The latest from Blackfin Boats, the 400CC, is the culmination of the company’s 50-year history. The Williston, Florida-based builder pulled together smart design features from models launched over the years and placed them on a Michael Peters patented two-step SVVT (Stepped Vee Ventilated Tunnel) hull for serious performance. The result is a handsome center console loaded to the hilt with clever touches that are equally at home fishing offshore or chilling out at the sandbar.
With quad, 400-hp Mercury Verado outboards, the Blackfin 400CC hits a top end close to 70 mph.Stepping aboard the 40-foot center console at a hotel marina in Boca Raton, Florida, my eyes immediately turned toward the seat mounted atop the live well on the transom. I’d seen cutting boards in this space, but I couldn’t recall ever seeing a seat there. When I jumped on the bench chair to get a feel for it, I was impressed with the comfort and the visibility, but what do you do if you want to grab a bait? Blackfin made the seat so you can lift the cushion to access the baits in the well, or slide the seat out and stow it for a day of fishing. That was my first surprise.
This removable aft seat has a liftable cushion so you can access the bait in the livewell. Or, you can slide the seat out of the mounts and stow it out of the way.Moving a forward, I found my second surprise in the tackle center on the backside of the second row of helm seats. When you open up the top of this mezzanine-style work area, you’ll find several built-ins for leader spools, pliers, tools and plenty of room to rig baits. Another hatch lets you lift the tackle station to reveal an electric grill and sink. There’s also a cutting board that can be moved from the grilling spot to the tackle area, where it fits into an insert so it won’t slide off. Steps integrated on the side of the workstation give access the hardtop. And below the grill are two Yeti coolers on slides. One for baits and one for drinks.
A giant hatch in the cockpit sole conceals a massive storage area and access to fuel filters. You could drop a Seakeeper gyro stabilizer in here. Our test boat held several dive tanks in this area, secured in custom holders. There’s also a dive door on the port side with a ladder for easy boarding.
The port-side dive door is ideal for getting in and out of the boat when snorkeling or diving.The 400CC has six helm seats in two rows under the hardtop. The seats have fold-down arm rests and bolsters, and I thought the diamond pattern in the stitching and use of gray and blue colors was attractive. There are cup holders and phone chargers within reach of each seat. The centerline captain’s chair provides great visibility through a large, one-piece windshield and easy access to switches on both sides of the two 24-inch Garmin MFDs. The size of the touchscreens makes it easy to split the displays with radar, navigation and sounder information running simultaneously. The MFDs had me reminiscing about the 25-inch color television my parents bought when I was a kid. At the time, it was the biggest TV on the market.
The top hatch of the mezzanine reveals a tackle station for rigging. 
Below the tackle station is an electric grill and sink for entertaining.My next surprise came when we fired up the quad, 400-hp Mercury Verado V-10 outboards. Mercury recently released the V-10s and I was anxious to feel them in action. I asked Blackfin’s director of engineering, Mason Cummings, about the boat’s top end with the 400s. “About 70,” he said. My chin almost hit the deck.
“I have to feel that,” I said, and Cummings was more than happy to oblige. After waiting for a drawbridge on the ICW to open, we hammered down the throttles, and the boat shot out of the hole with very little bow rise. The 400CC is equipped with Zipwake interceptors as opposed to trim tabs, but we didn’t really need them on the flat water. The boat was still gaining speed at 66 mph when we ran out of room and had to pull back on the throttles. With more space, I think we would’ve come very close to the 70-mph mark.
The Blackfin 400CC offers a ton of space on deck as well as a nicely appointed cabin with full head.Our original plan was to take the boat fishing, but delays and rising seas threw a wrench into the gears. Still, I wanted to see how the boat did out in the Atlantic. The 3- to 5-foot chop was stacked up and close together. With Cummings at the wheel, we comfortably cruised in the 30-mph range without taking on much spray. In calmer conditions you can expect a 40- to 45-mph cruise burning 0.6 to 0.8 mpg for a cruising range of 300-plus miles with the 475-gallon tank. Cummings throttled down and let me take the wheel, and the boat was very responsive as I picked my line through the seas. Pushing the throttles a bit too far for the conditions, I came over the top of a large wave, caught a little too much air and came down hard, but it certainly wasn’t the boat’s fault.
“Don’t worry, you won’t hurt it,” Cummings said. It reminded me that it takes time to learn a boat’s running angles no matter how high-tech the boat may be.
The 400CC is a pleasure to drive with a centerline helm, great visibility and two rows of helm seats.We stopped over Boca Reef, and the CHIRP transducer pulled up a clear image of the structure and life below us in 80 feet of water. I dropped a knife jig down and started to work it up off the structure. I got a hit and was instantly bitten off. Maybe a barracuda, I thought. We tried a few bucktails but didn’t find any other action, and our time was running out, so we decided to run back to the inlet.
As we idled back toward the dock, I stepped down into the air-conditioned cabin. The 400CC uses a bank of lithium-ion batteries and an inverter system to run the on-board electrics, instead of a genset. This frees up space, as there’s no need for a diesel tank. Cummings said the A/C can run all night on battery power without a problem.
The cabin is roomier than I would’ve thought — yet another surprise — and a skylight lets natural light pour in. The couch unfolds into a bunk that is roomy enough for two, and a small galley is well equipped for heating up leftovers or making coffee.
The bunk down below doubles as a couch.The head with a full stand-up shower is the real star of the cabin. A hatch from the head provides access to the back of the helm electronics, and a door below the access hatch opens to a machine space with chillers, wiring, strainers, batteries and more. The space is organized and labeled for easier maintenance.
Blackfin took its time creating this boat, and it shows. The goal was to produce a boat that can fish hard, perform well and keep the family entertained. I think the 400CC nails it.
SPECIFICATIONS
LOA: 40’8” (w/engines)
Beam: 12’
Draft: 39” (engines down)
Displacement: 20,000 pounds
Fuel: 475 gallons
Water: 100 gallons
Max horsepower: 1,600
