98 330ex cruising

[Xplicitlnck]

I recently purchased a 98 330ec twin 7.4's. It has 4 blade props. Not sure of size or pitch. I was wondering if anybody withthe same boat would be able to give me there most efficient cruise rpm, what rpm they plane at, what there speed at thst rpm is and what there burn rate is. I only had the boat out once and at 3200or so it seamed the bow was a little high. But again it maybe nnormal and I might be crazy. Thanks

 

[hottoddie]

Your not crazy. This is a common complaint on many boats. The trim tabs on most production boats (not just Sea Ray) are too small. With V Drive boats the problem is worse. On my own 390 Express I have replaced the factory tabs with 30" X 15" and also added 15" X 16" tabs between the prop pockets. The difference is night and day. On your 330 you have extensions made at a fab shop and attach them with #10 SS pan head machine screws. Will make a huge difference.

 

[fwebster]

Can you see over the bow? If you can, run the boat a while to learn it and get a grip on your fuel burn. Whatever you add to a tab, increases drag and fuel burn, unless it is a rare boat that cannot get up on the water.

The 330 and 370EC's are pretty flat running boats, but there is a lot of wetted hull because of their extremely wide beam. The trade off is they track like they are on rails, but tend to be a little wet. They do not run or handle like a Sundancer, so get accustomed to what you have before you go changing a bunch of stuff to fix a problem that doesn't exist.

 

[Xplicitlnck]

Yea I guees I just have to get out more on her. I also had the tach problem. Corroded switch in the back so I really was not to sure if they were accurate. I could have only been running at 2800 for all I know. I fixed it yesterday. Turn the switch acouple times to clean the contacts and they seam to be working now so ill try again maybe tomorow if I can get fuel and see what happens.

 

[jrurhh]

On mine the best RPM seems to be 3400-3500. This gives me the best speed and fuel burn. At a slower RPM the engines sound like their working harder, right around 3400 they smooth out and the boat takes off.

I remember on the sea trial when I bought it thinking the previous owner didn't know how to trim it out right. But it's just the way the boat runs best. I'v been on many long runs and played around with trim and RPM,s and bow up with no tabs is where I always end up.

 

[Xplicitlnck]

Perfect. Ill test it out. And c how she responds. Thanks again everybody