Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger

As the largest of the Stacer boats, the 739 Ocean Ranger is designed purely for fishability and long-distance travel offshore. At 7.41m overall length, this fishing boat boat is by no means a toy and that is evident upon first glance. Like all the new Stacer boats there are a number of colourful wrap options to suit the taste buds. Not only do they add a bit of style and excitement to the look of the boat but also add protection. A good-looking wrap combined with sharper lines and massive fishability, make the 739 Ocean Ranger look like quite the offshore weapon before even getting to the water.

As a dedicated aluminium offshore fishing boat, Stacer 739 Ocean Range’s podded transom setup has a few notable features, such as dual transducer mounts, fixed burly bucket with masher, fold-up boarding ladder and transom door for easy access, and nice, full grabrails.

When boarding the Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger I noticed there was a small step to get onto the deck area and on closer inspection realised that it was part of the bait tank or livewell. It’s a nice idea and a clever way to fully utilise the transom area. Below the large baitboard is a raised recess that comfortably holds the batteries and oil reservoir, as well as having space for other items or accessories. This section also has provision for the optional rear lounger to slot in.

Layout and design

Being a 7.42m boat overall the gunwale lengths on the Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger are long and the wide coamings fitted with pre-cast rodholders and huge sidepockets running full length. As for the deck, it’s a standard treadplate floor which works well in non-slip terms and being a self-draining deck, it’s nice and easy to keep clean and has enough space to keep a number of fisherman happy at the same time.

Deck space on the Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger is huge and uncluttered and well suited to both bottom bashing and gamefishing. Although there is no fixed seating in the stern there are options available, as previously mentioned and if need be, you could add a few oversized iceboxes to serve as seats and larger fishboxes.

Up front the helm/console area is protected by a full bimini which can also have an optional extension fitted, or you can go one further and go for the 739 Hardtop version if you want to keep up with the fashion. Two comfortable seats mounted on storage boxes with footrests lock you in behind the dash and screen, along with skipper’s dash off to the side, centred split screen and dash, and passenger side fitted with sidepocket and glovebox. It’s a compact but spacious area although, if anything, I’d personally prefer a bit more angle to the dash.

How does it fish?

On the water Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger boasts some good fishing characteristics such as good stability at rest and when travelling at idle to high trolling speeds. Again, the open space gives you plenty of options when it comes to fishing as in both game and bottom fishing, the more space onboard the better.

For the trolling gang the 739 Ocean Ranger comes standard with outrigger plates mounted to the cabin sides, as well as four cast rodholders mounted into the gunwale coamings. On top of that there are another six rodholders in the rocket launcher and another five on the baitboard – there’s no shortage of rod storage on this boat.

For bottom bashing, again there are plenty of rodholders and ample space for a number of people to fish without getting tangled. There’s a medium-sized killtank up front between the seats and a deck that can be loaded with large iceboxes for fish and extra seating as discussed earlier. If fishing at night or in foul weather is your thing then the addition of clears to the bimini would be a good option for extra protection.

Handling and ride

When it came to performance I had no doubt that the Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger would have no issues on the power side, considering it had a 250hp Evinrude E-TEC bolted to the transom. Like all E-TECs the holeshot is fast and responsive. Being a longer boat, the 739 Ocean Ranger planes at lower speeds around the 12kts mark and just over 2000rpm.

Knock the hammer down and you receive a feisty response from the E-TEC as the exhaust valves open up. Trimmed up on the flat water the 739 cranks up to just shy of 40kts, which is pretty quick on a boat of this size.

Backing off the throttle and chucking the hull into turns shows how responsive and comfortable it is. Heading offshore into the swell, the sharp entry on the bow combined with the EVO Advance Hull produces a comfortable ride and with the fairly aggressive reverse chines, the spray pushes down and away from the boat.

Tucking the trim in can produce a light spray off the bow, but with the correct bow-up trim you can bring the spray back and into the chines to maintain the dry ride. The 739 also comes standard with Volvo Penta trim tabs which only need a slight tweak to level out if need be.

Conditions were a touch on the perfect side unfortunately – which is great for photography but a bit trickier on the testing side. A bit of extra violence on the throttle and a bit of hammering over the swell to get some air gave a reasonable enough indication that the hull should ride pretty well in the chop.

Regardless of size, the Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger is actually quite an easy boat to handle and manoeuvre at all speeds.

The Trade-a-Boat verdict

At 7.41m overall length it might be a bit large for the average boater but for those looking for a plate boat that can handle more distance as well as looking for a bit more open space, then it’s definitely worth a look or test.

For me it’s much of a muchness whether you tow a 6 or 7m boat, although you will have a bit more weight to consider on the larger craft. At 1105kg dry weight the complete Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger package should still come in just under the two-tonne mark which is pretty light for a boat of this size. 

The big selling point for the 739 Ocean Ranger is its massive open layout that is clean and spacious and ideal for offshore fishing. Not only is it nice offshore but it would also be an ideal inshore or island-hopping boat that you could throw a barbecue into and chuck a few swags down for a comfortable overnighter.

Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger price

As standard there are also enough fishing accessories or features included within the layout to get you straight out onto the water, without having to shell out some extra coin. Priced up to $72,519.33 as tested it’s a fair amount of boat with quite a few good standard options included and comes on an aluminium trailer and in the end, all for a pretty reasonable price.

Highs

• Coloured wrap options look great

• Charterboat deck space

• Massive fishability

• Available in hardtop

• Big boat for reasonable price

Lows

• Dash needs more angle

• Back-to-back seating up front would be a good option

• Lose the plastic drinkholders

Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger Sea Trials

Single 250hp Evinrude E-TEC V6 two-stroke outboard with 15½ x 17in propeller

* Sea-trial data supplied by author.

Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger specs

Stacer 739 Ocean Ranger price: $72,519.33

Price as tested, standard BMT package plus options

OPTIONS FITTED

Paint, vinyl wrap, bimini and envelope, trim tabs, and transducer

PRICED FROM

$66,777.07 (BMT package, includes registration and safety gear)

GENERAL

MATERIAL Aluminium

TYPE Monohull plate boat

LENGTH 7.41m 

BEAM 2.46m

WEIGHT 1105kg (hull)

DEADRISE 20°

CAPACITIES

PEOPLE (DAY) 7

REC. HP 130       

REC. MAX HP 250

FUEL 215lt

ENGINE

MAKE/MODEL Evinrude E-TEC 250 outboard motor

TYPE V6 two-stroke outboard

RATED HP 250

DISPLACEMENT 3279cc

WEIGHT 238kg  

GEAR RATIO 1.85.1

PROPELLER 15½ x 17in

SUPPLIED BY

Whitewater Marine

10 Hinde Street,

Ashmore, QLD, 4214

Phone (07) 5532 4402

Email info@whitewatermarine.com.au

Web whitewatermarine.com.au