how much power is too much power? for a 25' baja
 

just curious, my buddy has a 98 25 outlaw and i have a 89 sport 250 and we are having a debate on how much power the boats can handle. is there a speed that is too fast for these boats to safely be opertated?

you might want to ask this in the Baja Section.

this applies to 25' boats in general

Is this a trick question?:drink:

lol it might be!

With hydraulic steering, K-Planes and a blueprinted hull, I think the main limiting factor would be the two things hanging between ones legs...:D

ok that brings up more questions, what size of k plane is ideal on a boat this size and do you need a single or dual ram setup for the steering? is there a limit on what the transom will take?

You'll run out of money before balls.....Outdrives will be your limiting factor, trust me.

like was said above,with enough money anything can be made fast.
After that its a matter of being able to drive it to that limit.
that takes skills and balls.
With a big enough engine and something like an Arneson drive for example there wont be enough boat in the water for the hul to make any difference.
Look at the videos of the guy with the small Donzi and the arneson,
90% of the time only thing in the water is the prop.
Of course I imagine you and your freind were just bench racing and dont really plan to spend a hundred grand+ to find out the limit of a Baja 25 ?

With the right setup anything is possible. I am running mid 80's GPS with a 24 outlaw with a good deal more throttle left. It is stable as long as there is some chop. In real smooth water it is a handful even at 70-75 . I am not pushing it any further until I get my K-planes (380s) and Hydraulic steering on it. (I know I am pushing it to far without hydraulic steering already) Weight distribution makes a big difference too. A couple of people in it helps considerably with the stability.

IMO, 80-85 mph is about all they can safely. If you're going to run that fast, you need dual ram steering(preferably full hyd and not just add on) and 280 or similar Kplanes. It will take 600-650hp to get 80-85mph.

How about a 25' Islander, lots of freeboard, one lifting strake per side. 540 cid 700 HP, full hydraulic steering, Max Machine drive, Bravo One 78 mph @ 5600, tried a 2" Imco lower gave us another 2 mph. I think the Outlaw would have better results, unless the hull is the same.

Rode in my brother-in laws 25 outlaw last weekend - blown 540 - 765hp, sportmaster, full hydraulic twin ram steeing, k-planes. Saw 88 on gps @ 5600rpm with a 28p Bravo one in calm water. It felt very solid, little bit of chine walk but nothing unsettling.

Performance Boating & Alchemy
 

Read my post on Whipple versus Magnacharger, for my opinions and suggestions on putting big power in certain boats especially when budget is a concern.

Best Regards,
Ray @ Raylar

Very interesting ! I have a 232 islander with 650 hp and Im maxing out at 76 mph and have been wondering what a -2 lower would do for me. Did you see any probs arising from the -2 , getting on plane , chine walk change anything of interest? thnx sj