Hook, Line and Sinker: Pride Sea Raider project boat part 1

We’ve often said that the most profound and beneficial change you can make to an old boat is fitting a new engine.

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The difference between today’s outboards and the ones that were going around 20 or 30 years ago is like night and day, particularly when it comes to the old two-strokes.

The only real downside to an engine swap is cost. Depending on what type of boat you have, changing the old engine out for a new one might mean spending more than the whole thing is worth.

New outboards are expensive, there’s no way around it. Or is there?

Commercial operators need to look after the bottom line. That's why many commercial operators were quick to make the switch to four-stroke outboard engines for the fuel and maintenance savings they offered.

Tour operator Robert Pennicott runs a fleet of more than 20 big rigid inflatables that give visitors an up-close and personal experience with the rugged coastlines around Victoria and Tasmania.

These boats do big hours, typically 2500 a year, with each vessel fitted out with a trio of Yamaha F250s. These engines will routinely see 5000 hours of service before they're swapped out.

Rob claims a switch to Yamaha a decade ago has saved his company around $1 million a year. It also means he has something like 30 high-hour outboard engines a year to replace with new ones.

Pennicott says selling them isn't a problem – they sell like hotcakes! Priced at $6000 when a new one will set you back close to $30,000, it’s a compelling proposition.

We placed an order and went in search of a boat in need of a re-power.

With a careful eye on the budget end of boatsales.com.au's inventory, and with our search parameters set to filter out anything costing more than $15,000 thousand or smaller than 6.5 metres long, we finally settled on a Pride Sea Raider for sale in Blairgowrie on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula.

The Pride Sea Raider is identical to the more numerous and well-known Caribbean Reef Runner – back in the day, there were a number of badge-engineered models shared under the Pride and Caribbean nameplates.

Ours looked a bit rough around the edges but fairly sound. Power was by way of twin 90hp Mercury two-stroke outboard engines, the trailer was a serviceable looking Mackay multi-roller, and the price was just $13,000.

Not bad, we thought, for a well-regarded 6.5-metre offshore boat with twin engines on a decent trailer.

A test run on Port Phillip Bay confirmed that 40 years after it came out of the mould, the hull was still a good one. The Pride Sea Raider is a beamy boat for its length and feels nice and roomy at the helm.  With 21 degrees of deadrise the uphill ride is pretty good.

What took us, though, was the massive depth of the cockpit. It’s basically waist-height from the cockpit floor to the top of the side gunnels, giving a very secure feeling when underway. However, we wondered if the deep cockpit might become annoying in real-world fishing and boating. We’ll let you know.

Our boat, like most in this era, had started life with a stendrive engine, but at some point, it was swapped out for some very agricultural bracing and twin outboard engines hanging off the transom. A big, old couch covered up the void where the inboard engine mounted.

None of that was too much of an issue, as we had plans to remodel the stern in order to fit up our new/old Yamaha 250.

In our next instalment of the Pride Sea Raider saga, we’ll consider the options when it comes to mounting a large outboard engine on the transom.

There's also likely to be the inevitable hidden surprises and unexpected blowouts that seem to lurk in every project boat.