Advise sought on outboard upgrade

[Captain Crunch]

Well ,I have had four good seasons with my 2001 282 sailfish, I love the boat. The hpdis 200s were original and one now has low compression on 3 and 4.
Knowing that I can't afford the newer stuff. I have located Twin 2006 F-250 which I would of preferred on my original purchase not that I was displeased with the hpdis. How have you guys found the f250s on your sail fish? The engines come with rigging but not props, what do you run prop wise on these f-250s? I will be running a sea trail and having a certified Yamaha mechanic join me. The seller has receipts for new exhaust kits and timing belts. I also considered a good pair of 200 hpdis as an easy change out and a quick way around the barn, so to speak. I welcome your thoughts on which of the two engines you would prefer.
Thank you in advance for any input.
C.C.

 

[Ekea]

so, not the same boat, but i have 250s from 2006 on my Chase. obviously not quite as big of a boat, but i really am pleased with the performance of them. they push my boat to over 50 with a full tank and 6 people on board (2 are small kids). at best cruise i can get around 2.5 mpg or so. wot is right at 6k. i have solas rubex L3 in a 15.25 diameter by 19 pitch. ive heard they act a bit bigger than 19.

 

[Captain Crunch]

so, not the same boat, but i have 250s from 2006 on my Chase. obviously not quite as big of a boat, but i really am pleased with the performance of them. they push my boat to over 50 with a full tank and 6 people on board (2 are small kids). at best cruise i can get around 2.5 mpg or so. wot is right at 6k. i have solas rubex L3 in a 15.25 diameter by 19 pitch. ive heard they act a bit bigger than 19.

Thats a good-looking boat. I have always liked a open fisherman.

 

[Sardinia306Canyon]

I have located Twin 2006 F-250 which I would of preferred on my original purchase not that I was displeased with the hpdis.

Are you sure you want to pay for 18 year old outboards?
I had twin 2008 ones on my Venture 34 and both drive shafts where stuck and they just switched off every now and then, not very funny if this happens at 30 knots and with clients aboard.

If those are the only ones you can afford then i would invest in a very detailed survey by a very experienced Yamaha tech to avoid the most expensive failures, small problems will be there frequently at such a old saltwater outboard.
Age is in most cases the bigger problem than high hours.

Chris

 

[Captain Crunch]

Are you sure you want to pay for 18 year old outboards?
I had twin 2008 ones on my Venture 34 and both drive shafts where stuck and they just switched off every now and then, not very funny if this happens at 30 knots and with clients aboard.

If those are the only ones you can afford then i would invest in a very detailed survey by a very experienced Yamaha tech to avoid the most expensive failures, small problems will be there frequently at such a old saltwater outboard.
Age is in most cases the bigger problem than high hours.

Chris

Chris
Thank you for the input, your point is well taken. I trailer my sailfish to the keys for my 30day fix on the water. I take it to the lake a couple of times a year really to keep her running. At 66 years of age and newly retired I may have another 5 trips in me. I cant justify spending the money on newer 4 strokes. I figure when its time to sell I want to have a running boat but I will let the new owner repower. Time is what I have and I have learned the hpdi s pretty well. So being my boats Captain and mechanic is the plan for now. Older motors are certainly a crap shoot. I do have a sea trial setup and I will be taking a certified Yamaha tech with me. If the f250s check out I plan on buying a good manual and keeping them up. The old owner has receipts for timing belts ,oil pumps, belt tensioner, lowers and updated exhaust kits . If the f250s don't pass I will probably get the hpdis 200s with the same plan.

 

[Sardinia306Canyon]

I understand the reason why you don't want to invest a higher amount to get a more recent outboard, however it is my experience from my outboards and friends and clients ones that a low cost old outboard seems appealing, but most had sooner or later to deal with smaller or bigger troubles, cheap or expensive to solve so from a 5K investment it raised to a 10K investment and a lot of days of boating lost. If you are able to be the mechanic then you can safe a lot of $$$ doing maintenance and repairs by your self.
But at this point i suggest to look also for a simple carbureted 2 stroke outboard, they last forever and in case of a problem they are much easier to fix than a HDPI or a 4 stroke.
Have you checked also for other brands, a Suzuki DF250 for example? You may get a much more recent ones for the same price of the F250's and the DF200 V6 i had and put 4500 hours one was the best outboard i ever had, followed by the DF300 and then the DF300AP. While i had no Yamaha outboard who was not giving me serious troubles to a total loss (3 year old HDPI).

However, i wish you the most luck to find the outboards and that they last you a trouble free long years.

Chris

 

[Fishtales]

The things I would look at:
- Rated HP for the boat. Don't want to exceed for safety and insurance considerations.
- Weight.
- Size of cowl and trim. How close are the engines together and do the engines get out of the water when raised.

 

[Sardinia306Canyon]

Size of cowl and trim. How close are the engines together and do the engines get out of the water when raised.

Yep!
Actually i am study the Honda BF350 to repower my 306 Canyon but it seems the considerable higher upper part of it will make the cowling hit the splashwell wall before tilted all up and lower units will be partially submerged. As most/all modern lower units have water inlet grilles forward of the lower unit using antifouling does not really work as AF will reduce waterflow thru it and i had issues with tube worms growing behind the grille inside the LU.
Other problems we encountered on some outboard/transoms is clearance to splashwell bottom or inside transom wall using hydraulic steering pistons.

And yes, max HP and max weight is definitively a safety and probably insurance issue!

Chris

 

[freddy063]

what do you want to gain most from the new motors? Speed, fuel usage, reliability? I replaced my 2 stroke 200' s with Yamaha 200hp 4 cyl inline. They were dealer demos so they were cheaper than new with low hours. My boat is not fast, but moves well enough. My fuel consumption dropped to about half. I went with 4 blade props with a middle power and speed pitch. " best for fuel usage" Im very happy and glad i stayed Yamaha , the 4 stroke are so smooth, quiet and reliability. 1994 sailfish 272

 

[Sardinia306Canyon]

Speed, fuel usage, reliability?

The second and third, even if fuel usage and speed goes hand in hand, and there come one brand , Suzuki.
The only outboard brand where i had big or small problems was only and alone Yamaha with 7 out of 8 i had, never with the 4 Suzukis i had.
I am not interested in top speed, but a boat who does 10 knoths more at WOT does 28 knots at much lower rpm's and that is more silent opeation and considerable less fuel consumption.

The Suzuki DF300AP is far more fuel efficient than the Yamaha F300, for it's engine and lean burn system and the much higher gear reduction what makes it possible to turn a 2" to 4" inch more itch prop.

The BF350 would giv the same advantages as the F350 gave, minus the disadvantages like continuously engine troubles, flywheel replacement and fuel consumption and owners who have it are all more than happy.

Yes, the correct propeller for the goals a boater want to achieve is essential snd it msy make a boat become s total different boat. But correct working propeller one a boat depends on weight distribution, horsepower, torque and gear reduction.

Chris

 

[Fixit]

5 more 30 day trips? thats a tough spot. re rigging is going to run you 10k in labour and parts. for a low cost fix id look for another HPDI. spending a bunch on an undesirable year (2006) 250 engine wouldn't be my solution. even if the exhaust kits were done, the block is still suceptable to corrosion around the thermostats and where the exhaust kit mates.
or look for something 10 years old.
or id finance new engines and then recoup the cost when you sell the boat