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By
DAVID LOCKWOOD
3 July 2006
Boats come and boats go and in the
present climate there are an awful lot of American boats to go. Walk
around the halls of next week’s Melbourne Boat Show and you will see
them - five American badges to every one local marque - but how many
will be here tomorrow and just how well do they perform on our oft
choppy waters?
More out of good fortune than design, these have
been favourable conditions for imports. The high Australian dollar
and a buoyant economy have teamed with cheap money and global
market forces to bring everything from boats to doughnuts to
Australia.
But mark my words: when the going gets tough it’s
those enduring Australian boatbuilders who get going. A case in
point is Haines Hunter, a household boating name and venerable
badge that made a big impression in the late 1970s and early 1980s
when I was cutting my boating teeth. Despite record competition
and a teething period following its relatively new ownership,
Haines Hunter has successfully re-established itself as a serious
contended in the trailerboat stakes.
In fact, following the creation of a second
factory in Victoria to complement the Queensland premises, Haines
Hunter has been inducted into the Victorian Manufacturing Hall of
Fame. The award is in recognition of their consistent
manufacturing excellence and quite some achievement considering
over 800 companies vied for the title and just 120 made it to the
short list.
In the end, Haines Hunter was one of just 14
successful companies, and the only boating manufacturer, to make
it past the rigorous selection and judging process to ultimately
make the Hall of Fame. The achievement is even more impressive
considering the Melbourne plant has only been in operation for
about three years.
But what does it mean for we consumers?
Considering the award honours quality and reliability in the
manufacturing processes this should lead to better production
boats. And as if to prove as much, the Australian Marine Industry
Federation recently awarded Haines Hunter’s new 490 Prostrike
(pictured) its 2006 Fishing Boat of the Year.
But there are also intrinsic qualities about
these Aussie-made boats that are appealing, not least of which is
the signature deep-vee hull - what it calls a Performance Deadrise
Vee - with 21 degrees of deadrise. Unlike the often wider and
flatter (too often bloated) American boats, these deep-vee designs
have for decades cut a swathe across Australian waters.
In testimony to their build qualities, many old
Haines Hunters are still knocking about today. Only today, it
should be noted, they’re much better built. No exposed timber,
for example, which works in your favour in respect of resale
value. Now, Haines Hunter is backing its 34 different models with
seven-year, up from five-year, owner protection warranties.
But I’m not the only one with a soft spot for
Haines Hunter. The company has wooed many Australian boaters
aboard. Take cricketer Matt Hayden, for example. He says his
infatuation for the boats began in 1978 with the family’s
beautiful little orange and white 16C Haines Hunter behind which
he learnt to water ski and fish. He now owns a 680 Patriot that he
uses for offshore fishing and likes that boat for its solid build
and smooth offshore ride.
For what it’s worth my formative years of
offshore fishing began in a Haines Hunter 490SF, a little centre
console with which I ventured as far as 40km offshore and landed
tuna to 25kg. Then I progressed to a 580SF that I had for a
decade, towed all over the country, and used to catch, among other
thing, marlin (yes, they were promptly released).
Haines Hunter is proudly Australian owned and
operated, but that alone is not good enough in these competitive
times. Moreover, the boats seem to be at home on the deep-blue sea
and, increasingly, they’re serving as family fun runners in
between fishing outings.
While the award-winning 490 Prostrike is a
dedicated flat-water sportsfishing boat, and is being promoted
with professional anglers on the televised bream circuit, there
are many dual-purpose boats in the range. Between them, expect to
see a big spread of Haines Hunters at next week’s Melbourne Boat
Show, as the boatbuilding industry is investing heavily in
R&D.
Haines Hunter’s new Melbourne factory is
specialising in building entry-level trailerboats and turning out
15 sub-6 metre craft per month. What’s more, they’re
competitively priced, with the 495 Breeze and 70hp Yamaha outboard
costing from $26,000. A welcome example of a local boatbuilder
fighting back.
lockwood@intercoast.com.au
© Copyright
Marque Publishing Company
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