Nice Summer Sport-Fish: Spectre Sportfish 34 SCS
#1
05-18-2009, 12:07 PM
Nice Summer Sport-Fish: Spectre Sportfish 34 SCS Heavy Mettle
Spectre Sportfish’s 34 SCS performs admirably, boasts a clean and simple layout and is built to take on tough conditions. Jay Pilini, the former owner of Spectre Powerboats, doesn’t build high-performANCE catamarans anymore, but that doesn’t mean the boats he builds don’t perform well. Far from it, at least if the Spectre Sportfish 34 SCS—a nifty center-console conventional V-bottom offering—is typical of the products he now offers. No doubt Pilini’s years as an offshore race-boat builder informed his vision of how a tough, center-console should perform, as well as how it should be constructed. Our test model’s half-inch-thick acrylic windscreen, for example, was installed using race-quality fasteners.
That’s not something you see in the average center-console offering these days. Then again, the 34 SCS is anything but average.
PERFORMANCE
Our test model was outfitted with two 300-horsepower Mercury Verado outboard engines. The boat also is offered with gasoline or diesel stern-drive engine packages, though the twin outboards remain the most popular package.
We can see why. The outboards were outfitted with a 1.75:1 gear reduction and 23"-pitch three-blade Mercury Tempest Plus propellers. With the engines running 6,200 rpm, the 34 SCS topped out at 62.2 mph and at that speed burned 60 gallons of fuel per hour. With three 57-gallon fuel tanks, that means owners could run the boat wide open for almost 3 hours without having to refuel.
With its Mercury Racing 380S K-Planes down, the 34 SCS came on plane in 4.7 seconds and exhibited little bowrise during the process. From a standing start, it hit 57 mph in 20 seconds. Steady in the midrange, it ran from 30 to 50 mph in 8.3 seconds.
“You’d get a little more performance out of triple Verados, but your fuel consumption would go up and I’m just not sure it’s worth it,” said Bob Teague, Powerboat’s lead test driver. “I like the way it’s set up. I like the simplicity. It’s a pleasure to drive really.”
Teague was particularly taken with the 34 SCS’s handling manners, which he described as “perfect.” Also impressive to him was the boat’s absence of rattles in rough water. Its large T-top made it susceptible to leaning into crosswinds, but the trim tabs could be used to counter that tendency.
“It’s a really dry ride, and the thing goes over cruiser wakes like they’re not even there,” Teague said. “I think that Jay (Pilini) has taken all his years of building high-performance catamarans and applied his knowledge and experience to fishing boats.”
Hard as he looked, Teague found nothing to complain about. OK, he did notice a bit of distortion near the corners of the windshield, which were mostly blocked from view by their supporting posts anyway.
WORKMANSHIP
The composite-built 34 SCS was completely vacuum-bagged. Corecell was used to beef up the running surfaces and Divinycell was utilized in the hullsides and deck liner. Vinylester resin was employed throughout the boat.
All graphics were cleanly handled in the paint. That included the Spectre name that was airbrushed on the boat’s hullsides. A flawlessly installed plastic rubrail with a stainless-steel insert handled the dockside chore of keeping the hullsides from taking a licking.
At the stern, Aqualuma underwater LED lights were installed for nighttime illumination. More standard hardware included two cat-eye navigation lights, six retractable cleats and a solid anodized aluminum frame for the fiberglass T-top. Another stout aluminum frame provided the sturdy structure for the bolster-style leaning post behind the center-console.
However, the standout hardware feature on the entire boat was the anchor setup. Thanks to a fabricated stainless-steel bracket, the anchor was mounted under—rather than on top of—the bow. That will help keep anglers from snagging lines on the anchor while they’re fighting fish. The locker for the power windlass for the anchor, as well as its chain, was accessible through a hinged hatch on the bow.
INTERIOR
Far from a Spartan workboat, the 34 SCS was equipped with a 41-gallon water-misting system to keep passengers cool on hot days and one of the most spacious in-console head lockers we’ve ever seen. Hinged on the starboard side, most of the forward half of the console swung open for access to the locker, which had a two-person bench in front of it. Amenities included a porcelain head, a shower and a sink.
Just ahead of the console, there were facing port and starboard lounges. In the sole between them was an insulated fish box, one of three in the 34-footer.
For additional passenger seating, the 34 SCS was equipped with a three-person rear bench that could be folded down and out of the way when it is time to fish. Extra-wide nonskid gunwale tops around the boat, as well as bumper pads to take the pain out of leaning on the gunwales, indicated that the boat was built for some serious offshore angling. A live well, a wet locker and a removable trash bin—all under hinged lids—were built into the transom, which was equipped with a port-side walk-through for access to the engines and the swim platform. A bracket to hold a swim ladder was mounted on each side of the platform.
In addition to bolster-style seating, there were fold-down footrests for the driver and co-pilot. Set up on the port side of the console was the helm that included a steering wheel with a trucker’s handle, Mercury drive-by-wire DTS throttles and shifters, a Garmin 4212 GPS unit and a Mercury SmartCraft SystemView screen for the Verado engines. Also at the helm was an Icom VHF radio, a DataTach propeller slip gauge from Livorsi Marine and toggle switches for the accessories.
In typical center-console fashion, the 34 SCS was equipped with an electronics box and a zippered canvas “chart storage” under the T-top.
OVERALL
Pilini’s experience in the go-fast world, where poorly built offerings quickly fall apart, has served him well in the center-console fishing-boat realm. The Spectre Sportfish 34 SCS is a tough fishing machine that handles like a dream, is built to conquer the rough stuff and is set up with real-world simplicity yet far from barebones.
Source:
Powerboat Magazine - Spectre Sportfish 34 SCS
Spectre Sportfish’s 34 SCS performs admirably, boasts a clean and simple layout and is built to take on tough conditions. Jay Pilini, the former owner of Spectre Powerboats, doesn’t build high-performANCE catamarans anymore, but that doesn’t mean the boats he builds don’t perform well. Far from it, at least if the Spectre Sportfish 34 SCS—a nifty center-console conventional V-bottom offering—is typical of the products he now offers. No doubt Pilini’s years as an offshore race-boat builder informed his vision of how a tough, center-console should perform, as well as how it should be constructed. Our test model’s half-inch-thick acrylic windscreen, for example, was installed using race-quality fasteners.
That’s not something you see in the average center-console offering these days. Then again, the 34 SCS is anything but average.
PERFORMANCE
Our test model was outfitted with two 300-horsepower Mercury Verado outboard engines. The boat also is offered with gasoline or diesel stern-drive engine packages, though the twin outboards remain the most popular package.
We can see why. The outboards were outfitted with a 1.75:1 gear reduction and 23"-pitch three-blade Mercury Tempest Plus propellers. With the engines running 6,200 rpm, the 34 SCS topped out at 62.2 mph and at that speed burned 60 gallons of fuel per hour. With three 57-gallon fuel tanks, that means owners could run the boat wide open for almost 3 hours without having to refuel.
With its Mercury Racing 380S K-Planes down, the 34 SCS came on plane in 4.7 seconds and exhibited little bowrise during the process. From a standing start, it hit 57 mph in 20 seconds. Steady in the midrange, it ran from 30 to 50 mph in 8.3 seconds.
“You’d get a little more performance out of triple Verados, but your fuel consumption would go up and I’m just not sure it’s worth it,” said Bob Teague, Powerboat’s lead test driver. “I like the way it’s set up. I like the simplicity. It’s a pleasure to drive really.”
Teague was particularly taken with the 34 SCS’s handling manners, which he described as “perfect.” Also impressive to him was the boat’s absence of rattles in rough water. Its large T-top made it susceptible to leaning into crosswinds, but the trim tabs could be used to counter that tendency.
“It’s a really dry ride, and the thing goes over cruiser wakes like they’re not even there,” Teague said. “I think that Jay (Pilini) has taken all his years of building high-performance catamarans and applied his knowledge and experience to fishing boats.”
Hard as he looked, Teague found nothing to complain about. OK, he did notice a bit of distortion near the corners of the windshield, which were mostly blocked from view by their supporting posts anyway.
WORKMANSHIP
The composite-built 34 SCS was completely vacuum-bagged. Corecell was used to beef up the running surfaces and Divinycell was utilized in the hullsides and deck liner. Vinylester resin was employed throughout the boat.
All graphics were cleanly handled in the paint. That included the Spectre name that was airbrushed on the boat’s hullsides. A flawlessly installed plastic rubrail with a stainless-steel insert handled the dockside chore of keeping the hullsides from taking a licking.
At the stern, Aqualuma underwater LED lights were installed for nighttime illumination. More standard hardware included two cat-eye navigation lights, six retractable cleats and a solid anodized aluminum frame for the fiberglass T-top. Another stout aluminum frame provided the sturdy structure for the bolster-style leaning post behind the center-console.
However, the standout hardware feature on the entire boat was the anchor setup. Thanks to a fabricated stainless-steel bracket, the anchor was mounted under—rather than on top of—the bow. That will help keep anglers from snagging lines on the anchor while they’re fighting fish. The locker for the power windlass for the anchor, as well as its chain, was accessible through a hinged hatch on the bow.
INTERIOR
Far from a Spartan workboat, the 34 SCS was equipped with a 41-gallon water-misting system to keep passengers cool on hot days and one of the most spacious in-console head lockers we’ve ever seen. Hinged on the starboard side, most of the forward half of the console swung open for access to the locker, which had a two-person bench in front of it. Amenities included a porcelain head, a shower and a sink.
Just ahead of the console, there were facing port and starboard lounges. In the sole between them was an insulated fish box, one of three in the 34-footer.
For additional passenger seating, the 34 SCS was equipped with a three-person rear bench that could be folded down and out of the way when it is time to fish. Extra-wide nonskid gunwale tops around the boat, as well as bumper pads to take the pain out of leaning on the gunwales, indicated that the boat was built for some serious offshore angling. A live well, a wet locker and a removable trash bin—all under hinged lids—were built into the transom, which was equipped with a port-side walk-through for access to the engines and the swim platform. A bracket to hold a swim ladder was mounted on each side of the platform.
In addition to bolster-style seating, there were fold-down footrests for the driver and co-pilot. Set up on the port side of the console was the helm that included a steering wheel with a trucker’s handle, Mercury drive-by-wire DTS throttles and shifters, a Garmin 4212 GPS unit and a Mercury SmartCraft SystemView screen for the Verado engines. Also at the helm was an Icom VHF radio, a DataTach propeller slip gauge from Livorsi Marine and toggle switches for the accessories.
In typical center-console fashion, the 34 SCS was equipped with an electronics box and a zippered canvas “chart storage” under the T-top.
OVERALL
Pilini’s experience in the go-fast world, where poorly built offerings quickly fall apart, has served him well in the center-console fishing-boat realm. The Spectre Sportfish 34 SCS is a tough fishing machine that handles like a dream, is built to conquer the rough stuff and is set up with real-world simplicity yet far from barebones.
Source:
Powerboat Magazine - Spectre Sportfish 34 SCS
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