Too Stroked

Yes, and on GPS. Just to be clear though, the powerhead dynoed at 240 HP after the boys at Diamond Marine worked it over. So it's a few horsepower up on a stock Mercury 200 of that vintage.

rchevelle71

Get a STR 3 liter on that boat, let it eat, and get 80+ easy

Too Stroked

Here’s an observation for you – keeping in mind that it’s not at all apples to apples. I recently had to deliver a 26’ Crownline about 20 miles down the lake from the marina I work at. This particular boat is about 6 years old and is powered by a bone stock 502 magnum. There was a bit of a breeze and there was probably a 1’ – 1.5’ chop going. Not a bad day for a delivery and not a terrible boat to deliver. (Not as nice as the 29’ Fountain with a 525SC the week before though.)

The reason I bring this up is that I also recently drove Laster’s 24’ Progression. (Here’s where we find out what happens when you compare apples to oranges.) But, the boats were both powered by the same base engine and drive and were pretty close in length. Given where this thread has gone though, I thought I’d bring this up.

So how much different can these two boats feel? Words simply cannot describe it. The Crownline probably topped out in the mid 60’s (I don’t push customer boats to the limit unless asked or given permission) and trimming it had some effect on speed but little effect on steering feel. I mention that because it felt like somebody had injected the steering with a serious dose of Novocain into the steering. It just felt mushy and dull at all speeds and in all situations.

In Laster’s 24LD Progression, we certainly had more power due to Mr. Whipple sitting on top squeezing air and fuel into the motor. So we’ll leave that totally out. The steering felt more direct – with a good dose of that being a full Latham dual ram hydraulic system. But, the increased feel went beyond that. The shaper breaks in all of the hull surfaces lead to lightning quick responses to steering inputs. The boat tracked like it was on sharp rails – which of course it was. And, every input to steering, trim or tabs was met with an immediate, direct, tangible response.

In short, the Crownline felt pretty dull – and probably pretty safe because of it. The Progression felt like it was hard wired to your nervous system – and required some concentration to drive because of it. One could fall asleep at the wheel of the Crownline whereas the Progression made you tingle.

So, for any of you that don’t believe there’s a difference in a well made performance boat, until you drive one, you just won’t understand the difference. And on one of Lake Ontario’s average snotty days, I love the additional control, feel and performance of my Progression over the other more “average” boats. I think you’ll find the same to be true for a Pantera, a Superboat and any other number of well made performance boats.

scarab63

cool. Prob pretty ok at the pump too? Nice boat.

Too Stroked

My next boat will most likely be another 22 Progression - with a 250 XS on the transom. Also good for mid-80's. Not quite as evil sounding as an STR or even my current motor, but bone stock reliable.

rchevelle71

A lot can be said for reliability, and that is the reason my Pantera only runs 60, stock 250EFI, unbelievably reliable, but it has towed a few 100MPH sterndrives home

Too Stroked

I hear ya brother. I had several long discussions with Marty at Diamond before we settled on how much to mess with mine. When we started to dip into modifications that would decrease reliability or time between rebuilds, I drew the line. I've been very happy - even though there was probably another 5-7 MPH available if we got silly.

jdstr

Hi sir i'm darius from west indies Martinique does the 1979 pantera 24' Hull the same than the 2000 Hull?

Jacob Frank

I wonder if any of these were driven by the Cocane Cowboy? 😉 Never knew how big into offshore racing they were until the Netflix documentary because I was just a kid in the 80s.

OFFSHOREJOJO

Activator & Kryptonite were there