Hey Bob....wouldn't that be somethin' if somehow we got the heats mixed up and I "accidentally" took yours home - instead of mine. BTW, I should be out your way late this afternoon. Dave

What makes you want to get out of that 25 for the 28? Just curious because I have been looking at these boats semi seriously and I cant decide between the 25 and the 28.

Heat has more head room in the cabin, a couple extra feet for the bigger chop. Size matters. & a sink (don't know why you would need that?) Cockpit & bow are pretty close in size.
Heat needs more power to go fast & needs a bigger truck to tow.
I know a guy with a very clean/fast Rage in the classifieds for sale:drink:

If you still have it around next summer I might have to take you up on it. My boat runs somewhere around 90 and I dont want to loose too much speed when I switch, so your boat would be ideal. I really like the MCOB and that is my main reason for wanting to get a nordic. My goal is to get an open bow cat though.

I've owned and driven just about every size Nordic. The 28 is the perfect size for MY style of boating. The 25 is a great performing boat. The major difference in the 2 is the size of the midcabin and ride. I also like the bolsters in the Heat. The Rage is a bit low for bolsters to work properly. The Rage is a much better boat for water sports. It handles more like a runabout. Stepping up to the Heat feels more like an offshore style boat. It doesn't do well pulling tubers, skiers, etc. The Rage is a very fast hull. The Heat runs about 8 mph slower with the same power. 28-29 feet is about as big as you can go with a single engine. The Rage will run 80+ with 550 HP, the Heat takes another 100 HP to get the same performance. Bottom line is both boats are great. It comes down to how you boat and what you are looking for.

I traded up from a H2X, which I liked a lot, to my Heat, that I like even more. Much larger cabin, better rough water ride, and I wanted to get into a step hull for the additional efficiency. It's definitely a move worth making.
Better call your insurance agent before buying a cat. You may not like the number$.
Regards,
Steve

How does the 28 do pulling a skier, tube, etc compared to the h2x?

My $.02

Someone pointed out earlier that the Heat isn't great for skiing and tubing. Based on my own experience, and while the heat isn't purpose-designed for skiing/tubing, I've found it more than adequate for this type of recreation. We don't ski much -- mostly do tubing -- and I'd say the Heat's biggest weakness in this area is doing an efficient and timely u-turn when someone falls off. Other than that, I think the Heat does just fine for the casual water toy tug and skiier duty.

x2

I pull my kids on tubes, kneeboards, and wakeboards. The Heats weakness is in that it can't u-turn very efficiently as compared to the shorter/more manuverable Rage.

Having driven both extensively...you can see which way I went.
I think that the open bow Heat is one of the most versatile boats around.

I call it "my 100mph wake boarding boat"

Chris

P.S. Tabs are a must for these kinds of activities

Don't know about you Chris, but it's hard for my boat to stay @ wakeboarding speed even w/ tabs down. I do occasionally ski, but that's about 10+ mph faster. I think most of us have old bodies that don't do much of that stuff anymore anyway. They all haul azz & carry beer & boobs & if you have kids that haven't had the blessing of skiing behind a Malibu, Matercraft, etc, they won't mind.