Freeman 29 Buyer's Guide, From the Original 29VH to the 2025 Redesign

The Freeman 29 is really two different boats

Search for a Freeman 29 and you will find two boats with the same number. The first was the 29VH, a stepped, vented-hull offshore catamaran that Freeman Boatworks built in the early 2010s after its original 33. The second is the current Freeman 29, which Freeman describes as a completely redesigned platform and which appeared on the company's website in early 2025. They share a philosophy and a name, but not a hull, and they sit at very different price points.

Both come from the same story. Billy Freeman founded Freeman Boatworks in South Carolina in 2006, built his first 33-foot cat with naval design engineer Jesse Rhodes, and proved it with charter captains in Venice, Louisiana. In Freeman's own telling to Power and Motoryacht, the company followed the 33 with a stepped 34, then stepped back down in size with an offshore 29.

The original 29VH and why it was ahead of its market

Freeman's 2014 website listed the 29VH at 28 feet 5 inches overall with a 23-foot 6-inch waterline, a 10-foot beam, a 17-inch draft and about 7,000 pounds with engines. It carried 250 gallons of fuel and 13 gallons of water. The 2014 sheet rated it for 700 hp and quoted a 49 mph cruise at 1.75 mpg and a 71 mph top speed; by mid 2016 the sheet had been revised to a 600 hp maximum and a 45 mph cruise at 1.6 mpg. Freeman always added the caveat that numbers vary with conditions.

Freeman pitched it as a boat that would outperform monohulls three to four feet longer, with the fishing floor of a 32-foot monohull. Standard kit was simple: a 50-gallon livewell with a clear lid, Seastar hydraulic steering with power assist, a molded leaning post with a 125-quart cooler, and four in-deck storage areas. The trouble was price. Billy Freeman recalled that in 2010 and 2011 it was hard to get anyone to pay $200,000 for a 29-footer from a little-known builder when a production 28 to 30 footer cost about $170,000, so the company moved up in size instead. By 2019 the 29VH was no longer in the lineup.

What changed with the 2025 Freeman 29

The current boat is two feet longer at 30 feet 5 inches, keeps a 10-foot beam, draws 20 inches and weighs about 7,900 pounds with engines, or about 9,900 pounds ready to fish. Fuel rises to 290 gallons and fresh water to 14. Freeman rates it for 700 hp and lists a typical cruise of 40 mph, but unlike the 28 and the larger models it does not publish a fuel economy figure for the 29, and we have not seen an independent test.

The redesign is as much about comfort as running surface. A custom-fitted glass windshield enclosure with a wiper is standard, as is bolster bench helm seating with armrests and leaning post tackle stations. Freeman says the boat is known for a pillow-soft ride and that the new platform improves speed, stability and comfort over its predecessor.

• LOA 30 ft 5 in, beam 10 ft, draft 20 in
• Dry weight with engines about 7,900 lb; ready to fish about 9,900 lb
• Fuel 290 gal, fresh water 14 gal, maximum power 700 hp
• Bridge clearance 9 ft 2 in; trailer height with radar 13 ft 5 in
• Standard twin Mercury Verado 300s

Fishing layout on the current 29

The 2025 equipment list puts the fish storage low and forward: a 200-quart insulated forward floor box and port and starboard floor livewells. The early 2025 sheet also listed a 400-quart coffin box with a cushioned backrest. There are two raw and two fresh washdowns, under-gunwale gaff and brush holders, two under-gunwale electric reel plugs and Gemlux outrigger bases as standard, and the launch sheet counted 16 gunwale rod holders plus six in the transom.

Options cover both offshore and inshore styles: a stand-through tower with controls, kingfish rod holders, dome or open array radar, a FLIR or Sionyx night vision camera, a trolling motor system, a transom cushioned bench and a plumbed electric head. Simrad and Garmin 24-inch packages, or twin 16-inch Simrad displays, fill the dash.

Power choices and realistic range

Every current 29 leaves the factory with twin outboards. Mercury Verado 300s are standard, and Freeman offers Mercury Racing 300R and Yamaha F300 or F350 alternatives along with Mercury or Yamaha joysticks. The 700 hp ceiling means the twin F350 package is the most powerful combination available.

Without a published mpg figure, range is an educated guess. The smaller Freeman 28 is rated at about 2.0 mpg at 40 mph, and the 29 is heavier with a more enclosed helm, so we would plan on somewhat less. Even at a conservative figure, 290 gallons gives the 29 a reach that suits Bahamas crossings and long kingfish runs.

Ownership costs and where it fits

A 10-foot beam keeps the 29 legal to trailer in most states without a permit, though at nearly 10,000 pounds ready to fish it needs a heavy-duty truck and trailer. Many owners will keep it on a lift or in dry stack instead. We estimate $15,000 to $32,000 a year for insurance, storage, twin outboard service, canvas and electronics upkeep and fuel.

In the current lineup the 29 sits between the shallow-water-oriented Freeman 28 and the new Freeman 32. Choose the 28 for skinny water and towing, the 29 for an offshore-leaning twin engine boat that still fits a normal trailer, and the 32 if you need more beam and 390 gallons.

Shopping used, a 29VH or a new-generation 29

Old 29VH boats are the bargain entry to Freeman ownership, but they are now more than a decade old. Most will have been repowered at least once, and condition varies widely. Look for a documented repower, sound transom and engine bracket structure, and a dry core around fittings and hardware. The vented steps should be free of impact damage.

New-generation 29s are a different proposition. They are recent, warrantied boats and few have reached the brokerage market. Expect sellers to price them close to a new order, and check how the boat was optioned, since the glass enclosure, tower and electronics package make a large difference to value.