Bass Boat Max HP rating

[rdela007]

I have been trying to figure out excatly what determines how much HP a particular bass boat can handle. I have a 1988 skeeter 18'7" with a 150 HP (the max recommended HP). I want to put a 200 HP on it. Will the boat be able to handle it??? Is the Maximum Horsepower Rating on a bass boat govern by stability issues, transom strength, etc????

rdela007

 

[RyanSS]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

I've seen a couple different mentions of the following formula being used as a generic way to determine max HP:

length feet x width feet x 2 - 90 = max hp

So for your boat it would be 18.58 feet x 7.5 feet (i'm guessing) x 2 - 90 = 188 hp max

That's assuming yours has the same beam of 7.5 ft as the newer 18.5 ft skeeter SX series.

I'd say you're fine with a 200, but check local regs because you might get a ticket.

 

[rndn]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

I'd say you're fine with a 200, but check local regs because you might get a ticket.

How could you say he's fine!! It is never a good idea to over power a boat. The boat was designed to operate safely with a given horsepower. If Skeeter thought the boat could handle 200hp they would have rated it for 200hp.

 

[CATransplant]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

You exceed the manufacturer's maximum horsepower rating at considerable risk. The boat's not designed for the higher horsepower, and may have transom strength and stability issues.

The other risk is legal. If you cause an accident with your boat, the overpower situation will play a large role in establishing your negligence. By exceeding the rated maximum by a factor of a third, any lawyer will succeed in making the point that you were negligent. That means you lose and pay.

What benefit do you believe you will get from the larger outboard that would outweigh the risks?

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

Before you do this repower, make a list of everything you own that is worth over $25.00. Don't foreget anything. Tools, fishing tackle, your vehicles, bank and investment accounts, other toys, etc. Now that you know what all this stuff is worth, and provided you do go ahead with the project, you best hope and pray that you are not involved in a personal injury accident. Why? Because your insurance will very likely not cover you since you overpowered the boat. When the lawyers are done with you all your stuff will belong to someone else. Never happen you say? Ask the folks in Wisconsin that had a runabout land on top of their pontoon seriously injuring the nine people on the 'toon. And that wreck happened because of "stupid" not because of an overpower.

 

[rndn]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

And that wreck happened because of "stupid" not because of an overpower.

I would argue that stupid and overpowering are one in the same!

 

[RyanSS]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

none of you answered his question. He didn't ask if he SHOULD overpower, he asked if his boat COULD HANDLE the overpower and how they determine the rating.

So.....COULD the boat handle a 200hp? Probably. How do they determine the HP rating? Possibly with the formula I posted above, but I'm not sure.

SHOULD you overpower the boat? No.

See how easy that was guys? Pull your panties out of your 'gina's and quit being dicks. He asked a simple question and none of you answered it.

 

[CATransplant]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

Ah, but a guy doesn't need to be overpowered to be stupid. Stupid is common as dirt. I'm reminded that every time I am at the lake on a weekend.

 

[CATransplant]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

none of you answered his question. He didn't ask if he SHOULD overpower, he asked if his boat COULD HANDLE the overpower and how they determine the rating.

So.....COULD the boat handle a 200hp? Probably. How do they determine the HP rating? Possibly with the formula I posted above, but I'm not sure.

SHOULD you overpower the boat? No.

See how easy that was guys? Pull your panties out of your 'gina's and quit being dicks. He asked a simple question and none of you answered it.

Ah, but, you see, we did answer his question. We told him that the manufacturer had specified a maximum horsepower rating that shouldn't be exceeded. Why do you suppose a boat manufacturer specifies a particular horsepower as a maximum? On a whim? Or would it be based on engineering decisions and the structural design of the boat? Which do you think?

As for your last paragraph...never mind...it's not worth it.

 

[RyanSS]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

Ah, but, you see, we did answer his question. We told him that the manufacturer had specified a maximum horsepower rating that shouldn't be exceeded. Why do you suppose a boat manufacturer specifies a particular horsepower as a maximum? On a whim? Or would it be based on engineering decisions and the structural design of the boat? Which do you think?

As for your last paragraph...never mind...it's not worth it.

My point exactly. He didn't ask IF the manufacturer had specified a max rating that shouldn't be exceeded. He asked HOW they determined that rating. Obviously he already knows that they specified a rating or he wouldn't have stated that in his original post.

You ask "Why do you suppose a boat manufacturer specifies a particular horsepower as a maximum?" Duh...that's what he's asking!

Is it structural design and engineering only? I doubt it. Do their bean counters and lawyers have something to do with it? You bet your *** they do!

So again....he's asking HOW they determine the rating....not IF they specify a rating.

Good job on totally missing it.....again.

 

[rndn]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

My point exactly. He didn't ask IF the manufacturer had specified a max rating that shouldn't be exceeded. He asked HOW they determined that rating. Obviously he already knows that they specified a rating or he wouldn't have stated that in his original post.

You ask "Why do you suppose a boat manufacturer specifies a particular horsepower as a maximum?" Duh...that's what he's asking!

Is it structural design and engineering only? I doubt it. Do their bean counters and lawyers have something to do with it? You bet your *** they do!

So again....he's asking HOW they determine the rating....not IF they specify a rating.

Good job on totally missing it.....again.

So please tell us, exactly who urinated on your cornflakes this morning or is this your normal happy self?

 

[RyanSS]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

So please tell us, exactly who urinated on your cornflakes this morning or is this your normal happy self?

I didn't get any cornflakes this morning.

Maybe that's my problem.

 

[Nandy]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

I want to put a 200 HP on it.
rdela007

Is that is not telling you his intentions are to overpower the boat I dont know what to say.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

The original post contained this info:

I WANT TO PUT A 200 HP ON IT. WILL THE BOAT BE ABLE TO HANDLE IT???

Seems to me telling someone what you want to do is a pretty good indication that if someone told him "yes it can" -- it was a done deal.

I did not intend to make "stupid" and "overpowering" comparable. However, there is a direct connection. Temptation is always there when one has a high power anything under his behind -- be it a car, truck, snowmobile, boat, bike, airplane or lawnmower. Some folks can go through life taking calculated risks, being responsible and live long exciting lives. Others, given the same set of risks can become plain "stupid". Stupid in this context is merely the inability to properly asses risk by an otherwise perfectly rational individual. We've all done "stupid" things and I would venture each "whoops" was due to a laps of judgement, not because the person had other issues. Those of us who have been around the block a time or two did our "stupid" when there were far fewer lawyers, far less people on the water, highways, airways, and byways, and people were far more civil to each other and the chances of damaging someone else in the process was far less than today. The advice given in this thread was meant to be helpful and to make sure the consequences of overpowering were known. Can't you imagine what Rdela007 would post if his action hurt someone, himself, or the boat was damaged. I can see the post now: Why didn't you tell me this was illegal and that I'd go to jail and lose all my stuff if I had a wreck? Questions can be asked in a number of different ways. How a question is asked determines how it gets answered.

 

[CATransplant]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

I dunno, but the way I look at this stuff is that the advice given here on the iboats forum should be good and sound advice, and that's what I see here, time and time again, from those folks who have given up hundreds of hours helping folks with questions.

Universally, the folks who have been here a long time counsel against overpowering boats, against under oiling fuel mixtures for old outboards, and generally always going for the safe and sensible approach to most questions.

That's what has attracted me to this forum, and that's my attitude as well. I don't have as much expertise as many here, but I do have good sense, probably due to my 62 years on the planet and a lot of painful mistakes made in my own youth.

I have no official position here, nor do I want one. But, when someone asks whether they should seriously overpower their boat, I'll always say that it's a bad idea...because it is.

In the current thread, I've been on the exact boat the O.P. posted about, with a 150 hp engine. Scared the stuffing out of me, and I didn't think it was particularly stable at top speed with that engine. If it had a 200, I simply wouldn't get in it at all.

Some things are simply bad ideas. I won't stop saying so.

 

[RyanSS]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

......But, when someone asks whether they should seriously overpower their boat....

he didn't ask whether he should. He said he wanted to and asked if we thought the boat could handle it and how the ratings are determined.

 

[CATransplant]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

Yes, he did ask that. The manufacturer says that it's unsafe by putting the Maximum HP rating on the boat. How did they determine that? Well, they built the boat, so they determined it via their engineering and design. If that's the question, the O.P. should ask the manufacturer. You said that you thought it would be fine. How did you determine that?

Personally, I rely on the manufacture to know their boat and its capabilities. My current boat has a hp limit of 10. I have a 15hp outboard sitting in the garage, and a 6hp on the boat. Why? Because the manufacturer says that the boat is only rated for 10 hp. I figure they built the boat, so they must know its limits.

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

I have been trying to figure out excatly what determines how much HP a particular bass boat can handle. I have a 1988 skeeter 18'7" with a 150 HP (the max recommended HP). I want to put a 200 HP on it. Will the boat be able to handle it??? Is the Maximum Horsepower Rating on a bass boat govern by stability issues, transom strength, etc????

rdela007

Quick answer here.
NO!!!!
End of story.

 

[xxturbowesxx]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

is putting high compression heads and pistons to squeeze out all the power you can under this catagory.. my dad had a yammy 175 that prob put out around 250hp after it was modified this was on an allison bass boat..

 

[rndn]

Re: Bass Boat Max HP rating

175 max is 175 max. Doesn't matter if you added a supercharger or bought a bigger motor.
Let me put it this way. You can take your boat and kids/grandkids on one of 2 lakes. One lake all boaters have the proper hp rating on their boats. The other lake has all boaters who overpowered their boats to get more speed than the boat was intended to use safely. Which lake would you trust to take your kids/grandkids out for a nice safe day on the lake?