Thoughts on 290 Engine/Drive (single Vs. Twin)

[KevinC]

Docking my 260DA with a wind/current was always stressful. Now my 340SDA with twin V-Drive makes it seem easy. That's not to say every situation is easy and every now and then I need to abandon an attempt and reset but I feel in control not out of control. Plus docking using just the shifters is a lot easier than spinning the steering back and forth while trying to shift forward and reverse.

-Kevin

 

[atrick]

H

Docking my 260DA with a wind/current was always stressful. Now my 340SDA with twin V-Drive makes it seem easy. That's not to say every situation is easy and every now and then I need to abandon an attempt and reset but I feel in control not out of control. Plus docking using just the shifters is a lot easier than spinning the steering back and forth while trying to shift forward and reverse.

-Kevin

highly agree with you, only difference I got IO's verses your V-Drives, just a little difference

 

[KevinC]

H

highly agree with you, only difference I got IO's verses your V-Drives, just a little difference

Never had twin I/Os so I can not comment from personal experience - but I have been told the V-Drive perform better close in docking as the props are more forward towards the pivot point. Regardless the single IO on a larger boat like the 260DA was stressful when the wind caught the bow. You do get used to it and eventually learn how your boat handles but given a choice I would not go back.

I was teaching my kids last summer how to dock using our center console and it brought back memories of the 260DA but of course the center console is smaller and lighter and easier to deal with.

-Kevin

 

[Little Ducky]

I believe there's a thread on here somewhere about the finesse of docking and someone said "Docking is a controlled collision" . .

My sales guy always said you can hurt much if you go slow.

I hate seeing folks panic when the wind or current catches them wrong and then instead of just stopping and taking a breath they start making poor decisions.

I love my twin 5.0's. I turn and back into my slip like a boss especially when no one is looking. Just as someone starts watching is when I try to take out the dock.

 

[Lar694]

i own a 97 290 with a single 383 magnum/bravo 3. (Sadler's old boat, for those that know him). I am happy with this combination. The boat handles well, planes easily, and gets 1.7 mpg at a cruise speed of about 28 mph. The 383 is lighter than the 7.4, with more power and torque, and the fuel injection is great. If you want a factory generator, you have a lot more room with a single engine.
For a family of 5, I would definitely be looking for a larger boat (with twins). The 290 is great for us with 1 child. The rear seat that converts to a sun pad is a great option if you can find it.
If i were shopping for another 290, I'd be looking for a clean single engine with generator. With a larger family, I'd be going bigger with v drives. But as you've said, it really depends on how you plan to use it. Day trips you'd be fine. we do a lot of 2-3 day outings, and it gets small fast. Good luck with your decision, but i don't think you can really go wrong with a 97+ 290.

 

[dpostman]

Once you have twins you won't want to go back to a single, this boat was my first one with duals and I don't want to go back even tho my 21' maxum is a single.

I need to dock my buddies boat with twins before I buy.

 

[dpostman]

Docking my 260DA with a wind/current was always stressful. Now my 340SDA with twin V-Drive makes it seem easy. That's not to say every situation is easy and every now and then I need to abandon an attempt and reset but I feel in control not out of control. Plus docking using just the shifters is a lot easier than spinning the steering back and forth while trying to shift forward and reverse.

-Kevin

I have no experience with V-Drives. Thanks for the information.

 

[dpostman]

i own a 97 290 with a single 383 magnum/bravo 3. (Sadler's old boat, for those that know him). I am happy with this combination. The boat handles well, planes easily, and gets 1.7 mpg at a cruise speed of about 28 mph. The 383 is lighter than the 7.4, with more power and torque, and the fuel injection is great. If you want a factory generator, you have a lot more room with a single engine.
For a family of 5, I would definitely be looking for a larger boat (with twins). The 290 is great for us with 1 child. The rear seat that converts to a sun pad is a great option if you can find it.
If i were shopping for another 290, I'd be looking for a clean single engine with generator. With a larger family, I'd be going bigger with v drives. But as you've said, it really depends on how you plan to use it. Day trips you'd be fine. we do a lot of 2-3 day outings, and it gets small fast. Good luck with your decision, but i don't think you can really go wrong with a 97+ 290.

I think 97 was the last year of the 9'8" beam / the 7700 lbs boat, 98+ goes north of 10000 lbs with the wider beam @ 10'2" (I think). When the kids go with us its a day trip to the beach less than 20 min from my slip and they are in the water @ the sand bar. When we go for the weekend its just the two of us traveling with other friends with boats. I think I am stuck on the 290 because I feel it will be most economical for the way I use it. Lots to ponder. Thanks for the information!!

 

[KevinC]

I think I am stuck on the 290 because I feel it will be most economical for the way I use it. Lots to ponder. Thanks for the information!!

Always buy the shoes that fit!

-Kevin

 

[Little Ducky]

If after the holidays you find yourself in Chattanooga, TN holler and you can play on my 1998 290 to see if it's a boat for you.

 

[Strecker25]

Curious why would you love bravos over alphas behind 300 hp small blocks?

My boat sits in a fresh water slip 8 month a year and on the hard for 4 months. I do all the annual maintenance, down to full rebuild if necessary. Given 5.7L EFI motors at less than 300 hp I can't think of any reason why I would want the bravos besides the smoother shifting. But then again, I own another boat with an older volvo AQ280 and I prefer it to all the mercruisers....

I’ve grenaded two lowers in two years. Granted, they’re SEI’s and not oem, but just a bad experience. They were brand new (put on the boat by the dealer we bought from) and replaced by sei under warranty but it cost us plenty in haul outs, etc. I think our 12k boat is a lot for alphas to be pushing around.

That being said, alphas are great for diy maintenance. I take them off alone yearly, throw em in the trunk of my Jetta, and work on them in the basement over winter. Cheap parts, cheaper props, nice a light. Just wish the gears would stop exploding

 

[Lar694]

I think 97 was the last year of the 9'8" beam / the 7700 lbs boat, 98+ goes north of 10000 lbs with the wider beam @ 10'2" (I think). When the kids go with us its a day trip to the beach less than 20 min from my slip and they are in the water @ the sand bar. When we go for the weekend its just the two of us traveling with other friends with boats. I think I am stuck on the 290 because I feel it will be most economical for the way I use it. Lots to ponder. Thanks for the information!!

yes-ours is actually the wide beam-97 1/2 I think technically.

 

[mesquito_creek]

I’ve grenaded two lowers in two years. Granted, they’re SEI’s and not oem, but just a bad experience. They were brand new (put on the boat by the dealer we bought from) and replaced by sei under warranty but it cost us plenty in haul outs, etc. I think our 12k boat is a lot for alphas to be pushing around.

That being said, alphas are great for diy maintenance. I take them off alone yearly, throw em in the trunk of my Jetta, and work on them in the basement over winter. Cheap parts, cheaper props, nice a light. Just wish the gears would stop exploding

Interesting to hear you experience, which helps understand the desire for the bravos! I always hypothesized that water is a constant and prop slip should be relatively constant, so the drives should be sized accordingly without issue regardless of weight. Boating out here in the southwest is pretty light duty, as soon as the slightest white cap shows up, boats disappear from the water. I have never seen a broken gear as the failure point, rather spun bearings or other metal introduced into the drive like clutch spools etc. causing the gearset to get damaged etc...

 

[Woody]

I think 97 was the last year of the 9'8" beam / the 7700 lbs boat, 98+ goes north of 10000 lbs with the wider beam @ 10'2" (I think). When the kids go with us its a day trip to the beach less than 20 min from my slip and they are in the water @ the sand bar. When we go for the weekend its just the two of us traveling with other friends with boats. I think I am stuck on the 290 because I feel it will be most economical for the way I use it. Lots to ponder. Thanks for the information!!

When I was shopping for a cabin boat the dealer had a 280DA, 320DA, and 340DA on display side by side. We went from boat to boat a couple times and decided on the 280DA. We usually have 2-3 grandkids with us, we thought the 280DA was plenty big. We were on vacation the first week we had it, by the end of the week I knew I made a costly mistake....should have purchased the 340DA and got it over with.

 

[Strecker25]

Interesting to hear you experience, which helps understand the desire for the bravos! I always hypothesized that water is a constant and prop slip should be relatively constant, so the drives should be sized accordingly without issue regardless of weight. Boating out here in the southwest is pretty light duty, as soon as the slightest white cap shows up, boats disappear from the water. I have never seen a broken gear as the failure point, rather spun bearings or other metal introduced into the drive like clutch spools etc. causing the gearset to get damaged etc...

check these out. First one blew the pinion gear through the side of the housing. The pinion gear went at cruise rpm of 3k, engine revs shot up and gear lube flowed into the lake.

The second one sheared the vertical driveshaft off. right at the entrance to the upper. This was at idle, so no big fireworks, just a stalled motor. You can see the shaft is twisted by looking at the gears. Even though we're under the 300HP max of an alpha, those shafts just dont seem big enough for the size vessel. But, I'm no mechanical engineer and as I said they were chinese made SEI's, so who knows. Hopefully we're ok for the future now, I baby the throttles

 

[mesquito_creek]

Wow... that is crazy, I will definitely keep this in mind if I am considering SEI vs OEM rebuild. Without hitting something, I would not expect the prop to be able to get enough purchase in the water to twist a driveshaft? Hopefully its behind you from hear out. Here is what my Alpha's with 750 hours look last month upon inspection.

 

[Strecker25]

Wow... that is crazy, I will definitely keep this in mind if I am considering SEI vs OEM rebuild. Without hitting something, I would not expect the prop to be able to get enough purchase in the water to twist a driveshaft? Hopefully its behind you from hear out. Here is what my Alpha's with 750 hours look last month upon inspection.
View attachment 52284 View attachment 52285

Those look good. The only thing I will say is the dealer put the lowers on new and handed the boat to my surveyor who of course ran the boat WOT, well prior to the end of the SEI break-in period of 10 hours. I don’t buy it, but they say it contributed to the failure. The failure didn’t occur for another 60 hours. The sheared shaft was because the clutch jammed the propshaft and locked the lower up, thankfully it didn’t shred my OEM upper.

Anyways, sorry to derail the thread, back on track!

 

[KevinC]

When I was shopping for a cabin boat the dealer had a 280DA, 320DA, and 340DA on display side by side. We went from boat to boat a couple times and decided on the 280DA. We usually have 2-3 grandkids with us, we thought the 280DA was plenty big. We were on vacation the first week we had it, by the end of the week I knew I made a costly mistake....should have purchased the 340DA and got it over with.

Once again, proof that boats shrink in water

-Kevin

 

[dpostman]

If after the holidays you find yourself in Chattanooga, TN holler and you can play on my 1998 290 to see if it's a boat for you.

Thanks for the offer!!! My brother lives in Shelbyville, TN. So jealous you guy get to boat most if not all of the year!!!

 

[dpostman]

Once again, proof that boats shrink in water

-Kevin

Very true. When I first purchased my 268 I thought man this is huge. Get it in the water and a couple people on it and all of a sudden I am in a New York apartment!!!!