Azura 600

I’ve mentioned before that  there are many anglers out there that, when buying a boat, need to consider a  craft that can combine pure family fun days with their own fishing  requirements. Stripped out no frills fishing hulls may be ideal for the  specialist angler, but if the family wants their monies worth as well, then you  need to consider a different type of boat altogether.

I nipped down to Imperial  Leisure in Haverfordwest to take a look at the Azura 600, a boat that by the  sounds of it has the versatility to switch between keeping the missus and kids  happy with a cruise round the bay, but duty done you can then whisk yourself  off for a fishing session.

The Azura range is built in Vannes, France  by Kelt to a very high standard, and have gathered a reputation as being  versatile sea boats with a good turn of speed.

BUILD FEATURES
She’s a stunning looking  dart shape, a deep modified V hull with a wide stern designed to give both sea  keeping and stability. Her length is 5.93 metres with a beam of 2.48 metres and  capable of taking power units up to 150hp. My test boat was fitted with a  Yamaha 115HP F115 Fuel Injection 4-Stroke Unit. The 600 is listed as EC  Category C and can take 7 persons.

Bobbing on the pontoon the  boat is quite stunning in all white livery with a thin black fender line. If  your missus is yet to be convinced about boat ownership, then one glance at the  600 will likely turn her head in your favour.

Getting practical, the bow  is armed with a stainless steel bow roller and a stainless T cleat at each  side. Up front you also have a large anchor locker with a left side opening  hatch. This is capacious with stacks of room for working from and ease of  relaying the rope on the retrieve.

The stainless bow safety  rail runs from just forward of the rear edge of the screen, all the way to the  bow. This is high enough to give good security when hauling anchor providing  you haul from the kneeling position if it’s a bumpy sea.

You have massive amounts of  room up on the bow with nothing to get in your way at deck level, plus the  walkway from the deck to the bow by the cabin is wide and easy to access.

The tinted screen slopes  backwards at an angle is bolted in position with top quality fixings and with a  stainless grab rail running around the outer edge. The grab rail is within easy  reach of the helm and passenger seat for extra personal stability when moving  at top speed. The screen also carries the duo navigation light.

Stepping down to deck level,  the gunnels are good and high giving the occupants a secure feeling when stood  on deck. You also have stainless grab rails at each stern corner.

Running fully across the  transom is a fully cushioned bench seat in blue. This lifts in the middle and  hides the hatch access to a huge storage locker that houses the internal  130-litre fuel tank and battery. You also have open storage areas beneath each  stern quarter seat ideal for taking tackle boxes and the like. The seat is  hinged at the back and can also be flattened to form a lounger seat if you want  to lay out in the sun.

The splash well area is  large and deep, giving easy access to the motor. You also have stainless T  cleats either side for tying up.

Looking at the helm, you  have two cushioned swivel chairs that give good visibility looking forward when  seated. The helm position is on the starboard side.

You steer via a comfortable  large diameter stainless steel car type wheel that gives easy and positive  steerage. The console has the switch panel mounted to the left, with a kill  cord and master cut off switch on the right. Above these on the flat area  approaching the windscreen is a lift up tinted see through hatch that is  designed to take folded charts etc, for viewing when underway. The compass and  instruments are positioned for easy reading directly behind the chart cover.  The throttle is on the right hand side and at a comfortable height for both  seated steering and when stood up.

You access the cabin through  a tinted slide across screen with a step down in to the cabin. On the port side  you have a small galley area with a one burner gas cooker and sink. You have  room to seat at least four people in the cabin, but there is a wooden section  that fits across the seating to make the seats in to a double bed if overnight  stays are on your criteria.

There is also additional  storage room at the rear of the cabin under the forward deck area. You also  have an access hatch to the rear console steerage and electrics positioned in  the rear bulkhead, and a ceiling mounted cabin light.

For a relatively small boat,  the cabin area is surprisingly spacious, well designed and thought out. You’ve  stacks of room to make drinks and basic meals in, and eat in comfort if you  don’t want to be up on deck. The upholstery is a brush white nylon type with  blue upholstered seating making for stylish surroundings.

I was conscious of checking  this boat out regards keeping it clean inside as fishing can be messy as we all  well know, but the stipple finished decks are easily washed off through the  self draining deck tunnels, as is the outside upholstery on the stern seat, so  you’ve no major worries there.

The Azura 600 is also supplied  with a push in steaming light mast and a deck canopy.

HEADING OFFSHORE
The 4-stroke unit was fired  up while I was untying the forward ropes and I couldn’t hear the unit running  until I walked towards the stern. You’ll also find on many hulls, the Azura  included, that the resination of the engine is minimal and you can hardly feel any  motor vibration through the hull or grab rails when these 4-strokes are ticking  over.

Under minimal throttle the  600 glides along almost in what the military call “silent” or “sweep” mode. You  just get the slight noise of water slapping the hull as you move along. We left  Neyland Marina and headed for the more open waters between the little village  of Dale and Thorn   Island. It was not a  rough sea, but it had a deep swell coming in through the outer Haven and stiff  force 4 blowing which whipped off the top of the waves and was a decent enough  sea to be out in.

Whipping the wheel over and  straightening her up I added throttle. The acceleration is instant, but with  the 115HP on the back is nicely steady and progressive. Don’t misinterpret  this, she’s fast, very fast, but is easy to handle off the throttle and does  not suddenly leap forward as soon as extra power is applied. Nevertheless,  looking at the instruments told me I was quickly approaching 50kms per hour and  there was stacks of throttle left.

Keeping the power on, I  headed straight for the oncoming swells. Barely backing off the power the hull  slices through the top of the wave with ease and creates little if any airborne  spray. Certainly I saw none get back on the screen while I was at the helm.  Adding more power and making the boat lift over the tops of the waves she stays  on course and gives a surprisingly comfy ride, even when hopping off the waves  for a second to get her airborne and re entering the sea at speed.

Switching tack I put the  boat through the waves at an angle. I was looking for hull lean away from the  wave and for the bow coming round with the wave making for hard work for the helmsman.  She quarters the sea extremely well, with minimal lean evident as you climb the  face of the wave and no real tendency for the bow to sheer off as the force of  the upper wave pushes hard on the boat.

Picking a wide swell I shut  the power off and left the boat at the mercy of the waves. She settled and  leans only slightly as each wave passes by and you drop back in to the trough. The  600 has a very forgiving nature to say the least.

Putting her bow away from  the wave direction and in minimal power I found she handles easily in a  following sea and holds a steady course with little if any tendency to sheer  off at the stern. I went in to reverse and climbed the swells looking for water  climbing up the stern and finding its way on deck. I did manage to get a little  bit of water up over the transom and splashing on deck, but then the waves were  pretty big and I was making a manoeuvre that was way beyond normal boat usage.

Getting out of the deep  swells and on to calmer water I opened the boat fully out. She is quiet but  deceivingly fast. I clocked a top speed of about 37mph an hour at 5300 revs. I  found she was happy cruising at about 27mph.

I asked the lads from  Imperial Leisure about fuel economy. They hadn’t got true figures when I tested  the boat, but they reckon a maximum of 28-litres per hour, but I think that  sounds overly heavy and I’m sure the final figures would be less than that.

ANYTHING I DIDN’T LIKE
You need to take care when  accessing the cabin as the console edge is quite low, which means you need to  guard against banging your head when accessing the cabin. Maybe some sort of  rubber strip or something similar might be useful to avoid potential bumps.

Some sort of a mesh grill  that could be slotted in place around the edge of the single burner on the  stove might be a good idea if you’re boiling a kettle at sea. I’m nit picking  though, and I can’t really see anything else that I’d change.

CONCLUSION
I think she’s ideal for a  husband and wife team, especially if you want to overnight in a marina, and  you’ve always got the option of increasing your living space by using the  supplied canopy. When the kids want to come along, the boat is safe, spacious  enough and has the facilities to keep them happy.

I found she was very easy to  handle, responsive but not overly dramatic on the throttle, has a good sea  capability, and is stable in varied sea conditions. She’s easy to fish from, and with the 4-stroke  unit makes a good trolling boat if you’re after bass.

If you are looking for a  boat that can give the family a great days cruising with comfort and basic  cooking facilities, but also doubly up equally as well as a fishing platform,  then you need to consider the Azura 600 as a top candidate.

CONTACTS
Andy Townsend, Imperial  Leisure, Portfield, Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, SA61 1DY. Tel: 01437 761810  Fax: 01437 761820.