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Aluvan Razor 4.3 with Yamaha 40D
  |  First Published: September 2013



Relatively new on the boating scene, the Aluvan boats are the brainchild of Terry and Ben Allen. Not many will know that father, Terry, was instrumental in the development of the immensely popular Quintrex Hornet Millennium hull. Thirty-year-old son, Ben, heads up the production on Brisbane’s northside.

Chatting to Ben about the history of these boats, it’s obvious that the family’s passion for boats and boat building runs deep. Ben explains why the brand came into being.

“We wanted to make a boat that was both beamy and could compete with the [Quintrex] Hornet for smoothness of ride,” Ben said, “but we wanted to be able to do this with less horsepower.

“The result is the Aluvan Pro-X [short for Project X] hull design, which features a sharp entry point to cut the waves and a long waterline length that combines with the broad, wetted edges to smooth the ride.”

“The best part about the design is that the centre vee actually creates some positive lift,” Ben explained, “and the confused water it makes under the chines really help add to the cushioning effect. We don’t think you’ll ride in a smoother boat that needs as little horsepower to perform.”

In fact, the 4.3m Razor we tested was powered by a miserly no-nonsense carburetted, three cylinder Yamaha 40HP. Fed by a standard 24L plastic fuel tank, you’d be hard pressed to drain that reservoir in a day on the water. The top speed of this unit hit 50km/h on my GPS.

With the massive deck space a given, I was interested to test out the ride in the pressure waves and chop around the bottom of Bribie Island in Moreton Bay on a big, making tide.

Coming off the top of several, near cresting waves at full noise certainly gave me the full ‘landing’ experience, and although definitely cushioned by the hull design, you still knew that you were in a tinnie.

Like all Aluvan’s, this rig made use of the SponsiTrack design. The SponsiTrak Hull is an original plate alloy design, offering a handling and ride that is remarkably smooth and stable at both rest and while on the move. It delivers a sharp entry and deadrise which can normally pose a hazard to a boat due to the amount of roll that the boat may have, however due to the rollover chines, which then conform with the side sheet, the design creates a sponson-like design which aides in stability at rest while due to the rollover chine ensures the passengers stay remarkably dry.

This very same sponson design allows the boat to plane quicker and with less surface friction due to the added planing areas, hence the relatively low horsepower needed to get this rig moving.

However that is not all this design has to offer. The two chutes that are created by this design draw an area of air under the hull and enables the hull to lift out of the water so that very little of the chines and keel still remain in the water to create drag. This effect creates a skimming effect, and when coupled with a long waterline, makes short work of any chop.

Due to the boat riding on both the keel and the chines this makes the boat track straighter through swell and waves, reducing the chance of any unwelcome turning and rolling in large swell.

What is really impressive about this hull is its ability to turn tight corners and the boat will still behave as a normal monohull and lean into the corner rather than out.

Thanks to the massive beam of this boat, stability at rest and while fishing isn’t an issue. I have walked around 4.3m boats that you needed to be careful around to keep yourself inside the gunwales. This Aluvan definitely isn’t one of those.

As far as tinnies go, the Aluvan’s ‘basic’ boats are quite heavily optioned. Carpeted, full casting decks, side pockets, side and bow rails, a rear step, anchor well and extruded side decks are all Aluvan standard. The only extra that you’ll see on the Brisbane Yamaha stock is the electric motor bracket.

An artefact of the deep entry extrusions, there’s a massive amount of storage space – especially vertically – under the front deck of this boat. We managed to fit the big orange duffel bag that was full of all the regulated Queensland safety gear through the hatch and under the deck.

In short, this hull seems to be an excellent platform for any inshore activities you choose to do. Keep it basic as a great utility and crabbing boat; put on a bimini to make it a family rig or go the whole hog with a trolling motor to make it a great little sportsfishing platform.

All of Brisbane Yamaha’s Aluvans are sold on Dunbier trailers and you’ll notice that the boats are positioned quite high. This is because the beam of the boats eliminates the opportunity to drop the hull in between the wheel guards and still remain narrower than 2.5m – the widest allowed on Australian roads.

A consequence of this is that the gunwales are quite high while loading and boarding your boat while it’s on the trailer. Lucky that the rear boarding step is standard.

As tested, this entry level rig weighed in at $12,990 from Brisbane Yamaha. You can source more information on the package at www.brisbaneyamaha.com.au.

You can view the video of this boat test via the link on the front page of www.fishingmonthly.com.au.

Fact Box

SPECIFICATIONS

Hull Length:4.40m
Beam:2.10m
Bottom:3mm
Sides:2mm
Top speed as tested:50km/h
Price as tested:$12,990

Standard inclusions: Carpeted floor and front casting deck, side pockets, bow and side rails, nav light brackets, anchor well, rear step and rail, extruded side decks, fuel tank rack and cleats.

Reads: 14476

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