Quick trip to Coromandel
Sarah, me and the kids stayed at the Top10 in Coromandel last night and went out fishing today. Lovely day, good test for getting boat in and out on the ramp… Livvy caught the...
Category: Bluefin Boat Build
Photos from the boat build. Sportcraft Marine were great to deal with in building our Bluefin 720 Hardtop!
Auckland Family Trip
The Stone crew popped up to Auckland this week to see the Auckland family. I’ll post a few updates, but here’s a few pics from a nice day out on the water today. We...
Sorting the Sonar
We had an issue with the Garmin 750S sonar crashing and not finding the floor if we went over about 10 knts. Was a total pain! After some research, we found it was a...
Diagnostics Day!
I had a Mercury Technician come out to the boat and do some diagnostics. It’s been running a little guzzly and not quite getting up the the top end 5800 revs I would expect....
The boat gets Sorted!
I spent the day at the Marina today on the work cradle getting it set up the way I want it. With kids and families coming on board at times, safety is paramount. I’ve...
Launch Day! The bluefin hits the water!
The boat was delivered today and looks awesome! Jamie and Wayne from Sportcraft delivered it and ran through all the systems. We were very impressed with the clean layout and sensible design of all...
Nearly at the finish line!
The boat is nearly finished! They took it for a water test and said it went well. Last thing is to have a think about some scuppers or a road cover so the boat...
Bluefin Boat Spaghetti!
Looking at the latest photos, I’m glad these guys know what they’re doing!! I’m sure when done it’ll be all tucked away neatly. Quite interesting seeing what goes into the boat! Very cool seeing...
More Build Photos…
Looking good! Bit more to do yet, but the Sportcraft guys are doing a great job. Can’t wait to get this tank on the water and catch some fish! Note: That’s not our upholstery...
Mercury 200hp OptiMax vs. Evinrude & Yamaha
I found this great article that shows a good comparison of the top three motors in the range. Looks like we chose the right one! Referenced from: this article… . Top Speed Test: Maximum...
Change of Plan – Mercury 200 Optimax!
I couldn’t resist. The 175 just didn’t quite feel right. I decided to upgrade to the Mercury 200hp Optimax. I think it’s just going to give the extra grunt I want without going too...
She’s Painted!! Very cool!
Getting there! All painted and ready for fitting out I guess. I went with a Resene Double Cod Grey. It’s a very dark charcoal. (I didn’t choose because it had ‘Cod’ in the name)....
The Bluefin 720 takes shape! Heading off to the painters this week!
The guys hard at work! Man these guys work fast!! The electric dunny is in!! No more hanging over the sides! Check out the bow rails! Man they look tough!
More updates on the Build!
Some more photos the guys have just sent through. These guys work fast! Looking good! Need to take the Bluefin out to catch some Bluefin!
Naming the vessel!– The Man Cave!”
After throwing around some ideas, we settled on “The Man Cave” as the name of the boat. I think it’s a pretty awesome name. Here’s the logo I whipped up and a visual of...
the motor – Mercury 175 Optimax
Here’s some specs on the motor we’ve chosen for the boat. I did a great deal of research on motors before settling on this model. Powerful, economical and reliable! . BEST-IN-CLASS FUEL EFFICIENCY The...
Visit to the Factory!
I took a day off and went down to the factory to see the boat being built. Caught up with a good mate and took him along as well. It was fantastic seeing it...
More Build Photos…
Here’s some more photos Scott sent through. It’s awesome to see these and be a part of the whole process. These guys are great to work with. Looking forward to getting this fishing machine...
First build photos! Exciting!
Scott from Sportcraft sent these through. Check out the strength in those stringers! This is one tough hull! Can’t wait to jump waves and hopefully never need to test the positive buoyancy! I’ll keep...
The Boat Specs
I’ve put up a page with the full boat spec for those who are interested. Check it out below: http://www.mancaveboat.com/bluefin720-boat-specs/
Who’s building our Bluefin 720?
We decided on the Bluefin 720 Lockup. The boat is being built through Sportcraft Boats. Check them out… http://www.sportcraftboats.co.nz They’ve been great to deal with, very flexible, friendly and professional. I’m confident they’ll build...
About the boat!
Welcome to the Man Cave boat blog! This has been built to show the build of our new boat, showcase the specs and post photos of the adventures we plan to have! I’d been...