5 things we like about the 2019 Yellowfin Plate range

The question is, what sets this new range of Yellowfin Plate boats apart from the one it replaces?

>> 2019 Yellowfin 5800 Folding Hard Top review

We look at the top five reasons we like what Yellowfin Plate has done with this makeover - as well as asking where Quintrex's Trident sub-brand fits into the showroom.

The Yellowfin Plate range has between 50 to 60 hours of welding performed on the boats to ensure they’re built strong enough for offshore duties.

All but the smallest 5800 use 6mm plate on the hull bottom (the lighter, smaller 5800 uses 4mm and drops the deadrise from 20 degrees to 17) and 4mm plate for topsides and transom. The boats’ ribs are placed 500mm apart, while stringers are placed 200mm apart and run all the way out to the chine.

This ensures there is minimal distortion in an extremely rigid hull – that’s why it is called the Offshore HD Hull. The range is still all handmade by a team of 17 workers on its own production line.

The updated range has dropped the underfloor kill tank (most customers are using an ice box) in favour of extending the underfloor tank capacity.

The Yellowfin 5800 increases its fuel capacity to 190 litres, the Yellowfin 6500 increases to 260 litres, while the range-topping Yellowfin 7600 increases its fuel capacity to a whopping 380 litres.

Yellowfin Plate has recognised that owners of the flagship Yellowfin 7600 will load up with fuel and gear for a long day out on the water – and potentially overnight if they have ticked the option for the electric toilet – and all this weight affects owners on the journey to and from the boat ramp.

The high-capacity trailer will ensure owners make the trip safely.

Really listened. The boat-builder spoke with more than 100 people at boat shows to see what they would change about the range, and incorporated those ideas into this latest makeover, which took 18 months.

It’s all the little things, such as adding more space between the seats to make squeezing between them in rough seas much easier, illuminated switches on the control panel, and enough dash space to flush-mount electronics (there’s now room on every Yellowfin Plate model to add a 16-inch touchscreen).

The transom door now lifts and locks into place to substitute a rattling latch system, circuit breakers mean owners don’t have to muck around with replacement fuses, and the battery isolator switch can now be easily reached while the boat is on a trailer. The seats now have storage boxes beneath them.

All cabin models now have the cabin sitting 300mm further forward to yield more fishing space. Centre console models have repositioned the driving position slightly.

Yellowfin Plate has introduced three new models – a centre cab (expected to be popular in Queensland), a rear console (popular in the NT market) and a folding hard top (to suit urban areas where garage storage is the only option) – to make the range appeal to a wider range of buyers.

The brand has reset the benchmark on standard equipment, bunding the most popular add-on features into what it calls a Platinum Pack, such as VHF radio, chartplotter and sounder, and contrasting paint and trim schemes.

New add-ons such as sinker cups for the deck tops, unpainted surfaces on high traffic areas such as the gunnels, floor and duckboards, and a new flagship Southerner hard top range adds swagger.

What about Yellowfin Plate’s cheaper cousin, Trident? Trident boats will continue to be sold alongside Yellowfin products, but as in the past they will focus more on inshore fishing and family lifestyles.

Recognising this, the Quintrex sub-brand's boats won't be made as tough as the offshore specialist Yellowfin Plate boats. By comparison, the Trident range has around 30 hours of welding in each boat.

For more on the Yellowfin Plate range, visit the Yellowfin Plate Boats website.