Cairns Custom Craft

Hi Chris,
here are the pics and a few specs, the boat is a Cairns Custom Craft, Barra Traka. As the name suggests (custom) no two barra trakas are the same, mine is 5mt from bow to engine pods, motor is a 50hp oil injected 2 stroke fitted with a stingray foil, and the hull is 4ml plate.

Barra Trakas come standard with front & rear casting decks, fully carpeted floors, two custom seats (I only use mine on charters) built alloy in 85 litre fuel tank and water filter, bow leccy mount, side or centre consul (or tiller steer), steering wheel and cables and built in gunnel rod holders, live fish well. But again as the name suggests you can have what ever you want built into it.

It a very stable fishing platform and you don't need a huge motor to getting them to fly lol. Like all boats how dry it is depends on your direction and the direction the wind and waves are running lol, but overall it's a fairly dry boat.

I have taken this boat out as far as 50ks on the Barrier Reef, towed it over some of the worst dirt tracks around, it's been to Weipa, Cooktown and Pricess Charlotte Bay, there's no roads there just cattle tracks, lost count of the times Iv come home down the Hinchinbrook Channel in a howling North Easter with a very nasty 3 to 4 foot chop, just up her up and full noise through it no problems.

another pic

and again

[Bear]

Warren,
Nice boat mate. Who can I get in touch with about one. Drop me a PM if needs be. Looking at something around 4.75.

Thanks,

and last

http://www.cairnscustomcraft.com/

Sorry to take up so much space guys, that's their web site,
Bear.

Cheers Samurai

[Bear]

Thanks for that mate.

By the way, love the 'Support Catch and Release' sticker. I'll have to send you some cash for a few.

Little light hearted story about plate boats

Lucky for me this day I had a mate with me and not a client, when my mate and I launch my boat, I get in the boat and he backs it down the ramp and pushes it off the trailer, he goes and parks and meets me at the landing jetty about 50 yards from the ramp.

So all goes well I'm chilling out with a stradbroke mild, hanging off waiting for him, it was then that it happen to cross my mind that the boat seemed to be sitting a little low in the water, Yarn maybe it's just me after all it is only 9am a bit early for me to be on the water anyway, so I take a few more puffs on my breakfast and take in the southern tourist trying to get their boats in the water lol.

Hmm I think again, I sure it's sitting lower than usual, so I lift the back bilge hatch and OHHHHHH sheet the waters already over the battery and need I say ahhhhh no bung. Now because of my motor pod I can't get up on a plane and let it drain because I can't reach the damn hole to put the bung in.

Now keep in mind that there is a very healthy population of crocs in this creek not to mention being at the mouth of the channel some nasty sharks. So there's no way this little black duck is getting in that water to put the bloody bung in.

Mean while the water creeping up the rear casting deck Only one thing to do, get back about a hundred metres or so, give it full throttle and hit the concrete ramp at full noise now we have a three lane ramp at Lucina both left and right lane have happy tourist on them, so I hit the middle ramp with a bang that I reckon they heard in Townsville, man you should have seen the looks on the faces of those tourist a mixture of shock, fear and bewillderment.

when the dust, so to speak had settled the boat was on it's side about half it's length up the ramp. One of the tourist came over and said two words to me lol, Your Kidding lol. My answer, it's cool it's a plate boat. (If you check the first pic you will notice there's not a mark on it ) Kiddies don't try this at home with a standard tinnie

Cheers Samurai

PS of course it was not my fault, it was my mates job to check the bung

Craft make some great hulls Samuari, i've long been an admirer of his northwind..longboat style.

Yours is no exception.

Cheers!

[Tim Richards]

Hey Samurai
That is an awesome looking boat you got there. Can you please do me a little favour and take a closer photo of your Rod Locker, I have had in mind to build something just like that and wouldn't mind having a closer look at yours.

Thanks

Bundy

[chris_lemess]

Looks like just the ticket Samurai...! Now I want to have a look at one in the flesh. Will have to hunt around the boat yards here...

thanks for that