← The model library
Model profile · for Great Loop buyers
Symbol 50 Pilothouse
What the published record establishes about this model, what owners report,
and the questions worth asking while a boat is still a listing. This page is about the
MODEL — a specific hull always gets its own homework.
A tall, semi-planing pilothouse cruiser that can do the Loop if the arch/mast come down and fuel is managed at trawler speed; thinly documented, so verify on the hull.
The Symbol 50 Pilothouse (roughly 1997–2002) is a shallow-deadrise, modified-V/semi-displacement pilothouse motor yacht around 51' LOA, 15'7" beam, ~38,000 lbs, with a two- or three-stateroom layout and roughly 600 gal fuel. It was offered with twin ~450hp diesels; the sample hull carries Cummins 6CT8.3M (6CTA8.3) engines, though Cat options also appear across the run. There is very little model-specific owner discussion for the 50 Pilothouse in particular — much of what follows is brand-general, engine-family, or class-of-boat knowledge flagged as such, and should be verified on the specific hull at survey.
How to read this: 🟢 Fact = confirmed against a document, spec sheet,
or owner. Everything else — Claim, Pattern, Question, Context — is not yet
verified: things to check, not settled truth. Sources are linked where published.
Handling
CONTEXT
Semi-displacement hull: efficient at trawler speed, thirsty on plane
The modified-V, shallow-deadrise (~10° aft deadrise) hull is a semi-displacement/'fast trawler' form. The builder cites an 18-knot cruise and low-20s top speed, but that is planing-speed operation and burns fuel heavily. For the Loop the boat is normally run at displacement/hull speed to stretch range, where the hull is comfortable but no measured burn figure is published for this model.
src:
HMY Yachts powerboat guide; 2003 Symbol 50 broker listing (yachtr.com)
Fuel & range
QUESTION
What is the actual fuel burn at 8–9 knot displacement speed on this hull?
No measured fuel-burn or range data exists for the Symbol 50 Pilothouse specifically; the only published number is the 18-knot planing cruise. Loop range depends on the displacement-speed burn, which varies with engine, load and bottom condition. Treat any range estimate as unverified until measured.
Your move: On sea trial, run at 8–9 knots and record GPH per engine from the fuel-flow gauges (or a measured top-off), then compute usable range against the ~600 gal capacity with a reserve.
Air draft
CLAIM
Tall pilothouse-with-flybridge profile; a folding/hinged arch may be present
A 50' pilothouse yacht with a flybridge is a tall boat, and air draft is the gating issue for the Loop's fixed bridges and northern canals. A 2003 Symbol 50 listing advertised a hinged arch specifically for Loopers, so a lowerable arch exists on at least some boats — but no factory air-draft figure is published, and what lowers (arch, mast, antennas, flybridge enclosure) differs hull to hull.
src:
2003 Symbol 50 broker listing (yachtr.com); Trawler Forum (air-draft measurement threads)
QUESTION
Does this specific hull have a hinged/folding arch, and what is the measured air draft with everything lowered?
The hinged-arch feature was noted on a different (2003) boat, so it cannot be assumed on a given 2000 hull. Achieving low air draft for the northern canal routes typically requires dropping the arch, mast and antennas — none of which is documented for the 50 PH.
src:
2003 Symbol 50 broker listing (yachtr.com)
Your move: Have the seller demonstrate lowering the arch/mast and measure the true air draft to the highest fixed point in both raised and lowered states; get the lowered figure and what remains fixed in writing.
Draft
CLAIM
Shallow-draft hull (~4' range) suits the Loop's thin-water stretches
BoatUS-sourced figures cite about a 4'2" draft, which is favorable for the shallower Loop segments. Actual loaded draft depends on running gear, fuel/water load and gear aboard.
src:
HMY Yachts powerboat guide (BoatUS figures)
Reading the boat
CONTEXT
Model-specific documentation is thin — lean on survey and the specific hull
Most online discussion covers the Symbol brand generally or the more common Symbol 45/sister designs, not the 50 Pilothouse. There is no documented 50 PH-specific defect pattern for engine access, cooling routing, mounts or systems, so general survey diligence carries more weight than usual here.
QUESTION
How is engine-room access and how many zincs/service points does this installation carry?
Engine-room layout, access and cooling routing on the 50 PH are described only generically in listings. Twin diesels of this size carry a substantial maintenance load (many zincs, filters, impellers), and accessibility affects how easily that load is met on a long cruise like the Loop.
src:
Sam's Marine/Hatteras forum (Cat zinc-count discussion, engine-family)
Your move: During survey, open the engine-room and check reach-around access to filters, impellers, aftercoolers/heat exchangers and outboard zincs on both engines; count and log the zinc locations.
Engines
The engines research — factory options, tested performance,
and the engine-specific questions our members' dossiers carry — is part of the
full profile inside the product. It travels with every dossier and survey brief
built on this model.
Looking at a specific 50 Pilothouse?
This page is the model's story. The product reads an actual listing against it —
your requirements, the hard gates, the record cross-checks, and the questions ready
to send. See a full
sample dossier first if you like.
Join at the founding rate →