can 50hp engine push 16ft. bass boat?

[Snobike Mike]

Re: can 50hp engine push 16ft. bass boat?

I knew somebody with a Princecraft 166 with a 50. It would probably do about 27 mph max with 2 guys and mid fuel (speedo showed 30 but we all know how accurate those are).

Cheers.

 

[superwooter]

Re: can 50hp engine push 16ft. bass boat?

i don't guess anything new can be added to the discussion at this point, but i feel like throwing my .02 in the pot anyway.

my granddad has a 16' Terry ALUMINUM bass boat.
i have a 16' Champion FIBERGLASS bass boat.

both have a similar draft and basically the same hull shape.

his with a 50hp merc will run side by side with mine and its 70hp merc.

since the fiberglass weighs more than the aluminum it needs more umph to push it.

really though, i guess the most important thing to consider is the capacity plate and that you surely don't want to be at 55% capacity.

 

[davidggore]

Re: can 50hp engine push 16ft. bass boat?

I own a 2006 16-Ft Triton 1650. It is rated for a max of 60HP. I run a Mercury 50HP EFI 4-stroke just fine. My top speed average is 32 MPH with myself and gear in the boat running a 15-pitch aluminum prop. Hole-shot is ok with a 4-5 sec plane time but could be much better with a lower-pitch prop. If money is not an issue, I would suggest you run the highest-rated horsepower motor your boat was designed for.

If I had to buy mine again I would have purchased the 60HP just to have that extra 10HP and probably 5 MPH top-end speed.