Boating USA — February 2018

BOATINGMAG.COM | FEBRUARY 2018| 49

the mold, off ering

another glimpse into

the immensity of the

project. The hull and

liner will ship to HCB’s

Tennessee facility for

assembly, with the fi rst

boat scheduled to debut

by the summer of

2018. In the meantime,
      check out our video
      off ering an inside look

at the building of the

world’s largest center

console at boatingmag

.com/worlds-largest-

center-console.

—Jim Hendricks

deck, seating, free-

board, cabin access

and comfort, stowage

lockers, helm confi gu-

ration and more, noting

any changes that might

be necessary. This has

resulted in a number

of refi nements to im-

prove various aspects

of the interior of the

6500 Estrella. One

change, for example,

was an adjustment in

the height and length

of the hardtop. “It

immediately became

clear that we needed to

make these changes,”

Leva says. “That’s just

one example of the

beauty of a full-scale

mock-up.”

By the time of our

visit, the mock-up

evaluation phase

was complete and

Hull No. 1 had al-

ready emerged from

+

HCB CENTER CONSOLE

YACHTS’ 6500 ESTRELLA

PROJECTED

SPECIFICATIONS

· LOA: 65'· BEAM: 16'· DRY WEIGHT: 40,000 lb.

· TRANSOM DEADRISE: 23 degrees· MAX HORSEPOWER:

Unlimited· AVAILABLE POWER: Five Seven Marine 627 hp

outboards·FUEL CAPACITY: 1,500 gal. (optional 1,800 gal.)

Price: Depending on a buyer’s

custom requests

Starting in the $3 million range

BUILD IT UP

The Estrella takes

form in a massive,

rotating mold. A steel

frame reinforces the

mold to help prevent

any distortion.

A full-scale

Styrofoam

mock-up helped

refi ne interior

details.

PHOTOS: JIM HENDRICKS (2)