(whooshing)
Narrator: The following opinions
are solely those of BoatTest.com and its test captain.
(upbeat music)
-: Hi, Caption Steve from BoatTest.com,
and today I'm on a brand new Center Console
from Robalo, the R222ES.
The S stands for expanded seating,
which makes this much more family friendly,
along with being fish friendly.
Let's take a look as I do a full features
walk through and a sea trial.
Let's start right in by getting around the water
and see how she handles.
The Robalo R222ES has a length overall
of 21 feet, six inches,
a beam of eight feet, six inches,
and a draft of 34 inches.
With an empty weight of 3,700 pounds,
one quart of fuel,
and two people onboard,
we had an estimated test weight of 4,255 pounds.
With a single 200 horsepower Yamaha 4-stroke,
turning at 15M 14.25 reliance prop,
we reached a top speed of 43.4 miles per hour
at 6,100 RPM.
Our best economic cruise was reached at 3,500 RPM
and 21.4 miles per hour.
It was at that speed, that our 5.3 gallon per hour fuel burn
translated into 4.1 miles per gallon and a range of 330
statued miles, all while still holding back a 10%
reserve of the boat's total fuel capacity.
As for her handling, she has Robalo's HydroLift Hull,
which consists of the routed keel, two running strakes,
and a rounded entry to the slightly reverse chine.
This had us coming up on plane in 2.8 seconds,
accelerating to 20 miles per hour in 4.9 seconds,
and continuing through 30 miles per hour in 7.7 seconds.
She comes up on plane with a ten degree bow rising,
quickly settled into her five degree
bow high cruise attitude,
yet again we had flat calm conditions across the state
when we tested,
so we can't comment on how well
she handles rough conditions,
but we did notice that no matter how hard we
tried to induce pounding as we crossed
our camera boat's wakes,
she was having none of it.
In turn tests,
she tracked well with just a slight grab to the turn.
Hard maneuvering had her ventilating the prop a bit,
but under normal operations,
it showed no adverse affects at all,
not even chine walk.
Now if this boat makes such an excellent crossover
between family and fishing,
let's start our tour by looking at how
she handles each category.
We'll start with fishing.
Ten inch step brings us to an elevated casting platform
we can walk all the way around,
but more importantly,
notice the wrap around bolster,
so no matter where we are,
we have comfort when we're fishing.
There's an optional filler that can
go into this section here that will give us a
full walk around platform.
For storage, we've got two 30 gallon fishboxes
with overboard drains and separate storage in the center,
and notice the hatches are held open with tension hinges,
and I love the lift and lock latches instead of the
turn and lock latches.
(clanking)
Thank you, Robalo.
Now notice as we come back into the cockpit,
we've got padded bolsters going all the way around
the boat so no matter where we are,
we've got comfort when we're fighting a fish.
These start at 21 inches and top out at 26 inches,
and the top rails,
we've got rod holders, two to each side.
This, along with five at the back of the leaning post,
and four at the back of the optional T-top,
give us 13 in all.
Under the gunnel,
we've got rod storage for two rods to both sides.
Notice the padded area for protecting your reels,
and we've got a stainless steel toe rail
to give us just a little bit more safety
while we're fighting a fish.
Underneath the aft bench seat,
we've got a 16 gallon livewell,
dedicated holder for a five gallon bucket,
plus additional storage.
This is also where the battery switch is.
Underneath the seat back,
we've got a battery charger that plugs in
right underneath the starboard gunnel.
Now every fish boat gets dirty with
fish guts, blood, scales.
This one can hose off easily enough.
There are two inch deck drains to either side of
the cock pit, and take a look at the hoses
that are connected to those drains.
Now we're gonna be driving out to the fishing grounds
at this home station,
which begins with an acrylic windshield mounted on top
of the fiberglass console.
To both sides of the center mounted Ritchie compass,
we've got recessed areas that are padded and self-draining.
Just below,
we've got open real estate for an optional
Garmin 741 display.
Over to the right hand side,
twin Yamaha Command Link gauges
with stainless steel bezels.
We've got toggle switches on both sides
with circuit breakers right next to those switches.
At the bottom of the port hand side switches,
we've got an accessory plug,
just below that,
an MP3 and USB port, all within close proximity to the
two drink holders and the Clarion stereo.
The steering wheel is center mounted
and mounted to a tilt base.
Just over to the right hand side,
we've got the Yamaha Engine control.
There's an option for a steering knob
that I highly recommend.
Engine choices range from 150 horsepower
to 250 horsepower.
On our test boat,
we've got a Yamaha 200 4-stroke.
Just below,
we have both open storage
(clanking)
and enclosed storage.
Now whether you go in this stainless steel framed
optional T-top or the fiberglass hard top,
both will give you grab handles running the full length,
and notice that it's bolted into the deck
that gives you 21 inches of sidedeck space
between the frame and the bolster.
The optional T-top also comes with an option
for mounting an electronics box.
The leaning post has a seat that's double-wide
and has individual flip up bolsters.
Now let's talk about ergonomics at this home
for just a moment.
Even though we have a double-wide helm seat,
the helm itself is mounted in the center of the console.
I'd like to see it moved over to the side
so that we can fit two people here a
little more comfortably.
Moving down,
there's a recessed area for your feet,
but I would like to see that all the way flush
to the deck so that you're not putting
your foot on an edge.
Even better,
when the we're in the seated position,
I'd like to see a flip down footrest coming
from the leaning post itself.
Now let's transition over to family features on the R222ES,
beginning with expanded seating across the transom
and a fixed bench seat five feet five inches across,
and notice how it's in close proximity to the leaning post,
so not only can we brace ourselves into the seated position,
we also have a stainless steel grab handle
going across, plus, just underneath,
we have on a pull out tray,
a 72 quart carry on cooler that we can fill up with lunch.
It's also an option for putting a cushion right up on top.
We've got a swim platform to both port and starboard.
The starboard one has a concealed
three step reboarding ladder.
Removable seat backs can go into position to
both port and starboard to give us comfortable
lounge seating, that, in conjunction with the
seat just ahead of the console,
gives us a nice conversational atmosphere.
An optional table can go into the center
that will also lower;
a filler cushion will turn this whole area into a sun pad.
The stainless steel grab rail adds to the safety,
as does the 21 inch cockpit depth at the bow.
Inside the console,
we've got plenty of room for the standard porta-potty.
We can opt for an electric head.
Notice the grab handle to help close the door.
Now when it comes time for coving,
we can anchor the R222ES quite easily.
There's an anchor locker all the way full,
and notice we got anchor keepers.
The road can run through this notch in the gel work
that's molded right into the deck,
(clanking)
and we've got pull up cleats to both sides,
and the entertainment continues well into the night
with courtesy lighting throughout the boat.
Lastly, she's also loaded with upscale features,
such as this stainless steel bow scuff plate,
and notice how it's fixed to a molded in recess in the stem,
the stainless steel rub rail insert,
and the trailer has a dual speed wench
with an adjustable clutch mechanism.
Well, clearly we've got a Center Console that
combines comfort and utility all wrapped up into one,
the family and fish friendly R222ES,
and that's my full look and sea trial.
For BoatTest.com, I'm Captain Steve.
We'll see you on the water.
(whooshing)