pittbassfishing Posted April 25, 2007 Posted April 25, 2007 Hey everyone I have a question about the speed of my boat? I have a 1989 Stratos that is 18.6ft with a evinrude 200 xp on it and can top the speed out at about 60-65 mph and was wondering if it shout be going faster? The prop is a three blade with writing of raker on the side. I dont know if that means anything important. My 4 blade prop that says shooter on it got me up to only 55-60mph. Just wondering what are some things i should be looking for prop wise. Thanks, Brandon Quote
Brian_Reeves Posted April 25, 2007 Posted April 25, 2007 Your best bet is to find an outboard shop that can really do a good job of matching a prop to your engine that will fit your needs. A 200 should be able to go faster, depending on how old/new it is and whether or not you have a jackplate. A buddy of mine had a 18ft Nitro (late 90's) with a 150Mercury on it and it went about 63mph just to give you a reference. His engine was almost brand new though. If your engine is an 89, then it might just be suffering from a loss of horsepower due to buildup. Might wanna get something to clean it out. But yeah...get it checked out by a pro if you're able to. Quote
jdw174 Posted April 25, 2007 Posted April 25, 2007 Is that boat placarded for a 200HP? I was wondering the same thing Quote
Team_Dougherty Posted April 25, 2007 Posted April 25, 2007 If your motor at WOT is turning within the manufactures recommend RPM that is all the faster your boat will go. If it is turning higher than the manufactures recommend RPM you can increase the prop pitch to get more speed but hole shot will suffer. Quote
pittbassfishing Posted April 25, 2007 Author Posted April 25, 2007 My boat does have a jackplate on it. and i am pretty sure that it is placarded for a 200. Quote
Super User Way2slow Posted April 26, 2007 Super User Posted April 26, 2007 The raker is the prop you should run, if it's the right pitch. Having it tuned for your boat makes a big difference also. Bob Lipton does mine and has always given me a very good prop. For the weight of you boat, adding more lilft and better hole shot plus thinning the blades for more top speed. That motor should be able to turn a 24" raker at 6,000 rpm for a speed of approx 65 mph with a 12% slip factor if things are right. 3 1/2" below the pad should be a good starting point for the prop height. You said you have a jackplate, what size? An 8" would work well but you would probably have to change steering cables (about $150 each), not and easy task. The starboard fuel tank would have to come out and getting the cables out and in the gunwalls ain't easy. Taking them out through the splashwell cable hole will place too much bend on them also and recommend running them straight out the back. Needless to say, this would be a good time to look at converting to hydraulic steering if you went that route. Removing the baffle from the air box and changing the main jets to 72d's in the upper four carbs and 74d's in the bottom two carbs will give you a few more ponies. With the right prop, and setup, you should be able to get into the upper 60's. Realize also, you start getting close to 70, you may have to learn to drive the boat because you're getting into the chine walk speeds for that hull. Note that your hull was made to give a great ride for a 18' boat and not a super fast hull. When they changed over to the XL hulls in the early 90, they made them a lot faster but took away some of the good ride your hull has. The XL would easily run 70 with a 200 on them. I guess I should have mentioned, I base this info on my experience with my 1989, 18'5" 285 Pro I have that will run over 80 with just me in it and with "my" 89, 200 Johnson, 8" jackplate, 26" raker worked by Bob Lipton and "just a little" work on the motor and blue printing the hull. Quote
HPBB Posted April 26, 2007 Posted April 26, 2007 These speeds your giving are they from a GPS or the boat's speedo? Boat speedo's are almost never right. Quote
Ghost Rider Posted April 26, 2007 Posted April 26, 2007 These speeds your giving are they from a GPS or the boat's speedo? Boat speedo's are almost never right. Thats what i was going to ask Hell i was GPS two diff times and got two speeds Mid Oct last year gps at 59 Mid Nov last year gps at 64 Cooler weater and water conditions will have a effect on your speed. I have never seen a bass boat take it easy in rough water alway running hard Ohhh you could try some speed coat ....some say it works some say it dont..... but my boat has it. Quote
pittbassfishing Posted April 26, 2007 Author Posted April 26, 2007 They speeds are off my gps the mph gauge on the boat doesnt work. Quote
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