So any notable differences or handling characteristics of either hull ??? Is the 38 inherently faster because it is shorter and presumed lighter ?? Is it lighter ?? Is it faster ?? is or was there any improvement in design from the Tiger TS to the Top gun ts ??? Is the Tiger better in the rough stuff because of the extra 4 feet ??? Is there a noticeable difference in room the cockpit or cabin in either . Mph Holding a turn ????? Any reason not to but a Tiger TS over a Top Gun ts ???? I'm not crazy about the hood scoops on the engine cover of the Tiger , but otherwise ...

So I see nobody took a stab at this one, so I'll give my .02. In my experience, having been in both hulls, the 38 TG is faster with the power being equal. It is also an easier boat to drive, especially at high speeds. The Tiger has a tendency to want to porpoise more than the TG. The tabs are a big part of driving the Tiger, but once it settles in, its a wave crusher! At cruising speeds, you can drink your Martini with ease. But when the sticks are pinned to the dash is when the Tiger was not very "tame"(you see how I did that?? Tiger...Tame...) over 90 MPH, actually... over 85 it started to become a handful. The one I was in was a 2001 (800HP a side/IMCO drives) which was an early step hull. Somewhere around 2003-2004 I believe they moved the step to help correct some of these issues. On the flip side, the Tiger would plow through waves better than the TG because of its extra length and weight. Both great riding boats, the Tigers bow seems like its a mile long when you are in the cockpit! Its a really cool boat to ride in. They are both awesome boats, good luck!

The 38 is a smaller boat not just in length but also freeboard, 38 weighs less, 38 has a bigger cockpit which makes no sense, 39 and 42 have the same size cockpit,
the 38's are more popular so have higher price, Tiger is an awesome boat and when it gets rough the tiger has the advantage, Bravo drives don't usually last long on a Tiger, hell even on a 38 they are stressed.

A buddy just bought a Tiger out of Texas and sold the Bravos first thing and got imco's, happy lad

Good answers. The Tiger in rough water even with 500's and 525's is a drive eater. Its just a heavy machine. I had a friend on Lake Ontario who was very experienced driver and really only got 25-30 hrs out of XR drives with about 550HP a side NA Motors.

Awesome information. I am boat shopping, and do not have a $300k budget so the lower price on some of these Tigers has got my attention. It seems the beam is wider also .. looking at engine compartment pictures, seems like there is a little more room . Not sure .
I definitely like the profile of the Tiger, has that old school proportions. The drive killer feature is definitely something to take into consideration.
Thanks for the input. And the search continues

They have the same beam, it just that when in the cockpit sides are higher, in a 38 i can reach over and touch the water from drivers area, not even close in the 42, yes there is more room in the engine compartment but agin its much deeper

My Tiger isn't a step hull but i can give you my version. Ive had one drive failure, it was a lower and had over 400 hours on it. mine came with 500s and xrs, ran low/mid 70s and handled everything with ease. when i upgraded the power with the xrs, went to 640 hp ran 82 and again handled everything with ease. added blowers and imco scx transom assemblies and uppers and run sc lowers, 93 mph on the rev limiter and it was on rails. TG has a bigger cockpit, the additional 4 ft is mainly in the helm areas. I don't buy the drive killer label, but i also changed my oil every 25 hours and ran it to Bimini and back and won. that being said every step hull owner that i know said their boat didn't plane as well as mine, that could be because of the steps and that's where the stress was on the drive. i turned my props in and it changed the attitude of the boat tremendously, it carries the bow much easier especially when it was lower powered. porpoising is physics and can happen to any boat, either a bump in rpm or tab fixes it

There’s a reason why twin step tigers are so cheap. It’s probably the worst twin step hull they built, they porpoise like a straight bottom and just can’t carry the nose due to the balance. They fixed it with the 42x

mine doesn't porpoise

And I would rather have yours any day than a twin step tiger.