Looking for Opinions on 96 Stratos FS201 set up

[FrickerDude]

Found a 1996 Stratos FS201 that I will be picking up in the spring (in storage now). The boat is in amazing conditions and does not show it's age at all. It has a 200hp Johnson Venom on the back and I have locally found a 6" Bob's hydro jack for $600 that is only used for one year. I am trying to decide whether or not I should buy the jack for the boat or if I should put the money towards something else. Would it be beneficial or not?
thanks

[astrofsx]

I guess it depends on you. I have a bob's hydraulic action jack on mine and love it. Mine is used more for getting the boat through "skinny water" than anything else though. I go fishing where having that extra height for your prop has paid for itself. Yes, the boat did gain a little speed, but not much. I know some boats really do respond more to the added setback though. Not sure if yours is one or not. Maybe somebody on here has the same boat. I don't know if you can go wrong for $600. You could always sell it on here for that much if it doesn't do what you wanted. On a side note, congratulations on the boat!!! Love to see some pics when you get a chance!
Steve

[12many]

i have a 20ft Fish ski. and the jackplate helped holeshot and little bit of top end but getting prop worked was best bang for buck performance. way more so than jack plate. props offer the biggest performance changes to boat, i have tried 3 props all of which were night and day.

these heavier boats like prop burried for lift to get top speed, so jackplate only really offers a little bit of leverage and a bit lower rpm. the second i lift mine i lose about 2-3mph every inch.

that is a good price for a plate but if i only had the cash to get props or plate , props the way to go.

[svfetter]

My take is a little different. If you really want the boat to perform, you need the jack plate and get the prop worked because they both complement each other. I have a 2002 Javelin / Stratos 200 Fish & Ski with a Rude 225 HO. Stratos installed a 8 inch jack plate at the factory. Not sure how my hull might be different than a 1996 version. Mine likes the motor high. My propshaft is actually even with the pad and I still get a great holeshot trimmed all the way down. I like the Original Rakers. I tried the 4 blade Renegade and it was OK but the Raker was far better.

It will take some trial and error to get her set up, but that is the fun of it. Good Luck with it.

[FrickerDude]

Thanks for the insight. I am still undecided. I think I will run it in the spring without and see how it goes, then if I think I need one I will hope the guy still has it laying around.

[JReidinger]

I have a 1998 201 Stratos F&S with a 2007 225 etec with a hyd jp on it. The boat came with a 99 225 Johnson and a manual jp and the best speed was 65 plus on the gps running a 24 Raker or a 25 DAH gade. I put on a Bobs hyd jp before I upgraded the motor it did not give me any more speed than I had before. I do have hyd steering and with the motor mounted all the way down the steering cyl hits the jp when it is tilted up. I had to move it up one hole to be safe and now a Raker prop burns when the boat comes on plane. I run a DAH 25 gade for everything from tubing to fishing and she runs 67.5 to 65 gps loaded. I have hit 70 plus with a 26 DAH Raker.

[svfetter]

I have a 1998 201 Stratos F&S with a 2007 225 etec with a hyd jp on it. The boat came with a 99 225 Johnson and a manual jp and the best speed was 65 plus on the gps running a 24 Raker or a 25 DAH gade. I put on a Bobs hyd jp before I upgraded the motor it did not give me any more speed than I had before. I do have hyd steering and with the motor mounted all the way down the steering cyl hits the jp when it is tilted up. I had to move it up one hole to be safe and now a Raker prop burns when the boat comes on plane. I run a DAH 25 gade for everything from tubing to fishing and she runs 67.5 to 65 gps loaded. I have hit 70 plus with a 26 DAH Raker.

Sounds like you are pretty much dialed in or very close. I see your speedo reading and of course they are not right. My speedo shows almost 80 when I am actually 68 to 70 MPH GPH. In thinking while I am writing this, Your hull configuration may be a little different than mine and I don't think your Etec has the lighting lower unit. So if you can actually get up to around 70 GPS I think that is pretty good for that setup. I also run DAH rakers exclusively. Where is your center line of prop shaft in relation to the pad?? I did not see where you said above. You already have a great engine and prop, so it's all about engine height while watching that water pressure.

BTW - Mine is 2002 Javelin / Stratos 200 F&S with Detwiler 8 inch manual plate with the centerline of the prop shaft even with the pad. Rude 225 HO. 24 pitch DAH raker. Highest speed - 72 MPH GPH - Mostly 68 to 70 at 5800 RPM. Plenty fast for me.

[JReidinger]

I have the magnum gearcase on her and with the speedo at 75 it is 68gps. I have hit 78 on the speedo and that's 70 gps. I do have 2 radar guns with one being a stalker pro and it reads about the same as the gps. There seems to be about 1 mph difference between the 2. My boat is somewhat loaded with anchors,7 fishing poles, spare raker prop,6 life preservers ,ect. My tach says 6k and I think if I took everything out of her I might pick up 1 or 2 mph.lol

[svfetter]

I don't think you can get much more out of her. To me, those are pretty good numbers. I would be curious to know how high the motor is when you are running 70. You certainly don't want to run that engine more than 6K, and ideally keep it around 5800 max.

[JReidinger]

here's a video of her running. https://www.youtube.com/watch?featur...&v=VZMwHUyzhDc

[JReidinger]

I do have a stock 27 gade and that takes forever to get top speed. No lift and it runs 66,67 gps and a stock 24 Raker runs 67 gps.

[svfetter]

Video looks great. I believe a 27 in the glade is probably to much. I ran a 25 when I had one. Get your prop worked by DAH and you won't regret it.

[JReidinger]

That run is with a DAH 25 gade. I have a few props and here's my current list.
I did have a land&sea torque shift prop. That was a awesome ski prop and really hard on gas.LOL!!!
23 gade
DAH 25 gade
27 gade
2-24 Rakers
DAH 26 Raker

[Anthony714]

dont mean to bogart his post but since you guys talking props and stratos fs........... i got the 201, repowering it this week with a warmed up 225, fingerposrt, reeds, port job.. builder said should dyno 240-245ish... looking for a good ballpark prop to start. its 50/50 fish and ski duty so max speed isnt the issue and there no jack plates, just factory set up... 23" ?

[svfetter]

dont mean to bogart his post but since you guys talking props and stratos fs........... i got the 201, repowering it this week with a warmed up 225, fingerposrt, reeds, port job.. builder said should dyno 240-245ish... looking for a good ballpark prop to start. its 50/50 fish and ski duty so max speed isnt the issue and there no jack plates, just factory set up... 23" ?

24 Pitch Original Raker / Maybe a 23 Glade if you prefer a 4 blade

[JReidinger]

24 Pitch Original Raker / Maybe a 23 Glade if you prefer a 4 blade

I would go with a 24 raker. I used to pull 3 tubes with it on a stock 225 Johnson. the 25 gade is my best all a round prop for my etec.

[FrickerDude]

Well finally got to go look at it and ended up buying it. Was not able to open it up all the way to see what she would really do, but it rode nice. Cant wait the weather to warm back up so I can get some readings and numbers. It has a 25p Renegade on it now.

[JReidinger]

Looks nice. I'd try a 22 or a 24 Raker on it. A stock gade does not have enough bow lift in it to get the nose up.

[FrickerDude]

Had fantastic weather up in MIchigan and was able to take to boat out yesterday to see what she would do. I was able to max out at 57.0 mph at 5700 RPMs with the 25p Renegade. I would like to get another prop as a spare and what not. What should I look for, with the numbers I posted should I still stick to the recommendations above?