Does gas mileage go up when using small outboard on 25 foot speedboat?

[David M]

With a planing hull your mileage decreases with speed....almost.

When your vessel is stepping onto a plane your mileage is worse than right after you have reached a full plane.

So in other words, you get your best mileage on a plane right before you start to fall off of a plane. I hope this makes sense.

[Scout 30]

Here's a beautifully restored classic in your area under 20K.


1932 CLASSIC STIMSON DREAMBOAT 25' FOR SALE

[Mark_BritC]

Originally Posted by Scout 30

Here's a beautifully restored classic in your area under 20K.


1932 CLASSIC STIMSON DREAMBOAT 25' FOR SALE

Wow that looks very interesting, I might look into that! What about trailering though, I imagine the hull might not fit typical trailers for that size boat. Maybe one for a Macgregor sailboat.

[Scout 30]

Any trailer company can make a trailer to fit pretty much any boat or you can buy a used trailer & buy the brackets you need to make it fit your boat. Just buy a trailer big enough for the boat & with axles that can handle the weight. Of course bigger boats need bigger vehicle to tow them.

[valhalla360]

Guys, he's asking for an inexpensive option.

C-dory's are nice but pricey.
Repowering with diesel, building trailers, etc... aren't cheap.

I think the owner needs to clarify "extended trips". If we are talking about 6 months at a time, the I/O units are a concern with corrosion in salt water. If extended is a couple weeks and the boat will live on the trailer the rest of the time...an I/O should be fine. Flush with fresh water after each trip and it should hold up just fine.

I do agree with Bayliner as an option along with the other mass produced brands.

[hellosailor]

"For their price I'm sure I could put in a new more efficient smaller diesel engine and still come out way ahead"
I'm sure you can scrounge a used engine for free. But if you had to BUY one, or do a major refit, and hire some help, build a new engine bed, whatever, more typically you could drop $5000 to $10,000 before you turned around. Even at $5/gallon, that's a lot of any kind of fuel you could buy instead.
And of course, if you put in an odd-ball non-standard engine...you may have an issue when you eventually try to go sell the boat. Another major expense.


Just saying, consider these things before you make a "bespoke" boat for your own purposes.

[Mark_BritC]

I was at the marina looking at a 25 Searay for $5000. Looks decent, needs cleaning up but the engine looks good. No trailer. But I read a nightmare story over on iboats about a guy who found rot all through under the floor of his searay. I can buy a lot of fuel for that price.

They had a '01 22 C-Dory pulled up for service and the marina says the owner was talking about selling it but out of town. Did a quick search and they go for $30k right? That's a bit much, I can do $20k max before going into debt. Maybe I should wait for another Macgregor 26 to come up, there was one with trailer for $14k last month.

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by Mark_BritC

I was at the marina looking at a 25 Searay for $5000. Looks decent, needs cleaning up but the engine looks good. No trailer. But I read a nightmare story over on iboats about a guy who found rot all through under the floor of his searay. I can buy a lot of fuel for that price.

They had a '01 22 C-Dory pulled up for service and the marina says the owner was talking about selling it but out of town. Did a quick search and they go for $30k right? That's a bit much, I can do $20k max before going into debt. Maybe I should wait for another Macgregor 26 to come up, there was one with trailer for $14k last month.

That Sea Ray cost upwards of $75K when it was new. If it's selling for $5K there's a reason. Hire a good surveyor and engine mechanic before you get serious about that boat.

If you can't spend more than $20K, I suggest keeping it in the bank until you find a good boat that you can afford. It's a lot less expensive in the long run to buy the right boat the first time.

[NewMoon]

If you haven't totally ruled out C-Dory, here's a 1991 CD 22 Cruiser very much like the one we had:

The C-Brats :: - C-Dry 22 Cruiser for Sale - Anchorage, Alaska $27,500

If you plan to do extended trips on the Inside Passage, I'd suggest that reliability (and thus safety), and maintenance and operating costs be significant parts of your analysis - as important as initial purchase cost. The CD22 excels in all these areas.