The Cranchi 40 Fly is a benchmark for pleasure navigation in Italy, and through the years she’s has constantly improved proving her vitality. Today, the evolution goes on with Yacht Controller.
Is there any boat more classic that the Cranchi 40 Fly? The size is classic: 40 feet, actually some more with the bow pulpit. The look is classic, thanks to soft lines gently joining up the deck and the superstructure, with no need to hide the upper helm station. The interiors are classic, with a practical layout and a fine-crafted furnishing. And the propulsion is classic, thanks to the twin Volvo Penta D6 with shafts. But here’s the big news: the Yacht Controller joystick brings the innovation to an evergreen, and makes it even more interesting.
The deck
That’s how you build boats: it’s what you think once aboard the 40 Fly. The cockpit is cosy, with a dinette well protected by the projection of the upper bridge. The ladder to this bridge is comfy still not bulky, and leads to a large space with a second pilot station, a sunbed on top of a closet, a galley. Such a pity there’s no chance to have a proper dinette. The passageways on the main deck are well protected by the gunwales and the handrails, and lead to a classic foredeck with a triangular sunpad. The anchor and its winch are underneath the flooring, which ends in the elegant bow pulpit.
The interiors
Even the inner layout sticks to tradition, but wins you by being classic and practical at the same time. The main dinette is starboard, with an oval table and an L-shaped couch. On the port side there’s a closet and a bench, then a wooden cabinet protects the galley, located on the lower deck but connected to the salon. The pilot seats on a double chair, in front of a rational dash that can host all the modern electronics gear. The night accommodation is organized with a master room abow and the guest cabin on starboard, the latter featuring two bunks partially underneath the upper dashboard but with room enough above the mattress to move freely. Heads are two as well, so the maximum of privacy is guaranteed.
Very little fiberglass is visible, everything is well finished and the wood and canvas trim give a sense of warmth all around the boat.
This joystick is cool
It’s all thanks to electronic innovations: nowadays even a shaft-drive 40 footer like the Cranchi 40 Fly can perform super-easy operations at the touch of a finger. The Yacht Controller is based on a joystick and a remote control, so the pilot can have the best view while docking. Hopefully, he will avoid trying to complete a maneuver while lying on the flybridge, if he doesn’t want to put other people in danger and / or to become the laughing stock of the port.
The test
Our sea trial highlights the soft impact on waves, and the responsiveness of the helm, which is rather uncommon for a shaft-driven boat. The top speed is over 30 knots, a good number, but this 40 wants to be appreciated while cruising between 20 and 25 knots, achieving by the way a good mileage. There’s no need to try and mishandle this 12 feeter with sharp turns, the hull will manage it and will veer safely and smoothly. But now, my curiosity is all for the behavior of this new Yacht Controller. The joystick can work on the engines only, or, by increasing the rotation or the pressure (depending on the movement you are looking for), also on the bow and stern thruster. The screen displays which propellers are working any time and in which direction, for a total control. If you wish to activate jut the thrusters, two buttons on top of the joystick control each or both. Just a test with the remote control: it’s user friendly in managing the four props, but bit tricky when you need to run all of them at once as you need to push four bottons in the same time. On the other hand, you can moor just by yourself while walking and moving to any point aboard the boat. Despite the sidewind, the control with the remote has been very effective, in particular while running the four props with the joystick.
Technical features
Length o.a. ……………………………13,13 mt (43 ft 1 in)
Length hull ……………………………11,83 mt (38 ft 10 in)
Beam …………………………………….3,87 mt (12 ft 8 in)
Draft ……………………………………..1,08 mt (3 ft 7in)
Dry displacement ……………………8.750 kg
Full load displacement ……………..9830 kg
Engines ………………………………..2×370 cv Volvo Penta
Fuel tank ………………………………..1050 lt (277.4 US gal)
Fresh water tank ……………………….350 lt (92.5 US gal)
Berths …………………………………….4+1
Passengers ………………………………..12
Design category …………………………..B
Performance
1000 rpm…………6,0 knots…………8 l/h…………..2,1 gph………. 66 db
1500 rpm…………8,0 knots………..24 l/h………….6,3 gph………. 71 db
2000 rpm……….11,5 knots…………42 l/h…………11,1 gph………..76 db
2500 rpm……….17,0 knots…………62 l/h………..16,4 gph………..77 db
3000 rpm……….23,5 knots…………90 l/h……….23,8 gph………..78 db
3600 rpm………. 31,0 knots……….146 l/h……….38,6 gph………..80 db
Test conditions
Wind:………………………8 knots gentle breeze
Sea: ………………………..calm / rippled
Air temperature: ………18° C (64.4 ° F)
Fuel in tank……………..450 lt (119 US gal)
Fresh water in tank …. 250 lt (66 US gal)
Passengers………………5
Hull……………………….clean
Engines………………….Volvo Penta D6 2×370 Hp
Price………………………€ 299,950 + VAT
