Boat test for the 2006 Rinker 350 Express including boat specifications, photo galleries, boat videos, boat layout diagrams, boat test numbers, boat test results, and boat speed graphs. Also includes pricing, engine test reviews, ratings, standard features, and gear for the 2006 Rinker 350 Express.

I returned the 350 to her slip after the wringout, stern first, sans thruster, no sweat. Then, as Thies and I finished up with lines and fenders, the rains roared back just as predicted, dropping heavy gray torrents on our standard-issue Isinglass-encompassed enclosure. The stuff worked like gangbusters: From the Faria instruments on the dash to the nifty WaringPro blender perched atop the cockpit galley's Corian countertop, everything that was above canvas stayed bone dry. "And hey," I enthused while accessing the engine room via a large, electro-hydraulically-actuated hatch in the cockpit. "Machinery's dry, too!"

A single, well-placed, rubber-covered support facilitated my entry into the ER. Headroom between the Mercs, from the engine bearers I stood on to the underside of the hatch while elevated to full travel, was a workable 5'3". Battery firepower was okay, with three units to port (one house and two engine starters) and another to starboard--a starter for the nearby standard soundshield-enclosed, 5-kW Kohler low-CO genset. Double-clamping of hoses was in evidence, above the waterline as well as below. And I gladly noted the presence of vented loops to nix back-siphoning, but also sadly noted a problematic genset seacock: Its mounting flange was well off the bottom of the boat with no ring of plywood or any other material to steady it vertically.

Distant thunder and the steady thrum of rain imparted a certain coziness to the tour of the interior. I especially liked the galley area, just forward of the head (which has a separate shower stall)on the port side; its Formica-surfaced joinery is solid and carefully finished, the bullnosed Corian countertop is done the same way, and the appliances are practically positioned and installed. I also liked the sleeping arrangements--the convertible sofa in the mid-cabin (with 39 inches of sitting headroom) is as comfy as an old deck shoe, and so are the residential-style couch in the saloon and the island berth forward.

My wringout ended the way it began: with rag-tag fragments of Ernesto holding sway. Of course, the good news was we'd actually been able to complete a proper wringout under such messed-up conditions. But there was even better news.

I'd been able to spend a whole afternoon playing with an exceptionally maneuverable, reasonably fast, and succinctly outfitted vessel: Rinker's 350 Express Cruiser. And fortunately I'd brought along a slicker suit for the long, wet walk back to my rental car in the half-drowned parking lot.

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