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Help me decide: Twin 32" ellipticals or Standard Perf Package?

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bellbuoys

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I have narrowed my search for a 22' Bennington down to two boats - both have the 150 hp Yamaha engine. One is equipped with twin 32" ellipticals, the other with the standard performance package.

Our intended use is all-around pontooning, with periodic skiing, tubing, wakeboarding. We are on an inland lake - no rough waters etc.

My search started with an ESP, but am being told I'd not see much benefit with just a 150 HP and should stay with the Standard Perf Package.

We have sons in their early 20's that seek a certain thrill (Dad, too). Any thoughts on my configuration question?

Many thanks!
 
We just launched our 2375 GCW with the express toon package. I think that is the same as the standard. We have 150 Yamaha and the boat is awesome. I looked at ESP and SPS and both added weight and cost. The ESP would have required at least a 200 or 250 to give the same performance. See if they will take you for a test ride. I know you won't be disappointed.
 
Load it up the first time ...... not worth saving now and wishing later !!!
 
Thank you for your reply. As I understand it, the Express Tube is about a 2/3 full length tube, while the Standard is a full length 25", and the ESP the elliptical 32" third tube.Great to hear you are pleased with performance, and your comments confirm that ESP is a bit of overkill for a 150 HP. - - I pick up different advice from different dealers, shaped to some degree by what they have in stock, of course! The dealer with the Standard package is about 90 miles away, but will make the trek and insist they put it in the water for a test before I sign.

Again, thanks!
 
Welcome and where do you boat?
 
If budget allows, I'd go for the ESP ... you have a 150 now, but if you are like most of us, that may change down the road, but you will have a boat that will handle a bigger motor if you upgrade. Def. cheaper to upgrade motor later, than to upgrade the boat ... right Derrick .... :lol:
 
I don't disagree but the ESP also adds about 400 lbs. The performance with the 150 will suffer. I struggled with the same decision. Best of luck and welcome to the club!!
 
I don't think I even have a term at the bank, I'm just making weekly payments for eternity!! What can I say, I'm hooked on that new boat smell.!!! I would look for a 22' with ESP, and a 200SHO motor, WAIT A MINUTE! I know where one is for sale!!! Hope you like RED!! Haha

If you think this will be the last boat you ever buy, then what series are you getting? S,G,R ? 20 year old boys and a kid at heart dad...... I'd say tri toon. I like the Twin elliptical, they are faster hp to hp than the tri toons, but I know I LOVE the turning and handling of my ESP! I wouldn't rule it out. My 200 was doing a little over 42mph, and I think someone else had a bit higher still. Try to get what you want the first time, I did the second and the third time, wife says there won't be a fourth.
 
glorey said:
I don't disagree but the ESP also adds about 400 lbs. The performance with the 150 will suffer. I struggled with the same decision. Best of luck and welcome to the club!!
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The ESP also adds more buoyancy.
 
I have an RCW with the ESP package and a 250 outboard. And it rocks. Maybe others can comment, but I thought the tri-toon also gave the added benefit of smoothing out the chop. And I boat on a very choppy lake on the weekends. So if you fit the same bill and decide on the pontoon, wear the same color of shirt as the wine you drink! :D
 
You might consider at 24 foot boat. Wife, kids, girlfriends/wives, grandkids... You may need more people capacity that a 22...

Someone asked what model... I think what they were getting at is you wouldn't put two 23' tubes on a Q. Conversely, you may not want ESP on an S either. Mixing opposite extremes generally isn't a good idea (with anything in life), unless you are SURE what it is that you want.

Check out Rocky's boat. G model, but suped up very nicely. If I had the same dollars to spend as Rocky, I would be hard pressed to not get his setup.

One other thing, if your lake is small, you will be turning a lot, which leans you toward the ESP...
 
I ordered our and started with 2 regular tubes and a 150, then before production went to twin ellipticals, the before production, upgraded to ESP and 250. I have only been out on ours for the original shake down run which was 3 weeks ago. I still have the ear to ear grin on my face. Ours finally goes in for the summer thus Friday.

I agree with kaydano on the 24' suggestion. Our first was a 20' Harris, that lasted one season, then went to the 24' Harris. We now have the 2550 RBR. After we purchased it at the boat show I started over-thinking the decision; "did I make a mistake and go too large this time?" Well after the shake down run I can tell you, yes to Bennington, yes to ESP, and yes to putting the biggest friggin motor you can afford to put on. You won't regret it.

btw, yes to this forum, great people with excellent advice.

Welcome aboard and good luck with your decision. You can't go wrong with whatever Bennington you choose.
 
I have the ESP on a small lake and I feel it's even more important in that situation. The handling is truly unbelievable, enhancing the safety IMHO, and I can hold my own in terms of acceleration and top end with anything on the lake if I need to. I came from a tournament ski boat and this boat gives nothing up to it.
 
Thanks, all, for some very helpful, humorous, and perhaps expensive advice. Over the course of the day, the focus remains with two dealers, both offering 22' G series boats, and both now with ESP. The first is a 2012 demo, with 150 HP Yamaha. The second is brand new, and has the 200 HP Mercury. Difference in price is roughly $7,000 before final negotiations (2 different dealers) perhaps not out of line (?)

I normally lean toward new, but have anecdotally heard that Yamaha makes better engines than Mercury. I'm sure there are polarized opinions on this point!

Getting a 200 HP or 225 HP Yamaha will likely mean special order in my geography.

This should be the last boat, but my wife only rolls her eyes at that claim, given the number of last boats (and houses) we have owned.

With both reluctance and enthusiasm, I throw the choice out to the forum......
 
Decisions, decisions. I know what your going thru. Thought I would give you some thought on the ESP. I have. 2010 2275 RLI with ESP and a Yamaha 150. Needless to say I LOVE it. Could it do better with a 200 or 250, yea, but wouldn't any boat do better with more HP. You mention "thrill" in your post, the ESP will give you that with the 150 due to its ability to turn so much better. This makes the "thrill" of tubing so much better. With a 15 pitch prop, mine will run 41 mph with two people on board but would only run 32 to 33 with a typical load. I traded props to a 4 blade power prop and now run 38 with two on board, but can now run 35 with a typical load and pulling a slolam skier. In my opinion, if your looking for thrills, the ESP is the only way to go. You might lose 1to 2 mph, but the turning ability is worth it.

Good luck
 
If you have any opportunity to test drive an ESP with a Yamaha SHO and/or Merc Verado your decision might well be made. I drove both, and ended up with the Verado, but would have been thrilled with the Yamaha too. Just pick the one that has the service to go with it, which is what I did. Be prepared to ante up on the option box though, including power steering, an expensive option. On the other hand, Bigtop laid it out really well that the 150 does the job really well too. Top speed is overrated, especially on an open pontoon with passengers, where it gets really windy. Midrange punch and handling is everything, and most useful for water sports, as he is saying. Go for that and you'll still be a happy camper.
 
Bigtop said:
.... With a 15 pitch prop, mine will run 41 mph with two people on board but would only run 32 to 33 with a typical load. I traded props to a 4 blade power prop and now run 38 with two on board, but can now run 35 with a typical load and pulling a slolam skier.
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Did you go with the same 15 inch pitch on your 4 blade? I'm looking at going from 3 to 4 blades, and curious if I should stay with the same pitch I have now or not.

I also have a 15 inch pitch, and your post makes me wonder if my 15 inch pitch is wrong since I don't have a 150 (mine is 115). Maybe I should be going with a 13 or 14 (if they make a 14).
 
I went back with a 13 pitch 4 blade with aggressive cupping. With a 115 I would think a 13 would be right as well. The diameter and cupping make a lot of difference and are just as important. I went with "Power Tech" props. They have been a outstanding company to work with. If you call them and tell them what your current boat, motor and prop is, then tell them what you want out of a prop change, they will recommend the prop for your needs. The BEST thing with them is that if the prop doesn't work like you expected, they will let you send it back for another with only a restocking fee. I doubt this happens as they got mine right the first time. Also be sure you get the "cushion lock hub" system for their hub as it greatly reduces the stainless backlash problems with the new four stroke engines.
 
I find that the Express Performance Package does a very good job with the Yamaha F150. My 24SSLX is running 40 mph @ 6000 rpm's with a 15 pitch Reliance prop.

The same boat with elliptical hulls (and strakes) has been reported on this forum @ 42 mph. However ellipticals are more expensive than the performance hull. While ellipticals have good weight carrying capabilities (vs. 25" twin toons), it's doubtful they'll handle quite as well as the Express hull.

I consider the Express Performance package to get 90% of the benefits of a full length middle toon at substantially less cost. I find it a very good compromise in cost/performance.
 
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Ok you guys have me really interested now that you're talking about props. I have an I/O (see full description at the end of this post of my boat) with a 3 blade stainless prop....I want to say 15.5 x (???). Would going to a 4 blade be in my interest?????
 
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