hi gang. just purchased a 29 2005 fever. it has the 496 HO, 26 pitch 4 blade bravo. never had a fountain before. looking for anything on it. how they plane, top end, cruising speed, any quirks etc.... thank you for any input.

I have a 1990 29' w/454 mags so I don't have any personal experience with a single eng 29. From what I've gathered, they are a little slow to plane-out especially with a full load of passengers/coolers/fuel/etc. Top end should be around 70 MPH with that power. Should cruise nicely at 45-50 MPH. The singles do have a reputation for flying a lot flatter than a twins do. Like abt any boat with a stepped bottom, you have to be careful about turning too sharp at high speed. They can spin out.

Very nice/reliable boat overall, especially with the 496. Congrats!!

Everything I've read concurs with the above ^^^^.
Slow to plane is a feature of any boat that size with a modest hp single. I had a 27 Donzi and to get her up and running, tabs down, drive in and ease the throttle all the way. Nose high, when you feel it about to drop down, get ready to pull the throttle back a bit. Bring your tabs and drives back to neutral and learn from there. I needed 4500 revs to get the Donzi on the plane with a moderate load on board.

Stepped boats do feel different to a straight hull. Avoid high speed turns until you're used to the handling. Even trim, or up a touch, is the best position for turning, don't trim it down. Same applies to the tabs. My boat did not like much positive trim, only a little above neutral.

Good idea to check your tab indicators and trim gauge/indicator. When the boat is out of the water, use a straight edge to line your tabs up even with the bottom and also your drive at even level. Note where your indicators are, maybe mark it on the dash with some tape until you're used to the feel of the boat. Don't automatically believe the indicators or gauge are accurate, check them first.

Sounds like a lovely boat, congratulations. (Don't be shy to post pics, we love boat pics )

RR

If you have the original owner's manual, read pages 51-60, a great explanation of stepped hulls and how to drive them. If you don't have the hard copy, there's not much you can't find on the www.......

https://media.fountainpowerboats.com...-27ft-47ft.pdf

RR

thank you for the input. yes, they straight edge thing is good idea to. ill keep ya posted. again thanks!!!

hi gang! welp, made the fountain voyage yesterday. way to much wieght on boat. full tank and 5 people. got rid of 2 and it ran very nice. does anyone know why the warning lights sometimes blink on and off? just had tune up etc..... just curious. they did not stick on just blinked. when i had a lighter load, they didnt flicker.... thank you fellow fountain people. i think im going to enjoy this boat..

Make sure your gear lube bottle has the correct amount of oil

welp, i had three quarters tank of gas and 4 adults running at 4800 rpms and about 50 mph. is that about right for that load of wight on that boat? was trimmed out nicely also...

Should run a bit faster at those revs.
I think the limiter is about 5150 rpm's but load and conditions will have an effect. It'll also take seat time to learn the optimum trim settings plus the last few hundred revs and mph can take a decent run to get there.

if everything's running well, keep enjoying the boat, you should see a bit more speed when you're more accustomed to the running quirks.

If it's any reference, I've read many claims of 70 mph (and even more) from a Donzi ZR27 with the 496ho. That must be on a downhill lake with a tailwind because I never saw more than about 66. Don't worry too much about what other people claim!

Rr

Is this speedometer or gps speed? 50mph at 4800rpm's is not good (if you have a 1.5 ratio drive).