Cruise Craft 575 Outsider

The Cruise Craft Outsider is now available in a 5.75m model. The 575 is a scaled down version of its 625 and 685 brethren.

Sitting atop its Redco trailer, the 575 appears to be very beamy. So beamy it appears to be at the maximum trailerable width of 2.5m, when, in fact, it comes in well under that at 2.37m.

This beam makes 575 look as if it lacks gunwale height, but walking around the cockpit disproves this impression.

While optical illusions dominate one's first impressions of this boat, the finish applied to it, and other boats, in the Nichols Brothers' workshops is far from illusory.

The workmanship throughout their fleet is nothing less than impeccable.

Launching the testboat at the Moreton Bay Trailer Boat Club, we headed out onto a shimmering Moreton Bay that was devoid of waves and breeze. The bay was as flat as a tack.

Pushing the boat at full throttle, the 130hp two-stroke Yamaha shot the boat out of the hole effortlessly, and wound out to 5800rpm, reaching a top speed of 68kmh. Engine noise seemed minimal considering its two-stroke horsepower rating. This lack of noise is partly due to the heavily-padded rear seat which folds down and fills the aperture below the transom coaming, muffling much of the noise transmitted through the transom.

At varying speeds on the plane, the cable steering performed well and hard cornering showed no tendency for cavitation or hull slippage.

With absolutely pristine water-skiing conditions, we were unable to raise even the slightest spray from the hull.

The 575's bowsprit is broad and strong, and holds a bowroller with pin in a specially moulded rebate.

Further aft, a split-bollard with pin sits forward of the anchorwell hatch. This hatch has a 25mm slot in its leading edge which would allow the passage of a reasonable-sized anchorchain if required. The hatch opens from the front and folds back below deck level, inside the recessed walkway that surrounds the cabin. Access to this area is via a good-sized hatch in the brow of the cabin front or via the walkway starting at the cockpit.

Quality stainless steel handrails surround the cabin area and run onto the bowsprit. The steelwork on the targa provides handholds as one walks around the cabin to access the bow.

As with other boats in the Outsider range, the cabins are quite substantial with ample headroom running well forward, resulting in a large area for people to sit.

Ducking back into the cabin, the hatch is closed by a stainless door handle, and then a rubber toggle locks it shut. Headroom when seated on the bunks is ample for a person around 175cm, with the ceiling tapering down slightly as it runs forward. The footwell is large and holds three pairs of legs. Cushions hide the storage compartments on the port and starboard side and in the forward section of the bunkhouse. This forward section may also house a portable toilet.

Shelving in the cabin has padded edges for backrests, and the rear of the console is neatly finished with a hinged shroud made of moulded fibreglass.

Seating for the skipper and one passenger takes the form of upholstered shells of moulded fibreglass made by Cruise Craft and fixed to Reelax swivel bases. The helmseat features a lockable sliding base.

The dash area on the passenger side is open and flat, and allows the installation of extra electronics if required. The helm consists of a pair of Yamaha gauges, a Lowrance X85 sounder that worked effectively at all speeds, and a Cruise Craft-badged toggle switch panel. Engine controls were wall-mounted and did not intrude on the skipper's space at the helm.

The cabin walls and windscreen sweep past the two seating positions and afford maximum weather protection to the occupants of the swivel seats. The sides feature a storage pocket above another storage area open to the floor, which has a short wall to prevent objects straying into the cockpit during rough weather. Between the two seats, a flush hatch in the floor provides access to an icebox of around 50lt.

The steering station is covered with a stainless steel-framed targa, which, for storage under a low carport or for reduced wind-drag during towing, can be laid in the cabin. A 6-pot rocket launcher is fixed to the targa, and gussets compose part of the construction, to which outriggers can be fitted.

The cockpit is spacious enough for three anglers. Their feet will easily fit under all pockets, and their thighs are protected by padded coamings. When at the stern, the fold-down rear seat cushions the kneecaps. Raising this seat to a usable position reveals a cavernous area which holds a battery, isolation switch and a recessed bilge to catch waste as it washes to and fro. There is ample room here for multiple batteries, oil bottles, buckets and the like.

The inner transom bulkhead next to the fold-down seat has a flush-mounted hatch that gives access to the engine oil reservoir. There is plenty of room here for more storage containers.

Mounted atop this bulkhead is a bait-rigging station common to the Cruise Craft range. It has a stainless steel rodholder each end, two drainable bait recesses, and a small sink with a plug, over which is a hinged lid that serves as a bait cutting board. The entire unit has a raised edge to prevent all and sundry going over the back of the boat in rough seas.

This particular bait-rigging station is one of the most useful we've seen on a production-line boat.

To port of the bait-rigging station, a half door allows easier access to and from the cockpit. On the opposite beam a livebait tank of around 50lt should hold enough livies for a day's fishing. This tank is serviced by a stainless steel pick-up when underway and an electric pump when stationary.

Astern of the bulkhead, the port side features an oil tank filler and a stainless steel folding telescopic boarding ladder, which retracts into its own recess on the boarding platform. The fuel filler is mounted midships, slightly up from the duckboard.

This hull features a planing board measuring approximately 130mm wide at the transom, which tapers to a point halfway along the keel line.

Cruise Craft's Outsider 575 will fill a niche for those who want a fully-serviceable, quality fishing machine. The amount of usable workspace in this boat's cockpit is usually found only in boats over 6m. The 575 has enough space onboard to make it a daytripper for a family of four. Especially as it can be taken to and from the water with a six-cylinder wagon or light 4WD. Indeed, there is enough room for a couple of anglers to put in a few days aboard on extended fishing adventures...