Haines Hunter 8m Patriot

A passing glimpse of Haines Hunter's new 8m Patriot gracing the concourse of the Exhibition Centre at the Sydney Boat Show had more than a few of us keen to get it onto the water to see if it behaved as good as it looked.

As it turned out, it was the same boat displayed at the show, that yours truly put to sea on. Attached to Yamaha's new 225hp four-stroke outboard, it was an impressive sight tied up at the marina at Horizon Shores on the Gold Coast.

The Patriot is a walkaround with a cabin. Looking at the side profile, the cabin appears squat and small; an illusion produced by its position well forward of the main mass of the boat. High gunwales and a drop sheer on the bow further add to the illusion. In fact, there's plenty of room below, though more on that later.

WINGED WELL
At the bow, a typical locking bowroller and locking split-bollard complement a massive anchorwell, which is equipped with twin doors that open outwards wing-like and slightly forward, handily out of the way of the crew recovering anchor rope. These hatches are neatly hinged and shut tight, with stainless steel fittings. A stainless steel lug, inside the well, holds the bitter end of the ground tackle and intruding water is quickly drained via a thru-hull port measuring around 30mm.

The footpath around the cabin, as well as the deck of the work area on the bow and the roof of the cabin, are aggressively non-slip rippled as part of the mould. Heavy-duty rails add to personal security in the walkaround area.

The aft ends of the walkways have raised lips to trap some of the water that might come over the bow into the cockpit. A 25mm drain channels the water overboard. Under the step-down into the cockpit at both ends of the walkway is a storage area, which is covered by a flush-mounted hatch.

ROOM TO SNOOZE
Considering its configuration, cabin space is quite large. A full-size bunk is situated on the portside, while an extended bunk, with the bottom end under the helm, is starboard. Another cushioned area fills in the point of the V-berth. An electric marine toilet is installed in the forward section of the cabin, behind which is shelf storage on the forward wall of the cabin. Further shelf storage is on each cabin sidewall. Under-bunk storage is found below the full-size bunk.

A soft carpet cover is velcroed across the back of the instrument panel. Two tinted, slit-style windows allow light into the cabin via the cabin wall proper, whilst two additional lights are located in the hull for further illumination. Ventilation comes via a Taylor Made tinted hatch in the roof of the cabin. The cabin has bi-fold doors swinging on stainless steel piano hinges that are secured with a hasp and staple catch. A screened vent in the side airs the bunk area.

Entry to the cabin is along the portside wall of the cuddy. Skipper and passenger are seated on a bench-style, wide bucket seat that occupies two-thirds of the cuddy width, running hard up against the starboard wall. It's similar in size and style to the double bench seat on the bridge of the Caribbean 26.

A stainless steel wraparound handrail encompasses the rear support of the seating area. It acts as a handhold for those standing behind the skipper and passenger when travelling (for the record, there's a cross transom cockpit passenger bench that is removable).

There's a single step up onto the raised section that makes up the helm area. This companionway has flush-mounted vertical hatches in the wall liner to access additional storage. The upper section of the wall is padded and the floor has a flush-mounted hatch accessing a compartment of around 100lt capacity.

Seastar hydraulic steering was fitted, along with Yamaha's engine management instruments and binnacle-mount controls. There is ample space for flush-mounting of large electronics.

The Patriot's tinted and toughened glass windscreen is reinforced with a solid grabrail that also attaches to the cuddy wall.

Two-tier pockets are situated centrally in the port and starboard cockpit wall liners. Padding for the hips is fixed to the inner coamings and raised stainless steel handrails sit atop the coamings. A cleat is recessed into the outer edge of the coamings, midships each side.

Two stainless steel rodholders are flush-mounted in each aft corner. The floor of the cockpit holds two drained kill tanks with flush-mounted hatches.

Meanwhile, a flush-mounted vertical hatch on the cockpit wall liner, near the walk-through transom, holds tackle trays.

As mentioned previously, the padded seat from behind the helmseats can be quickly installed against the transom bulkhead or removed altogether. This would make for dry travel for passengers in rough weather and free-up the transom when it was required as a work area.

CRAWL SPACE
With the seat removed from the transom, a large hatch is exposed. It covers an even larger storage area that could be used for oil bottles, cleaning gear and any bulky goods and chattels. This area is large enough for a medium-sized person to crawl into to undertake any of the maintenance required on batteries or other electrical equipment.

A saltwater deckwash and additional vertically-hatched storage area is located in the starboard corner.

Located between the rodholders on each aft coaming is a neatly recessed nylon cutting board that services anglers fishing from the stern area.

The transom bulkhead top lifts up and hinges back, revealing a saltwater sink and a huge plumbed livebait tank, the lid of which serves as another cutting board. A shallow tray can hold thawed baits. This workstation has a surrounding deep gutter, so that scraps and rubbish from the baitboard will flow around and into the sink to drain overboard.

After stepping through the transom doorway, one stands on another raised section. From here, a freshwater shower is accessed via a rack in the wall liner of the hull. A stainless steel handrail running the full width of the transom provides some security.

WIDE WELL
The enginewell is uncluttered, with only one loom going to the motor and another to the hydraulic rams on the front of the Yamaha.

The Patriot was launched at the Runaway Bay Marina. While I remained hidden under the bowsprit waiting for the motor to be started before releasing the winch strap, 'he doing the skippering' came forward and poked his head over the bow.

"It's okay to let her go." Hmmm. These new Yams are quiet! It proved to be that way throughout its range.

Running a hand-held GPS alongside the tacho and fuel management meter, the results were equally impressive.

The Patriot ran safe and dry out into the bar at Jumpinpin. The responsive steering felt a little torquey turning to starboard, but wasn't unduly difficult. The deep-cutting keel line dug in and held on as it was thrown around over the running bar.

At the helm on the plane no wash was visible, unless I turned my head. A well-forward cabin on an 8m length gave the impression we were flying. With airborne wash hitting the water so far aft of the helm, the ride seemed even quieter, sort of like floating on air.

Punching into the sharp swell, the water went everywhere but on the occupants. The sharp-cutting forefoot and turned-out upper shoulders on the forequarters of the hull worked a treat in the slop.

The deck space is huge. A family of six could feel really comfortable for a day, while two or three anglers could call this home for a bit longer with no worries.

Add rocket launchers, bimini covers and outriggers, and this number would make a fantastic mini-gameboat that could hold its own in the company of some of its bigger brothers.