Whoa, this thread is exactly what I needed after spending the weekend geeking out over World Cats online-I’m hooked after watching some sea trial vids, but yeah, those mixed reviews had me second-guessing. I’m not an owner yet (saving up for a used 260CC), but I dove deep into forums, World Cat’s own docs, and a couple owner groups to piece together some setups that seem to cut through the noise. Super stoked to share what I found, and I’ll focus on the 26-28ft center consoles since that’s where most of the chatter is. If this sparks more details from actual owners, that’d be gold-I’ll bookmark this to watch.
Starting with engine/prop setups that owners swear by for smoothing out the ride. For the 266 SF (2018-2020 models), a popular combo is twin Yamaha 300s with the offshore gearcase (higher prop shaft for better clearance in the tunnels). Set engine height to the second hole down from top-keeps the anti-vent plate just kissing the water at cruise (around 25-30 knots). Props: Michigan Wheel Vortex 4-blades, 15.5″ pitch, 17.25″ diameter, no vents. One guy on a trawler forum said switching from 3-blade Yamahas (14.75 pitch) to these dropped his sneeze by 80% in head seas because they bite harder without cavitating. He added a single Permatrim foil on each outboard (the 12″ version), which helped lift the stern without needing constant trim tweaks. No wedges needed on this hull form, but if you’re running heavy loads, a ¼″ trim tab extension kit from Lenco keeps things level.
On the sneeze front-man, that’s the big complaint I kept seeing. From what I gathered, it pops up most between 18-25 knots in quartering seas on stock setups, where the inner sponson vents a bit. A 280CC owner (2021, twin 250 Yamahas, standard gearcase) fixed it by dropping engines one hole (third from top), running trim tabs at 2-3 degrees up on the windward side, and using Zipwakes at interceptors set to auto-mode with a 1-2 second response time. He said it eliminated the “porpoising” entirely at 28 knots loaded with 4 folks and gear-runs flat now through 4-6ft chop. Speed bands: Avoid 20-22 knots if possible; punch through at 25+ or throttle back to 15 for efficiency. Weight shift forward (move batteries and livewell pump) helped one 270 owner kill it without hardware changes, but props were key for most.
Fuel/speed reality check-love the numbers angle. Pulled this from a 260DC owner’s log (2019, twin 200s, 3-blade props 15″ pitch): Light load (2 people, half fuel): 32 knots WOT at 5800 RPM, 1.8 MPG at cruise (25 knots/4500 RPM). Full load (4 people + 200lbs gear, full tanks/livewells): Tops 28 knots, best efficiency at 22 knots/4200 RPM for 2.1 MPG-sips about 10-12 GPH there. After swapping to 4-blade Solas (16″ pitch) and raising engines half a hole, he gained 2 knots top end and 0.3 MPG efficiency. For 300hp setups on the 280CC, expect 35-38 WOT unloaded, but real-world cruise is 26-30 knots at 1.5-1.8 MPG with 4 aboard. Sweet spot universally seems 20-25 knots for these cats-punchy without guzzling.
Handling quirks: Ventilation in turns hits the inside prop hard on tight stuff (under 20 knots), especially starboard if you’re right-handed. Solution from a fishing report: Trim up 2 degrees on turns, use 4-blades to maintain grip, and add a Bravo 3 trim fin if it’s chronic-cured it for a 268 owner without slowing him down. Drift in crosswinds: These wide beams (8.5-9ft) sit beam-to better than monos, but for anchoring in 15+ knots, a 12ft sea sock off the bow keeps the bow into it without yawing. For 26-28ft, size it to 1.5x beam. Autopilot: Twins spaced 8-9ft apart cause hunting on stock Yamahas; bump rudder gain to 60-70% and use dual pumps if you’re over 25ft-fixed the yaw for a guy running a Garmin GHP reactor. Single pump works fine under 1k RPM, but dual shines in following seas.
Fishing tech: Aeration is the enemy in those tunnels. Best spot for Airmar B765 (or side-scan like the TM275) is on the sponson keel line, 2-3ft aft of the tunnel exit, using a stainless tunnel bracket (Airmar part 33-035)-avoids bubbles at drift speeds. Dual transducers (one per sponson) for redundancy, mounted 18″ apart beamwise. No interference at 10+ knots if wired properly, but one owner measured zero pings lost drifting with livies. For forward-facing (like Garmin LiveScope), mount the head unit on the jackplate or transom step, 12″ above waterline-keeps it out of spray. Pics I saw showed it zip-tied to the leaning post bracket for quick removal.
Comfort mods: Zipwakes are a game-changer on cats over tabs-300 series with 4″ interceptors, set to 5-10 degree defaults. One 235 owner said it cut roll 40% in beam seas vs. his old Lenco tabs, worth every penny for offshore runs. Seakeeper 2 on a 28ft? Measurable win: Drops drift speed from 1-2 knots to under 0.5 at anchor in 20 knots wind-gyro holds it steady for casting, no real diminishing returns if you’re fishing tournaments.
Trailering: For 26-28ft, beam’s 8′6″ so check state rules-Florida/TX easy with oversize permits ($20-50/year), but cross-state hauls need DOT flags. Bunk spacing: Set outer bunks at 102″ for the hulls, inners 48″ for the tunnel-use EZ Loader triples with carpeted rollers forward to ease ramp angle. Crosswind launches: Back in slow with tandem axles aired up to 80 PSI, add guide poles extended 4ft. Tire wear tip: Rotate every 5k miles and balance; one guy added airbags for even load.
Nerdy extra: Yeah, I saw a thread with Flir’s app (or just a cheap phone gyro like Physics Toolbox) logging 2-3 degree less roll on a 270 vs. a comparable mono in 4ft seas-cats win on stability but can pitch more if not trimmed. If you rig an iPhone on a mast, export CSV to Excel for graphs-easy workflow.
This is all pieced from owner posts, so grain of salt, but it’s got me even more pumped to pull the trigger. What’s your model, OP? Anyone tweak a 235 or DC version? Let’s build this guide!