LOL, the 28 apache has as deep engine bay and would proboly fit those without scoops. Gunsmoke had twin 850's, pretty sure this is the fastest 28 Apache.

If I can be of any help don't hesitate to call.

Office: 954-525-8808
Cell: 786-586-0450

Good Luck,
Eric

I don't claim to know much about this stuff but I would say concentrate your initial energy and $ in getting the engines running or replaced. Once the bilge area is done than you can work on the other items. Definately do it right and replace everything when you have it apart or like Mike said you will be wishing you had.

This way you still have a boat to use during the process. I am just an average guy and for me it would be tough for me to justify dumping 50k into my boat in one chunk but 8-10k a year for a few years is a little easier to swallow and I am still getting towards my goal (plus I know I will never be satisfied anyhow).

As far as the engines go I really like my 502 efi's even though they aren't the fastest option in my heavy 36'. I change the oil and put fuel in, nice and simple. I get between 1.2 and 1.5mpg depending how I am running which I think is pretty good.

I look forward to watching your progress.

-Josh

Andy, looks like a great project. I will be very happy to help any way that I can. I`ve rigged a boat or two in my time.

I have a very interesting proposition for you, concerning engines. I will drop you an email tomorrow. I think you will be pleased to hear.

My engines are @ 400 hrs and I have a valve issue,nothing major. I get 2.4-2.6 mpg @ 3800-4000rpm's. I don't think any boat w/twin bbs will come close. I get over 2mpg wot. My drives have been inspected 3 x since 2005 and are like new. You can't beat Bravo's w/sb's pushin em...I would think the 383's would be perfect and w/425hp per side you would see upper 70's....maybe 80 in perfect conditions; tweaking the props. My engines have always been turn-key; and I run wot more than 50% time. With fuel $$$'s I would consider the 383's...What does your boat weigh w/bb's? The Raylar 550package is sweet, but big $$....

[QUOTE=TexomaPowerboater;2710960]Thats a good topic for conversation. Velocity Vector found some nice 383's - where did you find those by the way? Thats a hell of a deal with outdrives.

the outdrives? Just a few months ago there was a guy from the bahamas who bought a used 28 Pantera hull and was rigged with twin 6.2's by Jo. I think he maid it a month or two before he had drive problems. He probobly needed to run at higher rpm's vs the big block to achieve a satisfactory cruise speed. Maybe he didn't have the magic touch, but I would venture to say that for cruising purposes a big block pushing 3-3500rpms would be better on the drives than a sbc pushing 4-4500rpms to get the same speed.

3) Reliability????? Spillman has twin 350's in his 28AT. I think they only made it around 300hrs. Someone check me on that. Again, I think this goes back to the rpms he needs to push the boat at cruising speeds. I once read one of the best recipes for reliability is 75% throttle 75% of the time, or something like that. I think for reliability purposes it would be ideal to have an engine that will give me great cruising speed at lower rpms. The 454 450hp had great cruising at 3000rpm, which is were I had it most of the time and probobly why my gas wasn't much. I was trying to baby it........alot of good that did:rolleyes: If I wanted to increase the hp down the road I also think the big block would be easier to do it on. It seems like most sbc's need superchargers for REAL hp increases.

52mph@3000rpm's
57mph@3400rpm's
62mph@3800rpm's
67mph@4200rpm's
72mph@wot-4750

55-58mph is great cruise speed for me; 2.6mpg is really GREAT!

Thanks for posting Spillman and others, those numbers really help and gives me a different perspective. Thats right about were I want to be performance wise. Those are just stock 350's correct? 300hp? This boat weighs around 7,000lbs dry with the big blocks. Did you ever find out what the AT weighs? With the cost savings I could go through two pairs and spend the same.

Anybody else want to talk me into buying small blocks? Derebery mentioned his 383's have big block torque and didn't seem too imposed to the idea. My mechanic sure would appreciate working on the small blocks. I'm worried the nose won't carry as good and the rough water ride won't be as good because of the weight loss. Do you guys think the weight savings would significantly alter the ride in rough water?

Thanks, outdrives were alphas.

I'm telling you sbc with Bravo's is the way to go. The sbc vs bbc weight difference would be about 150-200lbs. per engine...once warranty expires on them slap a nice set of heads and some real nice exhaust and your done.
BTW My 28 Pantera had sbc's turning Alpha SS drives and they never gave me a single issue.

You know where i stand on sbcs.