Bar Crusher 5.5m

It's no secret New Zealanders love their plate alloy boats. In fact, boats constructed from plate aluminium hold a far greater percentage of the market share in New Zealand than they do here in Australia.

Not surprisingly some of the most seaworthy plate boats available have come from across the Tasman - although, I must say, most of them have been hit with the ugly stick.

The latest range of plate alloy boats to land Down Under are being marketed under the Bar Crusher title and they have hit the Aussie trailerboat market with a vengeance.

When I first heard the names 'Waveslicer', 'Quickflow' and 'Rigideck' describing features of its boats, I thought this Bar Crusher mob had gone gimmick mad.

As it turns out, all those names are registered trademarks because the three designs Bar Crusher describes have patents pending.

Now occasionally a boat pops up with an ingenious new design feature that warrants a closer inspection - but Bar Crusher claims to have three in the one boat!

BAR NONE
If Bar Crusher is trying to create some interest in the boating fraternity, it's working. And after spending a day on the 5.5m and 6.1m models, it appears many of the company's Bar Crusher claims are warranted.

Waveslicer describes the Bar Crushers' strakeless hull design. That's right, the entire underside of the hull is as smooth as a baby's bum.

According to Bar Crusher, the aerated water created by a boat's running strakes are what causes cavitation. No strakes, no cavitation!

Quickflow is the name given to the Bar Crushers' water ballast system.

Each Bar Crusher has a cavity that runs the full length of the keel which is open at the transom. When the boat is stationary the cavity fills with water to form a ballast compartment. The additional weight of the ballast brings the boat's chines into the water, which provides greater stability at rest.

As soon as the boat goes forward, the water ballast drains out of the cavity, allowing the boat to climb onto the plane.

Rigideck describes the Bar Crushers' deck and sub-frame assembly. The Bar Crusher designs have six longitudinal stringers which are fully-welded to cross frames, forming a triangulated sub-frame. The combination of the sub-frame and a fully-welded floor creates the Rigideck.

COOL INTRODUCTION
To date, most of the boat tests I have done over the past few years have been under sunny Queensland skies. One of the bonuses of being appointed the new editor of Trailer Boat is I now get to do boat tests in Victoria. Yippee!

My first Victorian boat tests were actually on the Bar Crushers and I think it was the coldest, windiest day I had ever been to sea (MS - you should get out more, Granville). Luckily, my good friends at Stormy Seas lent me a jacket while at the Melbourne Boat Show (so I wouldn't end up with hypothermia).

We tested both the 5.5m Hard Top Deluxe and the 6.1m Hard Top around the spectacular Woolamai end of Phillip Island, and although the wind was blowing offshore, there was enough slop around for me to see what the Bar Crushers were made of. In this review I'll concentrate on the 5.5m model, but also check out the box story hereabouts for information on the 6.1m.

The first thing I noticed once aboard the Bar Crusher was its stability at rest. There is no doubt the Quickflow ballast system does its job. Even a couple of hefty guys standing on one side of the boat revealed no notable listing.

The 5.5m boat was fitted with a 100hp four-stroke Yamaha outboard which had no trouble putting it on the plane. Travelling forward a short distance prior to planting the throttle ensures the ballast cavity is empty on take off.

The Bar Crusher handled the conditions quite well and at one stage I was at full throttle, head on into a metre of short, sharp chop and experiencing a relatively smooth ride. Certainly not your typical tinnie pounding, anyway.

A smooth ride quite often means a wet ride and that's exactly what the Bar Crusher was. I was certainly glad we had the protection of the windscreen and clears between us and the ice-cold spray. The main reason the Bar Crusher is wet, is it runs very flat. Like all boats there is always a compromise.

BARE ESSENTIALS
The Bar Crusher factory is actually near the Bay of Plenty, on the North Island of New Zealand. The boats arrive in their barest form and are fitted out in Victoria. The local boys have done a great job with the fitout, particularly the paint job and addition of high-quality fittings.

The craft features a fully-integrated engine pod with boarding platforms on either side of the outboard. A drop-down boarding ladder mounted on the port-side platform aids entry to the boat, either from the water or while on the trailer.

Welded aluminium grabrails also ensure safe footing while stepping from the boarding platforms over the transom and into the cockpit.

The transom bulkhead incorporates a good-sized livewell and shelving to accommodate batteries and oil reservoirs. Cockpit padding runs along the transom bulkhead, while a centrally-located baitboard can be replaced by an optional ski pole. A rear step folds down from the transom to aid entry or exit from the boat. This step can also be used as passenger seating, although you may want to provide a bit of extra padding.

The cockpit sole is carpeted, apart from a centre killtank which has a painted checkerplate lid. Good-sized sidepockets run the full length of the cockpit and are raised to allow for toe placement. The cockpit coamings are very wide and feature no less than six flush-mounted rodholders as standard.

The helm area is basic but functional. Rae-Line swivel seats are provided for both helmsman and passenger. Interestingly, these seats are mounted on framework off the gunwales and sidepockets rather than on pedestals. The dash features a sports steering wheel with non-feedback steering, while gauges include speedo, tacho, hours and trim. On top of the dash is a flush-mounted compass as well as Navman GPS and sounder. There is still plenty of space on the dash for application of additional electronics. Oddly, the 27MHz radio was mounted in front of the passenger seat.

HARD TO TOP
The hardtop on the 5.5m testboat was again an extremely interesting design. The forward end of the hardtop was actually supported by gas struts which allowed the hardtop to be raised or lowered. Therefore, on days when the weather is pretty ordinary, the hardtop can be locked down onto the windscreen to form a totally protected cabin. However, if it happens to be a nice day and you want a bit of wind in your hair, the hardtop lifts up to provide natural ventilation. When the hardtop was locked down, however, I did find it restricted headroom when trying to stand and drive. Clears provide additional protection between the hardtop and the cabin.

The cabin was again a pretty basic design with conventional V-berth layout. Good storage was provided beneath the V-berth but the fuel filler is located in the floor beneath the two bunks.

I'm not a big fan of having fuel fillers inside the boat, particularly in the cabin, as there is invariably spillage at some point.

The cabin hatch is enormous and is probably one of the few where I have been able to access an anchor well from the cabin without donging my head.

It's great to see someone has got the intestinal fortitude to try new and radical ideas in boat design and construction.

Although the Bar Crushers won't be everyone's cup of tea, they are certainly creating a lot of interest around the traps. They'll challenge some of the established plate names. Indeed, I won't be surprised if they steal a little bit of the fibreglass-boat market as well.

HAVING A CRUSH ON...
The 6.1m Bar Crusher had basically the same layout as the 5.5m model we tested, except the hardtop was fixed rather than on gas struts. I really enjoyed driving the 6.1m model, as the extra weight and waterline length was noticeable in the ride.

The 6.1 is a very solid boat, constructed from 5mm bottom and 4mm topsides.

Powered by a 115hp EFI four-stroke Yamaha, the 6.1m Bar Crusher was relatively quick out of the hole and provided quiet and comfortable cruise speeds. Spinning a 19-inch standard alloy prop the 115 Yammy was revving out at 5600rpm, at which time the Bar Crusher was hitting a top speed of 60kmh.

As with the 5.5m, the ride on the 6.1m model was wet, however the big windscreen and full hardtop provided all the protection necessary. The checkerplate deck on the 6.1 looks a little agricultural, although would probably suit the serious fisherman or commercial operator for which it is designed.

The finish on the 6.1 was also superb, and the drive on/drive off multiroller trailer made launch and retrieve a breeze.

The 6.1m Bar Crusher has a beam of 2.35m, 18° deadrise and a maximum horsepower rating of 150hp. It is priced from $42,000.