Trojan f25 purchase

[Tbone999]

Hey guys new to the site long time boater, im 36 expecting my 2nd kid and have my 21ft bayliner liberty for sale as we are gonna need more room, im looking at a 1973 f25 to be my next cruiser. So im just looking for what u like and dont like about these boats, i know they arent speed demons and thats more then fine with me i live in vancouver b.c canada and im in no rush when im in my happy place (on the water) key facts would be how it does in ruff seas, how bad are they on fuel and how comfy are they as weekenders. Oh and of coarse feelings on build quality


Thanks gentlemen

Troy

[The Dog House]

Hey guys new to the site long time boater, im 36 expecting my 2nd kid and have my 21ft bayliner liberty for sale as we are gonna need more room, im looking at a 1973 f25 to be my next cruiser. So im just looking for what u like and dont like about these boats, i know they arent speed demons and thats more then fine with me i live in vancouver b.c canada and im in no rush when im in my happy place (on the water) key facts would be how it does in ruff seas, how bad are they on fuel and how comfy are they as weekenders. Oh and of coarse feelings on build quality

I believe the F25 and F26 are similar, so I'll give you my impressions of the F26. The boat has 5 degrees of deadrise, so it is not really a rough seas boat. The boat is designed more for bays and rivers. Because of the low deadrise, however, the fuel economy is pretty good. I burn 12 gph at 20 mph (with the water tank half full). That works out to 1.7 mpg, which is really fuel efficient for a boat. As far as a weekender, you probably won't find any boat that size that is better for weekending.

Being a single screw inboard, the boat has a lot less maintenance than a stern drive. It will also have a lot less maneuverability than a stern drive. My last boat was a 24 foot stern drive and I could single hand it. My F26 is definitely a two person boat. I feel very confident operating the boat with two people (me + 1 crew person), but there are definitely some situations (leaving side to docking with current on stern) that require two people.

If you are looking for a boat with a large cabin, the F25 and F26 are definitely worth considering. They are a lot of cabin for the money.

[captainmaniac]

Ditto with what Dog House is saying. Fairly flat bottom won't be the best for rough water, but it will be better than your Bayliner. With 2 kids (one new), you won't want to be out in very rough stuff anyways. If you are looking to spend most of your time cruising Strait of Georgia and inland routes you should be fine, but would hesitate to head outside Vancouver Island with it unless you have properly picked your days. Fuel mileage should be good.

The F25 can be more sensitive to loading / weight distribution as it's not that heavy itself, and doesn't carry huge amounts of power. With the single inboard and not stern drive, you need to either use tabs to trim it properly or distribute weight aboard properly, or it can create some performance problems. Don't dump 200 pounds of coolers and ice and kids water toys at the transom -- you will never plane out properly.

Structurally, way better than the Bayliner. And more interior space too. As the kids get bit a bit older though you may want a bit more space ... maybe a 28' model may future-proof things a bit more, and be a bit more suited for rougher conditions.

Single stern drive vs I/O or outboard is a whole new learning experience. When you hit reverse, the arse end will walk to port. You can't back up to starboard, or even go straight back, until you have enough speed and water flow over the rudder - it will always pull to the left .. so that will take a bit of learning as well. That's what Dog House is referring to re the maneuverability differences.

If you are up for the single screw handling challenge, an F25 / F26 or F28 could work well for you. If you want a bit more control and lots more space, look for a twin engine F30 or F32.

[WayWeGo]

Single stern drive vs I/O or outboard is a whole new learning experience. When you hit reverse, the arse end will walk to port. You can't back up to starboard, or even go straight back, until you have enough speed and water flow over the rudder - it will always pull to the left .. so that will take a bit of learning as well. That's what Dog House is referring to re the maneuverability differences.

That can be a disadvantage in some situations, but a real advantage in others. You just have to plan ahead.

While we have twins on our boat, I have had to put it in the slip with only one engine running a couple of times on windy days. If you take your time and plan ahead, you can use the tendency to back in a circle to your advantage.

[Tbone999]

Thanks guys lots to think about. Im on the inside of vancouver island so it does get ruff but its nothing like the west coast of the island. The one man crew thing might be a issue my wife enjoys the water but thats about all she does on the boat lol my liner is a hardtop cuddy that doesnt have a walk around to the bow and on rollers, so ive had to learn the boat and do one man launches and pulls so im sure i could come up with a system after learning a f25/26's needs.

I do well but im not rich so im getting the impression the f25/26 could be a good fit between price/operation cost and size. Twins i feel would put fuel cost up 2 much. More time at work and less on the water.

Im heading to look at the boat this week so ill let u guys know what she looks like and maybe couple more questions

Cheers

Troy

[AlphaJustin]

My trojan f-25 experience is drastically different than yours. I use mine on the rivers and at about 7 knots 1450rpm(ish) I burn about an 1/8 tank in 8 hours of cruising. Anything over 7 knots and I'm flooding houses with the wake so I'm a slow cruiser. You'll be fine single handing the boat once you get a feel for it but there's a definite learning curve going 21 i/o to 25 inboard. My concern would be 4 people sleeping with a baby, I wouldn't, I just wouldnt it's not a small cabin but it gets claustrophobic easily. I'd look bigger too with that many people the one major benefit to twins is it's downfall you will always have 2 engines in case something happens you can still make it back.

[WayWeGo]

If you are going to trailer the boat, single handing will not be much different from your current boat. The big difference would be docking on a windy day when you would be best served by using a spring line.

I sometimes single hand our F36 as do some other members here. Its all about knowing your boat and planning ahead. Sometimes, you just have to say that is something I am not going to attempt. For instance, if the wind is blowing hard directly into our slip, I would not go out by myself.