JeffM wrote:
In looking into purchasing a 31 TE, I did talk to one person who has an older one with a single 315 hp Cummins 6B. The claims 14 knot cruise at 2400 RPM and 20 knot max speed at 2800 RPM. Tony believes these figures are a bit optimistic. So we were looking for performance figures from others with this set up.
Jeff Moerer
I sold that boat to the original owner and actually had to talk him up to that engine. He was a sailor and just wanted an 8 knot boat. I wasn't happy about it, but a sale is a sale.
Once he got the boat and went out with his buddies, he wasn't so happy about the 8 knots. The boat had a hard time getting over the hump and on plane, and his dingy on davits didn't help. We ended up putting a "planeing board" on the transom to add to the waterline length and that at least got the boat over the hump.
I'd guess 14 knots lightly loaded might be real, but 20 sounds awfully optimistic. When I was selling my 31 (450 Cummins), one potential buyer had me take pictures of the gps and tach while running. Why don't you do the same, but up current and down current.