| Gale Force 550 Offshore and 90 E-TEC - bigger and better | |
| Upgrading a boat is a momentous decision. There needs to be some mighty good reasons to outlay hard earned cash for an upgrade.
My original purpose boat was a Gale Force 4.8 centre console powered by a 70hp carbureted 2-stroke outboard. The fibreglass Gale Force 4.8, with its deep vee self draining hull was a great fishing boat and it never let us down, whether we were fishing the impoundments or well offshore. |  |
| The rigs only shortcoming was a little lack of room when fly-fishing.
Despite the fact that the 2-stroke 70 was very reliable, it was a thirsty little devil. I wanted to upgrade to a bigger boat so we would have more room, but I was put off by the problem of selecting the right 2-stroke engine. It wasn't until I saw Evinrude's E-TEC engines put through their paces at the Queensland release that I made the move to get a bigger boat. I was impressed with the E-TEC's instant starting system, plus the fact that there wasn't a hint of oil smoke from any of the test engines. After I had driven a test boat with a 90 E-TEC on the transom, my mind was made up, thanks to the smoothness, quietness and great response of the new BRP product. And, being familiar with the advantages of direct fuel injection on outboard motors, I knew there would be substantial fuel savings as well. All up, I had everything I required - a quieter, smokeless, more fuel-efficient engine at a price that I could afford. In addition to this, the E-TEC 90 weighed only 138kg, making it the perfect choice for the Gale Force 550 Offshore I had my eye on. | |
| Other features that attracted me to the E-TEC engines were the three year or 300 hour service interval, plus the fact that these engines don't require any break-in period.
With engine choice clear, all I needed was the new hull and a deposit cheque took care of that. A little over six weeks later the hull was ready to accept the 90 E-TEC. When you look at the Gale Force 550 Offshore you can see that it's an unashamedly solid boat. It features a thick hand-laid hull, massive all-fibreglass underfloor stringers, a livewell and storage areas, plus a rigid self-draining floor. Mine even has a custom icebox forward of the centre console, yet I was surprised to see the performance of the new Evinrude on the day we launched. |  |
| The engine certainly performed to expectations. The 'Galey' is a full 5.5m long and 2.lm wide, yet it displayed great engine enjoy response. Mid-range power - say, between 3300rpm through to around 5000rpm - was very impressive, and a top-end of 72kph recorded at 5500rpm.The upshot is that there is ample power to get you out of tough situations.
The quietness of the engine was impressive too, allowing us to talk normally when traveling at 4000rpm, my favoured cruise speed. For some reason I didn't think my engine would start as easily as the E-TEC's did on the test day, but it did. The second the starter can be heard the engine fires, every single time. This feature was particularly significant when we fished out of Iluka in northern New South Wales last January. The ocean beach ramp at Woody Head, just north of town is subject to a lot of wave action and - just to add incentive to a hasty exit once the boat is afloat - there's a propeller-scarred rock bar in front of the ramp. If an engine doesn't kick into life immediately it's curtains for the prop once a wave finds the hull, and the E-TEC's instant start facility proved itself over and over again in that most demanding of launch areas. More than anything else, however, it's the economy of the 90 E-TEC that has most impressed me. I cannot believe the frugal running of this engine. Oil usage is everything that BRP claimed, with the Evinrude Synthetic oil needing topping up only very occasionally but it's the minimal fuel consumption - that really pleases me. Both of my boats shared the same size underfloor tank but the new, larger hull has a far greater range. At Iluka the old boat required a top-up after each offshore trip. The new E-TEC-equipped rig, and fishing the same grounds, went two mornings before seeing the bowser. My Gale Force does a lot of work when pelagic fish are about, and it's so cheap to run that I sometimes head out two or more times per week. A recent trip off Bribie Island, for example, saw us traveling over 7Okm for the morning while searching for tuna and the fuel bill was under $21. A cheap trip for four-and-a-half hours on the water. On reflection, it's hard to work out just what I enjoy most about the new boat. The larger hull makes life on the water a lot easier, that's certain, but a big part of the package is that sleek white E-TEC 90 on the transom. I just love to hear it run! | |
