That's why we designed our 390 CC from scratch. Would have been a lot easier to use an existing performance hull but then you would lose a lot of what makes them nice. Plenty of room to move around, stability, dry ride, etc.
That said we didn't want to go too wide as then you lose performance and pound a little more. Trailering also gets more complicated.
At 10' our boat seems to appeal to the sport boat buyer but the fish guys like it too.

77.8mph

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nAQJca_M44

I want that!!!!

I obviously can't speak for your area or center console use patterns in it, but every photo I've ever seen of a SKA tournament start is filled with center console running hard toward.

Why does the kingfishing crowd choose them? Two of the same reasons a lot of performance-boat owners have moved to them: They're fast (relatively speaking, of course), seaworthy and (thanks to outboard power) reliable.

Don't get me wrong. I am not saying custom and semi-custom high-performance catamarans will disappear. (The future of the production side, at least from what I'm seeing, is less certain.) I am saying that as performance-boat owners age their needs, tastes and desires change, and that has been expressed, particularly in the last 10 years, in the increased popularity for center consoles among these owners.

The fact is the performance-boat owner community is aging, and has been aging for some time, at a much faster pace than its "replacement rate." Or to put it simply, there aren't enough young guys getting into it as there are older guys getting out of it ... or shifting to other styles of boats, most notably center consoles, which, by the way, I never said were "something new."

True fishing designed CCs and ones made out of performance sportboat hulls just to get in the CC market are two different animals..

You are on to something. Just a breif hijack...

Like it or not, this is not the same country anymore. I don't know about YOUR area, but mine does not look like it did when I was in high schol. The population of the USA has jumped from 238M in 1973 to 300M today yet there are dropping numbers of performance boaters. We do not have a shortage of young people, but they have different interests. Mostly new arrivals and children of new arrivals make up a huge proportion of the youth of today and many consider boating and outdoor sports "low class". I am in the medical field where the Drs are now mostly non caucasian and they couldn't care less about boating. They only talk about making lots of money and sending their kids to private schools. Some do play golf.

Wake up America and have some children.

Not true in the case of Donzi and Fountain. Fountain's 32' center does not have a stepped hull. The others do. Both brands have had a significant presence on the SKA circuit for some times.

Now, if you are talking about Yellowfin and Contender, that's a different story. I am talking about what, for lack of better expression, you'd call a hybrid.

Ask Terry Sobo at the 39-foot Nor-Tech. Performance hull all the way, and a lot of the fishing guys reportedly love it.

Yeah, if I'm a hardcore offshore fisherman who wants a true open-ocean I'm probably going Yellowfin. But if I'm a guy who likes to fish, dive and take groups out for long lunch runs—and run 70 mph a lot of the time—I'm going for something performance=based.

I actually got a PM from my previous post. :eek:

What's the story on these? I likey!

I find that a large part of the attraction is the ability to customize the boat to fit your needs. We have our boats laid out to accommodate different types of seating and tops... There are several ways the boat can be set up, which gives the owner the chance to have it built to suit their boating needs.
We use the same hull, and from there have different decks, consoles and seating modules (Open Sport, Cabin, TE, and L).
We use a high performance design (twin steps and 24 degree deadrise) but incorporated the design into a 10' beam with very flat hull sides that carry the beam forward.
I cam e from the high performance V bottom world. You would be very surprised how much this boat feels like a 38' "muscle boat"....

Whatever you get just make sure it's faster than BillRs :lolhit:

They bought the hull molds and name from the original Carrera from Humberto Picon in the early 90s but only made the sportfish decks until recently.
This year they however have redone the 36 sportdeck but still using outboards.
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphot..._6074345_n.jpg
They have a 24,27 , 30,32 and 36 CC and now the 36 sportdeck
all except the 24 use the original offshore race proven hulls ..

Here is a picture from The Miami Boat Show of the 41 Epic.

One more.......The 41 Epic is the official pace boat for the offshore racing series OPA this year. Check the schedule and make sure you come and see us for a test ride.

41 Epic and 39 Nor-Tech, Just Awesome all around versatile boats. Speed, room, cabin, head, low(er) maintenance, easy docking/rafting up, fuel mileage, 5+ year warranty. Hard to beat.

http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/a...-41inmiami.jpg
Nice looking boat but dont get the huge sunpad?
One of the nice things about outboard is the extra interior room..

That's the reason I don't like some CC's. No place for me and the lady to catch some rays and be high enough to get some wind too. Gets pretty hot when you can't catch some air. Great looking boat!

What style do most of you prefer??? Narrower, long, and low with a small console..... or wider with a larger top and on board comforts???
We are in final stages of wrapping up the tooling on our 39...
The hull and deck are done. We are finalizing the console and helm seat for the Open version.... What you see here is NOT the final T top and console design.....
I have been deeply involved in the design, but the final shapes and making it all come together are being done by some very strong names in the design world....

The 1st boat was purposely built for me. I wanted a sun pad for my wife. Under the sunpad is a work of art. It's a complete finished part , even the transom. For the customer who wants Yanmars or BBC - here ya go.

Looks big enough to make a playroom for the kids under there!
:)

Narrow , long and low...with a small console

I have a few sketches of a "Super Sport" deck for our 39 that I happen to like.... I am just in doubt of the demand for it.... It's on the long and low idea... I also have the light and rigid lam schedule worked out to help that "big number" that we are always chasing....

For sake of full disclosure.....I may not be objective:) .......

Nice boats, Tim, and best of luck with your new model.

What's happening with top design in the industry? The ones that are prevalent look like the platform for a non-existent marlin tower. They tend to give these boats a "me too" look despite all the different approaches to hull and deck design.

Since no one in their right mind is going to put a tower on most of these rigs one is free to design something that A: looks unique and b: manages wind better than a giant surfboard. Free speed and a look that sets you apart.

Just wondering what's happening in that arena.

Of course with consoles there has to be room for the 15" touch screen that combines radar, sonar, engine function, comm, engine trim, trim tab, fuel, water and a bunch of other data. The software is coming we can be sure; the hardware is already here.

We are building a quad 300 verado 38 Fountain with NO rod holders made just for family poker runs.:drink: I gave up sport boats a few years ago. Sure do miss them!

with 250 xs's it definitely would be, that's a good looking boat Macklin

Is a CC the best Choice for You?

ASK THE MAN WHO OWNS ONE...

http://www.liamalexander.com/blog/wp...xters_boat.jpg

"Of course, nothing beats heading out into the cool, dark waters at night on my Center Console. It's got plenty of space for all kinds of cargo...legs...torsos...arms...whatever. Cleanup is always fast and easy, and the outboards provide plenty of power for that fast getaway when needed. The hull handles almost any kind of chop with ease...it knifes through swells like butter. Most all of my passengers--okay just about all of them--are speechless when I take 'em for a ride. No doubt about it...my Center Console is a cut above the rest."

Dexter Morgan


http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4145/...9fe92c4a48.jpg

Remember, in 2004 OSO even got a CC for a few years.

It was a sweet Spectre CC. It made every event the Glad made and a few it didn't.

I like that cool little car on your ID Cash Bar....:drink:

It's not that boat, but same model.

And if it's not faster than BillR's I'm not interested. :grinser010:

Best one I've seen to date is the Nor-Tech 390 Open. Nice to have options.

http://www.nor-techboats.com/boats.php?id=5&type=cen

That's what we were thinking

T tops are a difficult component for a boat builder..... Not so difficult in the design, but difficult in the sales of the design...
These two pics are from our "Prototype" TE... The electronics area is actually negative... It hangs down a small amount, and has a "bubble" on the top to make up for the space.
The customers want the electronics in the T Top, but I didn't want to simply bolt a "box" to the underneath of the top like many builders do....
This top also has a bit of a wing on the back edge....to try to get off the surfboard look....
This top was well received at the show, therefore will be on the production boats.
The frame is being redesigned a bit....

I think the T Top is too large... However large appears to be what the buying mass wants... But, we have the ability to modify the tops at client request....:drink:

Tim,

You seem to be straightforward and direct. Then help me out. T-tops are known to have considerable wind resistance. They are rigid and the angle cannot be adjusted. They have the effect of lowering the top speed and efficiency of boats, which some have said is as much as 5-6 mph or more depending on surface area. But of course they are highly desirable for the shade they provide and as an additional place to mount equipment. Is there any way that a rigid top could be designed to not have as much wind resistance and still look reasonably nice? Could they pivot? What about venting?

Thanks, Andy

That one is coming to Canada!:drink:

Andy,
We are careful when we set the angle on the top to the boat... Typically the angle is set at 3 degrees...
The top in the pics is set just right... meaning that at speed, with correct boat trim (flat water) the top is running as flat as possible...
Angling the top up can bring air under and actually make lift, where down will force the boat down (mess with CG).
I too thought about an electric screw jack to adjust the top angle.... Does the operator need one more thing to trim??? Can the average operator deal with it? Not likely. Then I thought about an automated system that trys to level the top, but I just didn't see how the system could keep up in rougher/changing water....

Vents... They're likely to make noise, noise that the owner won't live with.... That and rain water will come through....

The windshield is as detrimental to top speed as the entire t top..... That's another headache there....:eek:

Yes lots to think about. And the tilt mechanism could be complex but that is a cool idea. Vents could be made to open and close to keep rain out. But I guess the bottom line is most people dont' really care about that 5-6 mph? Does a canvas top have any less drag?

We didn't loose any speed w/ our hardtop. Birdsall Marine and their engineers designed our hardtop. It has a ladder up the side so you can access the top which has non skid so you can hang out up there. We use the best vendors in the business - Fineline Interiors , Birdsall and Henley Custom Marine rigs our boats.

Where most CC's are used, the T-top is far more valuable than a few MPH..

My silly bimini drags my boat about 2-3 mph, The cover flattens out in the wind and makes like a parachute. But when it rains, or you're sweating in the sun, it's there. It's nice to have the top end every now and again, but I's guess most boats spend very little time there.

Here's one sitting on the trailer.