I appologise for the personal insult stuff, it was cheap. As for run out of puff, u were right, I have to go to work so I can fill the boat up with fuel. So sleep was called for the other night.
John Fuller...u have a great boat, SB only made great boats & u obviously have taken great care of her. U have good reason to be proud & defend Phantom boats. However legally it is only a copy if SB's mould fits over the suspect copy boat exactly. I once offered (long time ago) SB details on Chaudron, he stated at the time he did not care & saw it as a compliment as long as they did not market them in the UK.
In 97 I wanted to buy a Phantom or Ring, spoke to Neil Holmes in detail before speaking to SB. The problem was SB without doubt britains premier small power boat designer was totally inflexible to my requirements & specifications.
You may be the best designer of a product, but it is no good if u can't relate to customers requirements. If SB had wanted he could have been as big as Sunseeker in his field. However I think he only everwanted to build race boats. This is my opinion & I maybe totally wrong, but this is the impression he gave me. Most geniuses (great designer) are crap at marketing.
Chaudron on the other hand will bend over backwards to build what the customer wants. U are all right, the bimini on my boat looks odd to say the least. However I have 2 young kids, a wife would wants a Sunseeker & I still like to go fast. My boat is a compromise. I can go fast (even with the bimini up..65mph) but also have a cooker, toilet, LCD TV, DVD, fride, shower & can sleep
4 adults & 3 kids at a push. It may be not veryone's cup of tea but suits my needs. It measures 39.5 ft on the trailer, so can be legally towed without a tractor unit. As for cost, my boat as spec'd
above with a breaked trailer would be around £85k.
I sent a cabin & cockpit plan to Chaudron, it was totally different from anything else they had produced. This was no problem, they built to my spec for no extra cost. As for the bling blue!! all guages, pop up cleats, steering wheel & controls were custom made & powder coated in the US (very expensive), I did not pay for any of this extra spec, it was free. Chaudron will not let a boat out of their factory unless it is perfect. This is a problem as they are generally late on their delivery date.
What will u all do when u need to buy a new phantom. I have searched the web a number of times...who has the licences & moulds?
I would be more than happy for anyone to view & ride in my boat,
to make judgement themselves, including SB. U can email me on
kinfast9@btinternet.com
Chaudrons are not better, they are producing good boats that people want. They maybe based on the SB designed hull, but they are evolving a great design......Thank God some one is....or one day my kids would not be able to buy a great boat.
As for slagging of the Maltese. If u know your WW2 history, u would know that if it was not for Malta holding out against the German & Italians we would probably have lost the war. As
Rommel would have taken north Africa. So lets be nice to the Maltese, as they are the most pro british nation on earth.
U should all be aware of recent case law on internet libel & defemation of character!!!! I hope u have cast iron proof of theft.
As for 3rd party stories....speak to Steve Curtis!!! OK just seen your latter reply.
If SB is a personal friend of yours, wish him well for me...as for your respect...not needed. U are entitled to your opinion, but as a Phantom owner, good manners are expected. Once again I appologise for my cheap reply the other day.
As for Bert & glen 76...Thanks (email if u want a ride)
Bren & JBD...good point
By the way Bren my one is 33ft....did Phantom build a 33?
Forgive me if I'm wrong but aren't the 41 pics, of a partially built plug with a stepped hull. Phantom did not build anything like that.
We will all have to see next year if its any good, when it races.
with twin 630hp Lamborgini!!!
Matt ...lucky B...how are you going to transport it around?
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