Advertisement

Viking Yachts 62 EB – Boat Review

The 62EB sport-fisher is all business.
viking-62-eb_02.jpg
The enclosed-bridge layout offers great 360-degree views.
viking-62-eb_03.jpg
The leather-bound centerline helm has more than ample room for a vast array of electronics, navigational instruments and virtually anything else one might desire.
viking-62-eb_04.jpg
If you appreciate engine rooms, this one is as comfortable as the enclosed bridge.
viking-62-eb_05.jpg
Built tough to face sea conditions that can be downright unfriendly, the 62EB’s composite cored hull is resin infused for reduced weight while not giving up anything on the physical strength of the structure.
viking-62-eb_06.jpg
Further weight reductions can also be found in Viking construction techniques involving coring stateroom and locker doors as well as cabinet fronts throughout the boat.
viking-62-eb_07.jpg
Further weight reductions can also be found in Viking construction techniques involving coring stateroom and locker doors as well as cabinet fronts throughout the boat.
viking-62-eb_09.jpg
The sizeable main salon features large windows on either side.
viking-62-eb_02.jpg
The enclosed-bridge layout offers great 360-degree views.

One of the more important hallmarks of any boatbuilder is its ability to not only produce a superior product but also to recognize that there is room for improvement in its own designs. “We are always keeping a pulse on things, taking careful note of our own in-house input and, most importantly, that from our customer base,” Viking Yachts’ Director of Communications Peter Frederiksen says. “Viking’s mantra is to build a better boat every day.” One of the most recent examples of that philosophy is the 62EB, or enclosed bridge, a boat possessing all that this premier builder is noted for and a bit more.

Bridge

Looking around the enclosed bridge layout with its great 360-degree views, I could easily see the results of that statement. Pulling double duty as a lounge area and entertainment space, the roomy and well-appointed bridge offers comfort and luxury while not hampering any of the skipper’s duties, whether that’s sitting back and enjoying the ride or getting in on the fish.

To the point, the leather-bound centerline helm has more than ample room on which to flush mount a vast array of electronics, navigational instruments and virtually anything else one might desire. A comfortable single STIDD helm pedestal affords easy access to all controls, and as I eased myself up and settled in, I glanced at the displays from port to starboard and back again, noticing how easy it was to view the all-important information from each screen or readout.

Advertisement

An L-shape leather couch beckons passengers aft and to starboard, and directly to port is a double co-pilot’s seat also covered in soft leather. Directly behind this seat is a built-in curvy wood console complete with a small refrigerator and a bulkhead-mounted flat screen TV above. There is carpeting underfoot — a teak or Amtico sole could easily be envisioned — and beautifully finished woodwork all around.

Outside the aft door, I found a complete port steering station, which was expertly demonstrated by Ryan Higgins, the southeast sales manager and demo skipper for Viking, and showed off the ability of the 62EB to back down on a big fish. There is even an additional seat to starboard affording a spectacular aft view of all the action. Other features out here include teaser reels in the overhead, a pair of cockpit-aimed LED lights and a ladder to the hardtop if access to the mounted electronic units is necessary.

Viking provides two ways to and from the bridge deck: A circular stairway is located to starboard in the salon, and for the cockpit crew, there’s a beefy, no-nonsense ladder. And as a Viking, the boat’s 172-square-foot cockpit comes complete with the requisite mezzanine, entry to the engine room and all the necessary fishing amenities one would find on a competitive tournament boat. In addition, the lazarette is all wired and ready for a vessel-matched Seakeeper gyro stabilization system. Throw on a tower and riggers, sign up your anglers and get ready for some spirited blue-water action.

Advertisement

Engine Room

The aforementioned engine room on the 62EB is a well-planned and carefully laid out area that will bring immediate confidence and peace of mind to any skipper or hands-on owner. With all critical maintenance areas readily accessible and plenty of room for any kind of two-hand work on both inboard and outboard sides of the engines, this well-lit space also features a bright-white Awlgrip finish, a user-friendly centralized sea-water system with redundant variable speed pumps, a 27.5 kW Cummins Onan generator — with additional space provided for an optional 21.5 kW Cummins Onan as well — and a 58,000 BTU air conditioning system. If you appreciate engine rooms, this one is as comfortable as the enclosed bridge.

Salon

In distinctive Viking fashion and providing for both angling and traveling comfort, the 62EB offers an inviting and practical layout. As with the bridge deck, the sizeable main salon features large windows on either side and aft and a curvy console to starboard, a peninsula galley with under-counter freezer and refrigerator units — an island layout is available should one opt out of the stairway — an L-shape leather couch to port and forward, and a dining area. Storage space abounds here, with plenty of cabinets for all the necessary ships stores. I found excellent headroom space, ample closets and the kind of sumptuous surroundings one has come to expect from the Viking interior design team in the amidships master and the forepeak VIP stateroom, each with en suite heads, and in either portside guest quarters, which share a head. A three-stateroom layout is also available, all with en suite heads.

Built tough to face sea conditions that can be downright unfriendly, the 62EB’s composite cored hull is resin infused for reduced weight while not giving up anything on the physical strength of the structure. Further weight reductions can also be found in Viking construction techniques involving coring stateroom and locker doors as well as cabinet fronts throughout the boat.

Advertisement

Performance

As you would expect, the 62EB is a spirited performer. Running on a straight V bottom to cut down on drag, a bit more chine beam below the waterline and powered by a pair of 1,925 hp CAT 32As, it not only posted impressive speed averages — try 22.9 knots at 1,500 rpm, 35.1 at 2,000 and an exciting 42.5 at WOT — but also accelerated from idle to 2,100 rpm in just about 18 seconds. It cut tight turns, answered the helm quickly, and tracked straight and true.

“We took a lot of what we were partial to on previous designs, like the 55C for example, and elevated them to the next level,” Higgins says. “With the 62EB, we went with softer lines and, as you noticed, lots of curves both inside and out.”

There’s a lot more shape above the waterline with very little flat sections. The top deck has a more rounded shape to it, and gone is the raised trunk cabin found on the 68C, a boat which was in the slip right next to ours and served as a dramatic example of the innovative exterior styling. The 62EB’s proportions are pleasing to the eye. The unbroken sheer slopes gently from bow to transom and, together with the newly designed engine room vents — now longitudinal fiberglass fins instead of aluminum — adds to the exciting and dynamic profile of this boat.

Advertisement

The Viking 62EB has been designed, engineered and built with both comfort and outstanding fishing capabilities in mind. While my 62EB test boat wasn’t rigged for action, we did manage to spot a few cutting sailfish on the way back to the slip at the Viking service facility at Riviera Beach, Florida. Higgins, Frederiksen and I looked at each other, thinking, I imagined, “We’ll be back.”

Specifications

LOA: 63’1″
BEAM: 18’11”
DRAFT: 5’1″
DISP.: 92,175 pounds
FUEL: 1,800 gallons (2,155 optional)
WATER: 312 gallons
ENGINES: Two 1,925 hp CAT C32A
Base Price: $3,500,000 with two 1,925 hp CAT C32A

Viking Yachts

609-296-6000
vikingyachts.com

Advertisement

Free Email Newsletters

Sign up for free Marlin Group emails to receive expert big-game content along with key tournament updates and to get advanced notice of new expeditions as they’re introduced.

Advertisement