sasqman
Crew Member
Yeah, I can see what you're thinking. This has been sitting in my brain for a while now and I think that during the right conditions you could have a decent bump in speed (say from 12kn to 18kn). Obviously you don't have to go full throttle everywhere so with that in mind when you have following seas you'd back off the throttle.
As @Wild Bill mentioned above, different engines have different gear ratios and correspondingly take different props. The Yamaha F200 4-cyl takes the smallest diameter prop in the 200hp class (15"), so this would be my last choice of engine on your boat. The Suzuki DF200 4cyl takes a 16" diameter prop (comparatively huge!!) and has a big reduction ratio....probably a good choice for you. The middle ground of gear ratio is occupied by the Merc 3.4L V6 which can take up to a 16" prop (like the QuickSilver Enertia ECO prop). The Merc 3.4L V6 also weighs less than the Suzuki. The Honda BF225 has recently been revised but it's way too heavy. I know Suzuki has been gaining quite a bit of market share over the last few years, but this seems primarily due to price. The dealer network still seems sparse.
If I were in your shoes and planning to keep the boat I'd be considering the Merc 3.4L V6 in the 225hp rating for my #1 choice.
So funny. Thats the exact one I was looking at. Same weight as the 200hp.
Thanks again for all the time and insight. I really appreciate everyone's comments!
I will have a couple more threads coming up.
Paul