panther jet to a berkeley?

[wrenchdaddy]

I migth be buying an 18ft Sadler jet boat in a few weeks and would like some input. It has an almost new 454 BBC with a panther jet. Im really not a panther fan but this boat has everyting else Im looking for and its the only one I've found that I like thats not in california. I just want to know if its possible to switch the panther out with a berkley jet? If so how hard would it be. Thanks a lot for the info guys, Im new to all this.

[Jake W]

You can. You will have to reglass in the bottom of the hull then cut it out.Or do a set back pump and will have less to fill back in.
Good luck.
Jake

[hack job]

it would require a bit of fiberglass and gel work the panter is simluar to a incert style pump . so you would have to remove the panther and fill all the open areas and then start over with the berkley. :hammerhea its a ton of work but is very possible. how much is it worth to you is the question. what are you looking for out of the boat if your not looking a superfast boat then i would assume that the panther would be fine , but if your looking to go fast then i would suggest the berk. it might be easier to buy one that allready has the pump your looking for . i know you said it had every thing your looking for, but it really dosent,and it has one thing you werent looking for. :wink:
any how if you post up what type of boat your looking for some of us might be able to point you in the right direction( dont forget price range). and tell us were your at too( it helps in the search) good luck

[BrendellaJet]

Make sure you know what you expect this boat to be capable of. If you dont want it to be a speed demon, why change it? There are a few forums that deal with the panther pumps, and some have reportedly gone over 85 mph. Takes lots of work though, as the panther has not and may not ever come into its own in terms of performance...
Yes the modification can be done. Would be pretty pricey if you paid to have it done, would be a lot of work if you did it yourself.

[BrendellaJet]

Jeez, after I think about it, there would not be that much fiberglass work involved, as most of the existing "hole" will be occupied bu the new intake. Would definitely need to brush up on your fiberglass skills, would hate for the mod to go bad while at speed...I say go for it.

[Some Kind Of Monster]

A buddy's boat has a Panther and I am sure is slowing him down. We looked seriously into putting a Berk pump (which we already have) into it. Everyone we talked to said it is more work than it's worth.. For what it's worth we still contemplate doing the job, but it remains a Panther for now.

[BrendellaJet]

depends on how much power you put to it, and the size of the boat. I read on one of those panther sites of a guy who had 600 hp and after several pump mods/blueprinting it would only do 65 or so. Considering how easy it is to build 600 hp with a BBC/BBF I would say the benefits of the berk would speak for themselves at that power level(and even below...)

[Cas]

lots of stuff to do to a Panther nowadays to get it going better. As was mentioned earlier, it depends on what you want to do with the boat?
Personally, I think there a quite a few installation issues from the boat builders
with Panther pumps. I've seen a few now that the pumps are not anywhere near what they're supposed to be.

[5th Horseman]

I migth be buying an 18ft Sadler jet boat in a few weeks and would like some input. It has an almost new 454 BBC with a panther jet. Im really not a panther fan but this boat has everyting else Im looking for and its the only one I've found that I like thats not in california. I just want to know if its possible to switch the panther out with a berkley jet? If so how hard would it be. Thanks a lot for the info guys, Im new to all this.
This is exactly what I'm about to undertake this winter on my 20' Sleekcraft SST. I sold the Panther pump for a good price and found a great buy on a Dominator fully loaded. Major items so far are, engine location fore and aft, steering, diverter control, cooling water routing and of course glass work. I'm going to end up with a lot of setback on the pump so I don't have to move the engine too much.
Of course I say go for it, just make sure your glass work is up to snuff, don't want it to end up on the bottom iof the lake.
Good Luck,
Paul
.

[Cas]

Paul,
Did you get a call from Steve at Panther awhile back? I had a long conversation with him in regards to your dilemma and unsatisfactory results.

[5th Horseman]

Paul,
Did you get a call from Steve at Panther awhile back? I had a long conversation with him in regards to your dilemma and unsatisfactory results.
No I never heard from him, too bad. I probably could have spent a lot of time trying to get the Panther up to speed, but this deal just jumped into my lap and I couldn't resist.
Paul
.

[TIMINATOR]

I've got an insert type Dominator pump, its fresh and has an AB impeller, split bowl, FTN nozzle (your choice of inserts) $500.00, and an older non-split bowl Berekley with an electric type Jetovator, complete with an intake and grate too, $400.00. Also, Aggressor has the glass-in inserts for that type of pump, these make the changeover MUCH EASIER!!! 623-877-8553 TIMINATOR

[Bow Tie Omega]

At the least, you would be looking at cutting out the box for the Panther, filling in the bottom which would not be to bad and more or less building a new transom. Not difficult in terms of technicalities, but very very time consuming. I was very close to removing the Panther and adding an outboard instead, I chose to stay with the Panther, one of these days now that we are in the new house and settled in Arizona I hope to finish this damned project pretty soon. I kept the panther because I wanted something bulletproof and reliable because I know I will be having to tow my brother and his boat around when he breaks every other trip :D