34 Sea Vee vs. 34 Venture

[BLUE DOLPHIN]

I have the ac, micro and inverter rarely use it. did an overnight to the Beaudreax rig in september 125 miles out used 100 gal fuel bladder on aft deck. Have the bow thruster, rarely use it with twin outboards. Wife likes the cuddy to snooze during all day trolling trips. Cabin vents pretty good with forward hatch and can nap even in south texas summer if have light breeze while trolling.Boat on triple trailer tows well, is going to winter in Key West. Plan on three day trip to tow around gulf, don't have the fuel to go straight across(900Miles)

[Schmaltz~Herring]

How is the boat to trailer? What's your tow vehicles?

[David M.]

I have a Dodge 1 ton 4X4 single wheel truck. It works just fine. Just be sure and get a trailer with good brakes. I weighed my boat and it weighs 15,000 lbs. That was with half a tank of diesel and before the inverter and batteries.

[Schmaltz~Herring]

Originally Posted by David M.

I have a Dodge 1 ton 4X4 single wheel truck. It works just fine. Just be sure and get a trailer with good brakes. I weighed my boat and it weighs 15,000 lbs. That was with half a tank of diesel and before the inverter and batteries.

How far do you trailer? I trailer my Whaler on a triple axle/torsion about 700 miles from ATL to South Florida every year, in Atlanta and Jacksonville it's a white knuckle drive. I have a Sierra Crew Cab/Duramax for a tow vehicle. 15K is a lot of weight!!!

[David M.]

I keep the boat at my house in Huntsville, TX 2 hours North of the nearest port. Most of the time I fish out of Matagorda or Freeport both being around 2.5 hours away. I pulled the boat with a GMC duramx prior to the Dodge. The Durmax pulled a little better and the Dodge stops better. Both fine for pulling the boat. I think the key is having a trailer made to handle that big of a boat. My trailer is a 21,000 lbs triple axle with load range E tires and brakes on 2 axles. Fill free to call me with any questions @ 936-661-1600.

David

[narrab]

Originally Posted by Venture34

As usual, kerno's post is fact laden and thorough... x2 on most of his points.

All due respect SeaHorse, you must be a speed demon. There are those of us out there that want the functionality of a CC without wanting a 60 mph top end so when you say performance you should substitute that word with speed.

We all agree, it is not a speed demon. Coming from my Contender 25 which was a rocket, I would gladly trade speed for comfort any day. I cruise 30kts at 4800 rpms and am very comfortable with the ride at that speed and the economy of it.

Fully laden with fuel and 1000lbs of ice, yes it is a tad sluggish but how often on my canyon runs would I be able to run 35kts because of the seas? VERY FEW.

I repropped also and can plane at 18 knots on my boat (suprisingly thirsty at that speed in all fairness). There has not been a sea state that I have experienced that has either been dangerous or uncomfortable.. and that includes standing breaking waves 'beam to' in the rips of Montauk....

Agree, get as much HP as you can on the hull - 300s would be a nice upgrade from the f225s I now run.

I can't comment on the SV 34 but I am sure it is a sweet ride....

So my answer is if speed is your #1 priority look elsewhere. If quality, functionality, and stability is more important to you than the Venture is the choice.


I would hold out for a newer or repowered V34 with 300hp.... Good luck.

Venture 34

I read Seahorses post and do not understand why you came to the conculsion that he is a speed demon! He is stating that the boat will not stay on plane below 30 knots and suggests that you need more power to enable the boat to do this. At no point did he mention top speed on the post. The way I read his post. I am sure that he would be happy to have given up 10 miles per hour of top speed if it meant that his boat would stay on plane at 20 mphs.

[BLUE DOLPHIN]

My trailer is a float on with 3 7200 lb axles and disc brakes on all axles. I pull with a 2008 dodge cummins diesel 3/4 ton 4x4 short box. 8-12 mpg at 65 mph.

[kerno]

None of these boats are particularly light weight. My Venture 34 suddenly seems light by comparison at about 11,000 on the trailer with 200 gallons of fuel and 50 gallons of water. I towed it from Florida to California with a 2WD F-250 diesel. No problems on a 15,000 pound trailer and I don't drive slowly.

[Schmaltz~Herring]

I think the V has a better finish than the CV, ie hinges with no screws showing,but the head under the console on the V is a no do, especially at my age, getting up 2-3 times a nite. I would expect to do quite a bit of overnites and travel up the ditch.

The cv cabin does look a bit spartan in terms of teak, holly sole, etc.

[venture39]

If anyone has any questions about Venture boats please feel free to ask via email or my cell 954-815-6455 I am the service manager and house broker at Venture Marine, Inc. Thanks,Byng Osborne

[Schmaltz~Herring]

Thanks, I liked the 34 V at the FTL show but not having a head in the cuddy cabin is a no go for me.

[sundancekid]

I have spent a lot of time in both boats and feel that both are fantastic fishing boats and extremely capable. My feeling is that the Venture feels more solid than the Sea Vee and runs flatter, very little tab input is needed to keep the bow down in a head sea. With a pair of 275s, the Venture is certainly not under powered, I have seen 53 with a light load and right at 50 full. With the tab pocket vents and wedges, the boat will maintain plane at any speed you would want. Step up to 300 Verados, and the boat will run 54 with a full load of fuel and 56 lightly loaded, plenty of speed and certainly no slouch. As far as layout goes, the Sea Vee is better than the older Ventures with a flat deck and more storage/livewell space. However, Venture has narrowed that gap now with the Tournament with a flat deck and two livewells now.