by Steve Morgan •
This is the first Surtees boat I have ever been in. The New Zealand built hull is made from plate aluminium and boasts a water ballast system that floods while at rest, offering extra weight for cutting through waves and pulling the hull down onto the chines while at rest. You can keep the water ballast in the chamber when you manually lock down the rear chamber door.
We took the Game Fisher 650 model out for a run with Mark Golden from Brisbane’s Northside Marine. Mark is a great advocate of these hulls – he sells them and loves both the build quality and the ride that these boats offer.
Paired with a 150hp Yamaha 4-stroke outboard, it’s not just a good looking rig, it’s economical and practical as well.
“They don’t run any strakes or chines underneath the hull apart from the 50mm reverse chine right at the edge of the hull, giving you a clean skin and a great ride,” Mark said. “Also, the narrower hull gives it a really good ride while underway, but when you stop, the flooded keel takes in water and pulls the boat a little deeper in the water, giving you great stability.”
Surtees has a manual system that can lock the ballast water in place, offering an even smoother ride while the boat is running and it seems as though the Surtees designer is a fan of keeping that water there while running.
Mark was also happy to demonstrate the stability while at rest. While dropping a line and standing in the port rear corner, listing was imperceptible. Box ticked.
Powered by Yamaha’s F150hp outboard, the 650 was quick onto the plane and delivered a top speed of 69km/h at 5,900rpm. At this pace, it yielded 1.1km/L, but this stretched out to 1.87km/L at a more moderate 3,500rpm. At those cruising revs, the Game Fisher travelled at 34 km/h.
Unfortunately, the calm day didn’t let us really test the 20° of transom deadrise built into this hull. The theory is that the steeper this angle, the more the hull will cut the water rather than pound down on it.
Beautifully welded, the Surtees boasts a 5mm bottom sheet and 4mm side sheets, ensuring a durable and long lasting shell.
Powered by a Yamaha F150 4-stroke outboard, the rig jumped out of the hole with ease. This is usually the case with dealer test boats, which are often empty of all gear apart from the necessary safety kit, and have near-empty tanks.
You can see that the hull hardly moves with the weight all on one side for fishing. Granted, Mark Golden isn’t Hulk Hogan.
This Surtees comes on a locally (Australian) built aluminium I-beam trailer. It needs a double axle and benefits from that while towing.
There’s no doubt that the Surtees looks the goods, both on the trailer and in the water. The cabin and the hull look like they’re meant to be together and aren’t just an afterthought.
You can see the forward chines working here. On calm days you can really see how that works, and you can see them in action on the Fishing Monthly YouTube channel (just scan the QR code hereabouts).
There’s not much room for a flush-mounted sounder of any consequence in the dash, yet there’s plenty of room on top of it. Visibility is great and the windows are in the right place, especially for a Queensland boat.
It’s no good up here for a family of four, but there is room to stretch out when you’re done hauling in a feed.
I’ll tell you what this boat does have in spades: cockpit space!
The port side seat base holds some clever storage and a padded to sit on.
On the starboard side there’s a frame with an aftermarket cooler underneath, which is good for fish or food.
Although the transom holds a lot of gear and storage space, it all folds down to be a smooth area to lean against while working at the bait board.
With 20º of transom deadrise and the water ballast system, the Surtees offers the best opportunity for a smooth ride in a plate aluminium hull.
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Supplied on an Australian built, twin axle aluminium I-beam trailer, this boat falls into the zone of twin-cab ute or larger to really tow it effectively. The twin axles, initially a legal necessity, become a real advantage when towing longer distances to better fishing spots. They dampen some of the instability of a loaded single axle and provide a little peace of mind when it comes to dealing with any potential blowouts.
“The Surtees is very easy to maintain,” Mark said. “Most of the raw aluminium surfaces are coated with Nyalic, which helps to limit oxidation and keeps these surfaces looking brand new.”
This is handy, because the 650 boasts a huge cockpit area that primarily made up of unpainted aluminium. This workspace can be easily maintained with a garden hose, and you don’t need to be scared when the action becomes thick and fast and the bait and fish are flying.
Northside Marine package a local outboard and trailer with this imported hull, and offer full warranties on all of the gear. As tested, this rig came in at $91,933, however packages start from $81,356.
Make sure you visit Northside Marine’s yard, or check out their website at www.northsidemarine.com.au for more information. Their Facebook page is ‘Northside Marine – your boating partners for life’.
SPECIFICATIONS
Length……………………………………… 6.50m
Beam………………………………………… 2.375m
Water ballast………………………….. 300L
Bottom sheet…………………………… 5mm
Side sheet………………………………… 4mm
Max HP…………………………………….. 200
Fuel…………………………………………… 250L
Dry hull weight……………………….. 890kg
Transom deadrise…………………… 20º
Capacity……………………………………. 6 persons
Tow weight (approx.)…………….. 1,690kg
PERFORMANCE
RPM.. Speed (km/h)…….. Economy (km/L)
1000…………………. 7………………………… 2.6
2000………………… 12………………………… 1.6
3000………………… 24………………………… 1.7
3500………………… 34………………………. 1.87
4000………………… 42………………………… 1.8
5000………………… 56………………………… 1.5
5900………………… 69………………………… 1.1
* running a 15” Yamaha SDS propeller
