Boat Reviews

North Pacific Making New 49 Euro Pilothouse Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on September 27, 2020 Boat Reviews

North Pacific Yachts is building a new, contemporary, Euro-styled 49-foot pilothouse trawler that it expects to launch this fall. It has more windows, more curves, and more interior volume than the company’s traditional 49 pilothouse model. “With the Euro, we are excited to offer an option that’s fresh and modern, with the highest level of quality that you’d expect on the best traditional trawler,” said Trevor Brice, the company’s president. The 49 Euro will come with many engine options, offering speeds up to 21 knots. The original 49, which North Pacific still builds, has a single 355-hp Cummins; it cruises…

Greenline Building New 45 Coupe Hybrid Cruiser

By Peter Janssen on September 26, 2020 Boat Reviews

Greenline is building a new 45 Coupe hybrid that it plans to introduce at the Düsseldorf show in January. It’s a sport version of the 45 Fly that made its U.S. debut at the Miami show last February. Powered by twin 440-hp Volvo IPS600 pod drives, the 45 Couple will top out at about 30 knots. Under all- electric power, it can cruise at 6.5 knots, leaving no fumes, noise, vibration, or carbon footprint behind. An array of solar panels on the hardtop can produce at least 15kWh of energy on a sunny day, enough to meet the daily needs…

Hinckley Building New 35 Outboard with Iconic Looks

By Peter Janssen on September 24, 2020 Boat Reviews, On Watch with Peter Janssen

Hinckley is building a 35-foot outboard boat that looks pretty much like its iconic Picnic Boat, except for the twin Verados hanging off the stern. Indeed, says Scott Bryant, the company’s VP of sales and marketing, the new 35 “has the Hinckley curves, but with outboard propulsion.” The new 35, already under construction at Hinckley’s yard in Trenton, Maine, on the mainland just across from Mt. Desert Island, is not Hinckley’s first outboard boat. The traditional Down East builder introduced a Sport Boat series two years ago with outboards, first a 40c and then last year a 40x, with more…

Jeanneau Launches New Family-Friendly 40-Foot Leader

By Peter Janssen on September 22, 2020 Boat Reviews

Jeanneau just launched its all-new Leader 12.5, a 40-foot, two-cabin, multi-purpose boat that the company says is designed for family fun, simplicity and efficiency. With three 300-hp Yamaha outboards and a deep-V hull designed by Michael Peters, the Leader 12.5 tops out at 50 mph and cruises in the 35-mph range. The company’s flagship, the Leader 12.5 is built with social spaces all around, inside and out, with lots of flexible seating and sleeping space. You can climb aboard via an entry door on the starboard side. Push a button and the port bulwark in the cockpit folds out to…

Brooklin Launches New Version of Hemingway’s Pilar

By Peter Janssen on September 20, 2020 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The new Wheeler 38, a recreation of Ernest Hemingway’s famous Pilar, was just launched at the Brooklin Boat Yard in Maine, and now is cruising down to Key West with a top speed of 34 knots. The new boat is named Legend, and it was reverse engineered from the original Pilar by Bill Prince Yacht Design. It was built for the Wheeler Yacht Company at Brooklin with modern technology and creature comforts, including a Seakeeper gyro stabilizer. The original Pilar was built by the Wheeler Shipyard in Coney Island, New York, in 1933. Hemingway paid $7,495 for the boat and had…

Fall Boat Show Special: New Boats 35 Feet and Under

By Peter Janssen on September 16, 2020 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Here’s a look at just some of the new cruising boats, 35 feet and under, that, in normal times, you’d probably see at the fall boat shows this year: RANGER TUGS R-27 It would be hard to find a more user-friendly pocket cruiser than the Ranger Tugs R-27. Its two-cabin, one-head layout is made for cruising with a small family or a few friends; its light-filled salon makes living enjoyable, and its 300-hp Yamaha outboard delivers a 42-mph top speed that gets you where you want to go in a hurry. Ranger Tugs are made by Fluid Motion, in Kent,…

Fall Boat Show Special: Boats 36 to 50 Feet

By Peter Janssen on September 16, 2020 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Here’s a look at just some of the new cruising boats, 36 to 50 feet, that, in normal times, you’d probably see at the fall boat shows this year: BRABUS AXOPAR 37 If you thought the original Axopar 37 was cool, take a look at the new version, the BRABUS Shadow 900, and it’s a collaboration between BRABUS, a German company that transforms luxury cars (think Mercedes-AMG) into even higher-end luxury performance vehicles, and Axopar, the innovative builder from Finland. For the Shadow 900, BRABUS starts with the platform for the Axopar 37 and then customizes it. “BRABUS Marine products…

Fall Boat Show Special: Boats 51 Feet and Up

By Peter Janssen on September 16, 2020 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Here’s a look at just some of the new cruising boats, 51 feet and up, that, in normal times, you’d probably see at the fall boat shows this year: KROGEN EXPRESS 52 Even with a flying bridge and raised pilothouse, the Krogen Express 52 manages to carry a classic low profile, enhanced by a long, flowing sheer line that emphasizes the boat’s distinctive profile. And the “Express” part of its name is not a misnomer: With twin 480-hp Yanmars the Krogen Express tops out at about 22 knots. Dial back to 8 knots and the boat has a range of…

Aspen Launches All-New 35-Foot Power Cat

By Peter Janssen on September 11, 2020 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Aspen Power Catamarans just launched its all-new 35-foot C108 cruiser, powered by asymmetrical Yamaha outboards, and it hit a top speed of 25 knots and a fuel-efficient cruising speed of 19 knots, producing 2 nmpg. Larry Graf, Aspen’s founder and “chief adventurer,” designed the new proa-type cat so it could be trailered to new cruising grounds It has a beam of 10’ 8” and a combined boat and trailer weight of 12,500 pounds, so it could be towed by a ¾ ton pickup. Aspen owners are an adventuresome type, and some wanted a three-cabin boat that they could trailer easily…

Axopar Launching New 22-Foot Starter Boat

By Peter Janssen on September 9, 2020 Boat Reviews

In the past few years, Axopar has gained a large following by thinking outside the box, building its 28- and 37-foot models with their iconic looks and head-turning performance. Now, it seems, Axopar wants to become even more popular by thinking inside the box or, to put it more accurately, delivering its new 22-foot starter boat to you in its own box. That move alone would save several thousands of dollars over the usual shipping costs from the Axopar factory in Finland to the east coast of the U.S. In every other respect, the 22 carries on with the traditions…

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