29 baja, twin or single
 

Lookin at 29's. Should i go single or twin

twin

awful heavy boat for a single.

That's a full 29' foot boat, not a 27 with a molded platform so that's a lot of boat for 1 motor. Plus the twins give you so many benefits. The downside of course is cost.

I have never seen a 29 outlaw single....

A few of them were sold mostly around LOTO is seems.

Personally that boat is way to much for a single, unless it is big power. Some have said it is a better ride with a single, don;t see how but either way it's going to be a big slow pig with a single. For the price they are selling at now, no way I would buy a single.

I think they all where sold at LOTO through Big Thunder. The ones I know that have owned one say they ride better than the twin version because of less weight in the rear of the boat, but they are a slow 29' boat as I think most came with 454Mag or 502Mag I'm guessing 50mph

Twins. Unless you find a 29 single with 700 or more HP.

Umm....

A merc racing 700 SCI with a NXT6... Now that would be a interesting boat.....

All the Big Thunder 29ol singles were built with stock 454's and 502's from what I remember. There was a 29ol with a single 454 Mag MPI in the same marina that I had my twin 7.4 MPI 29 and he said it ran 52-53 tops, but my pair of 7.4's only ran 62-63 spinning 24" Bravo 1's. On Lake Erie in 5-6 footers it was all I could do to run with him because twin props halfway up the deadrise will blow out sooner, and he could trim his single drive out farther when you have to tuck the twins down in the same conditions. Anybody that knows Lake Erie realizes that many times your top speed in almost any boat is in the 40's. His boat did look funny at the dock sitting so level.

XT

Have you thought about a 302? I have one listed, check out CL Lake of the Ozarks and on Boat Trader under 302 os. Very similar to 29 outlaws with more cockpit room!:whistle:

Mine runs 52. When this motor shells out, i think a big power plant could be fun in this boat. My buddies twin 7.4 only did 62 and liked to vapor lock on hot days.

There is one in Eastern Ontario/Quebec area. I was at a shop in Kingston where it was getting rigged with big power.

The one thing I noticed was how much ROOM you had to work on the motor, you could play handball in there! Lol

The 29's with twins are a MUCH tighter fit. I think most, if not all
Singles came with 454/496/502's if you could find one with a 500/525 setup it might not be as much of a pig, but, as others have mentioned it's a big, heavy, non stepped hull, twins might be a better choice.

Single 1075 with a #6 drive would be a handful, if I win the Powerball it will be my first project, along with my quad 500HP outboard powered pontoon, lol

I've had a 29 OL and 302, both with 7.4s. Like others have said 62 MPH. Enjoyed both boats. Ride and feel was identical. I liked the 302 for cockpit space, but hated the swim platform (or lack there of). If you like the windshield look the boats are so similar that you can expand your search and find a better deal. That's how I ended up with one of each. Looking for the best deal of either. Used the same logic when shopping for a 33 OL and or 342. Ended up with a 342.

I would not want to dock a boat that big with a single in any kind of current or wind.

Ya, it can be a handful. I've only driven a twin engine boat a couple of times and there is no challenge in that. The hardest part of docking the single is getting the nose to come over. I pick my spots wisely and I've actually gotten stuck at a bar because a Nortech pulled up on one side and a Skater on the other. I just couldn't get out without taking the nose off one so I sipped iced tea until they decided to leave.

Hmmm....something doesn't sound right here.......:whistle: :ernaehrung004:

http://www.mcgoystoys.com/inventory.html

Not sure what your wanting to spend or what year etc - but this seems like a decent deal ,

I talked to a guy at our local marina that had a single 29' with a blue 500hp. He said it would run 62mph.

Twins Period. Always have a spare to get home with. Also like a few said, I don't think it was that much more maint as they didn't run as hard as one would. almost 70 w 454 mags 385 ea.

As for the Vapor lock-- I had that issue for a few yrs with my 29- did the kit and never again. XT probably knows what its called. I can not remember.

There was a guy years back that procharged a single. Cost him a mint. Think he got to 65 and blew it up a couple times.
I think Morgans idea was that at LOTO, you aren't really going anywhere. If you just want to cruise up and down the lake at 35 or 40, it does that well. Rides nice, will somewhat handle the LOTO slop and is not a bad looking boat. Really, we just pull out of the cove and look at each other and say, "left or right?". We are at the 45mm which is much calmer water than the LOTO tales of monster rogue wakes you hear about.
I bought a house on a whim at loto and only had a 21 foot boat so riding in a single 29 was a huge boat to me. Oh how times have changed..... I would go twins if i had it to do over but i have the title in hand so that makes my boat ride just that much better.

My 2000 7.4 MPI's never vapor locked during the 8 years I had it. My buddy's 1996 7.4's did it all the time. Don't know the name of the kit because I never needed one.

I will say that the best bang for the dollar was always the 385hp 454 Mag MPI's. Faster and cheaper than the 377hp Scorpions from Mercury Racing, and many of them were just as fast as the 502 MPI's if not faster on a few.

Sounds like the best power option for the 29ol would be a single 700+ engine connected to (2) drives?????

XT

:lolhit:, That right there just made my day. I almost split my coffee laughing

Not trying to ruin the good time but it has been done. Someone actually makes all the hardware required for this. IMCO maybe? I have an old hot boat magazine that was dedicated to doing so as well as an article from sportboat about doing the same.

1 engine 2 drives

I remember seeing a 29 with a big single(540/650hp) listed on C-list a while back, I think it was in Ohio. It was the first time I had ever seen a 29 with a single but the guy was only asking like $18k for it. He claimed it would run 72mph. I bet it wasn't for sale long at that price.

Here it is

http://muncie.craigslist.org/boa/4108626598.html

Scam alert....Seen this before....it's not a real sale

That is correct Imco made that combo.. but don't see the system on there website so I'm guessing it never made it to market..

I think I know "that guy". It was a LOTO boat that lives on Texoma now. I don't think I'm spilling any beans by saying it ran considerably faster than 65 MPH with the boost turnt up......till it melted everything in the block. He's running a warmed up 502 now summers around 500 HP and 62 MPH. I think that learning experience doubled what the boat cost him, literally.

Nice balanced boat that rides nice. The twin BBC's seem to make her/29OL really stern heavy (and 10 MPH faster).

I think he went by a screen name of Chad... not sure though, its been awhile. I can't see it running much over 65 mph though. But then again, I have no idea what kind of HP he was putting through it.

Yes it's Chad, screen name is/was MXBAJA 421 or something close to that. They moved to Dallas from Lee's Summitt MO. Nice boat.

I'll let him know about this thread and he can fill in the blanks. Good dude.

I have a 29 Outlaw with a 500hp blue motor, runs 62 GPS with a little over half tank of fuel. Handles really good, just have to be easy with the take off in my opinion as not to tear the out drive out. I am happy with it. Does about the same on fuel as twins, but half on everything else as far as maintenance.

Same on fuel as twins?

I would agree with Stephen 29. I went from a 212 to the 29 w twins- granted it used a little more fuel but not twice as much, with the 212. we were running WOT most of the time just because. The 29 not so much wot. with the 454mag mpi's they seemed to get pretty good mileage.
Now IF you wanna talk Fuel consumption get a Cig w 575's and then bump them up to over 700!!
BUT we all know if you have been in this sport for long- FUEL is about the least expensive part!
Get the twins- then you can always get home if one goes out.

Yes, I have a good friend with a 302, which is the same hull as a 29 outlaw, he has twin 454's stock. His fuel consumption is the same at regular cruising speeds. Now when he is wide open, obviously he is using more fuel with two motors. A lot of this depends on the carb, I think the 454(stock) has around a 650cfm carb, my hp500 has a 800cfm I think. I dont run really hard alot, and riding on his boat, which I have several times, its all about the same(fuel),doesnt take as much RPM's on a twin to do 35-40 mph, I have to push mine a little harder, but top end im just about as fast, depends on how much fuel, people ect... Also a twin weight's a little over a thousand pounds more (give or take) thank a single. At least from what Ive read.

Yep. I've got twin 496 Mags and do a lot of boating with friends that have 25 Outlaws with single 496 HO's. Running the same speeds as them (meaning I can cruise at lower rpm) I burn 30 - 50% more fuel. The longer the trip, the closer the gap gets. A few years ago a bunch of us ran to Biloxi, MS (approx 130 miles one way). Me and a friend got gas at the same time. He burned 60 gallons, I burned 80. Big difference was that at 45 mph I was running 3200 rpm while he was turning almost 4000.

Oh, yall do realize this thread was started by Darr right? He ain't buying a 29 outlaw, just exercising his multiple personalities.

HA. Next ? Might be should i buy a wood or fiberglass boat.

My buddy has a 2001 29 outlaw with a single 496 mag, not HO and it runs 54-55 MPH GPS. Though it's not fast it's a beautiful boat. He's running a 19p mirage to get that big boat out of the hole. I would definently go with twins.

Get a twin

Fuel mpg...
 

I have a 1999 29 OL with a single 468ci, 450hp 500pds torque.. I have remove the 'hook' right in the hull, give me 2-3 mph.. At 35 mph I can get 3 mpg.. Try that with a twin... Fuel comsumption is no where near to a twin.. If 50% is something... Faster I go, up to 58-59mph wot, and then I get closer to the fuel comsumption of twin but alway less.. Two engine running, the drag of the second drive in the water, the add weight +-1,700pds.. I burn 34 gallons a wot, My friend got a 2001 29 OL with twin 496 he burn 60.. I try the twin,, better acceleration of course, and he top 65 mph so,, 6-7 mph more.. But minimum planning speed is higher, and the single feel lighter and quick on rought water,, and the prop stay in the water longer in rought water. I have a 177 mercruiser blower with intercooler from a 525sc that I install this winter.. The goal is to reach 65mph.. Conclusion.. A 29 single with stock 454 or 496 is lacking power.. It need a good custom engine 500 hp +.. Ooo and never a trouble with the drive, carefull on take out.. But I blew the coupler on the last exit last summer., so I bought the heavy duty one..