They say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, and some boats that look great from afar turn out to be utterly incapable once you shove off the dock. But on rare occasions when you get your first peek at a boat the initial impressions turn out to be right. Such was the case when I got my first gander at the NorthCoast 415 HT. This boat looks beefy and brawny, and it is from the oversized bow and grab rails to the foam-cored composite stringer grid. It also looks sensible and straightforward, traits we confirmed while casting from the 102-square-foot cockpit and sitting at the simple but elegant dinette. It looks comfortable, too, which was verified when plying the waters of Eastern Bay—roll-free thanks to a Seakeeper and while being bathed in air conditioning.
But looks can also be deceiving. And looking at the 415 HT from the bow or sides you’d never expect that this bodacious beast can blast across the Bay at speeds in excess of 55 mph. (Looking at the stern of the boat, of course, the quad F300 Yamahas are a bit of a giveaway). But we didn’t just look at those outboards, we also wound them up and put them through their paces. In the 4000 rpm range cruising speeds sit in the low to mid 30s, but the boat really seems to be happiest when you give it a bit more throttle and run in the 4500- to 4600-rpm range. Speeds rise up into the low 40s, the 24-degree deadrise deep-V hull eats through the chop, and the Zipwakes dynamic trim control keeps the boat level and on an even keel.
Another thing you won’t figure out by merely looking at this boat is just how much nautical knowledge goes into its construction. NorthCoast has been building fishing boats for decades, and while the 415 HT is the largest boat they’ve ever built, throughout it you can see nuggets of know-how that only come with years and years of experience. A great example can be found in the cockpit tackle station. The drawers face aft, which on some boats can prove problematic. If the tackle station door is left open and the captain hits the throttles, those drawers can slide open and send your snippers and rigging floss flying. On this boat, however, the drawers only slide open if you lift and pull over a detent. So the next time your cousin Bubba forgets to close the tackle station door, there won’t be a disaster. Another example is seen in the machinery room, where the through-hulls are marked so there will never be any confusion about which system they feed, connections are secured with double hose clamps, and the wires and plumbing are neatly run and loomed.
On the fishing front the 415 HT is armed for serious business whether you’re headed offshore or for the Eastern Shore. There are two 29-gallon livewells in the transom, a pair of 75-gallon fishboxes in the deck, five flush-mount rodholders, coaming bolsters around the cockpit, and both fresh and raw water washdowns. Our test boat also had the cockpit pedestal rocket launcher/rigging station and Rupp outriggers, the only optional equipment on the boat, and you can add a rack of hard top rocket launchers as well. Fish-finding acuity comes in the form of two Raymarine Axiom 2XL 19” MFDs with CHIRP DownVision and SideVision sonar.
That’s some heavy-hitting electronics to include as standard equipment, but NorthCoast goes well beyond providing you with fishfinders. A Cyclone Pro 110-watt open array radar, AIS, and an AR200 sensor/video stabilization module/Attitude and Heading Reference System are also part of the package. That enables the use of Raymarine’s ClearCruise Augmented Reality in concert with the FLIR M364C multispectral combined thermal/low light HD camera. Those Axioms are also your user interface with the boat’s systems, since the 415 HT is a digital-switching boat.
Wait a sec—at first glance, the traditional lines of this boat certainly didn’t hint at the fact that it’s also loaded to the gills with the latest tech. Hmmm, maybe you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover after all. But if your eyes tell you that the 415 HT is going to make you the envy of the marina whether you’re offloading a bluefin or loafing like a blueblood, well, we’re not going to argue with you.
NorthCoast 415 HT Specifications
- LOA – 46’1”
- Beam – 12’11”
- Displacement – 26,674 lbs.
- Draft (max.) – 3’7”
- Transom Deadrise – 24 degrees
- Fuel Capacity – 612 gal.
- Water Capacity – 100 gal.
- Max. Power – 1200 hp
- Area Dealers: The Pocket Yacht Company, Grasonville, MD, (888) 519-9120.