40′ Amity

A few years ago a friend of mine and I were waxing on all “lyrical” like about the old Moreton Bay cruisers. These were reasonably inexpensive 32’ to around 42’ shallow water motor cruisers for the big bay that sits between Stradbroke and Moreton Islands and the mainland just off Brisbane.

He thought that a power cat with the “retro bay cruiser” sort of styling but using the latest materials and the most efficient one-off building method would be a good thing.

So I did the design work.

Jim built a 20-1 model and we tested it in his bathtub for displacement and trim using tins of fruit, as you do. We were both very happy with the outcome.

Jim still had his trawler style boat at that stage so the design has remained a concept.

The layout is very flexible and can have 2 queen size bunks aft with 2 singles forward. The saloon is forward with galley amidships. The helm station is down aft for comfort at sea although particular attention will have to be paid to exhaust noise and propeller style. A pair of 50 hp diesels will easily push the boat along at 8-10 knots with a top speed of around 14 knots using under a litre a mile. Naturally more horsepower will give more speed.