Alloycraft 463 and 498 Bass Pro Series

It’s not often that we get two, brand new, fully fitted out sportsfishing boats to do a comparative test with. Being in charge of compiling and then water testing the ABT Prize Boats for the BREAM and BASS 2021 Grand Final presented a window of a few days’ opportunity where we got to do just that.

We met some of the BlueFin Fishing Team at the Broadwater Parklands ramp on the Gold Coast and got to shooting this test, both in video and still photograph format. You’re reading the print version here, but you can also watch the video version by scanning the QR code nearby. I know y’all know how to do it now. That’s been one positive of COVID. We are all QR experts!

There’s only a little over a foot difference between the smaller 463 and bigger 498 hulls. However, you can tell while fishing as there’s a lot more fishing deck space in the 498 and proportionally more storage under it.

498 - The consoles are undeniably small, which gives a low profile for fishing, but means that you need to bracket mount your larger electronics.

498 -These tinnies are pretty fun to drive. Fitted with maximum horsepower, they’re trim responsive and let you get to your next spot in a hurry.

498 - You can really see the extra front deck space you get with the extra foot of boat here. There’s a little more space to lay rods down each side of the deck.

498 - The 498’s rod locker is centrally located and eats a mountain of rods up the middle of the boat.

Both of the boats are fitted with an original Power Pole. They’re essential for shallow water lure fishing where you need to stop the boat quickly and quietly to take advantage of a school of fish on the flats.

498 - You can add a filler to the recessed trolling motor pedal if you like to move the control around the deck.

498 - One of the main differences between the hulls is the ability of the 498 to sit three-across at the helm. The 463 only sits two comfortably.

463 -The 463 carries its beam a long way forward, which translates to a lot more front deck space than a traditional tinny of a comparable length.

463 - You can add a filler to the recessed trolling motor pedal if you like to move the control around the deck.

463 - The consoles are undeniably small, which gives a low profile for fishing, but means that you need to bracket mount your larger electronics.

463 - Both rigs display exceptional fuel economy, the 463/90hp delivering up to 3.9km/L while the bigger 498/115 yielding 3.8km/L. It makes the small 25L tank in the 463 seem nearly acceptable with a near 100km range at its most efficient.

498 -There’s only a little over a foot difference between the smaller 463 and bigger 498 hulls. However, you can tell while fishing as there’s a lot more fishing deck space in the 498 and proportionally more storage under it.

463 - Both boats have spacious livewells, plumbed and controlled from the helm.

463 - These tinnies are pretty fun to drive. Fitted with maximum horsepower, they’re trim responsive and let you get to your next spot in a hurry.

463 - You can really see the extra front deck space you get with the extra foot of boat here. There’s a little more space to lay rods down each side of the deck.

498 -Both rigs display exceptional fuel economy, the 463/90hp delivering up to 3.9km/L while the bigger 498/115 yielding 3.8km/L. It makes the small 25L tank in the 463 seem nearly acceptable with a near 100km range at its most efficient.

463 - One of the main differences between the hulls is the ability of the 498 to sit three-across at the helm. The 463 only sits two comfortably.

498 -Both boats have spacious livewells, plumbed and controlled from the helm.

463 - There’s only a little over a foot difference between the smaller 463 and bigger 498 hulls. However, you can tell while fishing as there’s a lot more fishing deck space in the 498 and proportionally more storage under it.

You’ll see in the images and in the video some of these guys in action, with senior members of the team, like Lismore’s Bill Latimer, mentoring the junior members like Elyon Cloete and Marcus Hope. It’s all done under the supervision of BlueFin chief, Brad Richey, who co-ordinates the importation of these aluminium hulls from China.

BlueFin did used to manufacture locally, but these model sportsfishing boats are suitable for an international market and are exported all over the world. Australian is just one of these markets.

If you check out the website (www.bluefinboats.com.au under ‘Sportsfishing boats’), you’ll see all of the images sport Mercury outboards. They’re the official partner of Alloycraft internationally, but also happen to be ABT’s outboard sponsor.

As such, the smaller 463 was fitted with a 90hp CT Mercury 4-stroke, while the larger 498 hull was supplied with a Mercury 115hp ProXS outboard. Both of these motors are the maximum horsepower allowed on the hulls.

Before we get onto the performance statistics and differences, though, let’s have a look at the level of fitout and the accessories that the ABT sponsors have added to these turnkey prizes.

READY TO FISH

These prizes are given away as a ‘ready to fish’ package. Just add fuel and you’re ready to cast lures anywhere in Australia. They come with sounder, lithium batteries, electric motors, Hydrowaves and the all important Power Poles.

The 493 went to the winner of the 13 Fishing BASS Pro Series on the Richmond River (Dane Pryce from Bonnels Bay in NSW) and the 463 to the BREAM Grand Final winner on the Clarence River last December (Mario Vukic from Victoria).

From the ground up, both boats are supplied on single axle, galvanised trailers from Precision Boat Trailers in Melbourne. It was nice to see a trailer company finally stepping up to the plate and supporting fishing events, just quietly. Plenty don’t speak English anymore when asked to help contribute to the development of the sport.

Both boats were easy to drive on and off the trailer and centred well on the retrieve.

And although it superficially makes them look the same, both have the factory supplied and installed Alloycraft BASS Pro Series boat wraps, in ABT green.

In the water, the easiest way we could tell the difference between them was by the colour of the electric motors on the bow. The bigger 498 had the black Garmin Force while the smaller 463 had the white MotorGuide i5.

Batteries are included in these packages, with Green Marine Lithium cranking batteries fitted to turn over the Mercurys and run the electronics, while the trolling motors are powered by separate high capacity Green Marine lithiums. With the ridiculously low weight of these batteries, they can be mounted up the front of the boat and not effect the performance.

And that’s exactly what OMP Style (Owen McPaul) did. The Gold Coast based boat fitter specialises in custom fitting and rigging and turned these rigs from a simple BMT package into the ready-to-fish machines that we gave away.

With the lightweight of the lithium battery chargers, we chose not to mount them permanently in the boat. I much prefer to tote them in the tow vehicle and bring them out for the hour or two that it takes to top them up after a fishing session.

In case you’re not familiar with lithium battery chemistry, they take lots of amps quickly and usually only take a short while to register full charge again. Usually you can put all the charging gear away before you lock up for the night.

Each of the rigs was fitted with a ram-mounted Lowrance HDS12 at the helm via a RAM Mount. Ideally, these large electronics should be able to be flush mounted in the console, but the BASS Pro models have no chance of that.

In the meantime, the mount swivels make sure the large screen can be seen from the front deck while fishing there. It’s a way to have a $5,000 sounder that can be used from two positions.

Other noticeable differences are in the seating were the 463 sits two-across, while the 498 can seat three persons across the helm.

Transoms and the treatment of the fuel tanks is a big difference. The 463 has a simple transom arrangement and (for this year’s model) a remote 25L fuel tank. This is less than ideal, as most tournaments would see you wanting more range than this craft offers.

This has been rectified, however, in future models, with an underfloor fuel tank like in the 498 provided.

You can’t tell by looking at it, but bravo to Alloycraft for having underfloor storage that is made a dry as possible! I can’t tell how many times I’ve written, “great storage space, but don’t put anything under that that can’t get soaked.” Nearly all Aussie aluminium boat manufacturers don’t weld on a lip to the storage aperture or any plumbing to get rid of the excess water. In those boats, water will drip down through the carpet and onto your tackle boxes with thousands of bucks worth of lures in them.

The Alloycraft will channel and drain that excess water away. Dry hatches. Amen.

PERFORMANCE

The time to get the best performance out of any boat is to test it and do the numbers before anyone had the chance to overload it with water (in the live-wells), tackle and fuel. It can add hundreds of kilograms, to the point where I often hear that peoples’ boats ‘don’t perform like they used to’.

I have a hint for you. Take all of the gear out and you’ll be back to first-day performance.

That said, we were impressed by the economy of both these boats. They differed by only 100m/L of fuel burned yielding 3.7-3.8km/L at 3500rpm. This shoots you along at mid-forties.

Of course, tournament anglers rarely cruise at best economy. Take about 30% off the best figures for ‘hammering along’ economies.

A massive thanks to everyone who helped get these boats together. They’re eminently towable by nearly any vehicle and would suit anyone in the market for a nimble and fishable rig for inshore waters.

Check them out online and you can get pricing from your nearest BlueFin dealer. Indicative pricing for the prize boats is around $50K for the smaller rig and $60K for the larger. That’s with all of the accessories fitted.

BMT prices start from under $40K and under $50K.

Specifications:
463                     489
Length 4.63m 4.98m
Beam 2.14m 2.24m
Bottom 2.5mm 3mm
Side 2.5mm 3mm
Hull weight 364kg 450kg
Max HP 90 115
Capacity 4 persons 4 persons

Performance:
463 Alloycraft    
RPM Speed(km/h) Economy (km/l)
1000 6 2.3
2000 9 1.4
3000 31 3.7
3500 43 3.9
4000 46 3.3
5000 55 2.8
5300 61 2.9
WOT 68 n/a

498 Alloycraft
RPM Speed(km/h) Economy (km/l)
1000 7 2.9
2000 11 1.6
3000 36 3.2
3500 46 3.8
4000 55 2.8
5000 59 2.6
5300 67 2.4
WOT 73 1.7