MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE
Sometimes looks can be deceiving. Dan Arscott, managing director of Grand Boats Australia, with a ‘cor blimey’ British accent, tells me not all RIBs are made the same way. In fact, a morning out with Dan on the Gold Coast Broadwater is a truly enlightening experience for someone like me, who has admired the RIB design from afar but has never been on one for more than a few minutes as a photography platform.
IN THE BEGINNING
“I first started selling for Grand Boats eight years ago, when I worked in the UK managing the brand distribution and sales before Grand wanted to come to the Australian market,” Dan says. “And so my partner Carly, an Australian, and I put ourselves forward to bring the brand out here. We started the Australian distribution with our dealership on the Gold Coast in Arundel, where we’ve got every model of the Grand range in stock. We are in the process of expanding our dealership network now across Australia.”
KEEPING SAFE
Leaving the boat ramp at Southport we headed out for the open sea, where I made a captain’s call not to go out, as the Broadwater had put on a 30 knot SE blow against the falling tide. I knew I wasn’t going to get what I needed getting thumped around out there. There was plenty of rough stuff inside with a chop standing straight up at a couple of feet and a phenomenal amount of large wash boats playing around, creating a bit of sport for us being lower to the water.
THE DESIGN
We first anchored up in the lee of Wavebreak Island, to open up all the nooks and crannies and get a real sense of why this Ukrainian RIB stands out from her competition. “Grand Boats have been going for nearly 25 years now,” Dan says. “They started in Ukraine 25 years ago when the lead designer at Brig left to take his RIB design in a new direction. And the point of difference is the design. These are designed in an angular, sleek way with a centre console layout meaning that the walk around space is large, practical and safer. They are also brilliantly engineered to last and everything in the build is top quality. For instance, rather than the tube just being glued to the hull, the tube carriers between the tubing and deep V hull are concave, creating a larger surface area for the bond between the tube and hull, and giving the tubes more rigidity and a longer lifespan.”
PRICE AND INCLUSIONS
Regarding the price it’s up there but this thing is fully loaded with a list of extras as long as your arm. You are not going to be left wanting more.
Extras Included in this package:
- Yamaha 250HP Outboard
- Yamaha Digital Electric Steering
- Electric Windlass
- Stern Table & Pedestal
- Fibreglass T-Top
- Shower Kit with Sink, Tap & 75L Water Tank
- Fridge with Freezer Compartment
- Electric Toilet with 75L Holding Tank
- Garmin GPSMAP 1253xsv Chartplotter
- Fusion RA670 Marine Stereo
- 6 x Fusion 7.7” Signature Series Speakers
- Fusion 6 Channel Amplifier
- Scanstrut Rokk Wireless Active Phone Charger & Holder
All this comes in with a price tag of $180,100 or you can choose the standard edition which weighs in at $140,800 with the 200HP Yamaha and Plotter.
ANGLES
“A large part of the price is driven by angles,” Dan says. “To create the negative angles you see throughout these boats requires more workmanship, time and expertise, and so does cost more. But the outcome from this means the design and aesthetics are really elevated – and you gain more space in contrast to a straight or 90-degree angle you often see in fibreglass boat manufacturing.
“The other focus for Grand is on storage and safety. There are rails everywhere, including rails mounted on the tubes at the bow. You don’t see them on RIBs very often but they make a lot of sense, especially from a safety perspective.”
STORAGE
I must admit that when we opened this bad boy up in the lee of Wavebreak Island, there was a lot of opening and shutting of flow-coated lockers. This began at the back locker, which had enough space for a couple of toys, life jackets, and even a BBQ. Either side are two more small lockers, with the starboard housing the isolator to the twin 110-amp hour batteries. Under foot is the 260 litres of fuel, 75 litres of fresh water and 75 litres of blackwater which are all scattered under the floor throughout the hull and perfectly balanced.
The rear ski tower (back post spoiler) is like something off the Star Trek Enterprise but it does have a practical use as a ski pole with a high tow point as it is well braced into the aft locker. By this stage I think I have convinced Dan to fit a Starlink mini router and satellite internet receiver to it to complete the package. (Well, he certainly walked away with one of those ‘aha’ faces.) Moving forward to the rear of the console seating is a stylish small fridge with a sink on top, pretty much all you need for this sort of adventure day boat. The helm was well-appointed and ergonomically pleasing in terms of the two seat positions, with the first being bolstered up for that ultimate sit/stand feeling of control. The second position is sitting in behind the protection of
the windscreen. I must admit the big drawcard was the universal phone charger that sits flat on the dashboard not far away from the navigation screen. It had a kung fu grip so there were no problems locking your phone in, and for boaters like me that like to use the Wavve Boating app in conjunction with traditional digital charts, it makes a lot of sense. I had heard a rumour about an onboard head, and sure enough, in front of the console is not only a head but an entire, massive compartment. I am never one to take the word of a salesman who proclaims the head is a big space, so I wrestled my 187cm large frame in and assumed the position with the door closed. Obviously not a spot you want to spend a lot of time in, but very comfortable if the call of nature arises. In front of that compartment is a nicely appointed seat and further towards the bow is a large sunlounge. Finally, at the pointy end of this chic 7.5-metre surprise package, between the collision bulkhead and the bow, is the direct to water electric anchor with stainless chain.
TYING THINGS TOGETHER
Finishing off the artful look of the vessel is what really ties it together and that is the SeaDek flooring which is as close to teak as I have felt underfoot, with plenty of grip. Aloft, to complement the aft ski tower (spoiler), is the T-top, which on closer observation has lines and grooves on the top making it quite the aerodynamic cabin top necessary for something of this vessel’s capabilities.
THE RIDE
Finally, with everything packed down again and the deadman switch clipped into the belt, we headed down the Broadwater. The waterway has a maximum speed limit of 40 knots, so of course we never got to play at her maximum speed of 46 knots. When you are outside with your head above the windscreen at those sorts of speeds it is almost like the words are getting pulled out of your mouth. But once you lower the bolster down and sit properly, it was no effort to have a normal conversation.
The sea spray was interesting, as there didn’t appear to be any, certainly none over the bow even when leaping over a couple of huge washes. Towards the stern where you would generally see a bit of spray it was dry. The dryness and seakeeping effectiveness is most certainly put down to the deep V in the bow and long chines. Towards the stern they seem to have a pipeline effect on the water and turn it back into itself, maybe even creating a cushion of air, because this boat definitely did not stick to the surface. The punchy turning was thanks to the Yamaha Digital Electric Steering, an upgrade I’d certainly recommend.
CONCLUSION
The Grand G750 is way more than you would expect and much more than a simple RIB. This vessel has been tastefully refined and designed and would equally be at home pressed into service as a primary boat for the family or as a superyacht tender. It certainly has the aesthetics, power and seakeeping abilities for either role.
SPECIFICATIONS
Overall Length 7.3m
Overall Width 2.85m
Bare Boat Weight 950kg
Loading Capacity 1300kg
Passenger Capacity 13
Engine Max 250hp
Engine Weight Max 300kg
Engine Shaft Length 25″ (extra long)
Midsection/Aft Deadrise 25°/20°
Fuel Tank 260L
Tube Chambers 5
PERFORMANCE DATA
RPM (Knots) LPH
7.1 7.4
10 15
17 22
19 23
24 31
30 43
35 76
40 94
