Posted: August 19 2007 at 20:56 | IP Logged

Stebbie,

I went from a 250 Sundancer to a 240 Sundeck last month and have been very pleased with the Sundeck's performance.  I wasn't overnighting on the boat, and find the Sundeck gives us much more useable space and comfort for how we actually use our boat.  I boat in a very large lake in New Hampshire.

The Sundeck has a much sportier feel, is quicker on plane, and feels better balanced.  It's soft riding, but has less freeboard and weight than the DA.  The Sundeck takes choppy water very well, but it takes in more spray because it's so much lower to the water.  I also felt that the DA could cruise comfortably 5 mph faster in a heavy chop than the Sundeck, due to more weight.  We have the full canvas option on the SD, and that does a great job keeping us dry.  The DA also had a tendency to list to one side, and I really like the SD's lower center of gravity. 

The 260 is a deeper boat than the 240, I don't know if it's also deeper than a 270?  The 260's draft is longer than the 270.  There's a new 290 for 2008.  My only complaint about the SD is the horribly designed anchor hatch that opens rearward.  The 260 opens to the side, like most other boats.  

Good luck with your boat search.   

Posted: August 24 2007 at 19:20 | IP Logged

I went in the other direction. I owned a 240SD prior to purchasing my 260DA. The 260DA is not well suited (in my opinion) to water sports. We used to pull tubes regularly with our 240SD and it did a fantastic job. The 270SD will work well also for water sports plus with the big block engine the torque of the motor will give you a real nice hole shot as well. And you can really load the boat up with people too. We regularly had 12 people on our 240SD (mixture of adults and kids) and everyone was comfortable and the boat performed well even with the extra weight. You might say we really miss our 240SD.

Dave

Posted: August 25 2007 at 08:54 | IP Logged

It is just about impossible to try and compare the two boats side by side since they were designed for two different functions.

From the stand point of a sundeck owner I like the utility of my boat for daytime use. The head, it's loungers, easy to clean and keep clean (A whole lot less fiberglass to polish than a 260DA) and no where near the electrical componants. 

The 270SD with the 496 B3 combo will take you upwards of the 55 mph mark so you have a serioius sport factor there.  If you really are not planning on doing a lot of gulf trips anymore but planning on more lake, river and bay rides then the 270SD will be a great boat for you.

Best of luck.

Posted: August 28 2007 at 21:27 | IP Logged

I recently purchased my 2007  Sea Ray 240 SD for the same reasons that you stated which were:

I did not have a desire to spend overnights on the boat, but wanted enough room to be able to carry family & friends and all the toys and coolers and bags that go along with this. This is the perfect boat for having a great day on the water and having plenty of room so nothing is underfoot. Good luck with your decision as I have absolutly no regrets with mine.

Best Regards.

Posted: November 05 2007 at 06:00 | IP Logged

I am not sure why Sea Ray dropped the 270SD. The 260SD has been out for pver a year and is a smaller boat than the 270SD. In fact if you look at the specs for the 260SD and the 240SD you will see the dimensions of those two boats are identical. However, the 260SD does offer big block power whereas the 240SD does not and the 260SD has a deeper freeboard as compared to the 240SD. But Sea Ray did introduce the 290SD this year as a choice for a much bigger boat. I have seen one myself and I think Sea Ray has done an outstanding job on this one.