Surtees 6.1 Game Fisher Review | Australias Greatest Fishing Boats
Take the Kiwi-built Surtees 6.1 Game Fisher HT for a spin and you fall straight into attack mode – the faster you push her, the better she likes it!
SURTEES 6.1 GAME FISHER REVIEW
The Surtees 6.1 Game Fisher is an armour-plated battlewagon with the appeal of a Maori princess. She’s got her beauty, but with a deep-seated honour and incredible strength.
Motoring through the Gold Coast Broadwater we saw the Surtees’ softer side. She feels solid on the water and the simple helm position is comfortable for hours of trolling.
We loved the vision through the hardtop’s three-pane windscreen, plus the large dash and generous headroom. Up top are room for aerials, outrigger mounts, radar and GPS, plus an eight-pot rocket launcher. There’s heaps of storage and large vee-berth with 6ft bunks.
We also loved the polypropylene seat boxes and wide side coamings, while the moveable baitboard can fit either side or at the transom.
The transom has well-proportioned rear platforms, walkthrough doorway, raised compartment for batteries, plus a large livebait tank and a big underfloor killtank. There’s a non-skid checkerplate floor, full-length sidepockets and non-skid surfaces on the upper coamings. Foldout seats clip over the top of the sidepockets and can be moved from place to place.
When we pumped the 150 Yamaha four-stroke she barked to attention. It feels like a bigger boat with a sharper deep-vee, getting up high and blitzing the chop and swell. We stopped to fill the 300lt flooding ballast and she rode even better.
SURTEES 6.1 GAMEFISHER RATING
Fishing suitability | 9.4 |
Innovation | 9 |
Design and layout | 8.8 |
Quality of finish | 8.6 |
Handling and ride | 9.1 |
Stability at rest | 9.2 |
Ergonomics | 8.1 |
Standard equipment | 8.3 |
Value for money | 8.6 |
X-Factor | 9.6 |
TOTAL SCORE | 88.7 |
UNDERSTANDING THE RATING SYSTEM
| Meet the judging panel | The rating criteria explained |
THE JUDGES’ NOTEPAD
Angelo Sangiorgio: “This 6.1 Game Fisher is one hell of a serious contender. It’s finished beautifully with no sharp edges. It’s got the deck room, it’s got a great hardtop, it has a good cabin, it’s really fishy and what’s more it’s a pleasure to drive. The 20° vee feels even deeper when you’re up and running as the faster it goes, the better it gets. This boat is very close to being a 10 out of 10 — it’s really something to be proud of.”
John Ford: “Just have a look at the standard of welding on this boat — it’s magnificent. I love the Nyalic paint surface too; it protects the alloy and just looks great. I would love to have one back home for the game fishing season; I can just imagine the fun on the Merimbula bar — it’s certainly up to any task! It’s a tough boat and I particularly liked the extended hardtop with the retractable awning. The ride is superb, sporty and safe. It turns like it’s on rails and who can question the grunt of the 150 Yammie four-stroke?”
Kevin Smith: “Fantastic! I don’t know how we can find a winner here. This Surtees is a gung-ho weapon. It loves big speed and it handles chop and swell really well. It’s an absolute machine on the water with a nice balance of weight and power. The build quality and strength is phenomenal — it’s a fantastic all-round package, not just for fisherman but for families too. The towing weight makes it accessible to everyone and the price is more than competitive.”
Matt Jones: “Here’s a Kiwi for the Kiwi. I loved the ride today — we got up to about 75kmh and it just remained a very predictable, soft ride. It has a nice enclosed hardtop — you feel safe and secure but you don’t realise just how quick you’re really going until you check the instruments! It’s a really versatile fishing outfit with moveable baitboard and seats and plenty of rod holders. The 150 Yamaha sounded lovely and gave the Surtees plenty of ‘oomph’. I feel at home!”
John Willis chats with Cliff Schick from Surtees: “Our 6.1 Game Fisher HT is based on Neil’s original 6.1 that started the ball rolling for us. In our 20th anniversary year, this model features our patented Stabilising Ballast Technology and all underfloor stringers are welded along the length of the hull. We were the first boatbuilders to develop boats that combined these features with non-pounding deep-V hulls and it’s all covered with non-skid checker-plate flooring. The Nyalic paint really adds to the appearance and makes maintenance easy as well.
SURTEES 6.1 GAME FISHER SPECIFICATIONS
LOA: 6.24m
BEAM: 2.37m
WEIGHT: 1350kg (BMT)
MAX. HORSEPOWER: 150
BASE PRICE: $64,200
PRICE AS TESTED: $80,800