Tinnies For Tough Guys
Sydney Morning Herald
Saturday February 1, 1997
They used to be everywhere until plastic boats came along. Now those plate-aluminium tinnies are back, writes DAVID LOCKWOOD.
PLATE-aluminium boats - remember them? In the 1980s, they were as common as bluebottles on a summer ocean current. For more than a decade, marine marques such as Yellowfin, Sportfish and Fisher Alufarm ruled the waves and headed the wish-lists of keen local trailerboat fishermen.
It was the fishing fraternity, in particular, who favoured the plate boat. The attractions were many: inherent strength from rigid box-section frames, seaworthiness with self-draining decks and purposeful good looks. More significantly, plate-aluminium boats were embraced for the extraordinarily high level of customised options that could be built in.
But then Australia's tin men lost their exclusivity. Slowly but surely, alloy boatbuilders were forced back into the darkness of their tin sheds by a smarter fibreglass boat industry, which finally decided to listen to its customers and build high-spec, purpose-built craft.
The subsequent swing to 'glass was the end of an era for many backyard aluminium boat builders. But for material reasons, it didn't sink the fortunes of all of them. Several brands survived the plastic revolution and for one reason alone: their boats were built for the long haul.
For those who demand a no-fuss, tough-as-nails utility boat, you simply can't beat plate aluminium. Advocates of the breed include licensed fishing boat operators working out of coastal towns, sport-fishing devotees, water-taxi operators, waterways authorities, water police and rescue organisations.
Plate tinnies suit the rough-and-tumble Australian way of life and are potentially the longest-living boats that money can buy. A good plate boat can be sand-blasted and resprayed to look new again even after more than two decades of (ab)use.
In the diminished field of plate-aluminium boatbuilders, Lightning Boats in Queensland has been - much like its overbuilt commercial and recreational craft - a tough survivor. Combining welding experience with a willingness to bend to patrons' needs has earned the custom boatbuilder a steady and dependable clientele. Sales have crossed borders and travelled as far as remote Pacific islands.
The endearing traits of the Lightning product are encapsulated in the company's new 5.2 Cuddy Cabin, a compact custom-built sport-fisher offering the best of many worlds. It has a fair sleeping space in the cabin for catfish naps or even overnighting. It has a cockpit especially big on fishing space and fishing features. But foremost, it has a hull which is as tough as the proverbial Sherman tank.
The Lightning 5.2, weighing 1,500 kilograms on trailer when fully laden with tackle and a 125 hp Mariner, remains light enough to tote on a single-axle trailer with mechanical brakes. If boating requires traversing rough roads, beach launching or dumping the hull off a shoddy wave-washed ramp, all the better. With a 6 mm-thick alloy bottom and 4 mm topsides, the 5.2 is designed to survive whatever you throw at it.
Finished in a tough-wearing two-pack paint, the Lightning's 5.2 Cuddy Cabin appears well-proportioned with an obviously broad 2.3-metre beam. That width gives the hull stability at rest and a willingness to plane (even with half-pod mounting of the outboard). It also lends volume to the cabin, in which headroom is superb, and width at the helm so that a crew of three can stand shoulder-to-shoulder behind the windscreen without elbowing each other.
Inside the deep cuddy is the usual V-shaped berth which can sleep two at a pinch or seat four anglers out of the weather. Although the bunks do not have storage beneath, there are full-length cabin side-pockets and a big foot-well to accommodate a portable ice-box.
The lift-out centre section of the vee-berth, which harbours a small storage well, makes accessing the heavy-duty cabin hatch a snap. However, the wingnuts which kept the hatch closed were awfully fiddly to operate. To improve anchoring this boat, Lightning needs to employ snappier quick-release hatch clips.
In keeping with the hull, the anchoring hardware was extra heavy-duty. The bow sprit and bollard could tow the Queen Mary without tearing free, while the rope well is big enough to carry the necessary coils for serious deep-water fishing. A split bow rail, with twin anchor-holding tubes, and wide gunwales make it possible to walk around the cabin to the foredeck in calm weather.
A nice touch is the alloy mounting base for the GPS aerial just ahead of the windscreen, which promises clear reception for the unit without hindering the skipper's vision. An even nicer touch is the targa top, with storage for six rods and that essential shade and weather protection when bimini canvas is attached.
SET behind a sturdy four-piece windscreen and with clear side curtains scrolled into place, the helm is as comfortable as it can be. Nearby storage includes a glove-box, a recess in the dash for personal effects and a four-can drinks-holder.
There is plenty of flat dash space for mounting the Lowrance depth sounder/GPS close to the skipper. The engine instruments are flush-mounted on a raised brow, with the switch panels and mobile phone alongside. The marine radio is located just inside the cabin for protection, but within reach of the skipper.
Linked to SeaStar hydraulic steering, the sports wheel offers effortless trolling and comfortable long-range cruising aboard the 5.2. However, the throttle needs to be relocated further forward because it hits, and is restricted by, the skipper's seat when pulled into reverse.
Capacious seat-boxes under the twin pedestal seats are more practical than many other companys' offerings. They can be accessed from big side-hatches and feature separate aft wells which can be converted into insulated ice-boxes. For day fishing, there is a shallow but long wet-well under the carpeted floor towards the transom.
Cockpit space in the 5.2 Cuddy Cabin is sufficient for three anglers. With wide gunwales and toe-under space beneath the side pockets, it feels a decidedly sure-footed platform with plenty of freeboard at sea. A self-bailing cockpit with scuppers that don't leak too much water when reversing make it a boon for bar and big river crossings.
Typical of a well-planned plate sport-fisher is the array of clever cockpit features including deck rails, four rod-holders, shallow but wide side-pockets, dual battery storage in a central cabinet under the engine well, transom cutting board and a deep live-bait tank in the port corner. (The factory will fabricate and fit almost any feature you want, be it dive-tank racks or massive live-bait tanks.)
Rated for up to 150 hp but mated to a Mariner 125 hp outboard fixed to a half-pod extension, the 5.2 Lightning ran straight and carefree around the low 20-knot mark. But in choppy water and with the throttle buttoned down, the high-volume, broad-shouldered boat porpoised and felt rather firm on the re-entry.
I imagine the 5.2's rough-water ride would improve if the hull were fully loaded with safety and fishing gear; aluminium boats need the extra weight which will nail their forefoot to the water.
Top-end speed has little bearing on a fishing boat's life. Comfort is the determining factor and at 20 knots you can cruise a great many sea miles at leisure in this boat. And the outboard will only sip fuel from its sizable 200-litre underfloor tank.
The bottom line? For about $37,000 including Lowrance LMS 350 sounder/GPS and marine radio, the Lightning 5.2 Cuddy Cabin represents honest buying of a tricky Australian-built plate-alloy sport-fisher. For knockabout boating, it's a sound long-term investment with obvious material benefits.
© 1997 Sydney Morning Herald
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