Photo 1
Home
A Boat
Tips
Links
|
Boatsville Home |
Find A Boat |
Boat Buying Tips |
Boating Links |
Photo 1 Location: Clearwater Beach, FL Boat Type: Yacht Year: 2006 Make: Don Smith 45 Cruise/Dive/Fish Price: $499,000
Length: 45' Beam: 10' Draft: 28' Weight: 23,500 Pounds Hull: Fiberglass
If you already know how incredible a Don Smith truly is, stop reading right now and call us for a showing! For the uninitiated, let us tell you about this remarkable vessel. Imagine a versatile cruise/dive/fish boat that's engineered and built like an M-1 tank but handles like a Ferrari! Make no mistake, this is a serious offshore cruiser whose mass soaks up pounding seas like a sponge for a smooth ride. You won't believe how safe a center console can feel in offshore conditions. Twin Yanmar turbo diesels, 480-hp each, are mounted well forward close to center of gravity and they swing 23" props through running gear that is more commonly seen on commercial ships. The ruggedness and simplicity of the drive train and steering will get you out and back in the harshest conditions (the M-1 part) and the positioning of the engines makes this one of the most stable and nimble boats around (the Ferrari part). You'll be stunned as you steer her through hard carving turns and reversals with one finger on the wheel while she points and shoots like an advanced F-22 fighter. Hull construction is Kevlar and E-glass and is engineered and built for incredible strength. Another boat of this type was reportedly run aground onto solid rock at 40+ mph (not intentionally, of course!) with cosmetic damage to the bottom and no hull puncture! With only a 28" draft and a hull built like this, there's nowhere you can't go with your craft. The props are 40' back from the bow, go ahead and beach her to explore uncharted islands. Engineers call a design "elegant" when so much care and thought has been given to it that every feature you might need is already there and right where you need it. You slap your forehead and say "why didn't someone think of that before?". The deck, for example, looks exactly like teak (even I thought so at close inspection) but it's a far more durable non-skid synthetic material that's impervious to spills, dropped scuba tanks or scuff marks. "Too hot for bare feet" you say? Not with the deck-area evaporative cooling system that uses ample condensate from the air-conditioner to supplement the water supply! And if you or the crew make a mess, there are three strategically located fresh water coil hoses and even a permanently installed pressure wash system behind access doors! Need to do a little work over the side? There's no need to break out the scuba gear. A built-in compressor provides air to a "hookah" rig for up to four divers with 100' of hose. And don't worry about getting over the side or back in. A quick release Marlin door in the transom leads to a deck level powder-coated stainless-steel swim platform with a rugged 3-step fold-down ladder that won't tear off if you forget to stow it. To access the engines, slide the two forward console seats out of the tray (cleverly, their bases are 150-qt igloo coolers) and lift and slide forward the waterproof engine hatch, exposing the Yanmars. Similar hatches behind and around the console reveal the turbos, engine coolant reservoirs, the Halon fire system and more. The engines are controlled by aircraft-style FADEC (full authority digital engine control) single-levers. This is more often found on "state-of-the-art" fighter aircraft, not sport fishers. The forward face of the console opens up to expose the backside of all the helm electronics and gear, making maintenance much less of a hassle. Note that most of the hardware is mil-spec or aerospace grade. Every design feature of this boat speaks of ruggedness and strength. We could go on and on about the features of this rare vessel and the specs hardly do her justice. She could serve as a Navy SEAL platform, she's that tough. But the sound system and other creature comforts make this boat an iron fist in a velvet glove. If you want the "Best of the Best", a "Beauty and the Beast" all in one, then have a look and prepare to fall in love. Engine SpecificationsModel: 6-LT-3 Power: 480 HP
Hours: 170 Fuel: Diesel Fuel Capacity: 430 Gallons
Galley
|
||||||||||
All content ©2009 Paradigm Development Group, LLC. |
||||||||||