Repowering a 27 Skagit Orca

[High Time]

Earlier this Summer I managed to tick off one more item from my bucket list as I continue my slide into the
"old geezer" category... It's a 2000 27 XLC Skagit Orca with a Volvo Penta 7.4 gas I/O. The engine and out drive seem OK (hopefully), and I plan to spend the winter getting the rest of the boat tuned up for next Spring and fish it with the current power next year then likely re power next winter. Would really appreciate any comments on what experience/options have been tried and how successful they have been. Big decision whether to stay with the I/O option or go to podding. Interested if the Volvo D4-300 package has worked for others. Any and all opinions appreciated.

 

[BigReel]

http://www.pooderbuilt.com/ Builds the Pods for Orca's. If you decide to pod I would go with them for a factory pod and find a reputable fiberglass guy to fill and and reinforce your transom.

I love my 24XLC.

 

[Stizzla]

Pod with twin 225 would be awesome. Congrats, that’s a great boat! @casper has all the knowledge of pods and he’s very generous with sharing it. I’d get in touch with him if I were you.

 

[ReelSlim]

I agree.....pod all the way. Take advantage of the rear deck space on that boat.

 

[High Time]

Thanks for the comeback. Looks like 3-0 for pods so far. Would twin Yammy 200's do the job on this boat? I have a 2 year old single on my old boat with 160 hours on it. More decisions...

 

[BigReel]

Twin 200s would be perfect. Twin 150 was the standard double outboard power for the 27.

 

[saanauk]

http://www.pooderbuilt.com/ Builds the Pods for Orca's. If you decide to pod I would go with them for a factory pod and find a reputable fiberglass guy to fill and and reinforce your transom.

I love my 24XLC.

Dwayne at Pooderbuilt should be able to hook you up with a fiberglass guy.

Go with the pod and twins now and save all the headaches of an I/O

 

[High Time]

Wondering what sort of performance the twin 200's would give me on this boat re cruising speed, fuel consumption etc? Understand there is an outfit called Armstrong back east that custom builds pods as well.

 

[trophywife]

single zuki 350?

 

[e-zee]

Congratulations High Time on the purchase of a beautiful West Coast boat! I'm not going to weigh in on your different repowering options, but before you toss that 7.4 and drive in the scrap yard PM me. I currently have the same set-up in my 1998 24' and would like to have a spare in my shop that I can rebuild.

 

[High Time]

Hello e-zee, Retaining the current setup would be the other option I am going to consider and why I want to fish it for a year before making any decisions. Curious to know what sort of cruise and fuel consumption others are getting and whether eliminating the engine box justifies dropping a serious amount of cash. Sounds like you are happy with yours as is. If I do decide to repower I will give you a shout. I have admired these boats for some time and am pretty pumped to have finally taken the plunge. Will see if I can attach a pic

[/IMG] https://postimg.cc/zbL8FMXc]

 

[Thunder21]

Here is a good review of twin 200 Suzuki's on a heavy boat. This should give you an idea of how your Skagit would run with them.https://www.thehulltruth.com/boating-forum/860826-grady-265-express-repower-suzuki-200-s.html

 

[Sharphooks]

Never understood why anyone would want twins. My last 3 boats all had singles with a kicker and my next boat will also be a single with a kicker.

I've walked away from several 27 ft Orca's and Sea Sports because they had twins. Pod out your boat and put a Suzuki DF350 on the bracket. Much better power to weight ratio then if you had twin anything hanging off your stern. Get a good reliable kicker.....if for some reason the single goes down, the kicker will bring you back just as safely to the dock .....maybe a bit slower then one half of a twin but it'll get you there way cheaper then all that extra weight (fuel burn) and double maintenance cost of those twins

 

[High Time]

Very good point Sharphooks. While I was surfing the 0ptions I became aware that a big single seemed to give the best power to weight ratio and cheaper install and maintenance. A lot to mull...

 

[ReelSlim]

Very Nice High Time!.......I still vote pod and twins though. lol

 

[Stizzla]

Never understood why anyone would want twins. My last 3 boats all had singles with a kicker and my next boat will also be a single with a kicker.

I've walked away from several 27 ft Orca's and Sea Sports because they had twins. Pod out your boat and put a Suzuki DF350 on the bracket. Much better power to weight ratio then if you had twin anything hanging off your stern. Get a good reliable kicker.....if for some reason the single goes down, the kicker will bring you back just as safely to the dock .....maybe a bit slower then one half of a twin but it'll get you there way cheaper then all that extra weight (fuel burn) and double maintenance cost of those twins

Some good points sharphooks!
I think a big pro for twins is in case of a malfunction on one motor, you can limp home with 200 hp and not 15-25
A 350 would still be a kickass motor for power and efficiency, and a big motor looks cool too.
I like twins. TWINS BASIL, TWINS!

 

[BigReel]

Orcas are very solid boats. You can really add a lot of weight with gear/water/fuel/beer. You will appreciate the extra power when your loaded down.

 

[Rayvon]

I'm pretty sure that's the boat I tried to buy last summer.I was the first to call about it and he promised to show it to me before selling to anyone else.Long story short ,he gave me the run around for 6 weeks,cleaning it up he said.Turned out he told me he sold it to someone that called and offered him full price sight unseen,who then backed out.He then called me back and asked if I still wanted it.I had talked to him frequently on the phone urging him to let me see it,but I was so pissed off I said no.He was the hardest seller I've ever dealt with,very frustrating.There,I've vented now,the 27 Orca in my mind is one of the best built boats out there and it was a dream of mine to own one some day but it wasn't meant to be so enjoy it.I'm sure you'll love it repowered or not.

 

[Thunder21]

I'm pretty sure that's the boat I tried to buy last summer.I was the first to call about it and he promised to show it to me before selling to anyone else.Long story short ,he gave me the run around for 6 weeks,cleaning it up he said.Turned out he told me he sold it to someone that called and offered him full price sight unseen,who then backed out.He then called me back and asked if I still wanted it.I had talked to him frequently on the phone urging him to let me see it,but I was so pissed off I said no.He was the hardest seller I've ever dealt with,very frustrating.There,I've vented now,the 27 Orca in my mind is one of the best built boats out there and it was a dream of mine to own one some day but it wasn't meant to be so enjoy it.I'm sure you'll love it repowered or not.

That's hilarious because he gave a freind the exact same story and run around.

 

[willydw]

Some good points sharphooks!
I think a big pro for twins is in case of a malfunction on one motor, you can limp home with 200 hp and not 15-25
A 350 would still be a kickass motor for power and efficiency, and a big motor looks cool too.
I like twins. TWINS BASIL, TWINS!

My brother in-law has a Boston whaler with two 150 verados on it. When one engine went down it could not plane on one motor. It sure performs nice when both engines are running.