14.

AUSTRALIAN FISHERMAN & BOATOWNER (F&B) - Issue #90

Supplied Courtesy of Sea Media Pty Ltd

BAR CRUSHER 560C

Peter & Warren Cleland's 560C Plate BAR CRUSHER

Continuing his run of "luck"with Melbourne's Port Phillip Bay weather, Queenslander Darren Shiel had a luverly time in Melbourne taming the exciting new Bar Crusher 560C on a decidedly wild and woolly winter's day.

Peter and Warren Cleland are a couple of likeable blokes who observed the marine industry for a number of years, wanting to buy a boat in aluminium. However, they were not happy buying a traditional pressed aluminium boat from the big national manufacturers. The Clelands believed there had to be something better, something strong, built of aluminium, with fibreglass like performance, yet light enough to be moderately powered and towed. They waited very patiently, until one day, utilising their manufacturing backgrounds, they decided to build a boat for themselves. There has been many horror stories about the difficulties of starting in the boat building business, but the Clelands have succeeded to the point where they are now building a top quality product, and taking their share of the market place.

Design

These guys are typical Aussie fishermen, and really don't care too much for fibreglass boats. They set out to build a boat with just a few parameters. It had to be super strong, stable, soft riding, lightweight to allow for small power and towing capabilities, and most of all had to be very seaworthy.

The boat has a very fine hull, with an 18-degree deadrise, and a narrowish 2.25 metre beam. Normally, I would be thinking with those measurements, it could be a bit unstable at rest. But surprisingly , it's actually quite solid. The Clelands wanted to keep the fine entry and deadrise, so decided the best way to make the boat stable was to build in a water ballast system. Called the Quickflow Stability Ballast System, the idea is certainly not a new one, as I can remember a few early boats with a deep V, also being fitted with a similar system. The Clelands have, however, played with the system a great deal, and researched the technical side of the process, and believe they have mastered the practice. The Clelands reckon that because the ballast system is designed to empty within seconds when underway, and at rest fill up, it increases the resistance to rolling, and makes the 560 more stable.

The Waveslicer hull design is also unique. It is a design that incorporates no strakes, and provides a smooth uninterrupted surface, providing negligible pounding or propeller turbulence, with the bow chine rail keeping the boat pleasingly dry. Engineering / Construction These boats are very strong. Built from 4mm plate bottom, and 3mm plate sides, the boat is certainly solid. Built into all Bar Crusher boats, is the "Rigideck" system, incorporating the floor and sub frame, designed for superior strength. The whole underfloor section is built utilising six longitudinal stringers fully welded to cross frames, forming a structurally strong, triangulated sub floor frame. To this a full checker plate floor is welded in, making one solid frame utilising the entire underfloor area, giving it unusual strength. The boat is very solid, and compared to a normal pressed alloy, or even competitor's plate alloy boats, the Bar Crusher method of construction is certainly over the top, which can only be a bonus for a prospective purchaser.

Finish

The boats are built to a very high standard, the welds are very subtle, and the paintwork preparation and finish is well done. All fittings are of a tough standard, and continue with the "unbreakable" philosophy of the build standard. Plate aluminium boats these days are no longer "bare as bones", as this Bar Crusher 560 proves check out the fishing set-up, for instance. Years ago, we'd have to either make all this gear up ourselves or pay out a fortune for optional extras. Now, it all comes as standard equipment.

Helm Set-up

The helm set-up on this boat is really functional. From the helm, you are faced with just four gauges, trim, tacho, hour gauge and speedo. They are all set on a black background, straight above the sports steering wheel. Located immediately beside this is the six-gauge switch panel, akin to that used in much larger boats. The throttle falls nicely to hand when the skipper is looking straight over the windscreen in a standing position, the ideal set-up for rough water.

The seat, best kept for safe harbours and rivers, are very comfortable, as when seated, you look straight through the windscreen. Mounted on storage boxes, with seat slides and swivel bases, the seats are high quality. The dash is suitable for small sounders and GPS systems, but really would not cope with any of the larger sounders. Both driver and passenger have rails mounted to the rear of the cabin sides, along with a full width dash mounted rail.

The 27 MHz radio is situated neatly inside the cabin, away from all elements, yet the microphone is able to reach the helm chair. Good design here. With an open design and easy entry, it has just enough space for a lie down. It is designed as a comfortable seated refuge from the elements, and for this it allows ample headroom. It also has large cabin side pockets, big enough to store all safety gear for our test. The cabin has a 12v fluoro, and all behind dash electrics are very well hidden, and very neatly fitted. As the access around the sides of the boat is difficult on a boat this size, the anchor must be deployed at sea from the forward cabin hatch. The cabin cushions are removable for this purpose, and with a big enough anchor well for offshore use, everything up here is very functional.

The boat is fitted with twin bollards to the bow, a nice touch. The anchor well is missing a hatch lid. Normally, this is not good practice in a boat specifically designed to cross bars and work offshore, but it's okay here as the anchor is "locked" in place on the bow roller.

Performance

Fitted with the minimum recommended 115hp Suzuki 4-stroke engine and 19 inch stainless steel propeller, the test boat is well matched. Four strokes have long been my favorite engines, being so smooth, quiet and effortless to produce great fuel consumption figures. This Suzuki is a fine example, and it is hard to go past purchasing one if you are in the market. As this boat was not fitted with any accurate speedo or fuel measuring equipment, I will not even begin to guess the performance figures on this boat. The 115 felt very strong, and had its usual way of winding itself up onto the plane. The engine felt reasonably effortless to find a clean plane, which it did at around 2500rpm. It had plenty of reserve power throughout the rev range, and felt as though it had more power whenever it was needed. The hydraulic steering felt very good, and provided precise control over the boat. Certainly no speed demon, this boat wins the race based on its low fuel consumption. You can expect fuel consumption of around 16L /ph at 4,000, or a low 4.0L p/h at trolling speeds of 1,800rpm. Based on these figures, the boat certainly has a great range for offshore fishing with its 150 litre fuel tank. Handling and Ride Port Phillip Bay did nothing for my thoughts of enjoying the day on the water.

Running out of the Patterson River Marina, the cruise down the river was a very pleasant experience. Upon entering the bay however, we were faced with 18-20 knot southwesterly winds, and a very short and uncomfortable 0.75 to 1.50 metre seas and waves. It was a day where everybody else had decided to stay home, and for some reason I found myself out in the middle of the bay in a boat in a boat with no roof! The sacrifices we make for the job!

The day was definitely unfishable, and uncomfortable to be driving in a small boat. The conditions, however, did prove the seaworthiness of this hull. The boat is very soft riding compared to other aluminium boats I have been in. The deep-vee up forward cuts through the conditions like the proverbial knife. It truly is very comfortable to drive in rough conditions, and very pleasing in the way it reacts to the seas.

Dead on to sea, the boat is very nice, remarkably dry and without the banging customary to aluminium boats. Turn it onto the bow quarter however, and the ride remains comfortable, but without clears and covers, anything under about 25m LOA in these conditions was going to be become pretty bloody miserable. The factory offers a terrific drop down hardtop, set up on gas struts, where the front actually drops down to meet the windscreen when needed. This hardtop is fitted with overhead rod holders also, and Clelands tell me most boats leave the factory with this option fitted.

Turning around to be beam on, the boat is very comfortable. In this position, you can maintain a high speed, and remain quite happy leaping from wave top to wave top. The boat is quite stable, and has a sense of strength about it. Downhill the boat is very good, and tracks very straight, without a hint of broaching. At trolling speeds the boat is quite comfortable, and tracks very straight regardless of the direction it is travelling. In this combination, the boat provides a very fuel-efficient way of trolling around the ocean all day for pelagic fish.

Fishability

This boat is definitely set up with fishing the main focus. One look at the cockpit will impress even the most experienced fisherman. Everything, from the seriously wide side decks, toe under gunwale sides, extra wide side pockets, checker-plate floor, starboard side plumbed bait tank and excellent rear deck door, all suggest this boat means business offshore. The rear seat folds up completely out of the way, closes off the deck door, and produces a nice deep cockpit, deep enough for offshore fishing, but not so deep it will get in the way of stand up fishing. A very solid bait table makes a great workstation on the central transom, is set at a perfect height to work, and is plumbed to drain overboard. The bait table is also removable to reveal a ski pole fitting. Fishing rod storage is addressed by way of six angled cockpit side coaming rod holders, set for sport fishing, as well as three holders across the back of the bait station. The overhead six-pot rod holder is also very useful for storing rods away from the action. The transom is set up with a big platform right across the transom, which, in the right conditions, could be utilised for fighting a very feisty fish. It is also home to a decent sized burley bucket, and a great boarding ladder.

The boat is provided with a very large storage/kill tank to the rear under floor section, abaft of the fuel tank. The tank is so large in fact, it can accommodate two large dive bottles, and as it drains in to the bilge, which itself is fitted with a large bilge pump, it can be utilised for a number of things. The transom area is also home to the above floor batteries and master switch, well centred for weight distribution, directly beneath the bait table area. The fuel/water-separating filter is also raised, fitted to the starboard cockpit side pocket, away from salt spray. At rest the boat is great. It drifts nicely, and with two blokes in the transom area fishing, is quite stable and workable.

A solid boat, at no time did I feel any threat of water coming onboard, even in the terrible conditions we experienced.

Trailering

Being made of aluminium, and weighing an estimated 1310 kgs on the trailer, this boat fits well into the trailerboat market. It can be towed by most six-cylinder cars, and really has no need for a larger dedicated 4WD tow vehicle. It is a good-sized package, and will not be too hard to accommodate somewhere in most suburban backyards. On its single axle multi roller/skid trailer, it is easy to manoeuvre around the yard, and a dream on the highway. The windscreen also folds down completely, along with the overhead rod holders, to lower the garaging height greatly. The trailer also made light work of the retrieval process, and supported the rig very well. Conclusion A very robust product, with almost commercial build quality. The deep V hull and Quickflow water ballast system work together very well to give a soft ride, and also doubly provide a stable vessel.

The Cleland brothers (Peter and Warren) are certainly improving with every vessel they produce, to the extent now that their product is up there with the best plate alloy boat builders in Australia.

Probably the softest alloy boat I have ever been in personally, the gap between the glass and alloy brigade is getting ever closer.

Legal Note: The statements, observations and opinions expressed in the above excerpts are those of the boat tester and were formed after inspection and testing of the Bar Crusher boat described in the test. The opinion is provided by the author of the test and not the directors of Bar Crusher boats.The information in these excerpts is offered to assist prospective buyers to do their research. Bar Crusher Boats confirms that the information above may contain factual errors and no responsibility is taken for it's accuracy or completeness. Please refer to the legal notice by clicking on the words "Legal Notice" at the bottom of each page.