Proud owner of a Bombard Aerotec 380

[Firstrib]

Thanks

[Firstrib]

Hi, thank you, the extra grunt resonates with me. I am veering towards 25HP, older model 2 stroke

[Firstrib]

Hi John, was it the manhandling on shore that was difficult or on the boat itself? I can see for a speedy set up and for one or two passengers a 15HP might be better.

[John Kennett]

It was fine on the water, and launching with a trailer was no problem. Lugging the engine around on its own, or launching (and especially retrieving) using transom wheels was a hassle. It's all doable, but needed a lot more effort and a moderate amount of cursing.

An Aerotec with a 15 will plane comfortably with 3 on board, but will struggle with 4 up. The 25 will power through even when heavily loaded, but with 4 people on board going fast is likely to be overly exciting unless the sea is dead flat.

[Max...]

I use a 15 and would like more power but the simple fact is the 25 is much too much of a (man)handle to cope with over beaches, out of the back of a Land Rover etc. Consider the fuel consumption too.

The 15 is a great compromise, cheap to run, easy to handle, will cruise at 16 kts + and will even pull a young skier.

Someone mentioned a 20 4 stroke - I would definitely look at the latest Suzuki 4 stroke model as an option now, superb reviews out there - very lightweight (for it's hp), quick on pick up and very economical.

[Black]

We've a 15hp Johnson - 2 Stroke engine on our Aerotec 380.

I'm a large framed chap at 110kgs with 60kg wife and 8 + 6 year olds we can plane easily with our set up.

The 15 is the limit of what I'd want to easily man handle near the water on my own. I've had a 20hp Yamaha 2 stroke on an old set up and at 52kgs that is a massive difference to lug around.

Ultimately its horses for courses, and whatever suits you.