27 fever vs 29 fever
 

Another dumb question from a fng; I'm in the market for my first sport boat and have been looking at 27 fevers. I live on lake Norman outside of Charlotte, NC and thats where I will be using the boat. Will I regret not stepping up to a 29 fever? I do like the extra bit of room. Have not operated one to make a comparison. Do they handle that much different, operating cost much more?

They are 2 completely different hulls. I can't post pictures anymore, but look at the step on the 27 vs the 29. Big difference. I would recommend grabbing a 29 over a 27 for several reasons:

They run faster than a 27 with the same power, but are usually powered by 500's and 525's.

They carry 130 gallons of fuel instead of 50

They're 2ft longer and some of that room into the cockpit and some into the cabin.

Even though you're on a lake, it's still a smart move to get a bigger hull of anything whenever possible.

Good luck!

IMO I would go with the 29 hands down, not saying that the 27 is not a great boat, but keep in mind that with the beek and swim platform you are losing 2 1/2 ft of usable boat.

Its been approx 10 years since I regularly ran Lake Norman, but between the shoals and traffic, it did get real choppy out there and the bigger the better.

Good luck in your search

And yeah, what Greg said!!

I love my little 27 and I'd kill for a 29 if only for the fuel capacity. Doesn't take long to burn 58 gallons.

When I bought mine the price difference was 20k everywhere no matter who you bought from. Now, I bet you can get closer pricing by a long shot.

27 is still a very nice single engine boat but the 29 is my favorite single engine boat.

29 without a doubt.

I got rocked on my 27 on the weekends there.

lkn123, how tall are you? I am 6'2", I looked at buying a 27 Fever. While standing in the drivers bolster, the top of the gunnel hit me at mid-thigh, seriously. No way would I feel comfortable in that, so I passed. Not to mention I could bairly squeeze through between the steering wheel and the seat.

No idea how much higher the sides would be on a 29, but something to consider. No joke, the interior layout of the 27 feels like a 22' boat. Beautiful boats, but very small.

There is a 27 Fever on the lift next to my 29 Formula.Its a really small 27 would defiantly look for a 29 or even a 35.If a 35 is a big jump for you hire a licensed captain and get some training and take it easy for a while till you get used to it.Good luck.

Good friend of mine runs a 29 with a 525. Perfect size for our lake. Easy to work on with a single engine and relatively efficient as far as fuel consumption. Another friend runs a 32. Pain in the butt to work on and he is now willing to sacrifice a little room for ease of maintenance and efficiency. I don't like Fountain's but that 29 is a great boat !

One is 23' the other is 25' Ha HA HAAAAA!!

Just kidding Fountain Guys...

27 is a great boat, however the 29 is bigger and between the two go with the 29. As for all the comments on a 29 being faster wish same power it's not true, I have argued this for years and OWNED BOTH and RAN them same side by side. 500efi in both and the 27 was easy 2mph faster. That being said the 29 is still better simply from the additional cockpit space and sits higher in the water, the 29 also obviously rides better.:evilb:

The 29 planed off better also

Trent...Check my FB page for pics of the new toy! :evilb:

Looks unanimous that the 29' is the way to go... Thanks for responding...

I've owned 2 27 Fountains and 3 29 Fountains. First 27 was a 1996 with HP500, 2nd was an 04 with 496HO. The 29's were a 2000 with 500EFI, a 2002 with 575SCi and a 2006 with 525EFI. The 1996 27 and 2000 29 both had the older deck style, and the 27 with HP500 would run right at 76 mph on GPS and the 29 with 500EFI would ran 73.6 on its best run. All of the others were the new style with built in anchor locker and built in ladders (they are a little heavier, too, than the older models). Test reports were 76.4 mph for 27 with HP 500 and 74.5 for the 29 with 500EFI, so the 27 was a little faster with the same hp, even according to Reggie's test reports. The 29 is a slightly deeper boat and rides a little better than the 27, but not night and day difference, like when going from the 29 to our 35 twin step lightning. The 27 and 29 are similar getting up on plane, but the 29 with a 500 noticably a little more sluggish getting on plane. Our 29 with 575 literally would jump on plane, and the 525 boat does ok as well. We also had a 2002 Formula 292 with twin 6.2's in the mix of all those boats and personally did not care for that boats performance. 70 - 72 mph was best that boat ran with twice the maintenance and nearly twice the fuel (although it did have something like 13 cup holders :D ). Not worth it in my opinion. The 29 Fountain single engine is an ideal trailer boat, in my opinion, having owned 6 of the two boats you are comparing.

As a former owner of a 29 Fever which was one of the best boats I've owned I'd get the 29 its bigger and a very nice ride...Mine had twin 350 Mags and was pretty easy on fuel and used it for seven problem free years...It was hard to see it leave the dock when I sold it back in 08'

Pm
 

LKN123,

I sent you a PM.

If your going to buy the 29, I have a very nice 29 with 575 for sale.

29'

I have a 27 Fever with a 454 on Lake Norman and it handles the lake just fine in any weather. I'm used to boating on the St. Lawrence where you can run into bigger waves and a lot more traffic so maybe it's just me. The 29 is clearly a better boat to own, longer is always better and at that length the 2 feet can make a difference. The 27 is about the same size as a 25 outlaw and on this lake that is really all you need. On the St. Lawrence my 27 looks like a little dingy compared to the boats there.

If you get one send me a PM and we'll have to meet up on the lake.

Of any of the guys on Lake Norman has anyone heard of or used Dean Oltz as a mechanic?

Side note - I thought my 27 had a 60 gallon tank but I've put 68 in it before...

I think some of the 27's varied a little bit. Mine is an 03 and holds 58 and i got 60 in it once.

Other year 27's I've heard of held more... Mine is also a wierd tank. Runs long time on full and then just falls to empty right away and you better be close to fuel! Sux.

Do not use Dean Oltz at all!!!!

Drove both a 27 and 29 and owned a 29. Go for the 29 all day long. Also the 29 is better balanced a higher speeds, has larger (thicker) stringers, is fast than a 27 with both boats having the same power...all in all the 29 is a better boat than the 27.

The 29' is still rather limited space wise down below. Can't imagine having even less space.

A 29' is faster than a 27'!Yes with same power!

29
 

Is this boat still for sale?

Go 29, I've got a 29 and have driven a friends 27 a few times, the Diff is huge, and yes the bigger step on the bottom makes a diff as well!!

??????????????Reply t o post this is a test repeat please reply to this post??Anybody?

The only person who will tell you the 27' is better, is the person who owns one. They even built a few 29's with twin BBC's didn't they, that would be a hell of a ride.