First Mate Sandro Maniaci and Captain Dave Carraro on tour at Milton CAT.
When Captain Dave Carraro of the National Geographic Channel’s “Wicked Tuna” decided to build a new boat, he turned to Milton CAT to provide a new, bigger engine than his previous boat had. The engine he chose was a 1000-horsepower Caterpillar C18 ACERT Marine Propulsion Engine. Built at Milton CAT customer SW Boatworks in Lamoine, ME, the new FV-TUNA.COM is a 44’ x 17’6” Calvin Beal 44, SW Boatworks’ most popular hull. Bigger than his previous boat, Captain Dave’s new vessel gives him the needed room to accommodate six extra people on trips for his thriving charter business. His company averages 100 charters a year between April 1 and the third week of July. Once charter season is over, it’s all commercial fishing until Christmas. In addition to his work as Captain of the FV-TUNA.COM, Dave is also a pilot for JetBlue.
Built over a span of 14 months, the specifications on the new FV-TUNA.COM are:
LOA: 44’ Beam: 17’6”
Design: Calvin Beal 44
Designer: Calvin Beal Jr.
Builder: SW Boatworks
Engine: Caterpillar C18 ACERT
Marine Propulsion Engine
Kevin Hampson, Marine Industry Manager for Milton CAT, going over the finer points with Captain Dave Carraro of “Wicked Tuna” and Sandro Maniac.
The FV-TUNA.COM was launched on June 19, 2015 in Maine and headed home for Gloucester, MA. When sked about the new CAT C18, Captain Dave eagerly responded, “I’m really happy with the performance.”
We tried to catch up with Captain Dave at the Bluefin Blowout in Gloucester in July where Milton CAT was a major sponsor, but he was out at sea fishing. Although he was unable to enter the tournament due to contractual arrangements with the National Geographic Channel, the fishing was too good to waste time at the dock. The tuna weren’t biting for the Bluefin Blowout contestants throughout the tournament, as the only fish caught was a 324lb tuna caught by CAT-powered Duck Soup from Pt. Judith, RI. However, a good time was had by all involved and the tournament managed to raise $8,000 for the Gloucester Education Foundation. In a testament to Captain Dave’s prowess as a tuna fisherman, during the same time the contestants were out fishing, the FV-TUNA.COM was able to land four tuna – each larger than the winning fish.
Although “Wicked Tuna: Outer Banks” premiered on July 19, viewers will have to wait until early 2016 to catch Captain Dave and the new Milton CAT-powered FV-TUNA.COM on the fifth season of “Wicked Tuna” as Captain Dave decided not to participate in “Wicked Tuna: Outer Banks” in order to concentrate on his booming charter business.
For more information on the FV-TUNA.COM, visit their website.