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Pocket Fisherman
by Eston Ellis
Bertram’s 31 is still a brokerage favorite
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When Sea Magazine did a recent survey of West Coast yacht brokers, asking what the West’s top used boats are, they selected one boat more often than any other: the Bertram 31.
Built from 1961 to 1983, the Bertram 31 has never been forgotten, even 17 years after production of this acclaimed boat ended. Every year, new boaters discover the 31’s many charms, buy one, and restore it to showroom-fresh condition.
This boat is phenomenally popular for a reason: It is just the right size for serious sportfishing -- not too big, not too small. It has the big, open cockpit of a much larger boat, and a seakindly hull that can handle rough offshore waters. It also has timeless styling that makes it look as at home in an upscale marina today as when it was brand-spanking new.
The Boat That Launched 1,000 Bertrams
The Bertram 31 not only launched the Bertram company, but the concept of the deep-V hull.
Let’s flash back to 1958, when Richard Bertram was a crewmember on a boat in competition for the America’s Cup: Vim. Conditions were rough off Newport, Rhode Island, but Bertram couldn’t take his eyes off a little powerboat that was plying the choppy waters with ease. He tracked down the boat’s designer, Ray Hunt, and ordered one built for himself.
That little boat -- which he named Moppie, after his wife -- was so fast and seaworthy, it inspired Bertram to create an entire company to build and sell these 31-footers. Bertram Yacht Co. was born, and the Hunt-designed deep-V hull that made Moppie such a great boat suddenly received major kudos in the boating world.
Before the deep-V, most hulls on fast, oceangoing boats had rounded midsections, gradually flattening out to an absolutely flat running surface aft. Bertram’s 31, in contrast, provided a sharp-V entry and kept the V shape all the way to the transom. The result was a wedge that cut through the water like a hot knife through butter.
This early deep-V is phenomenally deep, but it still rises to a plane to achieve exemplary speed. Admittedly, it does take a lot of horsepower -- and fuel -- to go fast.
Bertram went on to build a lot of 31s -- and boats of many other sizes and configurations, too. Today, the company is perhaps best known for its much larger, luxuriously equipped sportfishers and motoryachts.
From 1961 to 1983, Bertram produced more than 2,000 of the 31-footers. While the Sport Fisherman was hands-down the most popular version, the 31 was also available as a Flybridge Cruiser or an express-helm Bahia Mar.
The Flybridge Cruiser offered a cabin with a head compartment, a galley, a convertible dinette and berths for two people. The Bahia Mar came with an express helm and a cuddy cabin with a head and twin berths. The Sport Fisherman, however, was endowed with the most classic styling -- and, thus, is now the most sought-after 31.
Along with an exceptionally large sportfishing cockpit, the 31 Sport Fisherman has a walk-through cabin, separated from the cockpit by a canvas drop curtain. The cabin includes a galley and a convertible dinette, a head compartment and a V-berth forward. Some versions replace the enclosed head with an inside helm station.
The 31’s flying bridge is the preferred helm -- and it is compact, yet well equipped. The bridge provides an excellent view of the water in all directions, yet it is built close enough to the cockpit to make for easy conversation between the skipper and other anglers.
Pros and Cons
Handsome styling, a large uncluttered cockpit and a remarkably good -- though wet -- ride in rough seas are hallmarks of the Bertram 31.
If you’re in the cockpit of a fast-moving 31 Sport Fisherman, you will get wet. In fact, if you’re on the flying bridge of a 31 that doesn’t have a Bimini top, canvas and vinyl curtains, you’re probably going to get some spray, too. Perhaps that’s one reason you’ll find so many 31s in Southern California, and not so many in cooler Pacific Northwest cruising waters.
The original 31s came with a pair of 330 hp MerCruiser gasoline inboards, which provided speeds in excess of 30 knots at wide open throttle. The 31 cruised at around 23 knots, and consumed about 27 gallons of fuel per hour.
Today, many owners have repowered with twin diesels, for increased reliability and performance over the long term. For example, a pair of 350 hp Caterpillar 3116 diesels provide 35 knots top speed and fuel-efficient performance.
In addition to repowering, older models will probably need new electronics, some modernizing touches in the interior and possibly a new paint job to cover any faded gelcoat surfaces that are showing their age. The cockpit sole is plywood, and may need restoration -- but drop-in fiberglass shells made for this purpose are readily available.
The Bertram 31 is so timeless that many anglers buy fixer-uppers for around $45,000, then refurbish and repower with lightweight diesels. They end up with a modernized classic -- often for considerably less than $100,000.
The only mystery about this boat is why Bertram hasn’t come up with a new version of the 31. They’ve had 17 years to come up with one, and there’s a built-in fan base among serious boaters.
Perhaps, as with the original two-seater Ford Thunderbird, there’s just no way to improve on a true classic.
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This article first appeared in the September 2000 issue of Sea Magazine. All or parts of the information contained in this article might be outdated. |
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