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Two separate but closely related skills.
Marcel?s new Barra Tracker is a good example of how creative design combined with technical excellence in construction, can significantly move the industry goal posts in one attempt.
The versatility of this boat may well have designers around the country diving for the drawing boards.
The Barra Tracker takes a significant bite into the territory of dinghies, punts, snubbies and small runabouts. That it has been done so successfully at the first serious attempt, is a tribute to the Cairns Custom Craft team.
Design
Technically a centre console hard chine dinghy, the Barra Tracker is an alloy monohull with a length overall of 4.5 m and a maximum beam of 1.75 m. The hull weighs approximately 250 kg. By the time you strap on a 40 hp Johnson, throw in a couple of batteries, an electric bow thruster and sundry equipment, the boat package will weigh around 380 kg.
The alloy single axle trailer pushes up the gross mass to about 500 kg. Now if that?s too heavy to tow, you should think about a bigger car! The Barra Tracker?s hull shape is not based directly on any other current shape. A very deeply vee?d forefoot sweeps back to a slightly vee?d hull at the transom.
The deadrise is not constant and neither is the rate of change of that deadrise. From about one and a half metres back from the bow most of the vee has been washed out of the hull.
Dominating now is a complex reversed chine somewhat characteristic of Cairns Custom Craft boats.
Also commencing from about the same distance along the keel is a finely drawn plank which broadens out to about 150 mm at the stern. Very mild longitudinal pressings run the length of the bottom chines. The entire hull is constructed from 3.0 mm plate alloy with interior reinforcement of longitudinal ?T? bars at about 150 mm centres along the length of the bottom plates.
Marcel has given this boat the gunwale or coaming width all fishing boats deserve. Made of 3.0 mm alloy and averaging at least 150 mm wide, the coamings are of sufficient dimensions to accept rod holders at any point along their length.
Marcel treats us to not one but two casting platforms. Both front and rear platforms are built to accept the multi position seats fitted as standard. The forward platform is 1.5 m by 1.3 m wide. As it is only slightly below gunwale height the extra 150 mm of gunwale width is also available to stand on if required.
The casting platforms and entire deck area is constructed of heavy ply with an overlay of outdoor carpet.
The anchor locker is huge for a boat of this size with more than enough space for inshore anchoring.
Plywood panels hinged with high quality s/s piano type hinges are cut out of the floor panel to form locker hatches. The panels of ply fit each other and against the hull perfectly.
Moving backwards from the anchor locker is the seat mount. This allows one of the well upholstered seats to be moved forward from the lower centre deck section after travelling to a good fishing location.
Immediately aft is another hatch for access to further storage space ideal for lifejacket and safety gear.
On the rear of the forward casting platform lies another hatch which opens to reveal a fish storage pen.
Hallelujah! Finally someone builds a boat that credits that inshore anglers sometimes actually catch a fish or two!
Somewhere to put the little blighters while they bleed or wait to be killed and bled. This kill pen fills up when the boat is stationary and drains while under way.
Simple, effective, practical.
Behind the kill pen the floor drops down about 350 mm to the cockpit proper. Two removable hatches provide access to what is little more than maintenance space. The hull Vee shape has almost entirely washed out by now. This results in only a couple of inches of space beneath the ply floor. Marcel runs the plumbing for the integral fuel tank and a small bilge pump in this area.
Fuel tank capacity is 50 litres which should give a range of at least eighty miles.
A neat little centre console is positioned towards the rear of this centre section. Naturally it is fabricated from 3.0 mm plate alloy. The console houses the Teleflex steering mechanism, ignition switch, PTT switch and gauge and provides a mounting point for the sounder.
An LCD display would be a natural choice for such an exposed position. The rear casting platform covers a live bait tank of enormous capacity. Other hinged lids lift to reveal bulk storage space and the engine battery. This platform serves as the helm seat. While I was dubious at first glance about such an arrangement, in practice it was comfortable and convenient. Another seat mount is provided in this platform as well as two more rod holders. The gunwale width continues around the transom with two more rod holders in the transom corners. (making six in all). Note there?s plenty of room here for a downrigger!
The engine half pod is something of a trademark on Marcel?s boats. The engine is kept out of the boat, but close enough to fish around when the heat is on.
The transom arrangement is finished off with a berley bucket and a platform either side of the pod for boarding.
Fishability
For protected water fishing this style of boat is hard to beat. The flexible seating configuration allows the chairs to be used on the casting platforms or placed down on the centre deck completely out of the way if you wish to stand. The multiple rod holders and side coaming arrangement caters for just about any possible combination of drift or anchoring conditions. The carpeted finish is not only on the ply floor but is also extended up the inside of the hull. This produces a quiet boat without the traditional rattle and crash noise levels of a typical tinnie.
The best piece of equipment on the test boat was the electric outboard. Marcel fits the Tracker with a 12 volt OMC electric outboard that is bow mounted. A fiendishly simple folding mount permits flat stowage inside the boat while travelling between spots. Once at the desired location the motor swings out and over the bow. A foot operated throttle is then used to control position and all this happens in almost total silence.
The electric motor has its own independent battery which is hooked up to the outboard?s generator for charging.
The Barra Tracker doesn?t have a great deal of freeboard at rest. It has 250 mm tat the stern and 400 mm at the bow to be exact. This is sufficient for the inshore role the Tracker is designed to fulfil.
Stability is very good, but understandably not quite as good as a totally flat bottomed punt. An initial lean as weight shifts inside the boat sees the hull moving about 75 mm. Then the reversed chines come into play, the boat stiffens considerably and becomes much more resistant to leaning over. While the rear casting platform is perfectly stable from a standing position, I would tend to use the seat from the forward position. With the electric outboard control underfoot and the silent precise control it allows, everything happens calmly, predictable and easily. . The difficulties of setting up the right drift over a hot spot are forgotten. The combination of silent manoeuvre and precision boat placement must contribute to more productive fishing.
On the down side of the equation, all that gear and wiring on the bow of the boat does not help the anchoring process.
It is still practical to throw the pick out, but some care is necessary to avoid snagging the anchor line on the wiring attached to the electric motor. The live bait tank and kill pen are also key pieces of equipment in the overall fishability fitout. If you are still fishing with frozen prawns you are missing out. Think about it!
Performance
The Barra Tracker is rated for outboards of between 25 and 50 hp. The test boat was equipped with a Johnson 40 hp engine that provided plenty of grunt. There was no shortage of acceleration at any point in the rpm range. Without access to a radar gun, boat speeds were obtained using a GPS. With the throttle set at about 4,500 rpm and the nose trimmed up, a steady 20 knots was achieved.
With a bit more slop around and waves around 300 to 400 mm high I lowered the nose to take advantage of vee bow design.
Two or three knots were lost off the speed, but the hull cut through the water with a softness and penetration belaying its 4.5 m length. Flat out and 6,250 rpm translated to maximum speed of about 30 knots.
Handling and Ride
The plate construction with longitudinal stiffeners combined with a fine entry provides the Barra Tracker with a ride that redefines punt and dinghy standards. The fine entry softens out the chop, and little spray comes back onboard. The photos show the chines turning the water down.
Steering was light and responsive - especially when the boat leans into a turn slightly and the chine starts to bite. The turns could be tightened at will with the boat cornering sharply, yet comfortably.
The Tracker has a good trim range, enabling the skipper to set up a hull attitude appropriate for the conditions. But it is the way the Barra Tracker handles mixed up inshore conditions that really sets it apart from the pack. While I cannot suggest you try to keep up with the big monohulls and cats, you can safely move around in the inshore slop frequent in most coastal harbours and creek mouths.
The hull climbs out of the hole smoothly and easily and seems to plane comfortably at any power setting above 3,500 rpm. The steering did not load up or the propeller cavitate at anything other than extreme positions.
The whole situation was so absurdly smooth and easy, I found myself wondering if some sort of power assistance and trim tabs had been fitted. Of course they hadn?t.
I found I didn?t want to stop and fish because getting there has never been such fun!
Finish
The burgundy paintwork is a two pack polyurethane. This product is known throughout the industry as the leading finish. Tough and mirror smooth, maintenance could not be simpler.
Alloy welds throughout are smooth and well finished.
The whole boat gives the impression of being built with genuine pride.
The Verdict
The Barra Tracker is an unusual boat by Australian standards. Unashamedly modelled on the American Bass boats, it is the first of its type to be built in this country. Whether locals will take to its clever yet unique design remains to be seen. Australians are a conservative bunch, and it usually takes a while before a new style of boat gets accepted - no matter how well it performs. Yet the Barra Tracker deserves to be successful. It?s ?punt like? interior layout has been combined with a hull shape aimed at offering a comfortable ride while retaining stability.
From our test, it is clear the Barra Tracker is safe and useable in conditions far worse than a punt can venture forth into. It is nevertheless designed exclusively for use in enclosed waterways, but this includes big, open lakes that can get very choppy and uncomfortable.
Good hull design, dynamic and static stability, fishing practicality, structural integrity, ... it?s all there in big amounts with this boat. I remarked near the start of the article that the goal posts had been moved in dinghy design and construction standards with this boat. I genuinely believe this to be the case. With the Barra Tracker 4.5, Cairns Custom Craft has kicked several goals.
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Cairns Custom Craft 4.5m Barra Tracker |
| Configuration / Style |
Console |
| Construction |
Aluminium |
| Length |
4.5m |
| Beam |
1.75m |
| Depth |
85cm |
| Hull Weight |
250kg |
| Max engine hp |
50hp |
| Sheet size |
3mm |
| Fuel Tank |
optional |
| Deadrise |
N.A |
| Tested Power |
40hp |
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