Magnum
RIP
Today I had the great pleasure of sea trialling the Predator 72 that was on show at SIBS. Of course before I got to this stage I had to complete a full status questionaire and provide original bank statements for the last 3 years (sorry Gludy /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif)
The boat was in the process of being checked over and would later be cleaned in readiness for its new owner. It was a bit bouncy coming back from SIBS so lots of salty spray on its black hull. This one has silver painted top section but ours will be grey gel-coat, as per the Predator 62 at SIBS.
As with any reasonably sized vessel you can never get far enough away to get a decent side profile shot. Here's a few more snaps by the pontoon.
So off we trundled at 6.9 knots at tickover in "LOW IDLE" mode with a knot or so of tide helping us along. When out into the channel we increased speed slightly.
This was the first Predator 72 fitted with CAT C32 1675HP engines and I spoke to the Sunseeker technician at length about their performance. He said they've clocked a two way pass at an average of 41 knots which is around 2 knots quicker than the lighter MAN 1550's. Apart from 125HP there's one important difference between the two lumps. Both are V12's but the MANs have a cubic capacity of 21.9 litres where as the CATs measure 32.1L a pop.
So as soon as he was able to the skipper floored it. Wow, such brutish acceleration you could almost taste the torque being produced down in the boiler room. Within what seemed like 30 seconds this is what we saw.
"Bloody hell" I thought. 33 tons at 42knots - glad I'm not paying for fuel /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif But the best bit was yet to come. You don't expect a boat this size to be nimble but you can crank this baby over a fair way and she responds pretty quickly too.
I took the helm and after a few minutes of familiarisation decided to help double Poole's carbon footprint for the day.
I was delighted to see the right side of 40 knots and blimey did she get there quickly. But it was her handling that impressed the most - I just wasn't expecting anything this much fun. Certainly our P67 was positively lethargic in comparison. Sure, you don't actually feel like you're doing 40 knots in the same way as you do in a RIB, nor is she as responsive as many smaller vessels but I know what I'd rather be in going around Start Point. If you don't bank her over it's like being in a big flybridge boat but at +10 knots whatever you are doing. 35 knots felt a comfortable cruising speed. 25 knots was merely taking it very steady. There aint no substitute for cubic inches /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif
After a good hour or so at sea we set back and spent the rest of the afternoon discussing options together with nav and AV kit. There's a lot to think about and I intend taking my time. She'll be well specified and I know we're going to have some great times ahead.
I hope you enjoyed the pics /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
The boat was in the process of being checked over and would later be cleaned in readiness for its new owner. It was a bit bouncy coming back from SIBS so lots of salty spray on its black hull. This one has silver painted top section but ours will be grey gel-coat, as per the Predator 62 at SIBS.
As with any reasonably sized vessel you can never get far enough away to get a decent side profile shot. Here's a few more snaps by the pontoon.
So off we trundled at 6.9 knots at tickover in "LOW IDLE" mode with a knot or so of tide helping us along. When out into the channel we increased speed slightly.
This was the first Predator 72 fitted with CAT C32 1675HP engines and I spoke to the Sunseeker technician at length about their performance. He said they've clocked a two way pass at an average of 41 knots which is around 2 knots quicker than the lighter MAN 1550's. Apart from 125HP there's one important difference between the two lumps. Both are V12's but the MANs have a cubic capacity of 21.9 litres where as the CATs measure 32.1L a pop.
So as soon as he was able to the skipper floored it. Wow, such brutish acceleration you could almost taste the torque being produced down in the boiler room. Within what seemed like 30 seconds this is what we saw.
"Bloody hell" I thought. 33 tons at 42knots - glad I'm not paying for fuel /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif But the best bit was yet to come. You don't expect a boat this size to be nimble but you can crank this baby over a fair way and she responds pretty quickly too.
I took the helm and after a few minutes of familiarisation decided to help double Poole's carbon footprint for the day.
I was delighted to see the right side of 40 knots and blimey did she get there quickly. But it was her handling that impressed the most - I just wasn't expecting anything this much fun. Certainly our P67 was positively lethargic in comparison. Sure, you don't actually feel like you're doing 40 knots in the same way as you do in a RIB, nor is she as responsive as many smaller vessels but I know what I'd rather be in going around Start Point. If you don't bank her over it's like being in a big flybridge boat but at +10 knots whatever you are doing. 35 knots felt a comfortable cruising speed. 25 knots was merely taking it very steady. There aint no substitute for cubic inches /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif
After a good hour or so at sea we set back and spent the rest of the afternoon discussing options together with nav and AV kit. There's a lot to think about and I intend taking my time. She'll be well specified and I know we're going to have some great times ahead.
I hope you enjoyed the pics /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
