Yamaha’s 255 FSH Sport E is a center-console fishing boat with family-friendly features like a fiberglass table, seats for the bow and backrests across the stern. Because she’s powered by twin jets, an angler will never worry about wrapping a line around the prop or lower unit when fighting a fish and the 255 FSH Sport E’s draft is 22” (55.88 cm). More...
The Absolute Navetta 48 is the smallest yacht in the series, but her comfort, 15’3” (4.65 m) beam and layout belie her 49’7” (15.11 m) overall length. She has 6’4” (1.93 m) of headroom in all the staterooms. The forward cabin is actually the master with the berth offset at an angle to starboard and the en suite head is aft to port. Her flying bridge covers more than half the boat’s length as well. More...
Chaparral Boats has built a reputation for manufacturing luxurious family-focused models and the 280 OSX serves up quality and amenities in spades. She was the first in the company’s luxury outboard-powered day boat series and some of her high-end features include a 7” (17.78 cm) multifunction touchscreen display at the helm, the EFX electric arch that folds down to clear bridges, convertible lounges in the bow and cockpit and a hullside door. Side-by-side buckets at the helm adjust individually, but when it’s time to join the party, their entire structure rotates so the seats face the cockpit. More...
Dorothea III is a 147’ (45 m) expedition yacht designed to be self-sufficient and leave a low carbon footprint while she explores the world. After cruising more than 170,000 miles in the past eight years, she has undergone three major refits in the past decade. The most recent upgrades included painting the exterior, replacing the generator, overhauling the engines and extensive maintenance to the ship’s systems. Her steel hull is .79” (20 mm) thick at the keel and the superstructure is FRP with carbon fiber used to add strength and rigidity in high-stress areas. More...
Virtually all lithium batteries have a management system built in, or a separate unit, to monitor and control the battery and keep it from overheating.
Who doesn’t remember the Samsung Galaxy A21 smartphone catching fire on a flight six years ago? Or in the fall of 2020, that a Hyundai car caught fire, followed the next week by a Ford EV? And Tesla has had its share of headlines over the years.
We can tell you from our interviews with many people in the electric-boat propulsion business that there is nothing they worry about more than a battery fire –– with their own batteries and those of competitors. Everyone we’ve spoken to engineered their battery packs and the Battery Management System (BMS). The BMS will sense trouble and shut down the battery or turn off individual cells that are getting too hot. The BMS is a critical piece of equipment. More...
With built-in functions for radar, weather, chartplotters, engine data and radio controls, helm screens are constantly touched by boat owners. Also, many boats with a more open design get a fair share of salt spray on their dash. Here are some tips on how to properly clean a boat's electronics screens. More...
With boat owners and operators concerned about the potential of increased operating costs thanks to record inflation, getting the most out of a gallon of gas is going to be on many people’s minds this summer. Read our eight surefire ways to reduce your fuel consumption. More...
For 20 years, BoatTEST’s remote office was on Stamford Harbor. For years, we watched what appeared to be a 10’ (3 m) rigid Jon boat go out into Long Island Sound with four men aboard wearing life jackets going fishing. They were part of a Guatemalan community of day laborers and we were always happy to see them going out to enjoy fishing in the evening after a day of work. But, we also had a sense of dread because the boat had only 8" to 9" (20.32 cm to 22.86 cm) of freeboard and was clearly overloaded. On Easter Sunday morning, the men went out to fish and the boat capsized. 25-year-old Cristofer Cifuentes and 40-year-old Ludyn Cifuentes died that day of hypothermia. Their companions are still recovering in the hospital. In 2020 there were 309 reported capsizings in the U.S. and 135 people died. 85 of those deaths occurred in boats 10’ (3 m) long or shorter. These two men are not a statistic. They were our fellow boaters. May they rest in peace.
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