[canboater]

I have a Lowe 16.5 with a honda 50. It tops out at 32mph @ 6000 .Is this normal. Also it cavitates alot when taking hard corners.

[bryonthefly]

Originally Posted by canboater

I have a Lowe 16.5 with a honda 50. It tops out at 32mph @ 6000 .Is this normal. Also it cavitates alot when taking hard corners.

I got the same results with a 50 Merc before repowering up to the 75 Opti. I solved the breaking loose in the corners problem with a simple prop change to a Turning Point Hustler.

[LOWEMAN 165]

I have a 05 165, had the same problem in corners. Noticed that the motor didn't sit all the way down on the transome. Pulled the bolts and lowered it one set of holes down (only about one inch), so it sits down on the transome. That little amount made a huge differance in the corners. I just have to be alittle more carefull when the boats on the trailer, as the motor hangs lower.
bryonthefly, I was thinking of a 75hp upgrade myself, what kind of speed do you get out of that motor?

[rouge1]

About the same as mine with a 60hp four strk mercury on it changed the prop to a 12p and lost most of the cavitation in corners.

[overload]

I have a 90 hp Merc on my FS165, tops out at about 38 mph which I was not impressed with. I talked to a Lowe technical rep about this and he explained that the optimal speed for the hull is 30 mph and to go faster than that would take alot of HP to overcome the resistance of the hull on the water, as the hull was designed for dry ride and rough water. He siad he would be happy with 36 mph out of a 90 hp. I did talk to a guy at the boat landing with an FM165 and a 60 hp merc and he said he only got 30 mph (he also was not impressed). So according to what I was told and seen, 32 mph would seem resonable, maybe good with a 50 hp. I did change the prop to a 4 blade 20" pitch and topped at 42 mph though the boat is not as guttsy. The 4 blade did improve venting on turns, but did not solve it. I also lowered my motor to the bottom most hole and this helped a little, but in the end I still have venting problems in turns. Still searching for the right prop, the hustler looks promising.