Rick,
I've been remiss in keeping the forum up to date!
The boat is "done" with the exception of putting on the bimini top. I've installed some stainless grab rails, the Garmin 340C color fish finder, a Garmin 492C GPS, and a VHF.
I've only had the boat out once this winter (over Thanksgiving). The "new" engine was having trouble idling but ran great at speed. The mechanic is looking at that this week, in fact. The boat is 4.5 hours away from me which makes it difficult to do the little things to it.
My impressions from the short time I had it in the water?...
1. It is a light boat compared to my other boats and jumped on plane very quickly. I hit WOT for a very short time and the numbers were still climbing from the lower 40kt area. I ran out of river to reach terminal velocity (congested and had to slow down). Cruise appears to be around 35kt. I will have more detailed numbers next month.
2. The trim tabs work well. I haven't figured out the optimal trim yet but the boat responds very well to the trim tabs.
3. The boat turned and rode very well. I was very pleased with the stability while turning....no significant sliding.
4. The Garmin 340C with the Airmar thru-hull transducer is fantastic! I had great bottom readings at all speeds. While moving slowly the resolution was great!
I'm sure I'm missing something but that is what I remember at this point.
My pictures are in the gallery. I'll take some water shots next month.
