Mustang 37 Flybridge

Welcome back!

The buzzword around the docks and moorings over the past 12 months in this country has been 'Mustang' and for all the wrong reasons.

While rumours were abounding, the death knell was ringing for one of the biggest names in sportscruisers!

Briefly, the drama unrolled as follows.

Oliver, a big name in flybridge boats in NZ amalgamated with Mustang in Australia. The R&D and intellectuality came across the Tasman, bringing to this country a new range of sport, game and recreational fishing boats to suit the mid to upper end of the market.

This was a major financial outlay for the directors and an active partner in the rebooting of the Mustang name was the National Australia Bank (NAB). As the value of the AUD crept closer to that of the USD, the flood of imported sportscruisers into this country became a torrent to the point where local manufacture of this style of boat became increasingly less cost effective.

Coupled with this was (and still is) an acute shortage in the labour market for tradespeople at all levels and in all types of manufacturing. Anyone with knowledge in manufacturing, IT and skilled labour is gobbled up by the burgeoning mining industry all round the country.

 At that point the directors of Mustang decided that manufacturing of the hulls offshore would help regain some of their lost margins. The NAB got wind of this and had other ideas. It promptly called in receivers to protect the bank's only asset which was the boat moulds. The receivers locked the gates and with boats partway through construction - creditors, suppliers and customers were owed many dollars - the entire deal got messier by the minute.

STANDARD TO THE RESCUE
A number of people and companies looked at acquiring the business until, finally, Standard Bank, who has their investment branch in Hong Kong, made the move and purchased Mustang.

Apparently, they have no plans at this stage of moving offshore and have, in fact, allocated a huge amount of funds for R&D and took over the Gold Coast Mustang dealership to use as their corporate centre. Being in close proximity to both the factory and the Gold Coast, this would seem to be a sensible manoeuvre.

With most of the management staff retained, the CEO was replaced by Chris Heaton, the previous owner of the Oliver boat business in NZ.

So folks, it looks like business as usual, albeit from well behind the starting line, but things do appear to be looking up for Mustang.

As the dust settled on the Mustang drama, a 37 Flybridge model arrived at Runaway Bay Marina and on a day of strong-wind warning for the entire coast and Moreton Bay, we took it for a cruise up the Broadwater.

This model is pretty much the same as the one released by Mustang on the Gold Coast back in 2006. We recognised some of the features in it that we would have liked to have seen changed back then and still would, but time will remedy that. After all, the company has been through the wringer!

Noticeably, the marlin board on this and other models we have viewed in the past is too long. At approximately 0.95m in length, anglers fishing at the transom will have fouling issues with line across the back edge of the board when fish either get close or are perpendicular to the rod tip. This means that in the later stages of battle, angler position will have to be in the aft corners with the boat backing down at an angle. It is great as a recreational asset, there is plenty of room for sunbaking and using the board as a swim-out platform. In fact Mustang refers to this appendage as their 'teak bathing platform'.

A telescopic ladder is rebated into the board, secreted under a hinged hatch. When backing down into chop the hatch is pushed open so a retaining clip or cord has potential here. Centrally located in the board is another hatch that opens to a wet tank attached to the transom. In this case, it was full of freshwater from weeks of torrential rain and there was no way of pumping it out. Apparently, there is supposed to be a pump fitted for this purpose but wasn't. This area is about 150lt in volume and does have a drain bung at the bottom.

ALL ABOARD
Entry to the cockpit is via a lift-open and fold-back coaming, and a swing-out marlin door of good proportions. Once the coaming is opened and laid back across the transom bulkhead, the underside is lined with a nylon cutting board and can be used for bait preparation.

Directly below this board in the bulkhead is a hatch that gives access to the plumbing for the deckwash and shower that sits behind covers on the inside edge of the marlin door opening. This compartment would make good stowage for bait-rigging tools and gear. In the middle of the transom bulkhead is a deep livebait tank with a lid held open by a collapsible spring. Farther across under the next hatch is a hand basin and tap for clean up.

While working and/or fishing in this area, a number of rebates in the inner liner give one plenty of foot access for maximum stability in a rolling or rough sea when standing.

In the port and starboard-side cockpit liner are two elongated hatches that access more stowage space.

Up against the aft wall of the cabin on the starboard side is a vertical rod locker. It is drainable and a good place to stand gear for washing and securing later. There is no rack arrangement here and as far as rod stowage is concerned, no rodholders or rod racks appear anywhere on this boat. With no access to horizontal gaff and boat-hook racks, should game and sportsfishing be the direction you take this boat, such items could be tailor-made around this lockable vertical cabinet.

At its base, a corner module has a flat seating area with a hatch on its inside edge accessing the battery isolator bank. Another, lower in profile, holds one of the freshwater fillers and is the step used to climb onto the gunwale for walking around the superstructure.

In the opposite corner of the cockpit, a module under the rear galley window holds a freezer. Superimposed over this is a bowed ladder with timber foot treads up to the bridge.

A slight step up between these modules is the hatch to the engineroom which opens on a gas strut. The sea strainers are mounted to the rear of each Cummins engine and visible without climbing in. Fuel filters are mounted on the rear bulkhead directly under the opening, and the tops of these and other fittings are shrouded with an aluminium plate to prevent damage to them and to limbs when climbing into the engineroom.

Each engine sits over its own sump constructed by high longitudinal stringers. Between these two sumps is a central crawl-way that allows one to move forward between the engines. And being the lowest point in the hull it is fitted with the bilge pumps. The dipsticks for the gearboxes and engine are accessible from this pathway as is the engine sump pump-out apparatus.

The battery bank is on the starboard side and it will take a bit of effort to get to them around a vertical support post that holds up the saloon deck, while the air-con system is located at the forward end of the engineroom.

The bonding system on this boat attaches to metallic hull fittings and part of this system is a strap attached to the propeller shafts. It consisted of flat woven copper lead wrapped around the rotating shaft and held on the shaft by a spring with the earth wire attached to the system. This is a little different and is, in fact, the old style of bonding, whereas in more recent times we see metallic rollers leaning on such moving parts. A concern here is that if it gets wet (and it will) with saltwater and sits for some time, the copper will weld to the shaft which will wind it up when the engine is started. One of these was fitted to each shaft and its practicality probably needs a rethink for longevity of service-ability.

Access over the top of the engines is not possible due to the clearance to the underside of the saloon deck and the aft end of the installation is taken up with water-lock muffler systems for the engines.

IN THE SALOON
With the engineroom hatch closed, one opens double-glass aluminium framed doors to the saloon. To starboard, at head height, is the switchboard and below that, a fridge-freezer.

Moving forward is a bench seat that converts to an extra berth. On the forward end, on the outer wall of the electronics cabinet is a flat-screen TV on a multi-directional mount for viewing from all parts of the saloon.

In the aft end of the saloon to port is the U-shaped galley featuring a one-piece moulded top with the sink in the corner. Standing here, one may lean over the sink in rough seas without bashing the head on other structures. Next to it, a flat ceramic-top cooker is slightly raised over the surrounding bench top but has no fence or guard to prevent pans from sliding around and off the heat. Below that a microwave is flush mounted. The galley has plenty of deep drawers for utensils, but you will have to come up with your own racks and trays for cutlery and glasses though.

Forward of the galley island, a U-shaped seating arrangement is comfortable and the table is removable or may be lowered to form a small double berth.

The fore section of the saloon each side of the companionway to the lower deck is very deep-reaching and is the usual spot for all manner of reading material, charts and chattels. You'll fit plenty of everything here!

While the design lines of boats have more recently gone away from the 'rounded' look to more square in format, this section of the companionway is the wrong place for change. The timberwork at the entry is at a sharp 90-degree angle and with no grabrails to assist one below during a rough journey, will be a rib breaker for sure. The other side is also square, but more forward and one is well-and-truly down the stairs by the time they are level with that section of the bulkhead.

Three steps will take you below where, on the starboard side, a door opens to the double-bunk cabin with robe, while portside one accesses the ablutions.

Here we find the head immediately in front with shower alcove left. The head flushes to a 200lt holding tank with dockside emptying via a deck fitting or overboard lockable ball valve. The switches for the head pump and power outlets are across the back of where the head is located. There is a foot step and seat base for showering when the boat is heaving. The shower screen is constructed of a flexible opaque vinyl that slides in between the shower liner and companionway wall. When closed for showering it locks onto a laminated glass screen fitted to the wall. A hand basin is located in the forward corner and a mirror is fixed to the back of the door.

Into the stateroom and the queen sized double bed has step-up and walkaround access to about the halfway mark each side. The base and mattress rise on a gas strut to access stowage space inside the base which is fully carpeted. Another flat screen TV adorns the wall of one of two robes that have shirt-size hanging space and two drawers each. The walls, ceiling and sidepockets are soft-upholstered, and there is a mirror.

TO THE BRIDGE
Heading up to the bridge, one opens a hatch which has a tinted viewing window to warn of people on the other side at the top of the ladder. As one reaches the top steps there is a plumbed sink directly ahead that makes for a good handhold. There is stowage in the bottom of this unit and the helm station, which is quite wide, forms the other side of a companionway in which a flush-mounted refrigerator is fitted. A single wraparound lounge is located forward of the sink aft of the wind deflector at the front of the bridge, while a triple seat faces forward and runs across the front of the helm module. This is big enough for a single berth.

The throttles are paired together on the same binnacle mount on the starboard side of the helm and SmartCraft engine management is connected to the pair of Cummins 330hp engines. Raymarine's C120 unit is installed along with an autopilot. Railing in this and other parts of the boat is sturdy and good quality with full clears around the bridge. There is an awning coming off the bridgedeck providing extra shade for the cockpit, but, standing at the helm, blocks view of the cockpit out to the transom. Clear panels for viewing the boat's sides have been sewn into this canvas awning for docking.

When this boat sees serious service as a gamefishing machine, it will need a rethink on the installation of this awning so the skipper can maintain eye contact with those working the deck.

Out on the Broadwater the wind was now a sou'southeasterly and ripping in at 40kts. The inherent insurance issues of putting to sea in declared conditions prevented us from reporting on its capabilities in rough seas, which outside the seaway at the time were running at 3m on a swell of 2.5m.

Underway at full throttle and with the saloon doors closed, the ambient noise level was acceptable and normal speech possible. It was also quiet in the below-deck quarters.

Stability was good up on the bridge with wind and large bow waves on the sides and quarters.

On the throttles, manoeuvrability was also spot-on and should docking be a concern, bowthrusters are there to help.

Backing down into waves, the Mustang had to be pushed hard to bury the marlin board which sits high above the surface when the boat is dead in the water. The boat was also very direct and responsive throttling to port and starboard going astern and won't be a problem running down a fish.

Winding up to 2850rpm we achieved 23kts with a fuel burn for both engines running at 123lt/h. Back to 9kts it dropped to 65lt/h and loafing around at 4.8kts the SmartCraft was registering a paltry 3.1lt/h!

The boffins at Cummins advise that optioned up to a pair of 355hp engines expect an increase of four per cent in fuel consumption.

Well, unfortunately, the heavy-duty sea trials will be left to you. Should you be heading down the track of a flybridge cruiser under 40-foot the Mustang is a 'must test' boat. While we said Mustang are restarting well behind the line it is only a matter of time before they are up in the lead. It's good to see them back in the water.

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