F250 vs F300 on a 33 express

[gradynorm]

Anyone upgrade their 250s to 300s and can comment on performance difference on a 33 express?

Have 1100hrs and it might be time just trying to judge since its not cheap

Also any feedback on digital controls

Thanks

 

[JJ2468]

I have almost 600 hours of F300s on my 330 and very happy. Another member just put the 250s and sounds very happy. Performance is actually very similar. I run extreme loads so happy I went with the bigger motors

Digital controls a must

If u want a ride I'm in Bristol RI

 

[gradynorm]

Thanks for the feedback and if I get more serious I may take you up on that ride. What year is your 33 and do you have the freezer plates as well? Considering adding on my 05, definitely if I invest in the engines.

 

[Rustygaff]

I was under the impression that the upgrade charge from the F250 4.2 to the f300 was somewhat minimal. If this is the case, it would be a no-brainer for me.

 

[JJ2468]

2006 boat and yes my previous owner retro fitted chiller plates. Works ok probably needs a recharge of system right now

Don't use much since get a 1000 lbs of ice for only $20

 

[gradynorm]

The F300's go for about $22K/ea and then there is a grand or two rigging since you go from analog to digital and a couple of F250's with 1100hrs will bring $10K-$14K leaving a delta of $32-$36K. Unfortunately I'm not in the category to consider it "minimal" (wish I was). If anybody knows of better numbers I would love to hear them

 

[gradynorm]

Wow, 1000lb for $20. I need to know that guy.

Now with chill plates and F300's I may very well have to take you up on seeing that boat.

 

[JJ2468]

Shaved or chipped Ice from eastern ice Fall River.

Boat in water until first week of November. Just give me a day or two heads up and no problem coming to look and take a ride. Numerous other upgrades or changes

Twin 12" Garmin units, dual chirp, tons of lights, Custom switch panels, 32' outriggers, center rigger, etc etc

Fanatical canyon fisherman. Miserable season thus far though

 

[everwhom]

I'm the one who just repowered my 330 with the F250's (the 4.2L Offshores -- more or less the same engine as the F300, but with a different ECM)

Are you upgrading from the older 3.3L F250's? If so I think you'll see huge improvements going to the 4.2L motor. I moved my motors from a different boat, otherwise I probably would have gone to F300's. But the other consideration is that my 2003 hull is only rated for 500 horsepower. My understanding is that some insurance companies may not care about exceeding the mfg's hull rating, but you should investigate this issue thoroughly if it applies.

 

[gradynorm]

Thanks for the input. Yes it would be upgrading from the smaller 3.3 to 4.2 What do you mean by "huge" improvement? I know with my F250's I need to run up to 5-5500 to get on plane and it really does not like being below 4800-5100 to stay on plane if I have a decent load on board. Around 4500 you start flirting with dropping below 20kts which is terrible. Around 5000 I'm running 24-25kts and burning about 32gpm.

I would love to see more torque out of the hole and feel good running closer to 4500 and would be interested in your gas mileage. The best I get is more like 0.9-1.0mpg at decent cruising speeds. I have never seen the 1.23gpm Yamaha/grady have on performance bulletins. I think they test with a hurricane at their back!

I know my 05 is rated for 600hp so insurance should not be an issue.

Thanks for the input.

 

[JJ2468]

With the F300s I cruise at 4500 and get deposing on load wind etc between 25-28knots. 4700-4800 is about 29-30 knots Top speed is usually 36/37 but hit 39.5 once. Economy is in cruise range .9-1.0. Light load can get 1.1 but needs to be light. Torque everywhere. Last year with light load and 4 blade props got a water skier up. Not recommended and won't be doing again so can save lower units.

I went for the bigger motors because I run extremely heavy going offshore

Leaving Monday from RI for Hudson canyon. 135 miles each way. 3 guys 19 rods 500+ lbs of gear 1000lbsof ice and an extra 130 gallons of gas on deck. Boat is not happy but can get on plane and run 4600-4700 and still do 25 knits with that much weight. Once fuel burns off economy improves and boat happy again

Either will be a big improvement just a matter of how u use your boat

 

[everwhom]

Norm: what props are you running? I'm surprised you can't hold plane below 4800 RPM...

I have 15" Mercury Thunderbolts (same prop as the Mercury Mirage) -- I was planning to get Yamaha SWSII props, but they were severely backordered, but I was told that the Thunderbolts/Mirage are very similar.

I have no problems getting up on plane even fully fueled. I cruise between 4200 RPM - 4400 RPM which runs me around 28-30 mph at about 1.1 mpg (all in statute miles -- for whatever reason I gave up thinking in knots this year). I can hold plane down to 18-20mph no problem. Top speed for me is 40mph at 5500 RPM. So I might be slightly over propped, but I'm happy with the setup. I'm not running anywhere near as heavy as JJ, though.

 

[gradynorm]

I'm running the yamaha SWII series props. Don't know off the top of my head the diameter and pitch. I'm figuring the fact that my F250's are the older 3.3L vs the 4.2L is the reason I need to be up closer to 4800-5000 to maintain good speed. I should mention I still plane around 4500 but I can drop all the way to 18kts and it definitely starts feeling slow.

 

[everwhom]

Definitely verify the props. I believe the 3.3L has a different gear ratio than the 4.2L (2:1 vs 1.75:1) so you will most likely need to change props if/when you repower anyways. But worth knowing if you have the right props now before doing an expensive repower.

Oh meant to mention that the digital controls are pretty amazing. At some level, a bit of the "what's the big deal" kind of thing, but it's really nice to be able to easily make minor adjustments without feeling the cable friction, and the motors automatically sync RPMs for you. But now that they offer the 4.2L with mechanical controls, it may be a hard choice to justify the $$ since you may be able to just replace the motors and keep your existing rigging...

I also really like the Command Link Plus display. I actually have my older gauges still installed and working (turns out you can have both at the same time), but I never look at them.

 

[HMBJack]

Norm, I'm thinking you are seeing some major prop "slip" there.

For comparison, I have a 2006 330 with the original 3.3L F250's. I run them with 15" pitch, 4 blade, props and can run the boat on plane all day in any sea condition at 4,300-4,400 RPM's.

Would love to have the F300's someday but for now and the next 5-10 years(?), I like the 3.3L power plants.
I'm at 1,160 flawless hours and put ~150 hours a year on them.