Salthouse 50

The light drizzle falling as I arrived at the Waikiki Yacht Club was disappointing because I had planned to photograph the new Salthouse 50 Manu Kea later that afternoon and it was apparent the weather was not going to cooperate.

However, my disappointment over the gloomy weather was nothing compared to Julie Salthouse's disappointment over the first race of the America's Cup series back home in Auckland Harbour.

Between providing me with tidbits of information about this spacious, comfortable and practically laid-out product of her father's famed New Zealand boatyard, Julie grimaced and groaned as the saloon's TV monitor showed in graphic detail the severe tribulations those once unbeatable Kiwi sailors were suffering in Race One.

Those disappointments aside, the rest of the afternoon and evening proved to be an extremely positive experience, as a very knowledgeable scion of a respected Kiwi boatbuilding family thoroughly acquainted me with the first Salthouse powerboat in Hawaii.

FAMILY VALUES
Julie's enthusiasm for her family's product was later mirrored when owners Peter Lewis and Mike Farrell showed up to put their new inter-island fishing machine through its paces for me. They were not only thrilled with Manu Kea (which translates from Hawaiian as 'white island'), but they were also impressed with the company that had delivered it.

As the day rolled on it quickly became apparent that if you buy a Salthouse Marine Group product, you become part of the Salthouse family - a family that takes good care of you.

The two Honolulu business executives actually took delivery of Manu Kea in New Zealand, enjoying the scenic beauty and gustatory opportunities of Aotearoa - "the land of the long white cloud" - all the while learning the intricacies of their new vessel. They also had several last-minute changes incorporated into Manu Kea before it was shipped to Hawaii.

These guys had no doubt about what they wanted in a boat. Peter Lewis is the son of Dudley Lewis, who was part of the brain trust that created the Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament, and who served as the first IGFA Trustee from Hawaii. Peter literally grew up fishing inter-island on his dad's famous sampan Leimalia. Mike has a strong mechanical background (as well as an equally strong passion for fishing), and he had his nose in the mechanical aspects of their Saltie from day one.

SALT OF THE EARTH
BlueWater readers are no strangers to the Salthouse Marine Group's boats. Primetime, one of the top gameboats in New Zealand every year, and a popular choice for BlueWater readers' trips, this boat is probably the most well known out of the Salthouse stable.

However, Bill and Robyn Hall's world record-setting Te Ariki Nui was built on a Bob Salthouse hull, and Aussie Peter Trethewey's new 65ft Salthouse is already making waves in Cabo San Lucas and other Pacific west coast fishing hot spots (but more on that boat later).

The current Salthouse product line traces its roots at least as far back as the 1950s, when brothers John and Bob Salthouse were building custom one-off boats of every description. Bob Salthouse eventually split off to focus more on design work and production boats - leaving the one-off business to his brother. The Corsair motor launches Bob designed have been in production for over 25 years, and about 750 boats from Bob's prolific design board have been splashed over the years.

The first Salthouse 50 'Sovereign' evolved from a one-off design in the early '80s, but production started on the model in about 1996 and there are now around 28 of them in the water. Current annual production is about seven boats per year, but with the completion of new molds for the 57 and the 60, production is expected to increase to about a dozen boats per year.

PERSONAL TOUCH
Despite being a 'production boat', virtually every Salthouse reflects many of the individual interests of its owner, and the sport (and food) fishing interests of the guys buying Manu Kea were clearly established from day one. Like all Salthouse boats, Manu Kea bears many signs of both the owners' specific preferences and a few things learned from other sportsfishermen who have previously ordered Salthouse boats. The fish freezer Peter Lewis wanted under the cockpit floor of Manu Kea is the kind of thing that will be incorporated into future boats.

Manu Kea is a moulded planing hull with a sharp entry, hard chines, a relatively flat planing stern section and a keel that runs aft roughly to the point where the shafts exit the hull. The transom angles slightly forward, allowing it to back up well and softening the entry astern.

BUILT TO LAST
Like its Salthouse siblings, Manu Kea was built to Lloyds standards. It sports three layers of osmosis barrier below the waterline, and balsa core is used all the way up the hull. The only spray installation is the gelcoat, and the rest of the hull is entirely hand laid. Four laminated marine ply stringers run the length of the hull, completely encapsulated in omnidirectional fiberglass mat. The engine beds are glassed into the stringers.

On those stringers in Manu Kea sits a pair of 450hp Cat 3126s, in an engine room accessible from the cockpit, through the saloon floor and from under the stairs to the forward cabins. This spacious, mechanical area is well laid out, with full access around both engines.

The engineroom spaces include a 10kW Onan genset fitted with a sound shield, the freezer compressor, a couple of water tanks (there is no watermaker), the hot water heater and a well-thought-out engine oil change system that includes a hose long enough to reach the dock. No more drips or spilled buckets on the way out of the engineroom! Round corners and easy-to-keep-clean painted surfaces make the engineroom both practical and attractive.

FISH-WISE
The cockpit reflects the fishing interests of its owners and revolves around a stylish, functional stainless steel Blue Water gamechair with teak inserts and a relatively small footprint. A large fish freezer with eutectic plates is under the cockpit sole to starboard, and to port in the parallel location is access to a large lazarette storage area. Both hatches sport a unique pressurised rubber seal that positively latches the hatches so no surface water gets through these deck seals! Outboard are additional storage areas for gaffs, tagpoles and deck brushes.

A very practical sliding door disappears into the transom, and that door is plenty big enough to board one of Hawaii's granders. A very practical, removable aluminum boarding platform extends aft from the open transom door on Manu Kea, making stepping from and onto the dock a cinch.

There is also a large-capacity baitwell built into the transom, flanked by a pair of tuna tubes that overflow through the baitwell. All are flushed with their own independent Rule pumps. The forward end of the cockpit includes a substantial bait freezer/tackle prep station and storage area.

MOVING IN & AROUND
A pair of Kilwell outrigger poles are mounted in stainless steel bases on the cabin sides, and the bowrail runs well aft assuring plenty of safety for crew members moving along the sidedecks. The bowrail and all the other welded stainless steel work on the boat are excellent.

A ladder to port leads up through a sealable Lewmar hatch onto the spacious flybridge, which features a massive curving settee forward and an aft positioned helmstation. A unique slide-out tackle locker pulls out of the forward seating area providing secure, dry storage for big, bent butt rod and reel outfits. Sliding windows port and starboard and two overhead Lewmar hatches in the fiberglass hardtop provide excellent ventilation on the bridge and well-placed hatches also provide excellent lighting and good air circulation for the cabins below. Full clears surround the flybridge area.

ELECTRONICALLY SPEAKING
The helmstation includes Hynautic single-lever controls, a custom instrument layout with electronic read-outs, Raymarine instrumentation and autopilot, VHF and CB radios, a bridge fridge, AutoAnchor and searchlight controls and a Furuno Navnet system with CMap NT.

Thanks to some judicious wiring at the factory, we could also watch the last gasps of the first America's Cup race on one window of the Furuno Navnet monitor on the bridge, and could monitor and operate virtually any of the ship's systems from the luxurious Salthouse helmchairs. Those helm seats were easily adjustable to support virtually any body-type, and included perimeter hand holds for getting around the bridge safely in rough seas.

Entering the cabin from the cockpit you are surrounded by a very practical, very spacious U-shaped galley to port with Trezzini laminate countertops, Fisher & Paykel dishwasher, large GE double-door refrigerator, counter-top cook top, oven, deep sink and tons of under-counter storage, including deep drawers with positive lock closures.

Forward of the galley area to port is a large circular dinette with additional storage areas filling all unused space. The saloon dinette converts to a berth for additional guests. A fully equipped entertainment centre is amidships to starboard - where anyone in the area can enjoy it - and under the entertainment complex is a large, functional liquor cabinet.

Walking forward down a staircase you are flanked by very well-laid-out electrical panels to both port and starboard. At the bottom of the stairs to starboard is a spacious, nicely moulded head compartment with lots of ventilation (hatch and porthole), and a big shower stall with hidden half-circle Perspex shower door.

All the way forward is one of the master staterooms, with an island berth, hanging locker, plenty of storage drawers and a TV monitor. Aft of it, on the port side, is the second master stateroom (remember, this boat has two masters), with similar accommodations but slightly less storage space.

TRUE CHALLENGE
Having reviewed the details of the interior, we headed out of the Ala Wai Yacht Harbor channel and turned left toward Diamond Head, in the hope of finding some rougher seas than those in the lee of the Koolau Mountains and famed Waikiki Beach.

En route, we found that the Salthouse 50 ran comfortably and was notably quiet. It was faster than expected, remarkably stable when stopped in a beam sea, and it backed down impressively. Who could want more?

When we stuck her nose around Diamond Head, we found a bit more swell and a tad more wind - enough to tell me that the Saltie was reasonably dry and would meet the challenge of Hawaii's inter-island channels safely and comfortably, virtually any time of year.

My overall impression? A quality boat, well engineered and well executed with enough semi-custom configurations to meet the clients' personal preferences. I found excellent fit and finish throughout, including beautiful woodwork everywhere with a nicely applied satin finish.

What didn't I like? The poor sight lines from the helm, which present the skipper with some uncomfortable blind spots, including parts of the cockpit and the bow. In my estimation there are not enough hand-holds in the saloon and passageway overheads, especially to meet the requirements of our rough inter-island waters. There are multiple levels and protrusions in the transom top creating line snaggers and knuckle bangers, and the tiny drain provided for the in-deck fish freezer is inadequate for getting the guck and scales out of that otherwise superbly crafted installation.

A FINE BALANCE
They say every boat is a compromise, and certainly every semi-custom production boat reflects the compromises made by the builder to meet the specific interests of the customer. The Salthouse 50 Manu Kea makes the best of those compromises, which results in a vessel that meets the expectations and needs of her owners, and still reflects very well on the Salthouse Marine Group.

The twin disappointments of the local weather and the Americas Cup debacle were quickly overshadowed by a fine vessel, a couple of rightfully proud owners, and a knowledgeable spokesperson for the Salthouse Marine Group who, ignoring the weather and the debacle being suffered by her beloved sailors - went beyond the call to introduce this stranger to the Salthouse family and its way of boatbuilding.