Verado on Seacraft 20 Super Fisherman?

[TPG]

Anyone done it? What size did you go?
Looking at an SF and thinking of raising the transom to 25" then throwing a Verado 150 or bigger on it.

Thoughts?
Is this completely stupid?

[Bushwacker]

Carl Moesly designed the 19/20' SeaCraft hulls in the mid-60's for the largest outboards of the time, the I-6 Merc and V-4 OMC's, which weighed 260-300 lbs. The result was an extremely strong but light, slender, and very efficient hull that would plane at ~ 10-12 mph with a heavy load, ride like a much bigger and heavier boat, run 10% faster than competitive deep-V hulls with the same weight & power, and perform extremely well with an 85 hp motor. That hull is a totally different animal than the modern fat 8-8.5' beam 20 footers designed for 500 lb 4-stroke motors that require at least 200 hp for decent performance!

If you can find a Verado within that weight range, by all means have at it. Otherwise be prepared for min planing speeds in the mid-20's and a serious disappointment in the ride quality compared to the OEM configuration, which allowed SeaCraft to not only dominate it's outboard class in the 1960's Offshore Power Boat races in very rough seas, but often beat much larger inboards running 2-3X more horsepower!

[TPG]

Thanks for the reality check. I appreciate it.

[Billybob]

Interesting, so how and when did the hulls change up until they stopped making them?
For example is a 2005 designed for a heavier 4 stroke, does it get up on plane, does it bail?

Or something like this - 1986 with a 4 stroke 150 - how would this perform?
I'm just wondering if the 20 design ever evolved to accommodate the newer, bigger engines and how they achieved that.

[kmoose]

Here is a good comparison page of current 90-150 outboards: http://outboards.axlegeeks.com/

Not a whole lot of weight difference apple to apple. Pick your favorite flavor and enjoy. Not a bad pick in any of them in that HP range.

[jtharmo]

I have a 350 lb. Merc Black Max 175 on the back of my Seafari 20. With my wife and son in the transom seats (barely 200 lbs between them) it is nearly impossible to keep the bow down so the ride really suffers. Tabs I'm sure will help ride but obviously don't help when we're drifting around, eating lunch, etc. I would love a quiet 4 stroke but I can't see putting another 150 lbs of motor off the transom with the 7.5' beam.

[TPG]

Originally Posted by SSPBill

I have a 350 lb. Merc Blake Max 175 on the back of my Seafari 20. With my wife and Son in the transom seats (barely 200 lbs between them) it is nearly impossible to keep the bow down so the ride really suffers. Tabs I'm sure will help ride but obviously don't help when we're drifting around, eating lunch, etc. I would love a quite 4 stroke but I can't see putting another 150 lbs of motor off the transom with the 7.5' beam.

Isn't the Seafari a bit heavier than the CCs?

Mecury SeaPro 115 is a 363lbs motor which isn't terrible, only motor lighter is the Mercury 115 at 359lbs.

[PigSticker]

A 86 with a 150 4 stroke you will still have wet feet..when they started building again in 98/99 the deck was raised a bit to accommodate a more modern engine from that time period as in a 2 stroke 150..I put a 200 hpdi on my 05 20 and it sat fine and no wet feet but it definitely needed the trim tabs to keep the bow down and from constantly slapping in any kind of chop..it was super quick on a calm day though

[jtharmo]

[QUOTE=TPG;246506]Isn't the Seafari a bit heavier than the CCs?

It certainly is. Not only that I'm guessing the cg is quite a bit further forward. Full disclosure, I have 2 batteries in the back as well. I will be looking to move one or both forward at some point.

[ericallen01]

Etec 115 is another good choice for the 20, 5-10 lbs heavier than merc 115.