Do you know what ratio your B3 is? May try just changing the lower and bolting on a B1 lower. Be aware though if you do A B3 2.0 is a 1.50 B1. You may have a 1.81 or 2.2 B3 (1.36 or 1.65 B1)

I see it more as a HP to weight thing. The boat is listed as 9500 pounds dry. Then add the generator and other stuff and your close to 11000. One thing I found about Formula they build some of the heaviest boats out there. There are several folks at the bock with other brands and none are as heavy as this one for a 27 footer. My 27 weights as much as the guys next to me having a twin engine 29 foot searay (owners words). Either way I appreciate all the comments, it will make sure I look at everything while going through the rebuild

My current ratio is 2.0. I have four sets of props , 20, 22, 22 cupped and 24. This is why I was looking at the 1.81 ratio B3 so it would give me some options and may not have to buy another set. I have a 1.5 B1 in my Rinker which I could try (nice and easy) once the engine is back in.

All the more reason, that adding more HP will have even less of an effect. It will prob take 30hp for every 1 mph gain

Good luck with the rebuild and keep us informed on the progress and results... I'm very curious.

Waiting for a friend to show up Saturday to help me pull the motor. Been looking around trying to get more info on best course of action. Looked at some threads from Eddie Young at his website. This got me thinking about a 540 engine. Found new crate 540's along with several building them, both here and on the web. Will a 540 mount where a 502 use to be? Don't know if the exhaust manifolds are the same, just trying to understand the whole make up?

Stroker crank 502 version swap right in , ran one with aftermarket heads roller cam modded mpi intake.and pcm did 670 with tubular exhaust .traded the heads for a 454. Getting ready to reserect it with modded 088's Cutler mpi and headers going in a Taylor sj with a dominator pump ,engine cover and swim platform ,going to go for the sleeper theme

Sounds good thanks, wanting to explore all options. Looking into Dart 540 blocks and heads, maybe buy a turn key setup.

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that 540 with 650 hp from eddie young looks real tempting, I wish I could afford one

A 540 is a 502 bored .030 over with a 4.25 sroke crank.
You can turn your engine into a 540 with bout 3k in parts.

You should also realize that significantly more HP and torque is going to explode your Bravo3 drive, especially in a single engine 9500# boat.