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I'm looking at a 25' Sea Vee center console with a single diesel. I have not ben able to find much info on these boats. I have searched this site and have not seen alot of info either. I would like to know what king of performance you can expect out of these boats, speeds and fuel consumption. How does the boat run in different sea conditions, are these boats typically wet? Also any other positive or negative comments on this boat. I will be using the boat out of Cape May, New Jersey and am looking to use it everywhere from inshore flounder fishing to offshore at the canyons. Any info that you could provide would be greatly appriciated.
I know someone that just bought a 1998 29' Sea Vee with a 270hp Cummins. It does 24k @ 2400 RPM and seems to be really good on fuel. The ride is much better than an outboard Sea Vee and just as dry. Awesome boats!
I had an early 80's SeaVee 25 with a gas inboard. Unbelieveable ride for a 25 footer but it was slow, which of course contributed to the ride. It was a 20 knot cruise boat. WET as a submarine but that may have had something to do with the slow speed and where the water hit the hull. A very simple boat that rode great.
I have a 2005 26 with a single outboard. Great riding boat. I go out when a lot of other boats the same size stay at home. I personally wouldnt have any other boat. I have to trailor so its a good size. And you dont have to buy a tank to pull it with.
I have an 83 25 Sea Vee with a 350 gas engine. 23kts at 9-10gph 3200rpm. The ride is great due to where the engine in mounted. With new boat prices today, any older Sea Vee is a bargin. Also in rough water, the boat will go through some bbigs seas with proper tim usage.
It's a nice hull and rides nice in a chop. I believe the 25' Whitewater and original 25' Contender are the same. Also Rampone. Maybe check the boating forum on FL Sportsman for more input as they are popular there.
I looked into buying one awhile back but never did. My take was that a diesel straight IB may have made sense 25 years ago compared to an old 2-stroke outboard. As far as fuel use. But maybe not these days vs. a modern single outboard. The drag of the running gear, inefficient down-angle of the prop, & weight of the engine make it a slow boat. The gph may not be bad , but if the boat is only crusing around 20 mph, the mpg isn't all that great in the end. If you are looking at one with a Perkins 6-354 (common) bear in mind that the engine & trans alone weighs around 1400 lbs. That is a lot of weight in a 25x8 hull like that. Also, check into Perkins parts prices before you leap. $$$$$.
Personally, I think it is a better hull with a single modern outboard, just because you lose about 800-900 lbs and pick up several knots on cruise speed. Mpg is about the same, and then you have a much newer powertrain to take care of.
It's a nice hull and rides nice in a chop. I believe the 25' Whitewater and original 25' Contender are the same. Also Rampone. Maybe check the boating forum on FL Sportsman for more input as they are popular there.
I looked into buying one awhile back but never did. My take was that a diesel straight IB may have made sense 25 years ago compared to an old 2-stroke outboard. As far as fuel use. But maybe not these days vs. a modern single outboard. The drag of the running gear, inefficient down-angle of the prop, & weight of the engine make it a slow boat. The gph may not be bad , but if the boat is only crusing around 20 mph, the mpg isn't all that great in the end. If you are looking at one with a Perkins 6-354 (common) bear in mind that the engine & trans alone weighs around 1400 lbs. That is a lot of weight in a 25x8 hull like that. Also, check into Perkins parts prices before you leap. $$$$$.
Personally, I think it is a better hull with a single modern outboard, just because you lose about 800-900 lbs and pick up several knots on cruise speed. Mpg is about the same, and then you have a much newer powertrain to take care of.
The old deisels are certainately heavy and not very economical. The thought is to buy the boat and throw a remanufactured cummins 330B into the boat. I am projecting that with that engine the boat should cruise around 30 knots while burning 10 to 11 gallons an hour. My hope would be to have a boat that is getting 3 miles to the gallon with a bomb proof engine.
That plan may work out fine depending on the price of the boat, price of the engine, etc.
Cummins is still about 1300 lbs, though. Modern single outboard around 500-600.
Here's an idea: ask Ariel at Sea Vee. He can probably tell you exactly what speed, fuel burn, ride differences, etc to expect from the various possibilities in a couple minutes on the phone. Confirm it will perform like you want, or see what he thinks is the best setup.
My brother had the 25 with O/B. No nonsense go anywhere fishing machine, great ride. Why have they dropped this model? Would be a sweet setup with a Yamaha 350. You would think the 25's with singles would be nicely positioned in today's market
I second the idea of calling SeaVee. They were helpful w/ my questions on an '88 25' I bought secondhand. Mine has a Honda 225 and it cruises 28 knots at 4100 RPM's;WOT is 38 knots. I'd say slap a bracket on it and hang a 300 Etec or Optimax on it. Or a 225 if you're not a speed demon. Mine squats a little w/ the BF 225 (604 LBS) so I think that 350 Yami would be too much weight for that hull. That motor reminds me of "Lurch"from The Munsters.....
I really prefer the smoother ride of a diesel inboard over the outboard versions. You only give up a couple knots cruise speed and mileage is going to be better with a diesel. Plus you can actually cruise comfortably at 25 knots in rougher seas where an outboard wants to come out of the water.
Don McGee was a charter captain is S Fla years ago, he got in a wreck and hurt badly. He built, with his friend Pete, a 25 footer with an inboard he could use without hurting his back. Someone offered him a price he couldn't refuse and he sold the hull and built another and another and suddenly he was in the boat biz.
I owned a '75 P&D, which stood for "pete and don" which was the forerunner of seavee, rampone and whitewater. He sold the molds,didn't get paid, repoed them, started a business again, etc. That's why several makers hulls were the same. Mine had a 351 ford inboard and a friend had one with a Renault diesel that imitated a bug fogger every start up. I loved the ride and performance.
It's generally a very heavy, steep deadrise great riding hull. I'd have it checked by a surveyor. I had mine apart and she had biggie stringers and looked very sturdy. A 330b might be a little tight in here, but I bet a 240 Yanmar would be great.
The ride is one strong point to those boats. The other thing you will get with a single diesel is incredible range. That would be huge for the long runs you guys make to the northeast canyons. 330 Cummins is a great motor and with the factory reman program they are one of the most affordable. I would at least take a look at a 270 or 315 Yanmar. The weight you will save is significant, plus they should leave you a bit more room for service. If I was a center console guy it would probably be a Sea Vee.
My neighbor has a 1980 with a 350 chevy in it. It is a battlewagon for sure. He replaced the carbed crusader with a 350/350HP port injected crusader and it cruises at 20+ knots easily. Still is kind of a boat meant to go slow. So even though he can go fast (over 30 knots)it is setup to run around 20-24 knots before it is out of it's sweet angle of attack. He trolls all day long on less than 25 gallons. We don't have long runs offshore, and he is not the type to run around the gulfstream looking. He runs out 6-8 miles and puts the baits out, and trolls until it's time to go home, then it's likely a 10-12 mile run home or less.
I run a 25, with a single Volvo 200 w/straight shaft. I burn about 4gph at 20kn cruise (3100 RPM). She rides steady and nice. The weight displacement makes it feel like a tank. When it's flat calm you wish you had another 200 ponies back there to fly, because you can only appretiate the ride when there is a chop or better. She is a wet boat because she doesn't get out of the way of the spray, but eisenglass solved the problem. I also draw close to 3' due to the shaft and rudder. Another thing to consider is the size of the bunks on the trailer (higher than normal) and ramps in your area. There have been times that I have had a tough time getting her off and on the trailer. Other than that, I have over 3700 hours on her and can run and gun all day for dolphin and only use about 30 gallons.
__________________ Capt. Ron
Green Eyed Girl Charters
These are great riding boats and very economical. Tough as nails too. These are the originators of the contender, sea vee, whitewater, etc. line. You can see similar lines through most of the well-respected center console fishing boats of today...
Sea vee 25' center console - Late 70's 
