1987 Four Winns 215 sundowner

WinnerCobra

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So i just recently bought this boat and was looking to do some salmon fishing next year off the Seattle coast. I wanted to know how this boat will do in the chop and just generally being in the ocean rather then a lake. Also does anyone know the average distance a full tank can go? Im not 100% certain my fuel gauge works and want an idea of distance. The boat has a 50gal tank. at full throttle i run at 3500rpm (according to my tach not sure if that is working 100% either)

 

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Re: 1987 Four Winns 215 sundowner

It will be "average" at best off the coast. It's only 21 feet, and marginal for open sea boating. I have seen plenty of them around here in Lake Michigan, but when conditions get rough, they will not be as comfortable as a dedicated fishy boat with more deadrise.
 

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Re: 1987 Four Winns 215 sundowner

Your Max RPM with the 305 and OMC drive should be 4600 to 4800. Figure roughly 2.0mpg at much less than WOT. Get the gauge fixed. Much safer than a guess.
 

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Re: 1987 Four Winns 215 sundowner

Thanks LouC for the more detailed answer. :rockon:

Oh well, its a 21' boat and you are talking about taking it in the ocean?
Where do I start, the boat is 26 years old, 21' long, how much boating experience do you have?
This can be very dangerous, for a whole bunch of reasons. One, a 21' is small for the ocean, its even small for LI Sound where I do some of my boating. Two, its OLD. You need to have a mechanic go through it with a fine tooth comb and fix everything that could leave you stranded. Three, you need safety equipment and that includes a VHF radio with integrated GPS, inflatable life jackets, I'd even get a life raft and I'm not kidding. I just had a cooling hose pop off on my '88 and it was pretty scary, the engine overheated and the impeller filled the bilge with salt water in about 5 min. Yes it can happen that fast. I would not take a boat that age anywhere near big water, till it was gone through and I had used it on shorter trips to make sure it was going to be reliable.
 
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