Power to the People!!!
Berts80,
Here is what I know from first hand experiance. The E-tec 90 triples have a very flat touque curve and pull like a John Deere through the power range. They are the only Evinrude that is horsepower rated at 5,000 rpm's, because at 5500 they make 102 HP. They wouldn't get a big enough seperation between the 75 and the 115 unless they slowed it down to only make 90 hp. My 2006 is a 20" 2 to 1 gear motor. The 25" are 2.25 to 1 and the pontoon series is 2.36 to1, I believe.
I also have a pair of e-tec 115's on a 25 Bertram Hardtop Moppie. The 115's are a little more "Pipey" they are a little flat in the torque curve until you twist them to 4,150, then they "launch". They have adjustable expansion chambers in them and they change the back pressure or somethin', but it is like a 125CC motocross when they "come up on the pipe". This past weekend I ran down to Anna Maria (Snookerd and Conner's back yard) and raided the Hogfish and Magrove Snapper sites. Four divers, 9 tanks, 150 qt fish cooler, food cooler and dive shit - 104 miles round trip - 41 gallons. I'm about 7,000#'s loaded that way. Spooled up to 5500 "Team 115 E-Tec" hurl that slug loaded like that along at 34 mph.
The real issue is what are you going to use the boat for, and what is the intended loading on a normal trip? If you are not river racing and just plodding along offshore 20-25 mph is all you need. The old 20 SeaCrafts were made to function with the Mark 78, 75 hp Merc's in the 60's. The VDH hulls worked well without too much power. I don't know too much about Hydrosports except the 27's used to fall over on their sides alot and you would trim, trim, trim and then they would fall over on their other side. The SeaCrafts pretty much stay upright without trim tabs, unless you got someone like Kmoose or I wallowing around like a couple of walruses on board.
Buy something light, keep the weight forward, call Ken at Prop Gods for a wheel and go use the dang boat. Put a Seacraft decal on it and the Bayliner gang at the ramp will be impressed! They wouldn't know the difference. You only got so many sunsets left here - enjoy the trip.
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