1994 OUTRAGE 21: Honda 250-HP

Optimizing the performance of Boston Whaler boats
budpat1
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Dec 12, 2016 11:28 am

1994 OUTRAGE 21: Honda 250-HP

Postby budpat1 » Sun Jan 01, 2017 4:55 pm

I [may buy] an 1994 Outrage 21, a clean boat with new electronics and well maintained. It has a new Honda BF250 outboard that weighs 600-lbs--a beautiful engine.

Based on the age of the OUTRAGE 21, is a Honda BF250 engine too heavy for her?

[This thread was started in MARKETPLACE. It has been moved to PERFORMANCE because the topic of this discussion is PERFORMANCE.--jimh]

alloyboy
Posts: 24
Joined: Thu Dec 24, 2015 8:15 pm

Re: 1994 OUTRAGE 21: Honda 250-HP

Postby alloyboy » Sun Jan 01, 2017 5:49 pm

How does the boat sit in the water?

How does the boat perform?

I had a 1998 Aquasport 215 Explorer and swapped to a Yamaha F200 from a Mercury 175 EFI; the boat rode just fine. Published weight of the F200 without the propeller or oil was over 600-lbs.

jimh
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Location: Michigan, Lower Peninsula
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Re: 1994 OUTRAGE 21: Honda 250-HP

Postby jimh » Sun Jan 01, 2017 7:12 pm

budpat1 wrote:Based on the age of the OUTRAGE 21, is a Honda BF250 engine too heavy for her?


I don't understand your concern about the age of the boat. A 1994 boat is not particularly old, and you describe it as being well-maintained and clean. I wouldn't worry about the boat's age. I'd worry about the integrity of the transom, but your description suggests the boat is in good condition.

I think the hull of the c.1994 OUTRAGE 21 is the same hull as used on the earlier 21 WALKAROUND. That hull likes a lot of power. Also, the specifications for the OUTRAGE 21 list an option for twin engines. This very strongly implies that 600-lbs on the transom would be anticipated in the boat's design.

Ask the seller to put the boat in the water and take it for a sea trial. A general indicator of excessive weight on the transom is for the engine splash well drains to be submerged when the boat is at rest. When underway, a general indicator of too much transom weight is a tendency for the bow to bounce and be very light.

Acseatsri
Posts: 190
Joined: Tue Oct 20, 2015 8:46 am

Re: 1994 OUTRAGE 21: Honda 250-HP

Postby Acseatsri » Mon Jan 02, 2017 6:27 pm

If this hull and layout is the same as a 1992 21 Walkaround (which I believe were made from 1992-1994) the 630-lbs is definitely too much weight. I ended up taking a 2013 Honda 250 off my 1992 21 WA and put it on a 1993 23 WA. Maybe the Outrage hull has a different weight balance, but the 21 WA is just too [stern] heavy with almost 650-lbs on the transom, even after moving the batteries to the bow. The only modern engine that would really work on that hull is an E-TEC 150 to 200 HP, nearly the same weight (380 lbs) as the Oceanrunner 175 that most of these were sold with. I ended up putting one of the 150 Oceanrunners from the 23 WA on it, a much better match and still hits 38-40 mph.

My 21 WA wasn't built to accommodate twin engines, so maybe the hull of an Outrage is different. The boat handled the power adequately, pushing the needle near 50-MPH, but I had to keep the fish wells plugged and empty to keep the bilge from filling with water if two people were sitting in the stern. I even tried adding lead weight in the anchor locker, which made the boat crash down hard when going over a wave.

PS- the 23 WA is a great match for the BF250. I get nearly 3-MPG at nearly any speed and tops out at 40 to 42-MPH.

msirof2001
Posts: 86
Joined: Sun Oct 18, 2015 11:23 pm
Location: Southern California

Re: 1994 OUTRAGE 21: Honda 250-HP

Postby msirof2001 » Wed Jan 04, 2017 11:53 pm

I own a 1995 21 OUTRAGE. I repowered to a Yamaha four-cycle F200 which is about 485lbs. I considered the Honda BF250 and Yamaha F300. I was concerned about weight so I called Whaler and talked to Chuck Bennett. He said he wouldn't put more than 700lbs of engine on the transom. That boat was rated minimum 150hp, maximum 300hp. In 1994/1995, only two-cycle outboards were available, and the largest two-cycle was 250hp. To get 300hp, you needed twin 150s. In fact, in the 1995 Whaler brochure, the inset before the Outrage section had an OUTRAGE 21 with twin 150s and it looked like it was going 50mph. I have loaded my stern with a lot of weight. I had a 52 gallon livewell just in front of the engine when I had the Yamaha 200 two-cycle engine. The bait tank was 450lbs and the engine was 435. That even worked. What I'm eluding to is I wouldn't hesitate putting a BF250 on my boat. I almost did. Where I keep the boat in Southern California, there is a Yamaha 5-Star Gold servicer who is amazing. He is in Costa Mesa, 5 minutes from the boat. The Honda "flagship, 5-Star Gold equivalent" service shop is in Oxnard, maybe 100 miles away. That was the differentiating factor. I would not hesitate getting a BF250. Great engine. Will be great on that boat. 122 gallon tank, you'll get good range. I do with my Yamaha F200XB.
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