Took the boat out on Saturday for its first run in less than ideal conditions with really lumpy swells in the Motohe channel - those short together, 1.5 metre wind against tide unpleasant ones and the boat handled these superbly without a single drop of spray coming on board and was very soft riding. We were able to make 18 - 20 mph easily in those conditions. The unique overhang of the gunwhales over the hull traps any waves that slap on the hull from riding up and being blown in your face if the extended chines don't get them first.
Fish City have got a winner with this affordable and easily run hull.
The 60hp Mercury four stoke is an ideal match to the hull. We have a 13" 4 blade prop that gives plenty of get up and go and holds the boat on the plane at low speed. In fact there was no really noticeable transition from displacement to planning with a flat aspect throughout the transition.
We managed to get 35mph in some quieter but not ideal conditions but should improve as the motor loosens up. The economy (shown on the Merc smart gauge) was 7.8lph at 21mph or 8.6 at 25mph so that's getting to be near 3 miles per litre.
The new Raymarine Dragon Fly GPS/Fish Finder/Down Scan Imaging is interesting in the different aspect that the DSI shows when compared to 2D fish finder with weed clearly identified when the sounder showed blobs??? Easy to use with good screen visibility under all light conditions - we clearly saw arches identifying KY and Kingfish that we caught off the Naval Base in a workup that went for hours.
Launched the boat without getting the trailer wet at all though we needed just the back roller at water level to locate the chines on to retrieve.
All in all a safe, easy riding, roomy, economical and dry boat with lots of innovative features that you are not paying silly prices that are asked for the more fashionable brands.