I owned a 29 Scarab with a single big block. A friend of mine has one with twins (and is for sale in Austin, TX). The answer is they are both great boats. If you find the boat you like, either engine package is fine. This is one of the best handling, and most fun boats that I have ever owned. It looks great, easy to tow, and has a decent cuddy. If you want a great boat in the 30-40K range, you can't beat one of these! Pictures are of the one for sale. Good luck with your search...

I was just going to mention the outdrive situation.

A bravo one hooked up to a 540 wont last, however a bravo one on a 350 should last forever.

I also agree with the docking situation. Much easier with twins.

Peace of mind with having twins. You can always limp home on one.

I have never seen a documented report showing the maintenance expenses of singles vs twins. Some say because twins dont work as hard, they are cheaper to maintain. Others say a single engine is easier to maintain because there is only one motor. I guess this would depend on the situation and circumstances. To each his own. Very hard to draw a conclusion here. I would think twins are more expensive though.

The twins drive better. Perform better. Great center of gravity and weight distribution. Probably handle the rough better.

Fuel seems to be another gray area. Some say twins dont use a lot because they dont work as hard while others say a single drinks less because its only one motor. I would think twins use more but its probably not 2x more. More like 1.5x more.

Not all twin 29' Scarabs have Bravos...not sure what year that they changed, but some have Alphas.

thank's for all the reply's and info .

as stated above twin's for ease of docking in the strong current and wind we have down south here and also if one motor goes south i would still be able to limp home on one motor .
i have owned a few boat's with twin's and a few with single's and twin's are better for the statement's mentioned above . but like whats also been said a single is easier to work on .
there seem's to be quite a few of these boat's for sell, one with twins over at sun coast on the west coast of florida look's nice .
i guess i will have to go check them out and make a choice .
thank's
again
mike

For the most part a single is better balanced, the weight is centered over the keel instead of towards the outside, same reason raceboats have staggered engines, to get weight closer to the center.
A single also doesnt have all the weight in the ass end like a side by side twin so it should fly flatter..

If i were to build a new 28-30ft, it'd be twins.
Plus, you can build on those sbcs if you want more speed, and the bravos will still be fine... not so much on the single.
The maint on the HP BBC will be more than on the stock SBCs; re: oil changes, top end rebuilds etc... plus constant work on the drives...
A pair of 400-450 sbcs would be real nice in that 29.

oops I was drinkin 700:coolcowboy:

For the most part , a shorter (30 and under ) v bottom is way more balanced with 1 motor..

Why not twin Big Blocks?

I have 2 fountain 29''s. One with 575 and one with twin 377 scorpions. The twin boat is 2mph or so faster. But the single handles 20 times better. also they are within a year of one another.