computers which instantly searches everything on the Internet related to the words you typed in, and we display those links on your screen, as well. How cool is that? This functionality means that when you come to BoatTEST.com you have the whole boating world in your hands. Why go anywhere else?
Try it, you’ll like it!
Used Boats
BoatTEST Has 139,000 Used Boat Listings!
Many at Bargain Prices
From 15’ to 250’ BoatTEST.com now carries 139,000 used boat listings from around the world. If you can’t find a boat you want at a price you can afford among these 139,000, you’d better take up golf. The above six boats are among those that BoatTEST.com has identified as “priced right to sell.” If you are one of the people who ONLY buys used, then BoatTEST.com’s classified section should be your happy hunting grounds.
Join the Hunt --
Boating Education
BoatTEST.com's Video Boating Course
Will Make YOU More Confident
BoatTEST.com in collaboration with Capt. Steve is now offering five different video courses on separate CD-ROMs that will make you a safer, more confident boater. These short video clips on dozens of topics will make your boating experience less stressful and more enjoyable. Your family and friends will have greater confidence in your boating skill – and so will you! After watching these videos you should be able to instantly react to most emergencies and boating problems that arise.
To learn more about these new video courses and to order --
This week Capt. Steve goes over eight new lessons and guidelines on rendering assistance to another boater, how to approach the boat that needs help, and general information on filing an accident report. There are steps to follow when assisting another boater, and while it’s the law to help, you must also look out for yourself so you don’t end up in the same situation also requiring assistance. Be smart and safe when helping other boaters. Learn who is responsible for filing an accident report, how long you have to file the report after the accident, who should get the report, and what information is necessary and critical to provide within the report. These are basic procedures which all recreational boaters should be aware of. The videos presented this week are part of Capt. Steve’s USCG-approved boating course called “Smart Boating.” Watch Capt. Steve's video boating lessons every week on BoatTEST.com.
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