Ran the 225X

[JOEALLY]

Well, I ran my new to me 2004 225X today. The only prop I had was my 28 chopper II. I was hard on the limiter of course (6800) at 87 and some change.
A couple initial observations:
1. When you are accustom to the idle of an optimax, the 225X idles rough :gasp
2. The sportmaster definitely lifts the stern more than a coned 200 case.
3. The coned 200 case handles a little better than a stock sportmaster.
4. The 225X is noticeably stronger (should be - its a 225)
5. The 225X is thirstier than the 200XS.
And finally 6. I need a bigger wheel :cool

Overall, I liked how it ran out. Now to get the setup dialed in on this one:banghead

 

[2003225X]

Sounds pretty good. The limiter on a 2004 225X is 6850. What kind of load did you have in the boat when you ran it? I would be looking for more speed out of a 28 pitch @ 6850.

If you think that 225X idles rough you don't want a 280!

 

[catfish123]

I agree for sure from our experience with several different 28 pitch Chopper II props.........I would definitely expect more than 87 mph into the 6850 limiter. But of course, as always, there certainly can be reasons for it. I have had experience with 2 different 225X's and they both idled VERY smooth.

 

[JOEALLY]

I felt like my motor was actually hitting the limiter at about 6750-6775. I have a smart craft and only saw 6800 once or twice, it seemed to hit the limiter just before that.

The 28 chopper II was bought used and it has been worked, so I'm not sure exactly what it is at this point. It may have been pitched down a little.

The motor idled fine, but if you've ever owned an optimax, you know what I'm talking about, they are SMOOTH idling.

I had a medium load, 3/4 fuel, 1 man, fishing stuff, extra prop, tools, cooler, etc.

It got to the limiter in a hurry for sure.

 

[ssv1761982]

You are correct, the "X" motor idles ruff compared to the Opti.

I am glad to hear you got it out. I would guess you'd need a little different setup with the different lower unit.

 

[JOEALLY]

So, thinking about this and here's 2 things i know:

1. 87 mph (had 2 gps in boat, both showed 87)

2. Definitely on limiter, although i seemed like 6750-6775 (got the smart craft "bell & engine" icon for exceeding max Rpms)
The regular tach was in agreement with the smart craft.

So, if that is less speed than a "28" chopper II should run, and this prop was worked, does it seem to indicate that the prop is smaller than a 28?

Or ?????

 

[catfish123]

Hi Joe......it's possible it's just not as steeply pitched as the 28 Chopper II's were that I have had. When the weather clears up this spring, I'll let Matt run my current 28 Chopper II on his XB2003 with 225X to see what the top end on it is into his limiter. I have had 3 different 28 Chopper II's and I would say that 2 of them ran out about the same and were pretty steeply pitched and the other one was quite a bit different acting like it was lower pitched. I"m not sure, he may have already run the Chopper I'm talking about, and if so, I think it ran around 90-91............maybe if he sees this, he'll chime in. I've never had an Opti so I have apparently never experienced a smooth idle.......but heck, I don't even think my 280 idles rough..........well maybe just a tad........lol

 

[xb03]

Joe try the 26p trophy and lmk what the numbers are. That 28p chopper seems to be running closer to a 26p IMO.

 

[xb03fs]

engine might need to come up some???

 

[catfish123]

How high were you with the motor?

 

[JOEALLY]

engine might need to come up some???

I started off at 1 3/4" above the pad, then dropped down to 1 1/2" above. It felt looser at 1 3/4" above, but it was at the limiter so quick, I really couldn't tell which height was quicker.

It did have a "hop" like a porpoise until I got 1 click above neutral trim? It seemed to do it a little worse at the higher height.

 

[catfish123]

Did it seem like it was "carrying the bow" well? Sometimes if you get up too high, the bow wants to drop because the prop doesn't have enough leverage to hold it up.

 

[JOEALLY]

Did it seem like it was "carrying the bow" well? Sometimes if you get up too high, the bow wants to drop because the prop doesn't have enough leverage to hold it up.

The bow seemed to respond to trim very good, I could trim and fly the bow just testing. I did consider that I might need to come down because the Sportmaster has more stern lift than the 200 case.

I could tell the stern was definitely lifting better than with the 200 case.

 

[catfish123]

I think you are probably very close to where you need to be on motor height..........I believe your lower mph than what I would expect is prop related.

 

[JOEALLY]

I think you are probably very close to where you need to be on motor height..........I believe your lower mph than what I would expect is prop related.

Very very possible.

 

[GotMyAlly]

That's odd that the rev limiter kicked in that low. Mine was dead nuts on 6850.

 

[2003225X]

The bell icon should come on at 6800 and the alarm should not go off until 6850.

I turned the 28 Chopper II easily to the limiter and was right around 91 mph. I will run it again as soon as it warms up and get an exact speed out of it.

All props are not created equal. You could get 5 28 pitch Choppers from Mercury and they will all run a little different.

I have a brand new trim gauge in my boat that I don't even have hooked up. I drive the boat by how it feels, because every prop type, blade style, pitch, etc is different.

The best thing I could tell you to do is this...

Take the boat out and get it to around 60mph. Start raising the motor on the jack in the smallest increments you can. Keep raising it until you move it and you feel the a$$ end of the boat starting to walk to the right. When you feel that then the sweet spot will most likely be an 1/8th to at most a 1/4 inch below that. You should also be able to run that prop pretty high because of the amount of blade area it has.

I feel I learned from one of the best out there at driving Allisons and that is Lee Sanderson. He taught my dad how to drive and I thought I was dead on several occasions. I watched Lee teach him so I knew exactly what not to do, so I had a big head start.

He said "drive the boat by the seat of your pants." There are many good things to get you in the ballpark of a correct setup including motor height, trim angle, etc.

I think once you are real comfortable driving them you will be able to tell when it is running in its "sweet spot." Let's face it... the only way you know you went to far is when it decideds to show you who is boss and comes around on you.

 

[JOEALLY]

That's odd that the rev limiter kicked in that low. Mine was dead nuts on 6850.

Will this motor go into guardian mode if you hold it on the limiter?

I guess it's possible that it was hitting 6800-6850 because I would let out as soon as I got the alarm.

 

[JOEALLY]

The bell icon should come on at 6800 and the alarm should not go off until 6850.

I turned the 28 Chopper II easily to the limiter and was right around 91 mph. I will run it again as soon as it warms up and get an exact speed out of it.

All props are not created equal. You could get 5 28 pitch Choppers from Mercury and they will all run a little different.

I have a brand new trim gauge in my boat that I don't even have hooked up. I drive the boat by how it feels, because every prop type, blade style, pitch, etc is different.

The best thing I could tell you to do is this...

Take the boat out and get it to around 60mph. Start raising the motor on the jack in the smallest increments you can. Keep raising it until you move it and you feel the a$$ end of the boat starting to walk to the right. When you feel that then the sweet spot will most likely be an 1/8th to at most a 1/4 inch below that. You should also be able to run that prop pretty high because of the amount of blade area it has.

I feel I learned from one of the best out there at driving Allisons and that is Lee Sanderson. He taught my dad how to drive and I thought I was dead on several occasions. I watched Lee teach him so I knew exactly what not to do, so I had a big head start.

He said "drive the boat by the seat of your pants." There are many good things to get you in the ballpark of a correct setup including motor height, trim angle, etc.

I think once you are real comfortable driving them you will be able to tell when it is running in its "sweet spot." Let's face it... the only way you know you went to far is when it decideds to show you who is boss and comes around on you.

This Sportmaster definitely feels looser than the 200 case, it seems to have more stern lift.

 

[GotMyAlly]

I never had my 225X go into guardian from holding it on the limiter. And I ran it for miles on the limiter. I've ran half the length of Pickwick - probably 30 miles - and never let out and it would stick right at 6850 the whole way, bell icon and beep too.

Now my 250XS is a different story. Hold it on the limiter too long and you better hang on cuz here come the air brakes!