Probably selling my AR240.... Have some questions for those with newer (2015+) boats.

[redthumper9]

So as the title states, this is most likely my last season with my 2010 AR240. It has been and continues to be a fantastic boat. It is time for me to make a change though. To make a long story short, I have considered everything from a newer Yamaha, to a Scarab 255, to a CC with an outboard, to a 29'-35' Fountain powerboat, but keep going back to the Yamaha. I have had the pleasure to ride in everything from $350k Center Consoles to $1m powerboats, but riding in a newer model Yamaha has eluded me so I have a couple of questions.....

1) are the newer 24's that much quieter? It never bothered me that much until you ride in boats with newer outboards that seem to be whisper quiet.

2) do the newer style towers have as much deflection (side to side movement) as the older, pre 2015 towers. My tower has never given me a seconds issue, but it does move more than I'd like in choppy /windy weather. Part of this is because of over 100lbs of tower speakers I know.... but it moved quite a bit the first season. Yes the bolts are tight.

3) does the newer hull with the keel handle chop, crossing wakes, etc. better than the previous years?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Cleveland Steamer]

I have a 2018 AR240 and my boat isn't quite. It's rather loud when I spin up the 1.8s..

The tower on the other hand doesn't move.. At all.. No matter what I'm pulling behind it. I put two 15 year old's on that Big Mable tube and that's alot of drag and it doesn't move at all. Rock solid..

 

[redthumper9]

I have a 2018 AR240 and my boat isn't quite. It's rather loud when I spin up the 1.8s..

The tower on the other hand doesn't move.. At all.. No matter what I'm pulling behind it. I put two 15 year old's on that Big Mable tube and that's alot of drag and it doesn't move at all. Rock solid..

Thanks for the info. I fully expect that it's not as quiet as an outboard, but I was wondering for those that have been in both a pre 2015 and a current model if there was a big difference or if it was just marginal. Nice to hear about the tower though.

 

[Bearsar240]

I went from a 12 to a 15 and the sound change is minimal in my opinion.

 

[Julian]

Come up to Raleigh on August 10th and you can try out a whole bunch of different Yamahas (see the gatherings section for details)

 

[redthumper9]

@Julian .....ive had my eye on that gathering. Not sure if I'll make it or not. If so it would be a last minute deal.

 

[Mainah]

Not remarkably quieter. I have even gone the extra mile with multiple DIY methods of quieting it down. Was not even noticeably better than pre 2015s until I did the extra work. Best solution for me filling gaps between compartments. Also good was adding amps and speakers which you know something about

I do want to hang with the Raleigh crew sometime. This year is very likely out as my wife and I will still have our young nephews and it is a hike.

@redthumper9 if you make it down to the Columbia SC area feel free to drop me a line.

 

[Neutron]

@redthumper9 come on up to New Bern and you are very welcome to go out on my 16Ar240 anytime, i have done no extra sound proofing.

 

[redthumper9]

@Julian @Mainah @Neutron......how about your towers? Pretty solid? How much side to side movement? Can either of you speak to how they handle rougher water compared to the previous generation?

 

[Julian]

My tower is solid as a rock. Had 2 can speakers and the sound bar, and the wakeboard racks plus the huge bimini frame. No concerns at all.

 

[Neutron]

Mine is always rock solid.
I occasionally do pullups from it. Lol
I have been in some pretty rough water and it never moves

 

[Mainah]

Ditto the above. Rock solid tower on my 2016 242ls. Caveat being that I did get a quarter or half turn on the mount bolts doing my own 10 hour service but have checked 3 times since and they have stayed tight. I will continue to check every year.

 

[swatski]

1) are the newer 24's that much quieter? It never bothered me that much until you ride in boats with newer outboards that seem to be whisper quiet.

2) do the newer style towers have as much deflection (side to side movement) as the older, pre 2015 towers. My tower has never given me a seconds issue, but it does move more than I'd like in choppy /windy weather. Part of this is because of over 100lbs of tower speakers I know.... but it moved quite a bit the first season. Yes the bolts are tight.

3) does the newer hull with the keel handle chop, crossing wakes, etc. better than the previous years?

yes, no, and yes. (IMO!)

Let me qualify:
1) not whisper quiet at all, but tons better than the pre-2015 hulls, mostly due to splitting the vast acoustically challenged areas of the stern into smaller compartments; additional work required and it is possible to achieve great results

2) The 2015+ AR 240 towers are SOLID; their locking mechanism w/handwheel bolts is stupid and can fail (it can be completely prevented); as far as tow loads are concerned - those towers perform phenomenally well, zero movement and zero concerns (assuming basic maintenance - periodic tightening the base holding bolts under the hull cap)

3) absolutely yes, those new hulls cut through the wake/waves casuing far less "slapping" of the stern when pounding waves; combined with trim tabs (aftermarket) those new hulls work great in the ocean or big lakes.

--

 

[redthumper9]

I guess this pretty much answers all my questions! Let me clarify on my tower though..... I've pulled from it a lot, do pull ups on it and always have over 100lbs. of speakers hanging on it. I have never had any problems/concerns OTHER than it's side to side movement while pounding through bumpy conditions. Sounds like this isn't a problem anymore. I was glad to hear this from @Julian since a Limited SE and an X are both on my list. Thank you to all who replied. It was all useful info.

 

[CDENsomnia]

I guess this pretty much answers all my questions! Let me clarify on my tower though..... I've pulled from it a lot, do pull ups on it and always have over 100lbs. of speakers hanging on it. I have never had any problems/concerns OTHER than it's side to side movement while pounding through bumpy conditions. Sounds like this isn't a problem anymore. I was glad to hear this from @Julian since a Limited SE and an X are both on my list. Thank you to all who replied. It was all useful info.

Coming from a 2012 to a 2019 I feel inclined to answer your questions as well from my perspective because I had the SAME issues with the old boat.

I am a little different than some above...I think the engine noise is much quieter than my old boat. To me, idle and no wake mode RPM's are the biggest improvements. When you put the hammer down they are still quieter but not near what the new outboards are doing these days. We find that at cruising speed my wife and I can have a conversation without losing our voices because we are screaming.

If you follow me at all you will see that I spent thousands swapping towers with my old boat because of that lateral movement and shaking of the OEM tower. This was a HUGE requirement for us and a new boat because it was such a headache. I will say my tower is rock solid. The bimini sometimes loosens up in rough water but just tighten and its pretty darn good for such a big mass above your head (atleast on a 242X). I will say if you hit a big wave with some speed you do hear some movement from the tower but nothing like the old boats. We feel much more comfortable with all that mass above our heads...and yes you can do pullups on the tower without it feeling like the tower was going to collapse on you.

The new hull is MUCH improved for rough water conditions and chop. I also add a little center locker ballast because we don't often have a lot of people on our boat (2 adults and a child usually). We can generally plow through much easier and that bounce you get with the older boats is gone. Hope this helps since we came from nearly the same boat.

 

[redthumper9]

@CDENsomnia ....thanks for chiming in. I do remember seeing that you changed your tower out. You had a beautiful boat, one of my favorites from that era. That red hull with the black Tower was awesome.