Western Australia has long been the home of custom plate aluminium boat manufacturing, with tough and functional seafaring offerings built for its harsh and often remote environment. Yet these designs have been tempered by time and experience, creating very practical boats that will go the hard yards. Perth’s Razerline Boats is one of the longest-standing and successful manufacturers in the State, proving itself in both recreational and commercial boating many times over.

I make no secret of my long association with the brand. In fact, in a previous lifetime, I was a dealer for Razorline in Victoria; hence, I have extensive experience with their traditional range. But that was some 15 years ago, and Razerline has refined its range even further, extending its seagoing options.

Razerline Boats owner Stewart Maughan heads up a strong team of specialists expanding his experience from over 30 years in boat design, construction and development. Razerline says, “We see our boat owners share something in common; an ability to know what they need and will value over the life of their boat. Our depth of experience in boat manufacture and our capability to turn expectations into a fulfilment of design allows us to deliver high-quality, custom-designed boats that stand out for their ability to meet a discerning and demanding owner’s expectations.”

Their designs start at around 5 metres and all feature high-grade marine plate aluminium construction. All of the popular models feature typically Western Australian time-proven seafaring elements, including full beam, high freeboard with sweeping sheerlines, full bow with wave-slicing entry, moderate Vee construction for greater stability, full keels giving the boats a true backbone, self-draining decks for ultimate safety, and a full range of customised features from their runabout, full cab, cuddy, centre, and side console layouts.

Razerline Olympian Range

While custom designs are available at Razerline, their mainstay range has been monohull construction with self-draining decks for recreational and commercial customers. Monohull plate alloy boats generally have two well-defined design criteria. One is the trend toward deep-V construction that obviously has fine riding characteristics but needs ballast for stability. They tend to sit deeper in the water at rest and would have very low freeboard and highly reduced stability if they were to be made self-draining. The second method is preferred by offshore survey standard boats of a more moderate–V of perhaps 12 -18 degrees with a wide beam and fully sealed self-draining decks. They sit proudly on top of the water at rest, yet their hull shape and construction have been developed to provide a terrific ride. Self-draining decks with fully compartmentalised flotation certainly add dramatically to the safety factor, and many provide the option of foam filling to further maximise assurance.

8500 Kimberley Special

The Montebello Islands, also known as the Montebello Islands, are an archipelago of around 174 small islands (about 92 of which are named) lying 130 kilometres off the Pilbara coast of north-western Australia. Montebello is Italian for "beautiful mountain", and the surrounding reefs provide a unique marine environment for a piscatorial sojourn. Its remoteness demands a fully equipped and seaworthy craft with a full range of live-aboard necessities. Camping on the islands isn’t recommended as they were the site of three nuclear weapons tests by the British military in the 1950s. Still, the diversity of marine life makes it an ideal long-range boating destination.

Hence, Razerline developed the 8500 Olympian Montebello Special, a tough yet accommodating boat built specifically for long road trips, challenging sea voyages, and beyond.

Tough Package

The package is based on the tried and proven Olympian 8500 centre cabin hull that only required a small amount of internal customisation to create this touring gem. But first, I would like to mention the trailer, a component many purchasers underestimate. Razerline developed a terrific trailer custom-fitted to the hull with strong but lightweight aluminium construction that has been superbly engineered and strengthened in all of the traditional fatigue points, offering confidence and reliability for long-distance touring, including rough, often corrugated roads. The “teflon” skids (actually HP polypropylene) are well-formed to support and guide the hull, and to direct the full-length keel into its own channel, making driving on and off an absolute breeze with positive alignment assured every time. This trailer would also be ideal for beach launching and will make trailering a breeze, even with harsh side winds and currents.

Razorline’s 8500 Olympian features a maximum towing beam of 2.5 metres, hence doesn’t require Wide Load restrictions; has an overall length of 8.5 m LOA and a 19 Variable Degree hull step chine hull. It is constructed from 6mm bottom sheets with the full keel construction making it an armour-plated hull that will withstand the rigours of beach launching, or even unintentionally finding the occasional coral outcrop.  Trust me – I’ve been there!

The entire package, with its gutsy V6 Suzuki DF350A, weighs 3400 kg wet. This weight, plus all of your sporting gear, will obviously place it into the realms of maxi 4WDs and greater for towing.

Walk/Fish-Around Centre Cabin

Its external appeal is exceptional, and in this case, it is highlighted by an exciting wrap featuring an aggressive coral trout with fangs a-blazing! The layout and internal dimensions are a testament to experience with its large deck and safe freeboard. It features a well-proportioned cabin structure with a deep, easily traversed walkaround leading to a workable foredeck.

Up front is a pronounced, fully welded bow sprit that works well with the Viper winch mounted in a deep anchor well. There’s a split bow rail with a couple of add-on fender baskets, a pair of recessed rod holders with sinker cups and a padded seat cut into the front of the cabin structure. It is an ideal spot to nose into a bommie to cast poppers for reef bruisers, or perhaps to keep track with a rampaging pelagic.

Enclosed Hard-Top

The hard-top design is sleek, strong, and striking, combining terrific internal volume with huge tinted safety glass windows that provide almost 360-degree vision, including sliding glass windows on either side for ventilation. Up top is plenty of space for water toys, or even a rescue craft should you feel the need for such reassurance for remote touring. There’s a good array of handrails on top assisting the walkaround, plus a spotlight up front and a 10 rod rocket launcher for easy stowage and access.

I defy any fisho or diver to criticise the deck and transom layout. It starts out back with twin transom platforms with a strong fold-down ladder and gated walkthrough on the port side. There’s a well-proportioned plumbed live bait tank under the large cutting board, and underneath the plumbing and electrical enclosure puts all of the essential componentry out of harm’s way. There’s a storage and access locker in the starboard side, full-length side pockets, nice wide combings with upholstered edges for prolonged knee comfort, non-skid upper surfaces and a good array of well-positioned rod holders and sinker/refreshment holders, plus hand rails where needed.

The flat floor runs directly to the scuppers in the transom, and our demo model had a carpeted floor. I liked it, particularly in the reflective heat; however, I can see many others preferring the standard checker plate. The Monte Bello Special features an extended 525 litre fuel tank plus an auxiliary 230 litres for those long sojourns. There is 200 litres of water storage and two large wet box/storage compartments under the floor. Overhead, the boys had fitted an extended sun awning that I believe is essential in the intense WA climate extremes, plus a good array of deck and work lights for nighttime antics.

I just loved the helm and cabin layout. It is simple, comfortable, practical and ergonomically satisfying. The thickly upholstered bolster-style helm and passenger seats are mounted on a large pair of aluminium boxes with storage. Underneath is a portable fridge slide to port and a large container/icebox to starboard. The dash is neat and effective with great vision and plenty of room for the large array of instruments and controls, including a Raymarine 12” multi-function unit, sports steering wheel, twin switch panels, winch and trim tab controls, plus the Garmin/Suzuki digital display for the big Suzuki 350HP V6.

A handy sliding door leads into the lockable cabin, so your gear can be secured while you are away from the rig. It also makes it neat and cosy for a good night's sleep in the large upholstered V-berth that also features roof linings, side pocket storage and a marine toilet enclosure with light through a pair of oval windows. There weren’t any overhead hatches or ventilation in our demonstration boat, so if extended touring is in mind, perhaps ask Razerline about this as an option, or possibly fit a Sirocco fan. I also noted a lack of windscreen wiper/washers - items I consider essential in any hard-top configuration.

Let's Rock' n Roll!

The big, gutsy Suzuki DF350A provides confident performance to this armour-plated battlewagon. She jumps out of the hole quickly, assisted by the large planing area. She thrusted evenly throughout the entire rev range and rode beautifully over the swell at typical offshore travelling speeds from 20-25 knots.

But when it’s time to have some fun, she jumps easily to Wide Open Throttle at 44 knots at 5900rpm using 102lph. Such speeds may be fun and perhaps essential for outrunning potential storm hazards, but it’s not how a serious offshore explorer will travel.

We found maximum efficiency at around 4500rpm, cruising at a speedy 26 knots and using a relatively miserly 51lph. But most important is the feeling of solid confidence from this formidable contender with its agile and sporty demeanour. If you would prefer a twin rig, Razerline will accommodate. That’ll be worth checking out!

The Wrap

The 8500 Olympian Monte Bello Special will appeal to serious travelling seafarers. Razerline says, “We appreciate what design excellence and on-water experience feels like – it’s personal.” Well, I’d certainly like to get even more “personal” with this aquatic warrior!

Specifications

Length overall: 8.5m

Beam: 2.5m

Weight: BMT approx 2655 kg (dry)

Fuel capacity: main 525 L, Aux 230 L

Water capacity: 200 Litres

Power:  Suzuki DF350A Multi-point sequential electronic fuel injection, DOHC 24-valve 4,390cm3 V6 4-stroke outboard

Supplied by: Razerline Boats, Wangara, WA

 

Ready to Set Sail? 

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Smooth sailing starts with the right boat. We’re here to help you find it! 


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