New Savage Glass-- First Look

Telwater is one of the latter and continue to pull a rabbit out of the hat with a variety of models from their extensive brand listing. The old adage, 'when the going gets tough the tough get going' rings true here.

We heard but a whisper that a couple of Savages were down at their Coomera factory and were about to be trucked to Melbourne for their debut at the up-coming Boat Show.

High-tailing it down there we arrived just as the boat freighter was closing in, held up due to the last minute detailing underway before the journey south. Well, the driver would have to wait a little longer; this was too good to miss!

Sheltered from the incessant rain under a large awning we found the 580C and the 640C, two of the four ‘all-new’ fibreglass boats that will be arriving on our shores from that place where much of the world’s manufacturing has been done in recent times.

Yet to arrive were the 480C, a cabin boat like those afore mentioned, and the 650 Walk Around. These boats will arrive in the country from Nereyda, a Chinese ship-building company, packed two to a 40ft container in a ‘ready to fit out and detail’ state. Once off their shipping cradles they will be loaded onto Telwater’s own manufactured alloy and galvanised steel trailers and shipped to dealers fitted with Evinrude ETEC motors where those franchises have agreements, or shipped bare-transom to others.

The two three-blade screws ran out to 5600 rpm while the four hit the rev limiter at 6000 rpm. From past experience the four-blade 17P Vensura will be well suited to low-speed travelling while on the plane and it is ‘either or’ regards the other propellers. Proof will be in the testing when we get to it to gauge hole shot and mid to high-range acceleration torque, at a later date.

When the influx of Chinese imports first started flooding our markets we would have been kidding ourselves if we said we didn’t view some of them with a certain amount of suspicion when it came to quality. And there was justification back then in many cases. A lot of the disquiet though in reality was due to jealousy and disdain; just another part of human nature. Generally speaking we are getting used to the fact that not all things will be home grown in the future and the boating industry will be no different. Sad but true.

While there wasn’t a lot ‘standing out’ with the propeller performance, the finish of these hulls really caught our eye. From out scrutiny of the static boat, any doubts about quality control when it comes to these hulls can be cast aside.

While we couldn’t get into the bilges to check out the structural integrity, the decks were solid under foot and the attention to detail as good as it is going to get in any production-line fibreglass boat. An 85-litre stainless-steel fuel tank sat under the deck of the 580C while one of 170 litres was installed in the 640C.

Of note was the stepped chine running forward to the bow keel line. The deadrise to the centre keel was interrupted by a strake which stopped short of the transom and a tapered planing plank finished at the transom around 100mm wide.

The stern is rebated slightly to bring the motor forward and a concave in the transom bulkhead allows for full tilt of big-engine power heads.

Two rings were fixed through the stern and while they might suit ski ropes, they were a tad too close to the surface to avoid a lot of water drag. They were held in place by small washers on the inside so perhaps larger plates will make them more skier friendly but in the meantime, tie-down points they are.

The transom bulkhead featured two lift-out and removable gates that when removed exposed a nice smooth entry/exit.

Rear lounges were in the form of two bunged stowage boxes that were upholstered and removable to any part of the boat or onto the beach if you wanted to use them as an ice box.

A large hatch in the aft deck opened to a kill tank that ran to the stern and it was large enough to fit the biggest of mackerel if you should get so lucky. The passage of the wiring loom was through this tank ,so serious offshore anglers might want to shroud thE loom to protect against toothy critters.

The cockpit and the cabin walls are adorned with plenty of stowage pockets but those in the cockpit have their fascias set quite high so might be a little tight if looking to stow tackle trays and other items of like size.

The helm station sat high and had a flat fascia for flush mount of a medium-sized electronic cabinet, and engine management gauges were installed on a brow above.

The windscreen is a one piece acrylic wrap-around style on which clears are fixed and attached to the collapsible bimini.

Cabin space is roomy with a foot well recessed for more comfort and it was good to see a forward high edge on the bunk cushions that give under-knee support while seated but prevent, to some extent, gear and sleeping bodies rolling off should the boat get a rock up.

A good-sized cabin roof hatch gave easy access to the anchor which was under a hatch with a camber lock catch. It will require a bit of fine tuning to lock and be flush at the same instant -- no big deal.

Impressed? You bet and we can’t wait to get them onto the water!

These hulls will be well suited to the Australian market and a retail price of $46,500 for the 580C with a Mercury 115hp Optimax and $53,900 for the 640C fitted with the 150 Mercury, they will surely turn some heads and open a few wallets!

The boats we briefly looked at are on the way to:
Crawford Marine,
75-79 Chickerell Street, Morwell Victoria 3840
Telephone (03) 5134 6522
Email: sales@crawfordmarine.com.au
Website: www.crawfordmarine.com.au