Sea Hunt BX28 Review, the Twin-Engine Bay Boat Grows Up

BX28: Sea Hunt stretches the bay boat to 28 feet 6 inches

Sea Hunt's BX family has been the South Carolina builder's bay boat line for two decades, from 19 and 21-footers in the 2000s to the BX 25 BR and BX25 FS. The BX28 is a different scale of boat. At 28 feet 6 inches with a 9-foot 6-inch beam, it is three feet longer and a foot wider than the BX25 FS, it carries more than twice the fuel (157 gallons versus 68), and it is the only BX that comes with twin outboards as standard. Sea Hunt added its product page in September 2026 and lists it as part of the 2027 lineup.

In plain terms, the BX28 is Sea Hunt's answer to the hybrid boats that have grown out of the bay boat segment: boats with casting decks, rod lockers and trolling motor wiring, but enough length and freeboard to cross a bar, run to a nearshore wreck and come home in an afternoon sea breeze. Buyers searching for a BX28 are mostly comparing it with premium Florida hybrids that cost far more, and that comparison is where this boat is interesting.

Reading the 19/20/56 bottom

Sea Hunt publishes deadrise as three numbers. On the BX28 they are 19 degrees at the transom, 20 degrees amidships and 56 degrees at the entry. That is far deeper than the 15-degree transom on the older BX 25 BR, and closer to an offshore center console than to a classic bay boat. Expect a softer ride in a chop than flatter BX models, at the cost of a little stability at rest and a deeper draft.

That draft is the honest tradeoff. Sea Hunt lists 19 inches for the BX28, against 15 inches for the BX 25 BR. With the optional 6-inch hydraulic jack plate and the engines trimmed up, it will still work shorelines and creek mouths, but this is not a boat for poling a skinny flat. Think big bays, sounds and nearshore water rather than backcountry.

Yamaha's test sheet, point by point

Yamaha tested a BX28 with twin F300 XSB2s on September 24, 2026, swinging 15 by 20-inch Saltwater Series II stainless props. The boat weighed 8,012 pounds as tested with two people, 55 gallons of fuel and four batteries. It planed in 3.25 seconds and reached 30 mph in 4.95 seconds, then ran to 61.4 mph at 6,100 rpm burning 53.6 gph.

The useful number is the cruise. At 3,000 rpm the BX28 ran 28.5 mph on 11.9 gph for 2.39 mpg, and at 3,500 rpm it ran 35.3 mph on 15.1 gph for 2.34 mpg. In other words, there is almost no efficiency penalty for cruising at 35 instead of 28, which is the sign of a hull that is well into its planing range by then. At 4,000 rpm and 40.8 mph, economy drops to 1.93 mpg.

Using the published 157 gallons and the 3,500 rpm figure, a full tank works out to roughly 330 statute miles before reserve, or a comfortable 250 to 280 miles once you hold back 10 percent and allow for load and sea state. That is a lot of reach for a boat that still carries a trolling motor harness.

Deck plan from coffin box to twin aft wells

The bow has a 150-quart storage compartment, port and starboard lockable lockers that each rack four rods, and a raised coffin box with 100 quarts of storage, an unusual touch on a bay boat that doubles as a seat and casting perch. An 80-quart drop-in storage compartment and a molded 5-gallon bucket recess sit in the deck for cast nets and bait.

Bait is handled by two 16-gallon aft livewells and a 35-gallon well built into the standard bait tank leaning post with captain's chairs. Recirculating plumbing for the wells is optional, worth ordering if you fish shrimp or pinfish in warm water. An aluminum leaning post is available instead, with a slide-out cooler, if you would rather trade bait capacity for an open cockpit.

A 19-gallon freshwater system, a china toilet in the console and Bennett trim tabs with indicators are standard.

• Bow storage 150 qt; coffin box 100 qt; drop-in storage 80 qt
• Lockable rod storage: four rods port, four rods starboard
• Livewells: two 16-gallon aft plus 35-gallon leaning post well
• Freshwater 19 gallons; fuel 157 gallons

Standard kit other builders charge for

Sea Hunt's longtime pitch is that its standard features list does the work that options sheets do elsewhere, and the BX28 follows the pattern. The starting price includes twin F300s with Yamaha electric steering and a tilt helm, dual 12-inch Garmin GPSMAP 1243xsv displays with a GT17 transducer, Yamaha's CL5 touchscreen engine display, a powder-coated fiberglass T-top with a mister system, a windlass anchor, underwater LED lights, a waterproof Bluetooth stereo, a wireless phone charger and diamond-stitched white upholstery.

The main options are Yamaha's autopilot or Helm Master with SetPoint, kingfish rod holders on the T-top, tan or gray interiors, canvas, the jack plate and the cooler slide. Few buyers will need more than a handful.

BX28 or Gamefish 27FS: choosing within the Sea Hunt family

The closest alternative is in the same showroom. The Gamefish 27FS is a foot shorter at 27 feet 6 inches with the same 9-foot 6-inch beam, but it is an offshore center console with a 21/24/60 bottom, 21 inches of draft, 180 gallons of fuel, a 40-gallon mezzanine livewell and twin F200s standard. It costs less to start, at $191,402.

Pick the Gamefish if most of your days are offshore and you want the deeper bottom and taller sides. Pick the BX28 if you split your time between bays and nearshore water and value casting decks, the coffin box and the trolling motor provisions. On Yamaha's numbers the BX28 is also the more efficient boat at cruise.

Buying in the first model year

Because the BX28 is new for 2027, there is no owner track record yet. Sea Hunt sells through dealers, so the dealer's rigging quality matters as much as the factory's. Ask to sea trial a demo, confirm that the hull carries Sea Hunt's current warranty terms, and get the Yamaha engine warranty registered in your name on delivery.

Running costs should be moderate for the size. At 15 gph at 35 mph, a 60-mile day uses about 25 to 30 gallons. Add twin F300 service, insurance, trailer or storage, and most owners will spend roughly $12,000 to $24,000 a year before depreciation.