??? V20 Sizes ???

S

Seacurity

Member
I have been researching Wellcraft, Pro Sport, Aquasport and Mako looking to find a good trailer queen family fishing/water sport boat to use mainly on the LI Sound. I have heard rave reviews about the V20 and have pretty much decided that's where I am headed. My question is, what is the largest CC or DC V20 made? I have seen 18s, 20s and 21s but nothing larger than that.
 
V21 is the largest in the steplift V hull configuration. V20 is actually 20'6" long. V21's are really the same boat (I know, I know, the windshield is different, etc.) But they are still V20 steplift hulls. The reason they are called 21's is because the motor well on the transom adds some extra overall length to the boat. Wellcraft stopped making them in the 90's for some silly reason. :head:
 
Thanks for the clarification. I was on board a 19' Mako last week and it seemed tiny compared to the V20. Seems as though Wellcraft did very well with the design and layout of the V20. Both boats were CCs.
 
spareparts said:
didn't we have a discusion about a V23 at one time?
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The discussion might have been before my time Spare. I'm not aware of a V23, but if there was one I'd be happy to retract my statements and stand corrected. I know there was the pseudo flybridge Wellcraft called the Suncruiser? Is that what you're talking about? I really don't know. I thought that the 21 was the largest steplift V they made. :head:
 
Spare, I stand corrected.. (Thanks for that info Ferm). I've never seen either of them before (23 or 24) Although I've seen several Airslots in those sizes through the years.
Oh, and it was the Sportsman I was thinking of when I mentioned the Suncruiser? I knew it wasn't the right name, but it was the only one I could recall.
So there you have it Seacurity.. Looks like the largest true steplift V was a V24 (although super rare). :head:
 
Seacurity said:
Now that's what I'm talkin about! Its not a V though. What is the major advantage of and what distinguishes a V? Hull?
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The V line from WELLCRAFT were called steplift hulls. They were based off of the famous Ray Hunt 24 1/2 degree deep vee hulls that made the FORMULA 233, and most all of the smaller BERTRAM's(20-28 footers) famous. Basically they took the 24 1/2 degree deep vee hull and dropped it back to a 20 degree vee at the transom, but maintained the sharp deep entry and added in a Carolina bow flare to it to keep the spray down. This resulted in a slightly slower hull in a rough sea, but required less HP to push it as deep vee hulls are very power hungry to get on plane even with the 6 lifting strakes. It was basically a compromise hull. The 248 is only a 18 degree deadrise at the transom, and the 228 is only 16. Less transom deadrise means it takes less HP to push it on plane and to speed, but is flatter which results in more of a pounding in a heavy sea under way. BUT a hull with less deadrise and a sharp bow angle tends to be stable at anchor whereas boats with a deep vee can snap from one side to the other while drifting or at anchor.

Personally I feel the best compromise hull design built was the POTTER built SEACRAFTS with the variable deadrise hulls. The 23 SEACRAFT has a sharp entry(even sharper than that of the FORMULA 233 or BERTRAMS), but has a multi-angle deadrise in the transom where the bottom is 24 1/2 degrees and working up to the outside is only 18 degrees of deadrise. But my DREAM boat is a BERTRAM 25 flybridge with a single BRAVO 3 I/O set-up and a small block in front of it.
 
I'd have to second what Ferm said about the 23 SeaCraft, I don't think there is a better 23 hull out there(its a big 23 as well). I've run SeaCrafts, 233 Formulas, Gradys, Contenders, Regulators(pretty nice), and a bunch of other hulls, but I haven't seen a 23 to equal the SeaCaft in ride and efficiency, it can be a bit wet though. I have to one up Ferm on the dream boat though, I want a 26 Bertram, with a pair of outboards on a bracket. The 25 is a better looking boat, but that 26 bertram is a better hull.
 
So while we are at it and there seems to be some very knowledgeable members responding, how do the following manufacturers compare to Wellcraft in the V20 category;
Mako, Shamrock, Privateer, Aquasport ? ? ?
 
I know people that love the Mako's, I personally don't care for them, once you get one big enough to go offshore, they take big power to push it, the smaller ones are decent inshore boats, their compartment drain system can be a nightmare to repair.
Aqua sports were pretty cool back in their earlier years, I don't like any of them with the high deck(area above the rub rail), they have a history of poor construction in the later years. I recently looked at a 22 with the low deck, its a great looking boat, long and narrow, looks kinda like a panga
Shamrocks are a nitch boat, takes the right person to have one, they are not for every one. That being said, I think they look pretty cool, with a diesel it would be a cool boat to own. The gas inboards drink an obscene amount of fuel. Can't do much in shallow water with them, and regardless of power, they aren't going anywhere fast.
Privateers are comercial boats, very simular to Parkers and C Hawks, Parkers are a bit nicer. Most of them usually have very little dead rise at the stern, makes them ride a bit rough. They are built like a tank. Not many of them around as they are a small manufacture, only have one dealer.
 
spareparts said:
I'd have to second what Ferm said about the 23 SeaCraft, I don't think there is a better 23 hull out there(its a big 23 as well). I've run SeaCrafts, 233 Formulas, Gradys, Contenders, Regulators(pretty nice), and a bunch of other hulls, but I haven't seen a 23 to equal the SeaCaft in ride and efficiency, it can be a bit wet though. I have to one up Ferm on the dream boat though, I want a 26 Bertram, with a pair of outboards on a bracket. The 25 is a better looking boat, but that 26 bertram is a better hull.
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I absolutely LOVE the 26 BERTRAM, but I know it requires a bit more HP to push and there pretty rare. I want a boat with long range to it myself that can cruise pretty economically, AND do a couple overnighters comfortably.
 
Ferm, I got educated by a guy who had a 26 bertram with a single 225 opti, I told him it was probably a pig, he said it would run 42 mph before he put the tower and bottom painted it, after wards, it ran 37mph, he was able to cruise at 30mph , burning hardley any fuel. I called BS, he assured me that it would do it. I started researching it on line, found a mercruy boat house bullitin where a 26 was run with a pair of 150 V6 back in '76. The boat had a factory hardtop on it and ran close to 60. You figure the old 150's were close to 135(270 total) as rated today, combined with the weight of twins(around 700 lbs) compaired to a 225 Opti (closer to 240 hp), weight of a single (500 lbs), that performce claim of 42 doesn't seem to far off. I've ridden in a couple of 26 bertrams with 4.3 MPI's(220 hp each) that I saw 61 on the GPS at WOT. There are two of the 26's here locally that Cummins has been running, one with twin 1.6L Merc(Isuzu) 135 hp motors, and one with twin Merc(VM) 150 hp engines. Don't know the performance on them, but I know they have run the snot oout of them. I'd love to have a 26 with a pair of 225 Optis or 200 4 strokes
 
spareparts said:
Ferm, I got educated by a guy who had a 26 bertram with a single 225 opti, I told him it was probably a pig, he said it would run 42 mph before he put the tower and bottom painted it, after wards, it ran 37mph, he was able to cruise at 30mph , burning hardley any fuel. I called BS, he assured me that it would do it. I started researching it on line, found a mercruy boat house bullitin where a 26 was run with a pair of 150 V6 back in '76. The boat had a factory hardtop on it and ran close to 60. You figure the old 150's were close to 135(270 total) as rated today, combined with the weight of twins(around 700 lbs) compaired to a 225 Opti (closer to 240 hp), weight of a single (500 lbs), that performce claim of 42 doesn't seem to far off. I've ridden in a couple of 26 bertrams with 4.3 MPI's(220 hp each) that I saw 61 on the GPS at WOT. There are two of the 26's here locally that Cummins has been running, one with twin 1.6L Merc(Isuzu) 135 hp motors, and one with twin Merc(VM) 150 hp engines. Don't know the performance on them, but I know they have run the snot oout of them. I'd love to have a 26 with a pair of 225 Optis or 200 4 strokes
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That's odd then as the early 80's 26 foot MOPPIE with a pair of 200's only said to hit the mid 50's to low 60's. I want to build up a single I/O with a BRAVO 3 myself. Something that can have an easy 250-300 miles of range and overnight. I may be broke as a joke right now:nut:, but I can still dream:beer:.
 
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