ABOUT ROS BOATS

Some years back, Roger Sartini began to receive requests for unusual options on the fishing boats his Ros Boats company builds in Westport. Buyers were asking for teak trim, hot- and cold-water showers, decorator cushions, even air conditioning - things commercial fishermen generally do without.

"Most of my customers are still fishermen, but things are changing. More and more of our boats are being used for pleasure - pleasure use is increasing as the fishing industry decreases."

Mr. Sartini estimates that 75 percent of his buyers still have commercial use in mind, but a decade ago that number was closer to 100 percent. "And I get more pleasure customers all the time."

They are people like Ken Zuckerman of Cranston who recently took delivery of a 30-foot Ros custom bass boat complete with all the aforementioned extras, microwave, refrigerator, generator and much more. He does plan to chase some bass with it, but what he really wanted was something solid, seaworthy and comfortable for family expeditions out of Wickford.

"I was looking for a really strong boat with a lot of open space that we could take our small children out in. I wanted a solid, well-built boat," he said. "It is all that I could have hoped for and more," he added after his first trip. He praised the way it slices through waves without effort, the fact that when you step aboard, "it doesn't budge, unlike a lot of boats that lurch over."

Rooted in fishing

Mr. Sartini didn't start out as a boatbuilder. He was a fisherman first, working from his former home town of Tiverton on quahog skiffs, for Point Trap Company in Little Compton, and on all manner of other vessels. He built his first boats for himself back in the early 1980s - plywood over oak skiffs of his own design.

Although he has long since switched to fiberglass, the basic lobster-type hull design has remained a constant theme from those early days. "It's seaworthy and steady and fuel efficient," he said, adding that the fuel efficiency that is so vital to commercial boats is appreciated now more than ever.

"And they look great," added Mr. Zuckerman, who said there isn't much point in having a boat that you don't enjoy looking at. Once he set up shop at 785 American Legion Highway (Route 177) in Westport, Mr. Sartini's line began to expand - everything from 8-foot prams to 30-foot and more lobster boats. His biggest, the 42-foot gill netter Sequel II, works out of Sakonnet Harbor.

Smaller boats can be seen in almost every harbor around - Westport Shellfish constable Gary Sherman has a 19-footer - and as far away as Brazil. To date, the company has turned out 600 boats.

Although most of the orders were for smaller models in years past, Mr. Sartini said there has been considerable interest in the bigger 24- to 30-foot models. That basic hull comes in a variety of models - picnic boat, bass boat, lobster boat and center console. The hulls are built of solid fiberglass, which Mr. Sartini said believe is best suited to the heavy-duty use that comes with commercial fishing.

Power plants vary according to the customer's wishes. Mr. Zuckerman opted for twin 225-horsepower outboards mounted on another Ros innovation - the seamless buoyancy outboard sea drive bracket. A molded part of the hull, these brackets offer strength as well as buoyancy - to prevent the stern and those heavy engines from dragging during acceleration.

A basic 30-footer starts at around $55,000 but extras can push the price "to whatever," Mr. Sartinin said.