New offshore capable fishing boat

[eastpoint]

I am considering upgrading to a 26 foot or so alum boat. I want outboards , not sure if twin 150s or single 300/350. Is a kicker recommended with twin mains?

I have looked at Silverstreak and also considering NorthRiver and Weldcraft cuddy king from USA. Any comments would be greatly appreciated.
[?]

Thanks
Eastpoint

 

[nedarb2]

engine depends on what your using it for...
twins only - gives you the reliability of 2 engines, and if 1 breaks you got lots of power to get back at a half decent speed.
negative: when your trolling, your putting hours on a big 20000$ engine instead of a 3000$ kicker.. however on a practical scale, you'll only have to idle your main engine putting very minimal wear on the engine. but again, the useage will show up on the hour meter.

If the boats being used for your own pleasure, twins will be more than enough and if your chartering, a kicker will be a good way to get more life out of your mains, thats what its for, to rack the hours up on it.

Single With kicker: again fine for personal and chartering useage. If your main breaks down you have to troll back in on the kicker
a single 300 will probably be slower than twin 150's though.
negatives: less power and torque than twins. Also more often than not, twins will give more mpg than a single because they dont have to work nearly as hard.
BUT owning twins will be double the maintenance costs and replacemnt cost.


if it was me, for a charter boat i would go twins with a kicker.

recreational: twins by themselves(if i had the money) or a single with a kicker



p.s. those new 350 and 300 v8's were not designed to replace twin engines, they were designed to replace trips and quads on the big east coast boats. yamaha is rumored to have 200hp v4's on the market this november though which will be interesting to see

 

[Rum Buddies]

quote:less power and torque than twins. Also more often than not, twins will give more mpg than a single because they dont have to work nearly as hard.

I think this is a bit of a myth, people just assume it to be true. But actually twins cost more to purchase, cost more to fix, cost more to run, add more weight and add more drag. So the economy never really shows.

From Whaler's website:

Outrage 240:
225 Optimax = 2.14 MPG @ 31 mpg
Twin 150 Optimax = 2.86 MPG @ 30 mph

And thats not even comparing equal horespower, that is with an additional 75hp over the 225hp.

That being said, if money was no object, I would go with two 150's myself and just troll on either main, I absolutely HATE using a kicker. Don't worry about hours, engines are made to be used and trolling on your main isn't going to be what makes it die. I guess if you're looking at resale the hours "look bad" but why buy it if you are already planning on selling it.

http://www.fishingvancouverisland.org - Win an 8-Hour WCVI Charter!

 

[Whole in the Water]

I have owned a 20 ft. Silverstreak for 5 years and it is a great boat. I would highly recommend them. If you want to buy local (which means you can see it being built, get closer service and support the BC economy) you can also try:

- Northwest Aluminum Craft in Langford (lots of guides use them)
- Wolf Boats in Courtenay, http://www.wolfboats.com/
- Bridgeview Marine in Vancouver, http://www.bridgeviewmarine.com/aluminum-boats.cfm
- Eaglecraft in Campbel River, http://www.eaglecraft.bc.ca/boats_outlaw.html
- Ironwood Boats in New Westminter, http://www.ironwoodboats.com/
- Lifetimer in Duncan, http://www.lifetimer.bc.ca/
- Liquid Metal in Sidney, http://www.liquidmetalmarine.com/
- Quay Craft boat in Port Alberni, http://www.quaycraft.com/

Good luck in your decision.


Long live wild salmon!!!

 

[TenMile]

quote:

I think this is a bit of a myth, people just assume it to be true. But actually twins cost more to purchase, cost more to fix, cost more to run, add more weight and add more drag. So the economy never really shows.

From Whaler's website:

Outrage 240:
225 Optimax = 2.14 MPG @ 31 mpg
Twin 150 Optimax = 2.86 MPG @ 30 mph

And thats not even comparing equal horespower, that is with an additional 75hp over the 225hp.

Not to be a smarta$$ here, but that MPG difference between the 225 and the twin 150s while it may not look like much, equates to a 33% efficiency advantage for the twins. If you're racking up the hours, a boat that uses 1/3 less fuel might pay for the cost differences. Also gives you a nice HP advantage.

TenMile
<'((((><

 

[Despy]

To get an apples to apples comparison would it not be wise to compare a 300 single to two 150`s or a 200 single to a pair of 100`s??

 

[Island Fish Lifter]

When I went to my twin 4 strokes, I got rid of my kicker. Im still not sure it was the right thing to do, however the large 4 strokes troll just fine and dont burn much more fuel than the kicker(I was always running it 3/4 to full throttle to keep my off shore trolling speed), it was quite loud too. Now, I can hardly hear the engine running.

I would definately have a kicker if I had a single main, I really believe a person needs a back up motor.

I really like those Daigle boats built here in CR.

Fill the dam tub!

 

[Charlie]

Poppa is not too far off there; however, I would still go Twins, especially if you are planning to run offshore. I have come in on a “kicker” to many times!

Whaler? I might know something there.
If you go to Whaler.com: I believe Whaler quit offering 2 strokes. That should tell you something?
http://www.whaler.com/boats/boat-250outrage/

To compare fuel consumption, you have to start with same boat weight, then same RPM, or same MPH/Knots. If you compare a single 300 versus twin 150’s on the “Outrage 250” you will find addition weight, but the two props do give a little better performance. It really isn’t enough to make a difference one way or the other, at least with a “Verado”, which is what Whaler uses. It will diffidently affect the cost.

Single 300 – 4000RPM -24.7 MPH – 11.1 GPH, WOT 6300 RPM -43 MPH – 30 GPH
Twin 150 – 4000 RPM -25.5 MPH – 11.3 GPH, WOT 6250 RPM – 45 MPH – 31 GPH

Kicker, I’ll go with the extra weight and cost of the twins, rather than the extra weight and hassles of the kicker. I haven’t used a kicker for over 10 years. One less thing to worry about, and maintain. I really enjoy not messing with a kicker!

 

[Barbender]

My advice would be to look south. Check into Craiglist Seattle or similar site and click on the boat link. You will save a ton of dough right now and bringing it across the border is a breeze. I just picked one up down there and saved $20k doing it.

 

[Tofinoguy]

All i know is that with my twin 135 Optimax's (with troll control) i burn 10% less fuel than my fellow guide buddies with big 4 strokes with kickers (in slightly smaller boats) on the same trip. Plus i can get on plane with 1 motor for safety