Adventure 208 with Yamaha F150 data

[Sdfish]

I thought I would start a new post on this, hopefully we can all share our experiences.

I have been considering adding a radar arch or hard top to my 208 with Yamaha F150 on it. I called GW service and they said they still sell the GW adventure with hardtop today with a 150 4 stroke.

My experience with my 1999 Adventure 208 and the F150.

It is perfect for what I do, although I have not been on a 208 with more HP, so I can’t compare. I typically fish with a full tank of gas, full 32 gallon bait tank, located near the transom, 60 lbs of ice and 2-3 adults. It gets on plane fine and I can run 4200 rpm and get 20-24 mph. This is lower than the performance data that GW has posted.

My trips are all offshore, so I hardly ever go full throttle. I have never hit 40 mph.

My typical offshore trip is 30 miles out at anywhere from 14-20 mph running, and then 3-4 hours trolling or stopped and the same 30 mile run back inshore.

37.5 top speed
2.9 mpg
4200 rpm – 20-25 mph

Average trip data below:

 

[enfish]

This is lower than the performance data that GW has posted.

Not surprising... Real-life data is usually not quite up to specs, since we rarely ever do our boating in 100% ideal conditions.

Here are my performance numbers with a 175 HP Yamaha carb'ed SWS. The boat has bottom paint, a radar arch, a bimini top that's always up, trim tabs, and a 32 gallon bait tank mounted mid-deck. These numbers are from our typical open ocean conditions in the So Cal Bight (2-3 foot seas, 2-3 foot swell @ 10 seconds, 10-15 knots of wind). Performance suffers pounding back uphill from offshore in the afternoon. The fuel economy curve is pretty flat from 3600-4400 RPM, and we typically cruise 4000-4200 RPM. The motor has a weird harmonic at 3800 RPM and is very loud, so if we have to slow down due to conditions, I usually drop it to 3600 or 3700 RPM.

RPM	GPH	MPH	MPG
3600	8	20	2.5
3800	9	23	2.6
4000	10	26	2.6
4200	11	28	2.6
4400	12	30	2.5
5000	20	36	1.8

 

[Sdfish]

Eric - I fish in same area, I mostly launch from Oceanside. I do not have trim tabs.

 

[enfish]

Eric - I fish in same area, I mostly launch from Oceanside. I do not have trim tabs.

Trim tabs are very worth considering if you do a lot of offshore runs. I mostly launch out of Dana Point, and those long runs back from the 181 or 43 are so much nicer with them. Even runs up the coast along the beach are nicer with them. Without tabs, the boat will lean into the wind, it will pound a little bit, and I'll get wet. With tabs, I can level out the boat, keep the bow tucked down, keep the ride soft, and stay dry. I can also stay on plane down to about 10 knots (3000 RPM), which is very useful if it turns into washing machine conditions.

 

[DennisG01]

I don't think you're going to find much a performance difference (in terms of the numbes you posting about) by adding a little bit of weight amidships. A radar arch is insignificant in terms of weight and even a hardtop isn't all that much. You can even get "lightweight" hardtops that don't use fiberglass.

The difference may be more noticeable in terms of how much the boat rolls. It's not going to be huge - but I think, if anything, that's what you're going to notice. However, that's another reason to add tabs - in addition to what Eric said. I have lots of experience with tabs on MANY different boats and they are worth their weight in gold. Really, once you have them (there is a "learning curve", of course) and know how to use them, you would never want another boat without them.

Another benefit is that they can help you stay on plane at slower speeds - whereas in some conditions you have to go faster and burn extra fuel to stay on plane, you can now slow down to a more fuel-efficient cruise. They definitely help with the comfort level of the ride, too! If you were just bopping around on a small lake, it's not as important - but with extended cruises, in my opinion, they're a no-brainer.

 

[Mustang65fbk]

As stated above, I'm sure the testing was done with near perfect conditions with likely a half tank of gas or less to get the highest top speed and best fuel economy possible. With you running a full 82 gallon tank compared to a half tank, that's another 40 gallons at 6lbs per gallon. So that's 240 additional pounds right there, plus the 32 gallon bait tank you mentioned times 8.6lbs per gallon of saltwater which is another 275.2lbs. Adding that along with the 60lbs of ice, 2-3 adults, and I'm not sure if you have bottom paint or not on your boat but that also can add quite a bit of weight. But you're already looking at another minimum of 1,000lbs just with the fuel, bait tank and persons fishing with you. A few things you can do to help would be the trim tabs and what size/pitch of prop do you have and how does that compare to the test results? I don't know a ton about the 208 Adventure's but would it possibly help adding some weight to the bow of the boat? I'm sure adding the hardtop like you mentioned would help as well with it being an extra couple hundred pounds and it not being all at the stern of the boat.

 

[Sdfish]

Thanks for the feedback guys, appreciate it! I'll look into trim tabs. I just hate drilling below the water line...

 

[v8boatbuilder]

Thanks for the feedback guys, appreciate it! I'll look into trim tabs. I just hate drilling below the water line...

I added Lenco tabs, you can see them in the photo I posted of my boat in your other thread. I like the Lencos, no hydraulics, much more responsive, and built-in indicators.

 

[DennisG01]

I just hate drilling below the water line...

Understood. But the reality is that once you do this kind of thing for tears and years and years (and do it properly), it's no big deal. If you're not comfortable with it, which is fine, just hire a pro.

Elec vs Hyd is an going debate with main factors being faster response time with the elec and vastly increased service life/reliability with the hyd. Both can have indicators... although I have never found a use for the indicators, just like no use for OB trim indication. The best "gauge" is experience and the seat of your pants. My butt trumps a silly gauge every day of the week and twice on Sunday!

Something that has peaked my interest as of late, though, is Zip Wakes...

 

[enfish]

Understood. But the reality is that once you do this kind of thing for tears and years and years (and do it properly), it's no big deal. If you're not comfortable with it, which is fine, just hire a pro.

Elec vs Hyd is an going debate with main factors being faster response time with the elec and vastly increased service life/reliability with the hyd. Both can have indicators... although I have never found a use for the indicators, just like no use for OB trim indication. The best "gauge" is experience and the seat of your pants. My butt trumps a silly gauge every day of the week and twice on Sunday!

Something that has peaked my interest as of late, though, is Zip Wakes...

Yep, I agree with this, Dennis. Every day on the water is different, and the trim is always something that I adjust by feel. Though there are times where having a position indicators would be nice, like when I make a course change and have to adjust trim. In those situations, I retract both tabs and start over from the beginning because trying to guess where the tabs are and adjust from there takes too long.

I've never had electric tabs, but I've got nothing bad to say about Bennett hydraulic tabs. I've had this boat 22 years, installed the tabs 21 years ago, and I've done literally zero maintenance on them.... well, I take that back... I did have to replace the joystick controller because it snapped off and had to replace it with the dual rocker switch since they stopped making the joystick. But the hydraulic fluid in it is 21 years old, it's never leaked, and the pumps have never failed. (which probably means I've just jinxed it...)

And you taught me something new... I've just spent the last 20 minutes learning about Zipwakes. I had never heard of them until now. Those look really nice.

 

[Mustang65fbk]

I had trim tab indicators for the trim tabs on my old boat and really liked them. I think they would work best for quickly learning how the new boat operates and handles in the approximate position when they're at compared to the conditions. I'm not sure if the old switch can be replaced by a new one with trim tab indicators but if it can be done for not too much money, I'd probably do it.

 

[Mark DV]

I have a 208 with a f150. I added a radar arch to mine this past winter. I have seen no noticeable difference in engine performance. But for fishing performance I do have 10 more rod holders now.....