Visitors to the New Zealand Boat, Fish & Dive Expo will have the opportunity to step aboard Battle Axe, the latest IV616 Venture from Innovision Boats, at Mystery Creek, Hamilton, on 29–30 August.
The boat is the newest expression of Innovision’s award-winning Venture design and demonstrates a philosophy that sits at the heart of the company’s approach: every new build is an opportunity to listen, learn and refine. By working closely with each customer, the team continues to improve functionality, solve practical design challenges and create boats that genuinely reflect how their owners intend to use them.
The IV616 Venture was developed for boaties who don’t want to choose between serious fishing capability, family versatility, weather protection and overnight accommodation. Its distinctive hybrid layout combines the open access and fishability of a centre-console boat with many of the practical benefits of a hardtop.
A full walk-around layout provides easy movement from bow to stern, while the spacious elevated foredeck creates an excellent casting platform. Beneath it, an oversized hatch opens into a generous 1.9-metre V-berth cabin, providing comfortable overnighting space and room for a toilet. It is a clever use of the boat’s footprint, delivering genuine accommodation without sacrificing fishing access or usable deck space.
At the helm, folding side doors add hardtop-style protection to the T-top. They can be secured when greater shelter is needed or folded away to retain the openness and visibility of a centre console. This adaptability allows the Venture to move easily between exposed coastal fishing, family boating and overnight adventures.
The aft layout is equally purposeful. Battle Axe features Innovision’s robust Portofino transom and cage, providing practical access to the water for fishing, diving and swimming. Storage is integrated throughout the boat, including watertight lockers, a large underfloor compartment, bait-station drawers and dedicated space beneath the centre-console seating for a 90-litre Icey-Tek chilly bin.
While the underlying Venture concept is well established, Battle Axe shows how it can be further refined around an individual owner. Working collaboratively with Darryl, the Innovision team considered where and how he would use the boat, the equipment he wanted to carry and the practical details that would make time on the water easier.
Among the custom solutions is a bow rail developed around Darryl’s requirements, incorporating a bow-mounted boarding ladder for easier access from the water or shore. Dedicated gaff and fishing-equipment storage compartments have been built into the steps leading to the elevated casting platform, using otherwise underutilised space while keeping essential equipment secure and readily accessible.
The boat also features a bespoke Boat Catch system engineered specifically for the Venture’s plumb bow. Rather than adapting a standard installation, the system was designed around the boat’s distinctive bow geometry to make launching and retrieval more straightforward.
Further details include a deluxe bait station, outriggers and a carefully integrated electronics package featuring Garmin systems and a Kraken trolling motor. A Suzuki 250hp outboard with Dometic electric steering and Zipwake dynamic trim control completes a package designed to be capable, comfortable and highly functional.
This collaborative approach is central to Innovision’s design philosophy. Rather than asking an owner to adapt to a predetermined layout, the team works through how they fish, where they boat, who comes aboard and what will make ownership easier and more enjoyable. The resulting solutions also contribute to the continuing evolution of future Innovision builds.
The strength of the original Venture concept was recognised when the IV616 Venture won the Consumer Product category at the 2025 Best Design Awards. Battle Axe builds on that award-winning foundation—not by changing the design simply for the sake of it, but by continuing to question how every space, feature and detail can work better.
Battle Axe will be on display inside at Stand 144 during the New Zealand Boat, Fish & Dive Expo at Mystery Creek, Hamilton, on 29–30 August. It is an opportunity to experience the Venture layout firsthand and see how thoughtful refinement, practical innovation and genuine customer collaboration come together in the finished boat.
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