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NO CARPEL THROTTLE SYNDROME HERE. Which brings us to the new Sea Vee 340I, a diesel-powered inboard. You can cruise it to distant oil rigs, the Bahamas, or the canyons. If you're like me and you like to fish - and fish hard - check out this boat. It's a dedicated war wagon that doesn't make the mistake of trying to please too many masters. Throttle it up to 33.4 mph and run downsea in stacked three-to-five-footers. Now what? Leave the levers alone. Big props and mucho torque keep up those rpm. The 340I's 10,500-pound displacement - a full ton of which comes from its test engines, twin 300-bhp Yanmar 6LP-STEs - provides the momentum to climb waves. Coming down the face, the 340I tracks straight as it hits the trough. Its deep-V hullform and reserve buoyancy forward are responsible. Swing the 340I into head seas and throttle it down to 24.4 mph. Reentry: nice and soft. Why? All that weight prevents you from going airborne. It also keeps the hull wet from chine to chine so you land on center, and it holds the 340I's deep transom deadrise - 23.5 degrees - at the proper angle so it can knife smoothly through the water. Do you want to go trolling? The 340I doesn't wander and leaves wide, clean alleys in its wake.
GOOD TO THE BONE. The 340I's ride and construction can take on Neptune's nastiest. Its three-piece hull, deck, and liner are joined with through-bolts and fiberglass to create a rugged, watertight seal, as well as a secure toe-kick around the boat. Bolted through hard beds, the Yanmars will stay aligned for the long haul. Even the sea strainers are bolted through aluminum plate - the proper way to install hefty bronze hardware. All the mechanicals are easily serviced by raising the console front. Lift one of the three strut-assisted, piano-hinged hatch lids forward and note the deep gutter and thick gasket that protect the lockable rod stowage and overboard-draining fishboxes from spray. (Macerator pumps, often a standard on other boats, are $350 each on the 340I.) Now close the lid and jump on it. Like the hull itself, the hatch lids are internally stiffened with Divinycell, a weight-saving, closed-cell foam that inhibits flex. That, combined with wooden inserts installed where the hinges fasten, ensures that the hinge bolts won't spring loose over time.
