Scorpion 610 HT Fishing Boat

Beginning over seventeen years ago as a ancestors retail aggregation based in Waikato’s Morrinsville, Sportcraft Boats absitively to supplement their absolute baiter agencies with their own ambit of hulls, contract-built beneath the ‘Scorpion’ marque.

Headed by Jamie Black, Sportcraft grew steadily. The Morrinsville backyard advance to several adjoining lots, and in 2001, a new backyard was opened in Hewletts Road, Mount Maunganui. This, too, was outgrown in a brace of years and the aggregation anon confused to new bounds in the aforementioned road.

Construction

The Scorpion’s aluminium bark appearance five-millimetre cheers and three-millimetre topsides and superstructure. Architecture of keel and chines is accomplished by applicable the plates into aluminium extrusions, again seam-welding them – a complete technique. There are six longitudinal bearers, added the keel bar, and seven full-height crossframes with an added six gussets. The bark appearance includes a analytic accomplished entry, capricious to a 17° deadrise at the transom, no planing strakes, and a bashful abatement at the chines bearing a slight gullwing effect.

The accouter is absolutely sealed, basal a distinct air chamber, and pressure-tested afterwards construction. Reserve airiness abstracts were not accessible at the time of writing.

The akin of accomplishment is reasonable, because the price, and the welds attending to be solid and able-bodied executed.

Power and performance

Recommended outboard ability for the 610 HT is 90 to 115hp. The analysis baiter was adapted with a Mercury 115 Saltwater, spinning a 20-inch angle Laser II prop. In a quick admission this produced 40 knots (74kph) at 5400rpm on the birr gauges. It cruised calmly at 26 knots (48mph) at 3800rpm.

Test day was a abracadabra bounce day with glassy-calm seas. You can commonly depend on able currents about the admission of Tauranga Harbour to accommodate a bit of lift to comedy in, but alike this breadth was smooth.

The bark has a accomplished admission and a abstinent (17°) deadrise at the stern, acceptance it to auspiciously footstep the band amid accouterment a acceptable ride and reasonable stability.

Sportcraft sales administrator Jayson Hurley and I took the 610 for a run out appear Karewa Island, but ultimately had to await on the wakes of beyond ability to accord us some abstraction of the hull’s performance. Indications were that the bark is a bendable lander and takes the sea well.

Visibility is good, built-in or standing, through 6mm apathetic bottle advanced windows and anchored polycarbonate ancillary windows. The cable council arrangement is absolutely adequate.

Anchoring

Access to the bow is through the bear in the forecabin top, and it is an accessible ability to the fairlead while continuing in the hatchway. The ballast able-bodied is of a acceptable size. It is not hatched, but has a drop-down admission with a abundant aluminium bollard anchored to the foredeck. The fairlead has angled over flanges to advice accommodate the warp. An ballast winch or capstan can be fitted.

Layout

The berths in the forecabin are continued abundant to beddy-bye adults, and would calmly booty two with a anchorage infill fitted. There is amplitude beneath the bow beanbag to fit a toilet if required, as able-bodied as stowage amplitude beneath anniversary ancillary anchorage and two baby ancillary shelves. A screw-off bowl gives admission to the central of the captain console. The berth is lined bottomward to the closed chequerplate deck.

The captain position boasts a ample birr area, evidently lined with aphotic abyssal carpeting and backed by a grab rail, which additionally acts to arrest items stored on the dash. VHF, instruments and switches are flush-mounted and a Navman Fish 4430 sounder was adapted on the dash.

A cardinal of basement options are available. The analysis baiter was adapted with two swivelling, upholstered, rotationally-moulded artificial seats on fibreglass pedestals with stowage inside. Footrests had not been fitted, but I was told that these are allotment of the amalgamation and custom adapted to clothing the owner’s leg breadth afterwards purchase.

A cloistral ancillary abridged is adapted on anniversary ancillary beneath the adamantine top, while out in the cockpit, ancillary shelves run the abounding breadth of the abandon and beyond beneath the transom. An absorbing architecture affection is the position of the 90-litre ammunition tank. This is an alternative extra, anchored angular up off the accouter beneath the transom shelf – two tote tanks are supplied as standard. Two baffles are congenital into the catchbasin to anticipate the ammunition sloshing from side-to-side and de-stabilising the hull.

A distinct array with abreast about-face is army centrally on the transom shelf in a careful case abutting to the ammunition filter. This fit-up allows accessible admission to battery, clarify and ammunition tank.

The fully-sealed chequerplate accouter drains to a ample sump beneath the transom, from area baptize is removed by an 1100gph balloon pump. The sump extends a little advanced of the transom line, but Sportcraft intends applicable a half-grille to advance basement here.

A transom walk-through (with drop-door) on the commuter ancillary simplifies admission to one of the ample chequerplate boarding platforms. Grab balustrade are fitted, as is a ample fold-down boarding ladder. This could be fabricated hardly narrower after affecting its function, alienated arrest with the council arm aback the captain is adamantine over.

Overall, there is acceptable amplitude in the cockpit and the baiter still retains feature berths in the berth – a acceptable use of space.

Fishability

This bark has a basal – but absolutely able – fishing layout, with four nylon through-gunwale rod holders fitted, in accession to a brace of transom mounts for the drop-in baitboard. There is affluence of allowance for added rod holders, and no agnosticism aluminium versions could be commissioned if abundant use is anticipated. A rocket launcher on the auto is addition option. The bolt could be accommodated in a disposable ice bin.

The 17° deadrise and hardly down-turned chines fabricated for a analytic abiding hull. Chequerplate accessory gives acceptable footing, except for the attenuated band of bland admixture forth the abandon of the deck. Coaming faces are collapsed and action reasonable mid-thigh support, although anglers charge to angular advanced slightly. As mentioned, the applicable of a grille over allotment of the arising sump will accomplish for acceptable toe alcove appropriate beyond the transom (there is amplitude beneath the ammunition tank). The gunwhales are advanced topped and accomplished in decktread panels, alms an added branch for anglers.

The baiter is accomplished for accepted fishing tasks, with accessible boarding for divers. There is affluence of abeyant for a specialist fishing fit-out.

Trailering

The Sportline bivouac supplied accepted with this archetypal (the analysis baiter happened to be on a bike version) is a single-axle, cradle, A-frame design. Leaf-spring abeyance is zinc treated, as are the rims and studs. A dual-ratio chiral winch is fitted, as is a bifold coupling and accord jockey wheel.

There are six pairs of wobble rollers per side, as able-bodied as a keel admission roller. The baiter comes on and off the bivouac actual easily. Tow weight is about 1048kg.

All in all

In New Zealand, canoeing and fishing generally exposes us to extremes of weather, both hot and cold. As a consequence, auto designs are accepted for the apartment they provide. Six metres is about the minimum admeasurement for a accepted monohull (pontoon boats excepted) to sustain a auto after sacrificing too abundant stability. The Scorpion 610 HT manages the ambush by acid aback on the abandon of the auto to abate weight and windage. Clears can be adapted if added ancillary apartment is required.

Overall, a acceptable ‘boys’ boat’ for accepted fishing and diving tasks, able-bodied performed, at a acceptable amount for its size.

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