Bar Crusher 560C

The first thing you notice with Bar Crusher boats is the design and quality of workmanship.

The decks and boarding platform are constructed with alloy checkerplate which ages well when knocked around in a harsh work environment.

The side sheets on the 560C are 3mm thick and extend past the transom bulkhead. At the transom end, the side sheets are edged by a pipe railing with rebates for handholds that assist boarding using the sturdy swim ladder, which lifts up and folds onto the platform.

Stepping onto the boarding platform one easily negotiates a half-height transom aperture which features a nylon slide-in safety door.

In the top of the starboard side of the bulkhead, a moulded tinted Perspex hatch opens to a large livebait tank. A bait rigging station, which has rodholders and a removable cutting board, stands on a single post and the entire assembly is easily removed for cleaning. Centrally located underfoot at the aft end of the cockpit deck is a large killtank.

Typical sidepockets run down each side of the cockpit. At the end of the starboard sidepocket, a fuel filter with a water sedimenter is installed high up so that a hose may be utilised to drain the contents into a removable container. The narrow pedestal seats take up minimal deck space.

While the cabin on the 560C is a cuddy rather than half-sized, it slopes up from the bow end sharply so there is plenty of head height when sitting on the V-berths near the opening to the helm. To enable comfortable sleeping for two, optional extensions can be used.

The helm station hosts Suzuki instrumentation and the flush-mounted Navman’s chartplotter and depthsounder. A radio was slung underneath.

Of note is the strength of the windscreen assembly. The low-profile frames are custom made and the front and side panes are hardened glass.

These boats are fitted with side clears, but none from the front windscreen to the alloy hardtop. The hardtop is collapsible though.

Fitted with Suzuki’s 140hp four-stroke outboard, the 560C was powered to the maximum recommended level and with two people on board, had no issues with holeshot.

The hulls track dead straight in an oncoming or following sea with no broaching and they slice the top of the chop as they travel through it and softly so.

The manufacturer says one of the main reasons for the gentle entry through rough water is the sheer hull with no strakes, which generate resistance when landing at speed. Bar Crushers are designed with sheer sides coming off the keel line all the way to the swept-up spray chine at the forequarters.

The conditions were not conducive to full-throttle testing, but at 5000rpm the GPS clocked us at 48kmh and back at 4000rpm we managed 37kmh. A slow cruise at 3000rpm will have you loafing along at 20.5kmh, and with four-stroke economy, the 150lt tank will see you spending big days on the water out wide.

These boats are extremely well made and with a multitude of purposes in mind. Heavy-duty sea handling and longevity of life are just two of them.

Specifications

Priced from: $55,000

Material: Marine grade plate aluminium

Length overall: 6.1m

Beam: 2.25m

Weight: 1300kg (dry BMT)

Engine: Suzuki DF140

SUPPLIED BY

Bar Crusher,

25-31 Ventura Place,

Dandenong South, Vic, 3175

Phone: (03) 9702 8555

Fax (03) 9702 7155

Email: sales@barcrusher.com.au

Website: www.barcrusher.com.au