The Dreadnort D4000 Innovative Boat of the Year runner up at the 2022 Hutchwilco NZ Boat Show, proves to be a winner on the water.
The three Innovation Award judges at the 2022 Hutchwilco Boat Show were asked to not only judge the most innovative internationally and locally produced marine products, but also what they considered to be the most innovative boat exhibited at the show. For a first time event, the judges were somewhat surprised to discover that over a dozen entries were received. Fibreglass, alloy and inflatable; they were all there.
Although the Marco 600 Sojourn topped the pack, the two second equal finalists were the Dreadnort D4000 and the Takacat Catamaran RIB. The Takacat has been featured in a previous article, so it was with eager anticipation that I jumped at the chance to get out on the Hauraki Gulf to test the Dreadnort D4000, a collaboration between two Auckland based companies, Transformarine Naval Architects (Blair Lewis, the designer) and Altech Marine (Stuart Dawe, the builder).
This has to be one of the most unique vessels I’ve ever been on. Not only does it qualify as innovative (novel, original, unique and different), but its physical design and atypical concept make it hard to pigeon hole. Ultimately it is a compromise; designed as an alternative to the fishing PWC with many more advantages, this vessel allows you to take up to two mates*out fishing on this full walk around and very stable fishing machine with a fully self-draining deck, while being easily trailerable behind the average family vehicle and able to be slid into your garage at home for safe keeping.
The US Coast Guard defines a Personal Water Craft (PWC), amongst other criteria, as a jet-drive boat less than 4m long. While the D4000 is not a jet drive, sporting instead a Yamaha 60hp outboard on our test day. It is a compromise (PWC vs small boat) with less hp, more on board fuel and a more economical range. A jet unit can be fitted if requested.
BRISK TEST
Late October, and in the middle of a typically unpredictable Auckland spring day, Blair and I launched the D4000 at the Gulf Harbour boat ramp and took off out into the Hauraki Gulf on a partly cloudy, but windier day than the forecast, straight into a brisk SW wind and a sea running half metre, with closely spaced waves. In fact, just about perfect conditions to give this “mini dreadnought” a good work out.
I say Dreadnaught for two reasons. First because the aggressive inverted bow resembles a WWI Dreadnaught battleship and secondly, because I like the cheeky play on words with the Dreadnort brand name. But let’s talk about the bow first, as it’s this feature which draws most attention when you first see the boat.
So, what is it with the dreadnaught and vertical bows? This bow isn’t just there for styling, but admittedly, the styling certainly sets this craft apart as well as serving multiple purposes. With a longer waterline length, the D4000 performs like a larger more traditional boat. The bow design being semi-wave piercing for a softer ride in rough weather – much as we experienced on test day.
I was rather pleased that the ocean conditions were on the rough side, being very curious to discover how this unorthodox boat would perform in lumpy seas. Having easily launched the craft, Blair and I motored past the boat ramp breakwater and headed over to the southwest corner of the bay in order to test out the boat’s capabilities and to shoot some photos.
Arriving on site, Blair handed the helm over to me and we began to put this “mini dreadnaught” through its paces. My first question to Blair before I goosed the throttle was, “How far can I push this thing”? To which he replied; “Not sure, we haven’t yet had a chance to test in these conditions”. Well, working on the theory that there’s a first time for everything and with instructions for Blair to hang on (fortunately there are a lot of conveniently fitted hand holds on this craft) we started some low, moderate and high speed runs.
This little demon tops out at just over 28 knots at 6,000 rpm. As I pushed this little “pocket rocket” through some high speed manoeuvres, I will confess to a certain trepidation and on one particular sharp turn to port, as we quartered a particularly steep wave, I was thinking “Oh, oh!” But, my fears that both Blair and I would be thrown into the water (centrifugal force and a sharp lean to port….. ah, confession; it felt like we were going to go over), the D4000 skidded around as though the stern was pivotally riveted to the sea floor and pushed its ass towards the waves with a certain disdain that was smugly rewarding.
The D4000 feels safe and stable, even through extremely tight turns in a moderately rough sea. Speaking of rough sea, as I purposely powered straight into some fairly steep waves with a deep troughs behind the crests; anticipating a typical spinal crunch, I took my weight onto my legs and feet, only to discover that this 18 degree angle vee hull and reverse bow knives through waves, avoiding an expected hull slam coming off the crest.
All the fun of a PWC with the luxury of a small boat. Need I say more?
YES, I DO!
Despite glaringly obvious differences in styling and appearance, Dreadnort vessels (not just the D4000 – there are several other boats in the line-up, ranging from the tiller version D4000 to the large V8500 enclosed cabin) are designed and built by a naval architect and by professional boat builders to a commercial standard.
Meaning that if you look beneath the skin of any Dreadnort plate aluminium vessels (including the D4000) you’ll notice a continuous well laid out structure with proper frame and stiffening spacings, professional welding and workmanship akin to that found on a superyacht. Not surprising, as boat builder Stewart Dawe worked at Alloy Yachts for 17 years. Even though the boats weigh a bit more than expected, due to complying with scantling calculations which check the strength of the designed structure by comparing the effective external and internal stresses with the allowable ones thus ensuring that safety comes first as a result of a structurally sound hull with segregated sealed buoyancy chambers.
During our sea trials off Gulf Harbour, I was impressed with the ergonomic simplicity of the helm station layout and seating arrangement. A wide, but exactly the right length, centrally positioned seat, with tons of storage below, is positioned perfectly behind the steering console which comes equipped with a more than adequate, slightly curved, and easily removable windscreen. All necessary instrumentation is provided and installed in a sensible, intuitive fashion in the centre console. The wheel and throttle control are comfortably and aesthetically fitted, making this vessel easy to drive in any conditions.
Despite its size, this craft is filled with useful and innovative features, many of which I’ve not seen on other small boats. For example, the usual retrieve/secure welded eye on the bow is replaced with a watertight hole through the hull. Unconventional, but practical for easily hooking on in order to winch the boat onto its trailer. The removable bow roller, housed in the self-draining anchor locker is a very clever idea. I liked this along with the fact that the anchor locker can also be used for a ‘quick to get to’ fish storage chest. In addition, the huge storage capability under the helm seat provides more than ample room for a big chilly bin while still leaving plenty of additional storage space for fenders, tackle boxes, spare life jackets, etc.
But this vessel has been designed with the fisherman in mind. To this end, the fish bait cutting board and twin rod holder arrangement over the outboard fits the bill nicely. Take the bait board out and you’ll find that the sturdy bracket arrangement has been manufactured with a hole for a water ski pole. Not much the designer hasn’t thought about in this compact craft. Then there is the big feature. The whole boat is self-draining!
This was hilariously proven when; just after I made a comment to Blair on the helm, as to how surprisingly dry I felt that the boat to be, he unintentionally de-powered coming off the crest of a steep wave and plunged us into the subsequent trough, burying the bow into the back of the next wave with the inevitable wall of water flooding over the bow, crashing into the windscreen (which did its job remarkably well), but still allowing a goodly portion of water to wash over us. I quickly glanced around in time to witness this huge amount of water swiftly drain off the stern. Self-draining is superb. With self-draining this effective, what about any loose items on the boat being washed off the stern as well? Perhaps an easily detachable, optional “cargo net” which could be quickly snapped on or off as conditions dictated?
Dreadnort Boats, a modern take on the name for the next generation of revolutionary powerboats!
SPECIFICATIONS
Boat Design Name: Dreadnort D4000
Year Launched: 2022
Designer: Blair Lewis
Builder: Dreadnort Boats
LOA: 4.00m
Beam: 1.78m
Deadrise (Transom): 18 deg
Draft: 0.400m
Displacement: 3.5 tonnes (Dry)
Trailerable Weight: 850 kg (approx.)
Max Speed: 28 knots
Construction: 4mm
Fuel Capacity: 90 litres
Engine: Yamaha 60hp
Outboard Range: 50-60hp
Flooring: U-Dek
MFD: Raymarine
Price: $NZ65,000 (Excluding trailer)
Contact: www.dreadnort.com
RPM Speed
500 3.0
1000 3.8
1500 4.0
2000 5.4
3000 7.2
3500 13.0
4000 16.3
4500 22.0
5000 22.9
5500 25.2
6000 28.1
