Seafarer Performance

[kendcc]

Splashed the boat yesterday (FINALLY!!!)

She's tuned up, waxed up, looking good and ready to go!!

I'd like to ask other Seafarer owners about general performance they get.

I have a Yam F225 that spins a saltwater series II prop (15.5 X 17). I can get the motor up to 5700 RPM, but only make about 38 mph or so. That's with a loaded boat. Now, I didn't buy her for speed per se, but I'm just curious what other Seafarer's are getting? (btw, mines a 2005 226, and yes the bottoms painted and in very good condition)

 

[wahoo33417]

kendcc: Grady's website says they get the same combo up to 43 mph at 5900 rpm under "optimum conditions". So what you describe sounds pretty reasonable for a loaded boat with bottom paint.

Rob

 

[JUST-IN-TIME]

your right on
i have seen 45mph, glassy flat, with wind, 6000 rpm, like 1/4 tank of gas

 

[Brad1]

2003 Seafarer with F225. Best speed I have ever seen was 41mph. From what I recall, that's with the part of the enclosure that spans from the top of the windshield to the to the front edge of the bimini in place. No bottom paint. My stainless OEM Yamaha prop has a "17-M" on it.

So your numbers sound in the ball park. At least from my experience.

Yeah, it's no speed demon, but it more than makes up for that by how smooth and quiet it trolls. And trolling is what I spend most of my time doing. Besides, Lake Erie is rarely smooth enough to even think about top speed.

 

[TerryP]

My 226 with F250, no hard top, 2 people, 3/4 tank gas will do 46-47 WOT in calm water. That's according to Yamaha speedo, not GPS, but generally the two agree pretty closely. Not sure what prop I have on.

The F225 should be very close. I don't know how heavily loaded you are, but 38 mph doesn't seem right for your boat/motor. If it were me, I'd have that motor checked out. You might also talk to Grady customer service to get their thoughts. You'll find them very friendly and helpful.

 

[kendcc]

thanks for all the info guys. I'm not sure if I'm complaining yet, but wanted to know what others are getting. The motor only has 175 hours on it and seems to run as one would expect for a brand new motor.

maybe if some of you folks could share how you're propped? I guess I was trying to figure out if I should be considering a different prop that would let me spin the motor up a bit...

Anyway, I'm just psyched the boat in the water!

Thanks for all of your replies.

 

[JiminGA]

Your WOT sounds about right - maybe 1 to 2MPH slow IMO. The only thing I was thinking is your max RPM of 5700 seems low. You should be seeing 5900 to 6000. Also, if you have curtains installed, that will affect your speed as well.

One thing that will affect your max RPM and speed is engine trim. To check the absolute max speed you can get, do the following: First, use NO tabs other than what is needed for lateral trim. Second after you have maxed your speed, trim the engine out (up) and watch your RPMs. You should see them climb, along with your speed, up to a certain point. Any up trim after that point, you will start to see and hear cavitation. I have found that on our 228 I can influence our WOT speed by several MPH just by adjusting engine trim.

BTW, congratulations on your new boat and post pics!

P.S. For what its worth the highest speed we've seen on ours is 41.

 

[G8RDave]

JiminGA has it right. You probably just need to trim the motor up a bit. You should see a few hundred RPM improvement and about 2-4 more MPH. I top out at 42ish at 5900 or 6000 rpms with a fairly heavy load and a hard top. Same prop and motor. You're not gonna win many races, but then again, that's not what it was designed for.

 

[HMBJack]

All of the above posts are right on. I will offer mine. I have a 2006 228 with an F225. Because I also lug around a T8 kicker (which is a heavy 130 lbs. with the bracket) I added a Permatrim. A permatrim is basically a third, fixed, trim tab which mounts on your F225's lower unit. What a difference it made for me! My boat is no longer stern heavy and pops up on plane much quicker. I also hit my max RPM of 6K quicker and easier now. I am not a dealer or advertiser of these things. I will say the Permatrim is the best in it's class since it's made of, and painted like, the same aluminum that your lower unit is made of. Not plastic so they don't flex. Again - it's just like a third fixed trim tab. Works for me. If interested - check out the permatrim section on "the Hull Truth" (THT.com).

Good luck and congrats on the new boat.

 

[pensagrady]

My 2006 228 has a F250 and it will turn 6000rpm's at 46mph with the hardtop and all enclosures on. It performs very close to what Grady post's on their performance webpage. The difference is I get about 2.9mpg at a 30mph cruise instead of 3.09mpg. It's for sale on this forum by the way.

 

[gradyfish22]

As stated above, speeds seem about right, but to better determine this, were you running with the wind or against it, were you running with or against the tide as well. To do a proper sea trial always run 2 directions and take an average, this will provide you better numbers, perferably run with and against the tide when possible, this gives the best basis. As for your speeds, with full fuel your about right. As mentioned, your top rpm is a little off, but within what Yamah says is acceptable, but hitting that max rpm or 100 rpm off would be ideal, and would provide the best performance. If your not going to run with full fuel it might not warrant changing the prop, but if you will maybe a third of the time or more and plan to keep the boat a while, a prop swap might not be a bad idea to ensure the engine is operating at the right rpms. As the season progresses, you might add growth and will lose some rpm, add more people on board and even worse. To check for a right prop you want more the n yourself onboard, whatever you would typically run with, weight for gear and ALWAYS full fuel to get the right prop and check rpm range. As mentioned above, run 2 directions, you might reach max rpm one way but not another, if you never reach it either way and one is worse, then you have more reason to consider a new prop.