kilp Posted January 1, 2008 Share Posted January 1, 2008 Hi all I am seriously thinking of buying a Bar crusher 530, I have been to blakes marine, and was happy with the customer service, I was just wondering if Blakes are the only mob that sell Bar crushers in sydney? I would like to know of a few other just to cross reference prices and see what different packages they have. Also I was wonderinf if anyone has any thoughts of the new E-tec Outboard by evinrude, I saw a dvd which practically shows the e-tec blowing away any other 4 stroke motor. I am ignorant with marine machinery but my only worry is how could any piece of machinery be in top nick, without a service for 3 years?????? if any one could shed some light I would really appreciate it. Thanks and happy new years day Kilp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a boat Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 Hi Kilp, I believe they are the only sellers in Sydney and if it was me I would think that a bit strange in such a city like Sydney. Most other brands of boats have 2-3 dealers who want to sell their product. I have been in a few Barcrusher boats and all I will say is go for a run B4 you buy one. Not where they would want to take you at Windsor, go for a run out the heads and see what you think. On the outboard side we like E-TEC and we sell all technologies. I personally think you can not go wrong with any modern clean engine, but I think the E-TEc range has the less disadvantages with it. Do a search for E-TEC and you will be swamped with info. If you have any questions please PM and I will see if I can help, Cheers, Huey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suttonscurse Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 Hi Kilp I have a 90 HP E-tec which is on my 525 Stacer . On the 18th January it will be 3 years old and it has performed faultlessly. Like you I was a bit concerned about 3 years in between servicing (especially the gear box oil ) even though I greased up the steering and grease points every 6 months so I had a full service done after 2 years. I asked the dealership to give me back the old parts (including gearbox oil) and upon inspection of the plugs , impeller , oil etc I would have been quite ok to wait the 3 years for servicing. Of course this was on normal recreational usage so commonsense would need to apply. This is boat number 7 for me , I have used all the major brands over the years ( motor prior was a Honda 4 stroke which was also pretty good) and like Huey said all the majors make good equipment , and yes I would happily buy another E-tec as first preference. regards Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inhlanzi Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 G'day Kilp Get Huey to talk to you about one of these - An Aqualine http://www.aqualineboats.com/index.html I am pretty much in the same boat (or not! ) as you and when I drove one of them I began saving again... My 2c worth cheers inhlanzi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BalmainBob Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 Gday Klip, If you want to go for a run in a 530 Bar crusher PM me and I will take you for a spin. Cheers Balmain Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussie big bob Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 Gday Klip, If you want to go for a run in a 530 Bar crusher PM me and I will take you for a spin. Cheers Balmain Bob Good on you bob. Now this is what being a raider is all about. Cheers bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a boat Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 Gday Klip, If you want to go for a run in a 530 Bar crusher PM me and I will take you for a spin. Cheers Balmain Bob Hi Bob, a very generous offer and as Aussie said this is what makes Fishraider the best site. I honestly believe though it is the dealers responsibilty to water test a boat prior to the order been signed and I am sure the dealer will be willing to do this, but if not, than Klip has your boat to try. I did not want to bring up Aqualine without being asked about it but the reason I stock these and not Barcrusher is I believe the Aqualine pontoon boat is a superior boat to all Alloy boats made today and i have seen and been in about all of them. At present I have a 550 Fisherman, a 590 Hardtop and a 660 Hardtop in stock if any Raider would like to come and check out the build quality and finish of these great riding safe offshore boats. I wish you all the best and if you get the barcrusher I wish you many years of trouble free boating. Please ask any questions you like on Fishraider and you will get a NO BS answer. Cheers, Huey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kilp Posted January 2, 2008 Author Share Posted January 2, 2008 thanks fellas for all the helpful advise, you dont know how much I appreciate it. Balmainbob, thanks for the offer, but I have arranged a test drive this saturday on the harbour out to the heads, Hopefully this will show me how well this boat will perform. Like I said thanks alot matey , it was very kind of you. I might even go over to hueys marine and check out his boat range and see what is on offer. thanks again kilp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flightmanager Posted January 2, 2008 Share Posted January 2, 2008 Well , a trip on the Harbour this Saturday will really test out a boat!! Huge swell , if it was me , I wouldnt be going anywhere near the heads !! As for the Etecs , I have a 75HP , and love it . Very good on fuel and oil , quiet and powerful. Ross Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pelican Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Hi Bob, a very generous offer and as Aussie said this is what makes Fishraider the best site. I honestly believe though it is the dealers responsibilty to water test a boat prior to the order been signed and I am sure the dealer will be willing to do this, but if not, than Klip has your boat to try. I did not want to bring up Aqualine without being asked about it but the reason I stock these and not Barcrusher is I believe the Aqualine pontoon boat is a superior boat to all Alloy boats made today and i have seen and been in about all of them. At present I have a 550 Fisherman, a 590 Hardtop and a 660 Hardtop in stock if any Raider would like to come and check out the build quality and finish of these great riding safe offshore boats. I wish you all the best and if you get the barcrusher I wish you many years of trouble free boating. Please ask any questions you like on Fishraider and you will get a NO BS answer. Cheers, Huey. Hi Huey Owners are great as they will tell you directly what they think- might not write it on a forum but will tell you if their boat is good or bad in what conditions on the phone. A lot of Bar Crushers have been sold to people wanting a production plate boat as their first boat and they fit that nieche on pricing quite well as they have the right "öffshore style look" people want of their boat. Their marketing has been very comprehensive and they have had a lot of placement in Mags and have a small loyal following which will probably allow decent resale to a newer boat owner. Hopefully Kilp will do his test ride and either call you or Bob to see if his impressions are right. Moving on a no BS answer required here. This no servicing lark. It means no need to go into a dealer for service not don't check anything for 3 years doesn't it??? I thought you still needed to learn to check lower unit oil level and that there is still some grease on linkages, grease prop shaft and check for fishing line , lift cowl every month and check furl or water leaks , hose degredation or anything unusual, filters etc etc. I know to you and me they are straight forward common sense things but to new boat owners I don't want to see them dissappointed if they buy a motor , do nothing for 3 years and thn wonder why they have a possible issue like a prop frozen on the shaft and 4 hour labour charge to pull it off or have a warranty issue if a zip clip for a water pipe comes off. To some people 3 years that the marketing people say is what they truely believe - I think it should have a little disclaimer asterix to stop idiots or inexperienced owners running them into the ground I think new owners need to understand modern motors are very reliable when set up right but there is consequences of being stranded on the water or not doing common preventative maintainance tasks and keeping an eye / ear on motor for odd things or noises. Nice to have warning alarms but the ideas is never to have them set off in the first place. Can you just clarify what "home service" checks you would do on a ETEC and how often in the first 3 years? Do BRP or dealer send you a letter if there is a better engine map or update for your motor since you aren't in for annual service? Last one- with the bigger etecs is there any need to decarb them at all and is that in the service schedule or just an add hock thing if build up is discovered? Thanks as usual and hope you had a great Chrissy & New Year. Pel PS . Unlike you most of us don't get to ride in a variety of boats that are current models with modern motors so your advice is invaluable. The hard tthing is always trying to work out what the bloke is really going to use the boat for not dream of using it for and what it is truely capable of. Most boats are rarely out in really trying conditions but I still see a lot of really unsuitable boats in places I wouldn't have even have dreamed of taking them in conditions I would only be comfortable in the right boat. Being honest about what your really going to use the boat for and how often is one of the hardest things to resolve before the salesmen get to your wallet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a boat Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Hi Pelican, the simple answer to your question about the servicing "lark" is that if a customer wants to service his E-TEC every year, than go for it. BRP are not holding a gun to your head saying you can not get it serviced until 3 years. I agree with what you are saying mate, but most people flush the engine, remove the prop and grease, and only do about 50 hours a year so the gearbox oil and components can easily go 150 or less hours. I have been told by all the other manufacturers that come up here wanting us to sell their product that the E-TEC is great for the consumer, but not great for the dealer, while the other clean engines are great for the dealer in service income, but not the best for the owner. Common sense says if you run aground then the impeller should be looked at and that will go for any any brand and technology engine. What I tell our E-TEC owners is flush the engine, remove prop and grease the prop shaft, grease the grease nipples and you will be fine for 3 years if you so chose. This basic "home" maintaince should be done to any engine no matter what brand and we have had many E-TEC now over 3 years or 300 hours and yes the plugs and impeller need changing and the G/B oil needs changing but other than that the service goes according to plan. BRP will not send a letter to owners unless it is a saftey recall-again just like any other manufacturer. The benefit of the abiltiy to update the software is that a guy with a 4 year old E-TEC can easily and without cost upgrade his engine to the latest and greatest. I can guarentee you that there is not any other engine on the market that can do this and I think it is a big plus because 6 months is a longtime in software development let alone years. E-TEC do not need to be de-carboned because there is so little oil in the combustion zone and even on the factory TCW-3 setting that will be a thing of the past let alone when run on XD-100, which even in an old fashion carby engine you would not need to do this due to the clean burning of this oil. I gather from your questions you may never get yourself an E-TEC and that is fine, but if you did, I think you would be the type of person that would bring it in yearly and get a once over, which no matter what HP will cost less than any other "clean" engine. Once again a topic gets way off the subject and if you have any more questions it might be best to start a new topic and I can answer them there. Cheers, Huey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Croydon Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Hi Kilp, For the past 12 months or so I've been looking at changing boats. I decided to change from a 5m glass boat to a plate alloy of around 6m. Most of my fishing is inshore, and out to about 60 - 80m for things like snapper, flatties, kings, dolphin fish etc on the south coast. But I wanted a bit more cabin/deck room and also the option of heading towards the shelf if the weather/sea and my particular want of the day allowed. I looked at a lot of boats, spoke to as many people in the industry as I could and read a heap. I took a few alloy boats for a ride but was most impressed with the Stabicraft 609ht. This or the similar boat sold by Huey would have been my favourite, but ended up being out of my price range. I got in touch with Blakes and had a chat and at their suggestion they took me out on the Harbour to the heads in 2 - 3m sea with 10 -15knt winds and gave it hell. The test boat had the 115hp etec which was fabulous. However, the new packages were also outside my price range. After a lot of searching I eventually bought a 2006 560c in showroom condition, with a Yamaha 115hp saltwater series 2s motor which had 34 hrs on the clock, and all the usual trimmings for well under $40,000. I've put about 30 hrs on the clock in the past few months and can honestly say I love it. It probably wasn't my first choice of boat or motor, but it was the best compromise I could find for the dollars. The more time I spend in it the more I like it, but like anything there are negatives. The ride can be noisy, the driving position a bit of a pain with the top rail of the windscreen at eye level when sitting and a bit wet in a cornering wind/sloppy sea. But this is fixed easily with the tilting roof and clears. I guess it's like anything, work out want you want/need, what you can afford and find the best that suits your particular circumstances. I guess to many there are better boats/motors out ther but for me I love it and I'm happy. If your down Batemans Bay way, drop me a line and I'd be happy to take you out for a day. Best of luck with your hunt and I hope you find what makes you happy. It's easy to get hung up on what eveyone else thinks is best, in the end what you thinks is best is right for you. Good luck and enjoy the process..... Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kilp Posted January 5, 2008 Author Share Posted January 5, 2008 (edited) Hi fellas Today I went out on a test drive in the harbour all the way out to the heads, and I must say i was very impressed. Both me and the MRs's drove the boat and it performed very well under shocking conditions near the heads. Also the E-tec Motor, seemed to perform very well too. You gotta understand I am ignorant about mechanic' of any sort, so its only a layman talk'n , but from what I saw and the way the boat felt , it was really good. I have another question about the E-Tec motor, but I will start another thread as it is a different topic altogether. Fellas, thanks for all the adivse and info , including offers of a ride, you guys are the greatest cheers kilp Edited January 5, 2008 by kilp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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