hay guys, im off sunday morning to head to melboure to water test the 21ft smartliner boat that was at this years boat show i know alot of people dont like it for there own resons, but as a fishing boat it has lots of room to more and its cheap so i can spend some cash on it to make it better eg bit bigger motor and a canopy to start with,

what i would like some help with is with the water test what should i be looking for or trying in the boat cause the boats are so new, there isnt any reveiws on it, ive only found a couple of youtube vids





thankx for any help or tips

Firstly, I know very little about boats, however I do have opinions.

The hull shape looks more like an old displacement hull. I would have concerns as to its ride through any chop. Would think it is likely to slap hard, therefore being an uncomfortable ride at any sort of speed. Not sure with that shape how stable it would be a rest either with any side of side wave action. Would think it is likely to roll a bit. Seems though it may be more suited to flat inshore waters.

Can't say that I went to the boat show this year, so haven't seen it up close, only going by the videos you posted above.

Make sure you test it in similar conditions to that which you expect to use it in. Most boats handle well on a lake.

Just my 2 cents worth.

I think the idea of testing it out in less than perfect conditions is wise.

I think the reverse chines would provide stability.

I think the gunnels look to be quite low, maybe not so good if you have kids.

The helm position is very far forwards which may give a less than comfortable ride, and I'd also be checking for head height in the cabin, and the degree of difficulty getting through the front hatch to set and retrieve the anchor.

Apart from that, just like any other boat, try out a few tight figure eights to see how it handles when you change directions, and if it tends to cavitate in tight turns. Ride with a following sea to see if it has a tendancy to broach, and trim the bow down into a head sea to see how it cuts through the waves.

Get all passengers to lean over one side and check that it doesn't tip too far.

80hp on a 19' boat seems underpowered to me, so check out how easily it gets up onto the plane, and then what sorta top speed you reach at WOT.

Apart from that, everyone has different criteria.

I like the idea of the enclosed cabin for shelter, and being so far forwards I'd imagine it helps to maximise the working area.

You'll soon work out if it's the right boat for you, and good luck in your choice!

thankx guys, ive check out the weather and its ment to be anout 1.2-1.5 swell which would be about the weather i would go out in,

the side are a bit low for my liking but it is the same as a bar crasher 6.4m cause they both have self draining decks.

i will report back will what i find out

i hope it all works out for you mate , it will be great to go out with you on the reds with extra room. remember to ask about having the steering wheel lifted

Looks OK to me but as Ranger says - you might need a bit more power.
Hope the test went well.

hay guys back from melboure after the water test, and was very happy with it, it even stocked my old man with how it handle, we did flat out very tight figure 8 then made some chop in the water and went through that and all good we stop and got 3 of us on one side and did tip as much as my current boat dose with 2.

now the very supriseing thing was the 21ft boat they have for water test is the one from the sa boat show with the 75hp e-tec on it, my dad and i have talk about get a bigger motor, BUT this boat was unreal with this motor on it, it did a bit over 60km with 3 of us in it, got on the plane in about 5 seconds..and very smooth as a new motor should be.
so my old man and i have ordered one in white with a canopy with side and front clears will have it in 8-12 weeks cannt wait

if anyone wants to have a look and a ride, when it gets here just let me know
i'll put some pic's, up when i get it

All sounds good, so congratulations on the purchase!

I'm surprised at the performance of the engine, but it sounds great for such a small powerhouse and the E-Tec should be pretty economical too.

I've never seen one of these Smartliners before, so I'd be interested to have a quick look at it somewhere down the track.

thankx mate, and very welcome to check it out when i get it.

steve from jv marine who took us out said he made a vid, so i just found it on you tube if anyone want to check it out
flat seas but can see how well it turns

Very interesting concept there crestrida, one question is what deadrise dose it have.

With those reverse chines and the hydrodynamics of the hull design, I notice it doesn't bank in the corners and in the rough it does a bit of chine walking, it reminds me of the way the Clayton built Tridents handle.

Should be very fuel efficient with the set up.

I bet you will be counting the weeks down now.

I,d love to go for spin with you guys.

I looked up the specs. on the Smartliners and it didn't give the deadrise.

i seen the boat you are talking about at boat show looks well built the footage shown in rougher seas was good to see didnt seem to have any sudden pulls left or right after hitting the swell.for simply fishing purposes i though it would be perfect got heaps of room i usually like fishing only 2 out of most boats but 3/4 easy in this puppy only thing that worried me was hp but the etec in video seemed to get it up no problem man how exciting to get a brand spanking newbie did they fit you out with a heap of gear hope so congratulations looking forward to seeing some of your photo/footage.

4 of us went to Melbourne on the 6th Sep to test the 19 and 21 ft Smartliner boats.
The boats are at JV Marine in Melbourne.They are the only agents in Australia.
We took the boats out on Port Phillip bay, the sea was choppy with one and half metre swell.
Both handled very well,they surprised us on their performance.
The 21ft had 6 people in it and the 75 ecotech handled it with ease.We thought it would need a 90 plus but it had heaps of grunt.Handled a figure 8 easily.
The six of us in the 21 weighed approx 500 kg, at rest we all stood on the port side, there was some tilt naturaly but nothing in comparison to the Trailcraft that we have been fishing in for some years, especialy pulling cray pots in the South East.
The test was so good 2 x 21ft boats were purchased and possibly a 19.
As you can see we were more than pleased with the Smartliner.

Being the devils advocate & naturally sceptical, how much gear was on board these boats during this test? Were the tanks full & how big are they? Was the ground tackle suitable for their intended purpose. ect etc etc.
Seen many boat tests suggesting, yeah mate that horsepower would be ample, only to find the boat has the absolute minimum weight load so as not to detract from its performamce with a small motor.
I'm not saying that this was the case, but I find it pretty interesting that a 21ft boat can perform in any sea with just a 75 ponies.
Out of interest, as I cant seem to find any specs, what is the weight of these hulls?

thankx guys for your report on your water test. steve did say that he had 6 people in the 21 but didnt know if that was a sales pitch lol. The weight of the boat is about 750kg and it didnt have alot of weight when i went out, just saftey gear and about 300kg of people. there isnt many times will i am able to do 60km in the boat i have now AND will do way over 60 but i never get a chance to go that fast. im after fuel efficiency because i go out from pt broughton alot and the channel is 10km and most killa fishing spots are 30-50km away from the boat ramp

thankx everyone i cant wait to get it, ive ordered it in white with a black pin stripe and black canopy with front/side clears,

congratulations to my fellow smartliner owners