by Steve Morgan •

    It’s not often you get the head of a company to come out on a boat test, but Bar Crusher’s Peter Cleland showed up at the Launching Way ramp with their first foray into a multi-purpose boat in tow, the 615 BR (bow rider).

    When questioned about the genesis of the craft, Peter said they wanted to design a fishing weapon that the family could also go out on, to enjoy a bit of fun with some towsports.

    “We stand at a lot of boat shows talking to people, and this design came from that,” he said.

    Built on Bar Crusher’s well proven Gen 2 hull, it features a ‘delta flare’, which is like an old style planing plank on a glass boat that gets the boat onto the plane quickly. The chines are wider than their original hulls to deflect more water downwards and the passive water ballast system reduces buoyancy at rest, dropping the chines further into the water and improving stability.

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    When the boat takes off, this water dumps out quickly and you’re not carrying the extra weight around.

    “A lot of our customers want to go out or come home in rough conditions, and the Gen 2 hull lets them do that with maximum levels of comfort,” Pete explained.

    If you’re thinking that the 615BR lacks some of its siblings’ fishing chops, you’d be mistaken. The bow riding section has removable cushions and a drop-in deck infill that makes the whole for’ard section a flat casting deck. You can easily add a bow-mounted trolling motor to make this a boat that can easily sneak around any part of the country to cast lures in.

    The rear cockpit is similarly transformable. Pull out the ski pole and add a bait board to turn this into a classic snapper rig – complete with the windlass up front to pull the anchor for you.

    Importantly, there’s family-friendly shade, places to sit, and the ability to get in and out of this boat while on the water, which is all that most of us need to have a good time.

    Well, maybe that, and a donut to tow the kids around on.

    We particularly like the generous dash space in Bar Crushers that allow flush mounting of electronics, and that these are viewable from the cockpit easily. With the addition of the soft top, bow cover and clears you get a pseudo-cabin style feel and ride for when conditions get a little nasty.

    Performance-wise, the 150hp Suzuki displayed the economy that they’re known for, delivering 2.3km/L at 3,700rpm and 34km/h. Drop the hammers and she got up to 66km/h at 6,000rpm at nearly half the economy, 1.2km/L. This rig demonstrably likes cruising economically at the lower end of the planing speeds.

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    Finally, Bar Crushers supplied from the factory are matched with Victorian built EasyTow trailers and, coupled with their BarCatch system, it’s a foolproof as possible to launch and retrieve these rigs, even if you’re boating alone.

    Packages with the 615BR start from high $60K, and as tested, this rig weighed in around the mid $80K mark. For more information, get in touch with your nearest Bar Crusher dealer. You can find where your local dealer is by visiting www.barcrusher.com.au.

    PERFORMANCE
    RPM…. Speed (km/h)… Economy (km/L)
    1000…………………… 3……………………. 4.0
    2000…………………… 7……………………. 2.8
    3000………………….. 11……………………. 1.9
    3700………………….. 34……………………. 2.3
    4000………………….. 38……………………. 2.1
    5000………………….. 53……………………. 1.6
    6000………………….. 66……………………. 1.2

    SPECIFICATIONS
    Length – 6.15m
    Beam – 2.25m
    Bottom sheet – 4mm
    Side sheets – 4mm
    Fuel – 140L
    Min HP – 115
    Max HP – 150
    Height on trailer – 2.15m
    Fuel – 140L