Twin outboard engine swap to single outboard same Hp

[David]

Toffen was faster in his Phantom with a single

[powerabout]

Toffen was faster in his Phantom with a single

to be expected, fast and light

[Whaaaaat]

If its a fishing boat primarily, and you often venture past cellphone range or make long range trips then stick with 2 just for redundancy. Other than those reasons I don't see how 2 engines are better. 2x maintenance. 2 gearcases to push thru the water, more weight on the transom. With a v bottom 1 properly setup will always be more efficient than 2. 1 engine and a seatow membership is cheaper than the operating cost of 2 .

[Forkin' Crazy]

On a 25' boat I think I would keep the twins. Think about docking or loading on the trailer in wind and current. Twins are much easier to maneuver. If I went to a single, I would consider a bow thruster.

I would at least prop it up. You might be happier with it when you get it tuned in.

[Narcoholic]

I totally agree, twins are always better for docking , fishing, safety etc. I have had both many times. I have been plus 30 miles out with both twins down, I have been plus 30 miles with one out and made it home hammered and out of beer. I have Tow boat for a reason, cheapest insurance EVER. I was actually looking to go bigger with twins , it just seem impossible to find two decent 200-250's. So I was thinking one 350 might be the way to go. I would need a 30" shaft and those as singles are really easy to find still under warranty and not to expensive seeing as how a lot of trip set up boat are selling them. A 400 would AWESOME but that's not happening. I'm not dropping that kind of money for speed, wrong boat for all that money.

[mrichartz]

Oh so it wasn't really as much of a question as it was a tell me this would be worth it?

[HydroSkreamin]

If you are going offshore, I definitely see the merits of twins.

If you have a heavy boat or large loads, twins have more blade area and more torque.

If you are talking speed, a comparable single, I feel the advantage goes to the single. My boat ran ~85 with twin 200 Johnsons on it. My single 400R is in triple digits. Dragging the extra gearcase costs more power than most realize, even if it’s surfacing.

[Narcoholic]

No, it was absolutely a question of had any one replaced twins with a single. While twins make it easier to maneuver docks and such it is not an issue for me. Owned boats since I was 10 years old. Operating a boat is never an issue, I was really interested in the performance whether speed was lost or gained, fuel economy lost or gained etc. I'm familiar with operation and safety being better with twins

[mrichartz]

I was being semi sarcastic meaning you were hoping for the best.....I don't mean you didn't want to know... ignore that that post...
I only mentioned twins for getting home really and performance
I didn't think you'd be looking for handling docks performance part...hell that's not always true either mine with the extra weight makes it light a kite and a huge PITA
With even a breeze and there's no independentlly using the motors to maneuver it's like it will have a mind if its own...or its possessed..

[Narcoholic]

No worries what so ever. I appreciate any and all feedback. I know what ever decision I make is not going to be the end of the world. But because of price and availability it seems a single 350 with warranty is the way to go. If I could run across a good deal on twin opti's I would jump in a heart beat for the ease of switching alone.