BF 250 Performance update

[GEEBASS2000]

I see your posts all over BBC trying to get your Honda/Phoenix dialed in...If after going to great lengths to get your rig setup for maximum performance and your numbers do not improve...Would you still be satisfied with your purchase?

I am doing lots of research on set up because like you said with any other boat I have owned, a stock boat with a stock prop with a tournament load they all were about 72 to 73mph. I agree there is not a lot of info on the Honda set up's period.

I do have to say however I am VERY CONFIDENT that with the right set up the Honda is no more then 5MPH slower then the rest. Right now i'm only 7mph off the highest speeds I ever got with the massive weight I load my boats with for testing. If you are asking if I would be happy with a boat that would always get me back to the weigh in, runs on regular 87 gas, require no 2 cycle oil and be with in 5mph on the top end, my answer is yes.

I don't know about you but most tournaments I fish I can't run the boat at full wot because of the wind and or conditions. In fact when I fish the great lakes tournaments and see that I might have to run in 6 to 8 foot waves for the next 3 days, a lot of times I have gone down a pitch and to a 4 blade prop making my boat 6 to 8 mph slower and still never had the opportunity to break 60 mph all day due to wind. The thousands of dollars of prize money that a lot of outboards have cost me over the years due to failure make me more then willing to give up 5mph.

In the end speed is one factor in this game of ours because less time driving more time fishing and being the first guy to that bed fish do all add up to more pounds and ounces. Speed however is only 1 part of it and I have all too often had a live well with paycheck worth of bass in it and a outboard that won't bring me in. The guys at the service trailers and warranties are great but it does not cover a loss of prize money or points.

[bassmasterffej]

You talk as if you are a touring professional so I did a little research...

[bassmasterffej]

[Hickory Legend]

Jeff, what’s your point??

[GEEBASS2000]

Dude first of all I never said I was a tour pro. Second I think what you posted proves my point, does it not???

When you see a guy that is not a full time tour guy have 4 top 10's with 3 of them top 5's in the Ram series. 4 top 10's and a win at the BFL level. Make every day two cut other then 1 in every BFL super tournament he fished in a decade. I also noticed you did not post my bass ranking from BASS ranking.com for all NY fishermen. I don't see any Canadian tournament data on you post either, that's odd??

The point is how do you think the same guy can bring in A sack some days and other days totally bomb out. Oh wait maybe he had his Mercury kick in to guardian mode with over 21 lbs in the live well due to it's 10th sensor failure. maybe the time the voltage regulator was bad so your 22lb 12oz shows as 12lb 12 oz because you were 10 min late. The best is fishing a tournament on the trolling motor all day because you drive shaft has broke for the 3rd time in 2 years.

Look at your post With a 2012 BFL win that produced $2,985 from BFL $7000 from Phoenix, $1,100 for other contingency's not bad over $11,000 for a day on the water. Believe me when I tell you mechanical failure has cost me Ten's of thousands of dollars over the years, no being able to weigh sacks like the ones that won that event!!!

DO YOU NOT FIND IT ODD THAT YOUR POST SHOWS SEVERAL YEARS with only 1 or 2 tournaments fished on a trail, got to ask your self why would a guys spend $75,000 on a boat and only fish 1 or 2 tournaments that year oh wait maybe it's because the outboard was in the shop half the year??????

I am not saying I'm a tour pro, but I am saying I have spent more then my fair share of time at the service trailer or repair shop and it has cost me a lot of cash over the years. So when you ask me if I would give up 5 mph to know I could actually fish every tournament I register for and make it out and back every day the answer is yes.

[GEEBASS2000]

P.S. something tells me you have no idea what it is like to fish a 3 day tournament and have the marine tech tell you he can not have your issue fixed in time preventing you from going to your fish.

[bassmasterffej]

[Snoopy Rod]

I agree 100%...That's exactly why you buy a Honda...

or a Yamaha, or Suzuki

[GEEBASS2000]

or a Yamaha, or Suzuki

For sure this is TRUE not too often do you see the above at the service trailer. I do have to admit my Yamaha SHO never had any minor issues but I did blow 1 up and replace the powerhead. This is why i'm giving the Honda a try.

[jpvol]

ok guys
I have a 2017 Triton TRX 21
This is my second one, I had a 2014 with a Honda.

Myself and Ray tried several props and the best he ever got out of it was 62 or 63 with a Fury 25 pitch. But that was with the boats empty and a quarter tank of gas. And when I run this one it feels like it plowing through the water.

Friday at the Triton Owners tournament my Fury threw a blade, so I put my spare tempest on. 53 miles per hour. Got a replacement Fury, and I know Ray left two plugs out, just forgot to look at the location before I traded in the prop.

But with that said, Any recommendations on how to set up my boat? I love the reliability of our Honda's, but I am tired of driving a damn barge down the river. The only time my Triton has seen over 57, is when I'm pulling on the trailer with my Duramax!

So please help, or I'm thinking about saying the entire rig and starting over! I tired of fighting it, and just want to concentrate on fishing!!!!!!!!

[bassmasterffej]

Sorry to hear that but thanks for sharing...The 21 TRX is a heavy hull and it's hard to get bow lift...I believe since they had the hull cracking issues back in 2014 they really laid the glass to them...The newer ones don't seem to run as good...With that said my dual console 2018 21 TRX powered by a Mercury 250 XS will consistently run 72-73 mph with two guys (lithium batteries)...I'm also running 2 degree wedges to help with bow lift...What I've noticed is that you have to be running at least mid 60s before the bow will lift enough and allow the boat to reach maximum top end speed...I don't believe the Honda will be able to plow you up to the speed required for adequate bow lift..You have been working with Ray and he probably has more experience with the BF250 on a bass boat than anyone...Every hull is different though of course...If it were me I'd repower with the new Mercury V8 or an Evinrude G2...Either one propped with a stock prop (Fury/Raker/Tempest) will get you at least 70 mph out of the 21 TRX.

[Hickory Legend]

Have you tired a Fury 4 blade 24!

[GEEBASS2000]

Sounds like a lift issue to me. Do you have a hydro jack plate? How much setback? Do you have a hole shot plate under the jack plate? Is it a Honda 250 or 225? Most important of all how many rpm's did you turn with the prop that ran best for you in the past??

I owned two Tritons in my life, one was a original TR21 the other was the fastest hull they ever made the 21HP "high performance". The HP was a full 5MPH faster with the same weight and both being 21 foot so hull does play a big part in lift and speed.

[Hickory Legend]

JPVol, are you sure your in mph and not kts.

[bassmasterffej]

Let's say he is in kts and not mph...That would mean that Ray got his 21 TRX/BF250 to run 71-73 mph...I don't see that happening...The newer 21 TRX models are tanks...They are slugs...They stick to the water and do not want to lift at all...My Pro XS struggles with it until it finally breaks free and I get some bow lift in the mid 60s...The front of my boat is light except for the Ultrex...Keep in mind the fuel tank is also in the middle of the boat...I believe his numbers are legit and in mph but hopefully he will clarify for you.

[GEEBASS2000]

Mid inning's update:

Ok so I got the call today that my Worked Tempest will be in my hands by next week so I should be able to put up my best numbers then. But today I just had to try one more stock prop.


I had the day off, but none of my friends did so I had to fill a spare tackle bag set it on the floor and fill both live wells and fill the gas tank on top of everything else I would have on the boat in a tournament day. I know it's not the same but then again I don't usually have full live wells and full gas lol. Most times I come in empty of gas and full of fish lol.

So I mounted up a 26 FURY 3 blade. I found that the FURY needed to be run much higher then the Tempest for both hole shot and top speed. On my 3rd pass I got my best speed of 70.6 MPH with the the prop running 2.5 Inches below the pad.

Can't wait to see what the worked prop will do!!! Quite frankly I don't think it will do much more but I think it will do about the same "70 to 71" no mater how much weight I put in it or how hot and humid it get's.

[Hickory Legend]

Jeff he stated 53mph that’s around 61 mph.

[bassmasterffej]

He also stated "Myself and Ray tried several props and the best he ever got out of it was 62 or 63 with a Fury 25 pitch."...62-63 kts would be 71-73 mph...

[bassmasterffej]

GEE...What RPM with the 26 Fury 3? Did your hole shot suffer any with the 26 Fury?

This is what is so crazy about the Honda...You are spinning a 26 Fury which is very similar to spinning a 27 Tempest because the Fury runs tall in pitch...You are running the Fury at 2.5" below pad...Typically, the Fury likes to run deep...Deeper than the Tempest even...Previously, your best results were with a Tempest running deep...Over 4" below pad I believe...If you are running 70.6 mph with a 721 loaded the way you are...That's not bad at all.

I believe you are in Marcy, New York? Yesterday's high way 63 degrees...Humidity around 40-50%? Pretty good running conditions...It's much more hot/humid down here in the south.

[GEEBASS2000]

GEE...What RPM with the 26 Fury 3? Did your hole shot suffer any with the 26 Fury?

This is what is so crazy about the Honda...You are spinning a 26 Fury which is very similar to spinning a 27 Tempest because the Fury runs tall in pitch...You are running the Fury at 2.5" below pad...Typically, the Fury likes to run deep...Deeper than the Tempest even...Previously, your best results were with a Tempest running deep...Over 4" below pad I believe...If you are running 70.6 mph with a 721 loaded the way you are...That's not bad at all.

I believe you are in Marcy, New York? Yesterday's high way 63 degrees...Humidity around 40-50%? Pretty good running conditions...It's much more hot/humid down here in the south.

Yesterday was perfect running temps mid 60's. Only in NY can it be June with temps mid 60's lol.

I found that when I ran the 24 tempest at 4in below pad I got my best speeds but if I went up on the jack speed would drop off, Now looking back it might be I was just touching the limiter because my rpm's were 6350 to 6450 most of the time locked at 6400. Now when I went down to a 23 Tempest I was always hitting the limiter and had the speed drop off.

The 26 Fury 3 blade did show signs of a bit slower hole shot but not too bad when I jacked her up then lower it to ideal running height. When I got my best speed it was 2.5 in below the pad, a full inch and a half higher then the Tempest liked to run. The very most RPM's were my best speed and that was aprox 6200 she would bounce down to 6150,6100 and took a long time to get from 69 mph to 70.6 mph. No doubt it is a bit too much prop to run all the time.

I think the answer to the perfect prop for my set up will be either the worked Tempest 24 that will turn more like a stock 25 or a 25 Fury and just have it b&b. Only time will tell but next week I should be able to post final results.

In the end I think that I will have what I set out for a 70mph very reliable boat that should have the lowest cost to run of any of my past boats. No 2 stroke oil to buy and runs on regular 87 gas. When I look back at my last 4 21 foot boat 250 Hp outboards regardless of the hull or outboard brand I never had any of them that could push the massive load I put in it to tournament fish over 74 mph. In the end I think that reliability comes at a cost of less then 5mph with the right set up, I think it will be more like 3mph off the rest with the loads equal.