They originated in the wild, southern tip of New Zealand but in recent times the pontoon-collar tinnie has become a popular boating concept throughout Australia and the South Pacific.These super tough, stable tinnies are like the off-road vehicles of the boating world and often found where water conditions are challenging and potentially dangerous. With no less than nine sealed, airtight buoyancy chambers so they’re darn hard to sink. Yeah, they said the same thing about the Titanic but these boats really do give a few more chances to avoid a swim.
The tale about how Aqualine’s founder, Rodney Harris battled to get this brand up and going is also inspiring. This year the brand celebrates 20 years of business, it’s not a huge organisation but one that’s very successful due to the Hushtec hull design. Key feature of the design is the variable, deep Vee deadrise hull that gives you a long bow entry. This softens the ride and makes for a great rough water boat.
Another interesting feature is the bottom strakes running parallel to the waterline so they help to give a lot of lift as well as better grip in turns. Aqualine currently builds around 17 models in its modern state-of-the-art factory in Invercargill, utilising the very latest computer CNC cutting and welding.
Recently I had the pleasure of catching up with Sydney dealer, Craig Huett, to test run the Aqualine 660 and from the outset I was impressed. This is the enclosed hardtop model and is perfectly suited to bluewater fishing adventures or regular cruising with the family.
At a length of 6.6m the Aqualine is ready to run wide and tangle with the big fish. Essentially it is a fishing boat but you can also see the cruising potential with the Vee berth cabin with room to sleep two people. There are comfortable upholstered berths and a chemical toilet included in the standard package.
With back-to-back seating within the bridge area it’s not hard to envisage how enjoyable this boat would be for holiday trips. There’s no galley as such, but plenty of room to add a stove or simply fit a barbecue to the cockpit sides. The in-floor kill tank can also be easily converted to an esky.
The grey-nomads could adopt this boat for adventure cruises in more remote parts of our continent. Whether it was the Top End or down around the Kimberley region, you’d feel safe and not too worried about the crocs or the sharks.
Design:
From the outset the Aqualine 660 HT (hardtop) looks like a vessel born for adventure. Everything from the macho, go-anywhere hull to the sturdy cabin tells you Aqualine is up for serious boating work.
The addition of the attractive hardtop with curved windscreen certainly adds to the boat’s appeal and at 6.6m overall you certainly have a sizeable vessel for putting to sea.
Experienced boaties will also approve the unpainted bottom below the gunwales, but smart paintwork above the gunwales with a splash of colour in the decals. The hardtop is also nicely crafted to blend with the hull and support handy rod rack plus (optional) radar arch and dome.
A key feature of this model is the self-draining cockpit with large scupper at the stern to remove water quickly. Meanwhile, you have a system of sealed air chambers around the side sides and hull bottom to ensure your safety in case of accidents, or swamping. These chambers are pressure tested to 5PSI during construction so there’s very little chance of sinking.
Meanwhile, these boats are built strongly with 5mm plate hull and 4mm and 3mm plate alloy in the tubes. Interior floors are also made from super tough checker-plate alloy similar to what you see in commercial craft.
Built up coaming sides ensure the Aqualine has plenty of internal freeboard. Whether you’re fighting a rampaging marlin, or a Spanish mackerel you’ll be able to brace yourself against the sides and have a fighting chance to win the battle. In this respect the Aqualine is way better than many earlier pontoon boats that were quite low sided.
The total road package for towing is about two tonnes (2040kg) so you’ll need a reasonably powerful vehicle to tow the Aqualine. I’d suggest a reasonable sized 4WD like the new Nissan Pathfinder or Jeep Commander that have the same tough, adventurous qualities as the Aqualine.
Performance:
Craig was right on time for the big splash down of the Aqualine at the Bayview boat ramp. The big alloy boat looked just right behind Craig’s big Nissan Patrol and all we needed was Desert Storm issue army clothes to set the mood for adventure on the water.
In many ways these big trailer boats are easier to launch and retrieve than smaller boats because their weight makes them less affected by wind. We had this boat in the water quite quickly and wasted no time getting under way.
With little traffic on the water midweek we had plenty of room to test the Aqualine’s ride and speed. There was not a lot of wind chop but the passing wash of some cruisers gave us the opportunity to test the ride of this impressive tinnie.
Not surprisingly the Aqualine 660 sliced through this stuff like it was fairy cake and we had no trouble maintaining a constant cruising speed of 30 knots.
Hydraulic steering makes for easy helm work and I reckon this boat would be a great candidate for integrated, automatic pilot. This would free you up from helm duty on offshore trips and during those long sessions of trolling.
The helm position is very comfortable thanks to the plush, padded bucket seats and the footrests provided. A sloped dash also provides plenty of room to fit electronic sounder/GPS chartplotter and heads-up instrument binnacle.
It goes without saying the at-rest stability of Aqualine is second only to multi-hulls and gives you plenty of support to have all crew over on one side without excessive heel.
Deck Layout:
Starting form the bows you get a short bowsprit to launch the anchor and keep it off the bows. You also get an electric anchor windlass to make the whole operation easy to do from the helm.
There’s also a Sarca bow roller so the anchor pretty much deploys itself automatically and there’s no need for any crew to go on deck.
A wrap-around bow rail and non-skid deck also ensures safety up front for crew and passengers coming aboard. There’s also a large glass-topped foredeck hatch for access into the cabin or for safe access to the anchor stowage compartment within the cabin.
Moving back aft you find navigation lights located on the cabin sides and the high wheelhouse with grab rails on the roof in case you do want to go for’ard via the deck. Frankly the boat is better operated from within the cabin area and there’s really no need to go out of the cockpit.
The cockpit is roomy with waist-high sides and raised side stowage pockets for your fishing and boat handling gear. Within the wheelhouse is back-to-back seating with stowage bins under the rear strike-seats. Moving into the bridge area you find a spacious dash with grab rail on the passenger side and cut-away bulkhead to allow easy access into the cabin.
There’s grab rails on the wings of the wheelhouse and an overhead rod rack to keep rods out of the cockpit when not in use.
Side decks feature four rod holders and there’s a fish bait prep board aft along with step-through doorway access to the stern deck. There’s no stern lounge but the idea is that the four seats for’ard are sufficient for any crew or passengers that may come along.
You have to remember these boats are designed for the chilly waters of southern New Zealand, yet they work surprisingly well in warm weather, particularly in terms of protecting you from the sun. Side opening windows also ensure you have plenty of cross ventilation – vital for hot weather boating.
I love the cabin with its comfortable upholstered vinyl Vee berth with in-fill to make it a double berth. While it doesn’t have padded backrests the side tanks actually provide pretty good backrests when you’re down below.
A privacy curtain would be a good idea for the family and kids, and perhaps some custom backrests cushions.
Power:
These boats are rated for up to 200hp but we were more than pleased with the performance achieved with the ETEC 175hp outboard. This gave us snappy out of the hole performance and very good mid-range performance.
The following GPS results show the 175hp has more than adequate power and you’d only be considering a 200hp motor if you planned to carry a heavy load.
- 3500rpm 21 knots
- 4500rpm 30 knots
- 5500rpm 35 knots
This boat could certainly handle faster speeds but most people would be happy with these speeds, especially for offshore work. Some people kid themselves they can go faster offshore but realistically it doesn’t happen unless you’re a mad boy racer. Our test day mightn’t have been overly challenging but enough to confirm the big Aqualine is a very smooth, sure-footed performer. It’s obviously a great offshore boat and would be just as good for exploring the cold water around Tassie as the warm currents of Cooktown and points north.
The only problems we did encounter was a leaking hydraulic hose on the steering, however beyond that it was hard to fault the Aqualine. Construction and weld work is exceptionally good and a credit to the builders.
Fishability:
With its super stable hull and deep, useable cockpit it’s no surprise the Aqualine rates high as a fishing platform. There’s plenty of room for a fishing party of four people and the cabin gives you a place to escape from the weather.
There’s plenty of room to fit a game chair, or simply fight big fish with stand-up tackle gear. Alternatively raid the deep reefs with big down-riggers and heavy tackle. There’s a large in-floor tank plus cutting board, four rod holders and overhead rod rack – all standard. An electric bilge pump is also part of the package and I’d suggest tackle draws could be built into the seat boxes pretty easily.
Verdict:
You pay a little more for Aqualine but the advantages of a craft of this calibre is the added peace of mind you are very safe and have a boat that’s going to last quite a number of years.
If you are serious about your offshore fishing, or perhaps have plans to do some big cruising adventure this big Aqualine could be your dream choice.
Aqualine is definitely a boat for the aquatic connoisseur and something you’ll like if you prefer the safety of level flotation. These boats don’t have foam buoyancy, but the system of air tanks makes them very safe and a good choice for offshore work.
The only problems we did encounter was a leaking hydraulic hose on the steering, however beyond that it was hard to fault the Aqualine. Construction and weld work is exceptionally good and a credit to the builders.
Fishability:
With its super stable hull and deep, useable cockpit it’s no surprise the Aqualine rates high as a fishing platform. There’s plenty of room for a fishing party of four people and the cabin gives you a place to escape from the weather.
There’s plenty of room to fit a game chair, or simply fight big fish with stand-up tackle gear. Alternatively raid the deep reefs with big down-riggers and heavy tackle. There’s a large in-floor tank plus cutting board, four rod holders and overhead rod rack – all standard. An electric bilge pump is also part of the package and I’d suggest tackle draws could be built into the seat boxes pretty easily.
Verdict:
You pay a little more for Aqualine but the advantages of a craft of this calibre is the added peace of mind you are very safe and have a boat that’s going to last quite a number of years.
If you are serious about your offshore fishing, or perhaps have plans to do some big cruising adventure this big Aqualine could be your dream choice.
Aqualine is definitely a boat for the aquatic connoisseur and something you’ll like if you prefer the safety of level flotation. These boats don’t have foam buoyancy, but the system of air tanks makes them very safe and a good choice for offshore work.
Optional extras include auxiliary outboard bracket, rear bench seat, boarding ladder, anchor bin lid, radar arch/radar, deck wash and live bait tank. Electronics are supplied by the dealer and include VHF radio, sounder, GPS chartplotter and small ship radar.
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