What kind of range can you get with the 60 gallon fuel tank on the 420 passage? Also, what do you think of the 420 passage as a true blue water cruiser? My wife and I are going to San Diego to look at some used 420's in July. We plan to purchase in the next year, and cruise to Hawaii and possibly S. Pacific. Any and all thoughts are welcome. Thanks, Kevin
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The motoring range on the 60 gallons...
fuel tank depends on the usable amount of fuel, wind and current, the condition of the boat's bottom and the burn rate per hour of the engine. On a full tank you probably have a usable amount of 50 gallons before you dip on what should be kept as a reserve or hit a safe limit where your engine may start sucking air in rough conditions. Your engine on a 420 will be rated between 50 and 60 HP depending on model year and will probably have a burn rate of close to 1 gallon per hour. So you could estimate a maximum of 50 hours running time. How far you can go on 50 hours of motoring depends on the speed allowed by wind, current and the condition of the bottom and prop. At 3 knots you could travel 150NM or at 7 knots you could travel 350NM. Far from enough to make Hawaii one a one tank trip. You may carry additional fuel in jerry cans on deck and you will still need to sail most of the way. It is important for you to ascertain the burn rate of your particular engine. It can be done by simply filling up the tank, maintaining a log of hours motored under various conditions and then filling up again to determine the fuel used in gallons over the known amount of time. Then divide the amount of fuel used by the number of hours and you will have useful figure representing average burn rate of gallons per hour for your engine. This burn rate is independent of weather and boat factors and it only relates to size of the engine and its mechanical condition. The formula is Burn Rate=gallons used/hours. This burn rate will provide with a usable figure of how many hours your engine will run and will allow you to estimate according to actual conditions how far a given amount of fuel will take you. Hunters are production boats not particularly designed as offshore boats. A 420 will surely make the trip in good to moderate weather but it may not sail as comfortable or be able to handle a storm as an offshore boat. Your question about the boats range based on its fuel holding leads me to believe you may not have spent much time in the water to embark in such an ambitious trip. You can more safely gain knowledge and experience by coastal cruising and you could not find a better boat for that in the 420. Good Luck
fuel tank depends on the usable amount of fuel, wind and current, the condition of the boat's bottom and the burn rate per hour of the engine. On a full tank you probably have a usable amount of 50 gallons before you dip on what should be kept as a reserve or hit a safe limit where your engine may start sucking air in rough conditions. Your engine on a 420 will be rated between 50 and 60 HP depending on model year and will probably have a burn rate of close to 1 gallon per hour. So you could estimate a maximum of 50 hours running time. How far you can go on 50 hours of motoring depends on the speed allowed by wind, current and the condition of the bottom and prop. At 3 knots you could travel 150NM or at 7 knots you could travel 350NM. Far from enough to make Hawaii one a one tank trip. You may carry additional fuel in jerry cans on deck and you will still need to sail most of the way. It is important for you to ascertain the burn rate of your particular engine. It can be done by simply filling up the tank, maintaining a log of hours motored under various conditions and then filling up again to determine the fuel used in gallons over the known amount of time. Then divide the amount of fuel used by the number of hours and you will have useful figure representing average burn rate of gallons per hour for your engine. This burn rate is independent of weather and boat factors and it only relates to size of the engine and its mechanical condition. The formula is Burn Rate=gallons used/hours. This burn rate will provide with a usable figure of how many hours your engine will run and will allow you to estimate according to actual conditions how far a given amount of fuel will take you. Hunters are production boats not particularly designed as offshore boats. A 420 will surely make the trip in good to moderate weather but it may not sail as comfortable or be able to handle a storm as an offshore boat. Your question about the boats range based on its fuel holding leads me to believe you may not have spent much time in the water to embark in such an ambitious trip. You can more safely gain knowledge and experience by coastal cruising and you could not find a better boat for that in the 420. Good Luck
six tenth of a gallon per hour
All my motoring is on a fresh water lake. This is the second time I have filled up and I have the 62 HP engine with 3 bladed Max Prop. I cruise about 6 to 7 knots at 2100 RPM. Based on these number then I should have a range of 700 to 800 miles. Bluewater boat? It does have class A rating and its construction appears to be excellent. The most exciting surprise about the 420 was its sailing ability. I have an in mast main and she surprisingly perform well under sails.
All my motoring is on a fresh water lake. This is the second time I have filled up and I have the 62 HP engine with 3 bladed Max Prop. I cruise about 6 to 7 knots at 2100 RPM. Based on these number then I should have a range of 700 to 800 miles. Bluewater boat? It does have class A rating and its construction appears to be excellent. The most exciting surprise about the 420 was its sailing ability. I have an in mast main and she surprisingly perform well under sails.
Passage 42 fuel consumption
I don't have a 420, but a Passage 42 with a 62 HP 4JH2-TE Yanmar, and a two-bladed original propeller. Our boat is a bit heavier than the usual P42 since it is outfitted with offshore cruising gear (e.g., sea anchor w/450 feet of rode, four anchors-incl. 80 lb. storm anchor, etc), and it therefore sits lower in the water. We have sailed/motored over 30,000 miles (twice to NZ and back), and kept records of our fuel consumption during the early years. We found that we consumed less fuel when we traveled slower, and that 1500 RPM is our best fuel conservation speed. I suspect 1200 RPM would be best, but we don't like to travel that slowly. At 1500 RPM we'd generally burn about .5 GPH, and travel at a speed of 4.8 to 5.0 knots. At 2000 RPM we'd burn about .66 GPH, and make about 6 knots. Our fuel tank holds 70 gallons total, and we'd carry an extra 35 to 40 gallons in additional tankage, depending on the trip. I can't remember ever making a landfall with less than 50 gallons of diesel left over, and usually more like 60-70 gallons, even on the long trip from N. America to the Marquesas. Good luck with your search. See you in the South Pacific.
I don't have a 420, but a Passage 42 with a 62 HP 4JH2-TE Yanmar, and a two-bladed original propeller. Our boat is a bit heavier than the usual P42 since it is outfitted with offshore cruising gear (e.g., sea anchor w/450 feet of rode, four anchors-incl. 80 lb. storm anchor, etc), and it therefore sits lower in the water. We have sailed/motored over 30,000 miles (twice to NZ and back), and kept records of our fuel consumption during the early years. We found that we consumed less fuel when we traveled slower, and that 1500 RPM is our best fuel conservation speed. I suspect 1200 RPM would be best, but we don't like to travel that slowly. At 1500 RPM we'd generally burn about .5 GPH, and travel at a speed of 4.8 to 5.0 knots. At 2000 RPM we'd burn about .66 GPH, and make about 6 knots. Our fuel tank holds 70 gallons total, and we'd carry an extra 35 to 40 gallons in additional tankage, depending on the trip. I can't remember ever making a landfall with less than 50 gallons of diesel left over, and usually more like 60-70 gallons, even on the long trip from N. America to the Marquesas. Good luck with your search. See you in the South Pacific.
Hunter 420 Range
We have a 68 HP Yanmar on our 1999 420. We cruise at 2900 RPM at a speed of 7 to 7.5 knots depending onconditions. Our fuel usuage is about 1.25 gal. per hour. We have put 20,000 miles on our boat and sailed from Guatamala to Main and the Bahamas. I have always felt secure, including sailing thru very large seqas off the coast of Beleze in 40 knots. We have not made a cross ocean passage and have been able toavoid any major storms on the passages we have made, but I feel the boat would be up to it.
We have a 68 HP Yanmar on our 1999 420. We cruise at 2900 RPM at a speed of 7 to 7.5 knots depending onconditions. Our fuel usuage is about 1.25 gal. per hour. We have put 20,000 miles on our boat and sailed from Guatamala to Main and the Bahamas. I have always felt secure, including sailing thru very large seqas off the coast of Beleze in 40 knots. We have not made a cross ocean passage and have been able toavoid any major storms on the passages we have made, but I feel the boat would be up to it.
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