2002 290 OUTRAGE Re-power

Optimizing the performance of Boston Whaler boats
Rolloff3
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Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2017 7:34 pm

2002 290 OUTRAGE Re-power

Postby Rolloff3 » Sun Oct 15, 2017 8:00 pm

[This article has been moved to the PERFORMANCE forum. The PERFORMANCE forum discusses the performance of Boston Whaler boats.--jimh]

I'm considering re-powering my 2002 290 OUTRAGE by using [twin] Yamaha F300 engines I've owned [the 2002 290 OUTRAGE] since new, and I believe it has been under-powered since day one. It tops out at 35-MPH with twin Yamaha 225 engines. I have added a tower, which I think has slowed it down.

I've read different things like wet foam or a heavy hull. I would like some feedback from someone who might of had experience with [a c.2002 Boston Whaler 290 OUTRAGE] boat. I like the boat but don't want to put good money after bad. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

jimh
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Re: 2002 290 OUTRAGE Re-power

Postby jimh » Mon Oct 16, 2017 9:10 am

The specifications for the c.2002 290 OUTRAGE indicate:

Minimum power = 300-HP
Maximum power = 600-HP
Dry weight = 7,700-lbs, and does not include engines

We can account for other weights as follow:

Twin F225 engines and rigging = 1,200-lbs
Fuel, full tank = 300-gallons or 1,875-lbs
Crew weight = 500-lbs
Gear = 500-lbs
Tower add-on = 200-lbs

This gives a total hull weight in the water, with engine fuel, gear, and crew of about 12,000-lbs.

Now we estimate speed potential with the Crouch method, a simple model for predicting the top speed of moderate-V planing hulls. We assume a hull constant of 180, which experience indicates is typical (and conservative) for a Boston Whaler moderate V-hull design.

Crouch's predictions:

For 450-HP (the twin F225 engines) = 35-MPH
For 600-HP (the twin F300 engines) = 40-MPH

Note that using the weight estimates and the hull constant with the Crouch method has predicted the EXACT speed reported for the twin 225-HP engines.

Based on the prediction using Crouch's method, you should consider if the expense of re-powering with twin F300 engines, probably at a cost of about $50,000, will be justified by the increase in top speed of about 5-MPH.

Also, even without knowing the power, weight, and hull constant, we could predict the new top speed based on the present top speed by using the ratio of horsepower to the 0.5-exponent:

35-MPH x (600-HP/450-HP)^0.5 = 40-MPH

Again, the increase in top speed is predicted to be only 5-MPH.

If the engines on the boat now are the original Yamaha c.2002 F225 models, those engines were early four-stroke-power-cycle designs, and really did not deliver exceptionally good performance. I would expect that the latest-generation Yamaha F300 would probably have a wider power band and would deliver better mid-range power and torque. This may be of more value than the ultimate top speed obtained with the greater total horsepower.

msirof2001
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Re: 2002 290 OUTRAGE Re-power

Postby msirof2001 » Tue Oct 17, 2017 12:02 am

My 2017 Everglades 295CC has twin Yamaha F300 engines. The dry-stack I store the boat at weighed it (with engines and half-full fuel tank) at 8,900-lbs. I took it out on smooth seas last week with four adults and four kids. I estimated weight of people and carry-on stuff at 1,000 lbs. Call it 10,000-lbs for boat, people and stuff. The boat was able to hit 46-nautical-miles-per-hour or 52.9-MPH. Not sure if that was top speed but it was close, and the look on people's faces told me to back off, so I hit that speed for only a few seconds. I was doing 32-nautical-miles-per-hour all afternoon.

This is a little bit of an apples-to-oranges comparison, given the 2002 Outrage and 2017 Everglades are different manufacturers and design may have advanced in that timeframe. But they are same genre, have Dougherty DNA in them, and look somewhat similar. Your Boston Whaler 290 OUTRAGE hull is heavier.

At least this is a single data-point, and I hope there will be a lot of other data points to help you. The twin F300 engines are 100-lbs lighter than the twin F225 engines. I have seen several cases where the F225 didn't perform well. It was a turning point for large four-cycle engines, but I think performance and reliability has skyrocketed since then. That 290 OUTRAGE is a neat design. I love it. This is not a business decision. It is passion--love of the boat, for boating. None of the above makes financial sense.
Current: 2017 Everglades 295cc, Previous1: 1995 Boston Whaler Outrage 21, Previous2: 1974 Sevylor Caravelle 3-man liferaft.

jimh
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Re: 2002 290 OUTRAGE Re-power

Postby jimh » Tue Oct 17, 2017 11:14 am

We can use MSIROF' data to compare the two boats involved, again using the Crouch method of analysis. His data gives us

For Everglades 295 CC with twin F300 engines:
WEIGHT = 10,000-lbs
POWER = 600-HP
SPEED = 53-MPH

We just solve Crouch's equation for the hull constant, which we find to be 216. Now we see that the two hulls involved in this comparison are very significantly different.

Crouch Hull Factor Comparison based on first-hand performance data
Boston Whaler 290 OUTRAGE = 180
Everglades 295 CC = 216

If the performance potential of the two boats were the same, then the performance data should have produced a similar estimate of the hull constant. But the outcome is not the same: the Everglades hull appears to be much more efficiently driven onto plane than the Boston Whaler hull.

There is one element in this analysis that should be mentioned: in planing hull boats, as the boat speed increases, the lift from the hull raises the hull farther out of the water, and as the boat speeds begin to increase, we can see the hull become more efficient.

The hull factor estimate for the Boston Whaler 290 OUTRAGE was obtained at a relatively slow planing speed of only 35-MPH. It may be that with more horsepower when the boat will be pushed to higher speeds, at those higher speeds the hull will become more efficient. This would result in the hull constant rising. Thus, in actual application, if the 290 OUTRAGE is re-powered with 600-HP, the top boat speed may be somewhat better than the 40-MPH predicted from the Crouch analysis.

I do agree with MSIROF' regarding the lack of any real economic justification for re-powering or, really, for recreational boating in general. Recreational boating is an indulgence, and we all are indulging ourselves to have some enjoyment.

565
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Re: 2002 290 OUTRAGE Re-power

Postby 565 » Mon Oct 23, 2017 9:18 pm

I have a 2001 Outrage 28 (same boat as the 290) repowered with twin F300s

With the old 225 Optimax, the boat would do about 40mph light with fresh bottom paint. When we first repowered with the F300s light on fuel and with the standard trim tabs, we hit 51mph WOT with 17P REV 4s.


I then significantly increased the length of the trim tabs and added built in drop fins. This allowed me to drop the bow quite a bit and stay on plane as low as 12mph or so. As you know, this boat had a tendency to run bow high, which meant it couldn't plane well at low speeds, and the bow tended to bounce a bit, giving a reputation for being a rough ride. However adjusting the bow for a more bow down attitude significantly increases this hull's ability to run into heavy seas. The tabs did slow me down (because the drop fins are always in the water making some drag even with the tab all the way up), so light with fresh bottom paint the boat will do about 48-49mph.

I then also relocated the batteries from the way back of the boat to under the leaning post to under where the tackle station is, and also added like 50 feet of chain to the anchor locker, both of which helped the stern heavy nature of the boat and dropped the bow.

In heavy head seas the boat is slow with the tabs fully down (15-20mph) but it is now comfortable and now I can run on days when most boats just stay home.

For efficiency, I can get a best of 1.4mph at cruise on calm days, usually around at 27-28mph, turning 3800 rpms. Dropping the tabs and plowing into heavy seas, I see about 0.9-1.0mpg. At WOT the boat gets about 0.8mpg. The boat jumps on plane very quickly.

Overall I am very happy with the repower. If you plan to keep the boat forever, then I think the repower is worth it. Also if your F225s have stopped working (one of my optimaxes died, and the other was dying) then repowering is a good idea unless you want to sell a hull only boat. But if your F225s are still working fine, I'd run them till they die.

I think overall increasing the size of your trim tabs, taking weight off the stern, and using 4 bladed props for stern lift will help compensate for this boat's bow high attitude, and this will cost less and go further than a repower in making the boat more useable on choppy days.

If you do get the F300s, you have to prop them so you hit 5900-6000 at WOT trimmed up, and run them at WOT quite a bit after break in. Otherwise these motors will make oil (gas bypassing into the crankcase and diluting your motor oil, due to pistons not seating correctly). I run WOT whenever its calm enough to do so.