BANKS MARTIN BEAULIEU 30
BUILT 2017 PRICE £159,950
Until almost a decade ago, one of Kidderminster’s most famous exports was Sealine boats. They’d been built there for 40 years before going into administration and being absorbed by Hanse Yachts
AG and moved to Germany.
River boat builder Banks Martin is based in Kidderminster and sure enough, one of its principle directors was a long-standing Sealine man as are many of the staff – there’s a lot of boat building skill to be found in Kidderminster.
The avowed aim of Banks Martin is to “combine the undoubtedly higher quality, standards and design of sea going vessels, and bring this to the river and estuary.”
INTERIOR
The Beaulieu 30 is the first model to be launched by this fledging company.
The styling is smart, but traditional, a flat-roofed cabin with huge windows down both sides and across the front which throw plenty of light into the cabin, not to mention allow a great view out.
The cabin itself is open plan with a double bed forward and a dinette to port. There’s a tiny mid cabin too, which just has a single bed running back beneath the cockpit. The galley is opposite and the heads is back aft, just inside the door.
EXTERIOR
The aft cockpit has an openbacked wheelhouse, so there is a roof over the helm and side windows, but nothing between it and the open rear of the cockpit (although the whole area can be enclosed with canopies). There’s a
LOA: 29ft 2in (8.9m) Beam: 9ft 9in (3.0m) Draught: 2ft 5in (0.7m) Displacement: 4.2 tonnes Fuel capacity: 145 litres Engine: Volvo Penta 75hp diesel bathing platform too, arguably less useful on a river but it points to the Category C nature that includes estuaries and coastal use.
PERFORMANCE
Banks Martin are offering inboard or outboard engine options.
This particular boat is fitted with a 75hp Volvo Penta diesel which gives a maximum speed of about 9 knots for an easy, and riverfriendly, 6-knot cruise.
SEAKEEPING
A semi displacement hull is designed to give good low speed handling and a powerful bow thruster makes close-quarters manoeuvrability far easier.