by Alli Ficarra | Mar 6, 2019 | Articles, Captain's ships
Julian McGarry couldn’t afford to buy a flybridge cruiser, so he built his own mini version. When Julian McGarry’s mate sold his flybridge cruiser, Julian lost his regular ride. Heartbroken, he couldn’t see the value in owning his own moored boat, so he took...
by The Captain | Jan 17, 2019 | Articles, Captain's ships
Dave Rothwell treats his 10-year-old Hydra-Sports to a complete birthday refit with 1050 horsepower courtesy of Johnson Bros. Marine Services. Now this boat has tricks. Dave Rothwell loves his Yank tank and his love runs deep — all the way down to his chequebook. So...
by The Captain | Jan 14, 2019 | Articles, The craftsman
The Captain catches up with respected boat designer Paul Bury, the man behind the computer behind many of the boats you drool over at the ramp. WHO IS PAUL BURY? Paul is the principal of Bury Design and has worked in the industry for over 20 years. Before starting...
by Alli Ficarra | Jan 13, 2019 | Adventures, Articles
The Captain’s crew are on the hunt for the enigmatic swordfish — charging out past the fire-breathing oil rigs of Bass Strait aboard a Bass Strait Offshore 30, which has a certain synchronicity to it if you give a rat’s about such things. This rig has a huge...
by Alli Ficarra | Nov 14, 2018 | Articles, Captain's ships
Dan Brauman has been a soldier with the Australian Defence Force for the past 20 years. When he’s not running sorties to Timor, he’s skippering his Sailfish S8 with his crew, aka the Cuzzy Bros. We infiltrated Dan’s posse at Port Fairy, three hours out of Melbourne on...
by The Captain | Oct 17, 2018 | Articles, Captain's ships
Not so long ago, a boat builder of repute reached out to The Captain, saying, “If you blokes come across a good performing hull, between 20ft and 23ft long, give me a call. I want to replicate something with a sweet, soft ride, big internal capacity and...
by The Captain | Sep 11, 2018 | Articles, How to
The dreaded trailer failure can mess up your fishing trip and-much, much worse- your boat. Yet such a devastating towing trauma can be prevented with just a little forethought. Roll with me on this one… ROLLIN’ BY THE RIVER It’s a dark, moonless night and you’re...
by The Captain | Sep 10, 2018 | Articles, How to
You need a new boat more than world peace — but not at the cost of war breaking out on the domestic front. Never fear the Captain is here… ATTENTION DADS: So you want a new 20ft (6m) fishing rig, but the missus says no. There are only two options: a. Divorce, or...
by The Captain | Sep 10, 2018 | Articles, The craftsman
The Captain gets an invite into the Cootacraft factory in Mallacoota, Victoria. It comes directly from the owner/builder known as Mark ” The mad Russian”. He’s also a hunter and expert marksman. What could possibly go wrong? The name Cootacraft...
by The Captain | Jun 20, 2018 | Articles, Captain's ships
They’re young, smart and cool, and they represent a new breed of saltwater stylists. They’re the builders – and the owners – of a new wave of floating fortresses. Dickey Boats fits the bill on both fronts. The blue-water highway used to be ruled by dudes with beards...
by The Captain | Jun 20, 2018 | Articles, Captain's ships
The biggest, baddest console The Captain has ever tested in Australia! The Grady-White Canyon 376 is a bona fide heavyweight of centre consoles. It’s the biggest hull in the Grady-White range, tipping the scales at almost six tonne (without engines). The beam is wider...
by The Captain | Jun 20, 2018 | Articles, Captain's ships
A lot of people ask why we started The Captain. We usually tell them it’s because “We’re really passionate about fishing and boating” or “We love telling interesting stories about legends of the sea”. Now both those points might be true, but they’re not the real...
by The Captain | Jun 20, 2018 | Articles, Captain's ships
The Captain puffs out his chest and steps aboard the biggest console the Signature factory has ever built, powered by the largest motor Suzuki has ever built; two, in fact. We’re still not sure why John Haines built the 788SF. It’s the biggest console ever...
by The Captain | Jun 20, 2018 | Uncategorized
Earlier this year, the image of a strange craft popped up on The Captain’s newsfeed. It was narrow like an SUP, agile and fast like a PWC, yet kitted out for serious fishing. This thing stuck out like a pink Cosmopolitan cocktail among The Captain’s usual rum-fuelled...
by The Captain | Apr 24, 2018 | Articles, How to
Joel Ryan caught more fish last year than most of us could dream about catching in a lifetime. His 2017 hit list includes jumbo bluefin off Sydney, double digits of marlin and swordfish, and he’s even put Tait Missen, his good mate’s son, onto an Aussie junior record...
by The Captain | Apr 24, 2018 | Articles
Davey Marine go the extra mile (about 50 miles, in fact) Davey Marine just went next-level with its customer service. Their blue-chip customers were invited down to Refuge Cove for a fully catered weekend of swell jumping and horsepower thumping. The rigs that...
by The Captain | Mar 13, 2018 | Adventures, Articles
The Captain’s phone rang earlier this year. It was John Haines Junior, boss man of Suzuki Australia and heir to the Haines Signature fortune. In his polite but matter-of-fact manner he asked, “what are you guys doing in June?” “Let me check my calendar, John,” I...
by The Captain | Mar 13, 2018 | Articles, How to
The Captain tugs hard over his tow machines. Here are his top 10 adventure rigs. Did you just drop more than $200K for your deep-vee machine built with 37 layers of ‘glass in the transom and fitted with hardtop, commercial-grade sounder, radar, pie warmer,...
by The Captain | Feb 8, 2018 | Articles, Captain's ships
Four pumping plate rigs fight it out bow to bow in the captain’s alloy shootout at Jervis bay. The only good thing that comes in tin is beer, right? Some among the glass-lovin’ class still beat that drum on Facebook forums. Their opinion is probably based on...
by The Captain | Jan 31, 2018 | Articles, Uncategorized
Honda Marine used this year’s Melbourne International Boat Show to take the worldwide wraps off a posse of new outboards – the BF75, BF80, BF90 and BF100. With their sleek silver styling and swept-back “crouching” appearance, they look the business and have the...
by The Captain | Jan 22, 2018 | Articles, Project boat
The Captain goes in search of a fuel tank for the Nub Tub, their custom Haines Hunter 445F project boat. In the backblocks of Williamstown they find a man of steel, Kane McQuarrie from McQuarrie Fabrications. Picking a fuel tank is harder than picking a good rum. For...
by The Captain | Jan 22, 2018 | Articles, How to
The Captain’s crew heads to the Daly River in the Northern Territory to rendezvous with Paul Williams, the proud owner of a GS Marine prototype centre console fitted with a Lowrance and Simrad combo – and a massive Merc donk hanging out the back. Ah, the fishing...
by The Captain | Jan 22, 2018 | Articles, Captain's ships
Ever since the Battle of the Big Vee, Matt Webb, owner of the Edencraft 233 Formula, has been nagging The Captain because he wants a 15ft boat for his 17-yearold son, Tom. Tom loves his diving and fishing, so Matt wanted something safe and indestructible, but also...
by The Captain | Jan 22, 2018 | Articles, Captain's ships
Grahma Harris won a bridge-to-bridge in record time, Caressing the helm of a 1000HP Connelly. These days he mooches around the Hawksbury in a 800HP Al Dhaen. Yep, We had to meet this bloke… The Captain’s crew are belting around...
by The Captain | Dec 12, 2017 | Articles, How to
Just how much sex appeal do boats have? We laid down the challenge to Jack Murphy, recently single and ready to mingle. With nothing more than his bristling beard, a cup of charm and a Whittley SL25 hard top, We set him loose among a flock of amorous young females....
by The Captain | Nov 28, 2017 | Articles, Captain's ships
You may have noticed a secret new project stashed between the pages of the Builders’ Survey in the previous issue of The Captain. It was the fourth generation of the Haines Signature 495F hull – and it’s just been released to the public. The new hull features an extra...
by The Captain | Nov 28, 2017 | Articles, Captain's ships
Evinrude launch 150, 150 H.O., 175 and 200HP G2 E-TECs In March, a muster of new Evinrude G2 E-TEC outboards hit the water. This follows the release of the first G2s back in 2014 with the 200H.0. -300HP range. The new outboards consist of a 150HP, 150 H.O., 175HP and...
by The Captain | Nov 28, 2017 | Articles, Captain's ships
Within the next couple of months, The Captain is planning a trip to Seventeen Seventy, a fishing mecca six hours north of Brisbane. He put out the call for a ride and surface slayer Mathew Scholz answered. Armed with a sparkling new Haines Signature 543SF, Matt’s rig...
by The Captain | Oct 26, 2017 | Articles, How to
Boating fails – Nathan Nichols, director of Cruise Craft, on the inconvenient truth of boating regulations. The rumours are true. I took the opportunity to launch into a very passionate discussion at a recent product launch. In my view, The Captain – which...
by The Captain | Oct 26, 2017 | Articles, Captain's ships
You may have noticed a secret new project stashed between the pages of the Builders’ Survey in the previous issue of The Captain. It was the fourth generation of the Haines Signature 495F hull – and it’s just been released to the public. The new hull features an extra...
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