off the decks of course, and passed
without issue.
OFFSHORE
Like most 30ft centre consoles, the
302’s 1014lt fuel capacity takes care
of the big runs with spare change.
We headed straight out to the 50 to
60m depth contour to troll for some
gamefish and, although the wind
was light variable at the time, the
swell and leftover chop from the
previous nights 20kt northeasterly
was pretty ordinary to say the least.
The ride is good, a constant and
comfortable 25kts maintained in
rough conditions.
So far plenty of pros, but there
must be a con somewhere and the
only minor niggle was the hull to
be a little flighty at high speeds
inshore – something you find on
many hulls topped out to abnormal
speeds. Now, it’s far from an issue
as these hulls are designed to take
a big load and when you have the
302 loaded with extra weight it rides
even better. If anything, I would run
the bigger blade trim tabs for more
control of the bow lift when running
big offshore fishing days with lighter
loads.
THE WRAP
If modern styling, design and high-
performance all incorporated in a
centre console is what you’re after,
then the Wellcraft 302 Fisherman
is most certainly worth a look as its
loaded to the max in all areas.
What’s even better with the
Wellcraft is that they are not bound
to one outboard brand and you can
get them pre-rigged for Mercury,
Yamaha and Evinrude E-TEC in
the States, or fully installed with
other outboard brands in Australia.
If touring and long-distance
expeditions are the go, well they can
also be towed with the big gun Dodge
Rams or Ford F-trucks as oversized
loads.
Overall, these are pretty flash
centre consoles in all areas, and
again just as well suited to family
and entertaining as they are to
serious offshore gamefishing. Priced
from $255,800 to $380,000 for the
tricked-up version is good value in
my opinion, considering you can
fork out up to 650 grand on other top
brands.
112 trade aboat.com.au