More of a Cruiser Than a Fishboat, but Easy on Your Back and Knees

Backaches are a part of life for many boaters. Spend enough years pounding around on boats, and you're bound to get them. By the time most people are well enough established to buy a big boat that doesn't pound, the damage is done.

I'm no exception – I shrank at least an inch in the last decade or so. So when I encounter a boat that makes life easy, I take notice – and that's why Silverton's 50 Convertible grabbed – and held – my attention.

For starters, the 50 is big enough to squash a two-foot chop in the Chesapeake Bay without even noticing. It's actually 51 feet, 7 inches overall, and weighs in at a hefty 47,600 pounds. If these numbers seem familiar, it's because the 50 Convertible is a new incarnation of the Silverton 48, and it shares the same basic specs.

With a base price just higher than $1 million, the boat offers a great deal of comfort, with performance that is well within the range of what is expected of a boat this size. It is not the most nimble vessel on the water, and with a top end speed of 37 mph, it is not the fastest, either. But the 50 Convertible tracks extremely well, behaves nicely in seas that might trouble other boats and it is a pleasure to dock, even without the standard bow thruster.

EASY RIDER

The 50 Convertible is the largest convertible in Silverton's line, and it has 12.5 degrees of transom deadrise, relatively steep for a boat this size. Now match up the beefy configuration, deep-V bottom and a hull constructed with seven layers of stitched mat plus extra layers of fiberglass in the engine room. Put the pointy end of the boat into the waves, and open up the horsepower. In moments, you'll be asking, waves? What waves?

So the Silverton is easy on your back, even in a chop – but that doesn't matter much if your back already aches all the time, right? After all, you'll still have to deal with climbing a steep ladder to the bridge deck, crouching in the machinery spaces, and shimmying down a narrow side deck, won't you? Not on this boat.

Forget ladders to the bridge deck. The Silverton provides a staircase. This isn't just good for you and me, it's good for family bonding, too. Grandma might not want to climb a ladder, but she can enjoy the view from the bridge deck on the 50 Convertible. And once you're up top, check out that helm station. There's enough room to pass behind the helm chairs, so you won't have to ask someone to get up if you need to get by. And don't forget to sit down and test out those chairs, too. They're padded with extra-thick foam, and sitting in them is incredibly comfortable.

In front of the helm, there's a settee with seating for a half-dozen passengers, again with thick padding. And the electronics flat has a huge hinged plastic cover, offering protection for your navigational instruments. I wish that flat were about six inches closer to the helm, though. I had to stretch to reach it, and some folks may find it difficult to work the buttons while cruising.

Now let's say you're pulling into the slip. There's no need for someone to have to scramble up forward on the 50 Convertible to handle the lines. Silverton designed in a nice wide walkway with a recessed toe kick, put a grabrail along the cabin sides, then ringed the foredeck with a thigh-high bowrail. It's so easy to get up there, it makes using the huge sunpad on the foredeck even more appealing.

Two out of three backache enhancers are put to rest, but we still have to deal with hunching over in a tight engine room, right? Not exactly. When I went below decks to check out the iron horses, I discovered 5 feet, one inch of headroom. While not enough for you to stand upright, it's a heck of a lot more than most boats provide. And there's more down here that proves Silverton put a lot of thought into making this a comfortable boat. As you enter the engine room, you'll pass by a set of earmuff hangers, for a standard pair of muffs, so you'll have ear protection handy when the diesels are rumbling. And thanks to standard blowers, it'll be cool here, too.

The engine room isn't the only place where Silverton addressed sound. When I first entered the cabin, one thing became immediately clear: What I didn't hear. Gone was the engine noise, the sound of water slapping the hull, and the voices of people talking on the flying bridge. Why? Because Silverton insulates all of the machinery spaces, cores the hull sides with balsa and vacuum bags a one-piece overhead. It fits into the boat's general more-comfort-is-better theme, and it also makes you forget you're inside of a convertible. It seems more like a cruiser, with its Ultraleather-covered settee and dinette cushions, Venetian blinds, burled cherrywood veneers and built-in recliner. There's also a 30-inch TV and entertainment center.

GO FISH

Of course, when it comes to boats, you have to give up something to get something. And in the case of the 50 Convertible, what you give up to get that big, comfy cabin is cockpit space.

The cockpit is just 76 square feet. That sounds like a lot, until you start comparing it with dedicated fishing boats, which usually have well more than 100 square feet. So think of the Silverton as a cruiser first, a sportfisherman second.

In fact, few fishing features come standard on the 50. It does have an insulated, macerated fishbox in the deck, which is big enough to use as a lock down if any crewmembers misbehave. And the hardtop has integrated spreader lights. Beyond that, you'll have to outfit the boat as you see fit. Silverton does, however, offer a list of optional features that will please the angler in you. Opt for the "Fish Pak," and the boat comes with a livewell, six bridge-deck rocket launchers, gunwale-mounted rod holders, a tackle locker and fresh-/raw-water washdowns. You can also opt for an ice maker to be added to the cockpit unit, which has a sink and stowage, so it could serve as either a rigging station or a wet bar. Sure, adding in these goodies will boost the boat's cost by a few thousand. But with a base price of about $1 million, many owners may not find that troubling.

From the "get something" category: With so much of the boat dedicated to the cabin, there's room for a three-stateroom layout, including a master with a queen-sized berth and its own head, a queen-berth guest stateroom and a second guest stateroom with over/under berths. There's also a dedicated nook in the companionway for a washer and dryer, and a central vacuuming system.

The galley is surprisingly roomy and well outfitted, too, with a three-burner stovetop, a Sub-Zero refrigerator/freezer, a double-basin sink, an under-counter microwave and faux-granite countertops with fiddle rails. Step back and grab the ring in the galley sole, and you'll discover a pantry, complete with pull-out baskets that are mounted on tracks to the underside of the sole. There's enough stowage space in just one basket to load up provisions for a good long trip at sea.

DIESEL INDULGENCE

Being comfortable is great, but you still want a boat that has some zip to it, don't you? With the original standard pair of 825-horsepower MTU series 60s, the 50 Convertible broke 37 mph and cruised at about 33. (At press time, we learned that those engines are no longer available, replaced with 725-horsepower Volvo Penta D-12s that should turn in similar results.)

That's not as speedy as some competitors, but it's a heck of a lot faster than boats of this size cruised at a decade ago. And no, it's no sportster at the wheel. When I turned it hard over – easy to do, mind you, with the standard hydraulic-assisted power steering – the 50 carved a fairly large turn. But you don't expect sporty handling from a boat of this size, anyway, and the 50 is nimble where it counts: dockside. It comes equipped with a bow thruster, but I decided to leave it alone and try opposing the engines, then giving them a shot of juice. The boat spun around smartly in its own length. The four-bladed, 28-inch by 35-inch nibral props grab the water and shove it out of the way. Whether one or both are in reverse, there isn't much prop chatter, either. That's a nice bonus, because some boats with prop tunnels that I have tested had awful chatter problems in reverse.

The tunnels built into the 50 Convertible's hull give you an edge when it comes to draft, too. This boat requires just 3 feet, 5 inches to stay afloat. Most boats of this size – even many others with tunnels – need at least four feet to keep from bumping bottom. Ports that would be off-limits are suddenly destinations you can cruise to – the Bahamas especially come to mind.

Those tunnels also result in a reduced shaft angle, boosting efficiency. The 50 burns 64 gph while cruising just a hair over 30 mph, so it gets about half a mile to the gallon. That may sound like a huge fuel burn, but remember that other boats weighing more then 20 tons tend to get between 0.4 and 0.5 mpg, so the Silverton is on the upper end of average.

One surprising trait this boat exhibits when running: It tracks exceptionally well, even though it doesn't have a keel. Could this again be related to the design of the prop pockets? If so, these would be some of the best pockets on planet Earth. Of course, when one considers that Don Blount, one of the preeminent hull designers of our century, created this hull, it seems perfectly reasonable.

Just as reasonable is going out for a day of boating, and coming home with your back feeling just fine.

Lenny Rudow was senior technical editor for Boating magazine for more than 10 years, and is currently the electronics editor for Marlin and GoBoating magazines.

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