First Grand Banks 54 Heritage EU arrives in Australia
The new Grand Banks 54 Heritage EU has made its mark as one of the luxury cruiser builder’s most successful models, with 12 boats already delivered or under construction in the short time since its unveiling in late 2012.
Grand Banks Australia has announced that is also responsible for the sale of four of the boats into the Asia Pacific region. “These boats were all sold sight unseen,” said Hank Compton, Managing Director of Grand Banks Australia. “We showed people the detailed drawings and specifications for the boat and they trusted us to deliver.”
The Grand Banks 54EU is the largest of the company’s Heritage fleet of classic trawler style cruisers; the first of its kind in Australia now belongs to Perth boating enthusiast, Julian Walter.
Walter, a long-time admirer of the styling and build from Grand Banks, said: “The new 54EU is built on the 53 Aleutian hull, which has given it more beam than you would expect of the Heritage series. This translates to magnificent space through the cabins, particularly the midships master suite which runs across the full beam of the boat.”
As the founder of Australia’s third-largest home builder, JWH Group, Walter insisted on quality. After visiting the Grand Banks yard several times during the build of his 54EU, he was pleased with the work being done, saying: “I was impressed by the attention to detail, the people at the yard have the same focus on quality as I do”.
From these visits, Walter was able to work with the team on his boat’s construction, where he decided to add one significant option to his boat. This was a Twin Disc Electronic Joystick System (EJS) for tight manoeuvring and his boat is now the first Grand Bank delivered to Australia with the system.
“We must reverse into our boat pen at the Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club and that can be difficult in the frequent heavy crosswinds,” he said. “My wife, Cheryl and I often sail two-handed and berthing can be stressful in those conditions. We expect the EJS will solve those issues.”
The standard three-level layout of the Grand Banks 54 Heritage EU includes three cabins and two bathrooms in the accommodation suite below decks, a midships galley and aft salon on the main deck along with the lower helm station and a large entertaining area and helm on the flybridge.
On the main deck, the galley is equipped with a convection microwave and four drawers for the freezer and refrigeration. An L-shape dinette is opposite, on the port side, and an expansive salon aft leads to a fully covered cockpit with transom lounge.
A large engine room features two metres of headroom and enough space to walk around the standard twin Cummins QSM 11 turbo-diesel engines.
He said the family had used their boats mainly for cruising to Cockburn Sound and Mandurah as well as extended trips to Rottnest Island.
“We will spread our wings with the Grand Banks,” said Walter. “Our plan is to voyage north to the Abrolhos Islands and further along the coast.”
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