Beneteau Antares 620 HB, the Fishing Wheelhouse Explained

Antares 620, a wheelhouse built for anglers

Beneteau's Antares line has always had a fishing streak; the company says Andre Beneteau, who drew the early boats, was a passionate line fisherman. The Antares 620 HB is the purest expression of that in the 2000s range. HB stands for hors-bord, French for outboard, and Beneteau's own 2007 brochure and 2008 equipment list call the same boat the Antares 620 Fishing, which is why searches for antares 620 fishing land here.

Beneteau's description is short and accurate: a modern, elegant silhouette on a dynamic V-shaped hull, functional and prioritizing fishing above all, with a few fittings for coastal cruising. Where its sister the 650 HB puts a convertible saloon in the bow, the 620 keeps the floor plan open and gives the space to lockers, a fish box and rod racks. If you want to sleep aboard, this is the wrong Antares. If you want to fish from a dry helm, it is one of the better small options of its era.

Antares 620 HB specifications

Beneteau's June 2008 general equipment list gives these figures, which match the November 2007 range brochure. The boat is 6.10 m (20 ft) overall on a 5.95 m hull, with a 2.49 m (8 ft 2 in) beam. It weighs 1,100 kg (2,425 lbs) empty without engine and 1,420 kg (3,131 lbs) in EC light displacement. Draft is 0.40 m with the engine raised and 0.80 m with it down, and air draft is 2.10 m (6 ft 11 in).

• Fuel 136 liters (36 gallons) in a rotomolded tank, water 20 liters in a jerry can
• Maximum engine power 115 hp (certification 117 hp)
• CE category C6 / D6
• Transom prepared for a 6 hp auxiliary outboard
• Designers listed as Beneteau Power with P. Sarrazin

Walkaround decks and a cockpit that folds away

The feature that sets the 620 apart from most small pilothouses is its walkaround deck. Beneteau specified wide side decks so you can move to the bow to fight a fish or handle the anchor without climbing over the wheelhouse, protected by an open bow pulpit and a stainless pushpit aft. The aft bench folds down to clear the cockpit, and the backrest doubles as a leaning support when standing.

Practical details include a large lockable chest in the cockpit floor, access to the fuel tank and battery, two rod holders, two aluminum hawser posts, solid wood gunwale caps, a self-draining anchor locker with five stainless cleats, and an aft swim platform whose ladder stows in its own locker. The auxiliary-motor mount on the transom is a thoughtful touch for anglers who fish far from the ramp.

Inside the wheelhouse

The wheelhouse has a glass windscreen with an electric wiper, blue-tinted opening side windows, a single-leaf aft door and an opening roof hatch. The helm console offers a flat surface for bracket-mounted electronics and a sloped one for flush-mounted screens, with a compass, rev counter, fuel gauge, trim indicator and 12 V socket. Pilot seating rides on adjustable slides, and a two-seat bench folds down to port.

The storage unit holds a polyester sink, a hand pump, a 20 liter water jerry can, a fishing tackle box and cubbyholes. Forward there are lockers with pigeon holes and racks for rods. Floors are molded with non-skid so the inside can be hosed out, which tells you how Beneteau expected owners to use it.

Outboard choices and how it runs

In 2008 Beneteau offered the 620 Fishing with a Suzuki four-stroke of 90 hp or 115 hp on a long shaft, supplied with a fuel filter and decanter and a 110 Ah battery. Boats on the market today often carry other brands; a 2005 example we found had a Yamaha F115. We would choose 115 hp: the hull weighs more than 3,000 lbs in EC trim before people and gear, and the extra power lets it plane cleanly with a full fish box.

Beneteau did not publish speed or fuel numbers for this model, and we have not found an independent test, so we will not quote any. The progressive V and flared bow are designed for coastal chop, and the CE C rating sets the limits: winds to Beaufort 6 and significant waves to about 2 m.

The other 6.20, the 1990s diesel Antares

A decade earlier, Beneteau's third Antares generation (1990 to 2001) included the Antares 6.20, an inboard diesel designed by Andre Beneteau. Beneteau's heritage page describes a protected, flared bow, a bulwark, a stainless balcony around the deck, a wheelhouse and a shaft-drive diesel with keel and propeller protection, quite unlike most fishing boats of its size.

The boat stayed in the catalog for years; a September 2004 Exclusive Series spec sheet for the Antares 620 IB lists 6.22 m overall, a 6.02 m waterline, 2.46 m beam, 0.65 m draft, about 1,200 kg, 100 liters of fuel and a 105 hp maximum. That edition used an 85 hp Nanni 5.250 TDI with trolling valve, which Beneteau said gave about 12 knots cruising at 2,500 rpm and about 18 knots flat out at 2,800 rpm. It also had a small cabin with a berth and a marine toilet, a walkaround side deck and a skeg for beaching.

To tell them apart: the diesel 6.20 has no outboard, an engine box and a skeg; the 620 HB has an outboard on a transom with a swim platform. Old diesel 6.20s from 1990 and 1999 were asking about 17,500 to 19,500 euros when we checked, almost the same as a 620 HB.

Finding and buying an Antares 620

Antares 620 for sale listings are rare in the US; the boats are mostly in France, Spain and Italy. That is not a deal breaker for a small trailerable boat, but budget for shipping, duty and a trailer that meets your state's rules. Ask for engine service records, compression numbers and a sea trial at wide-open throttle so you know the engine reaches its rated rpm.

Running costs are minimal. With no head, no fridge and a single outboard, our estimate is 2,500 to 6,000 dollars a year, mostly insurance, engine service and fuel.