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Posts: 516
| I was wondering if anyone uses or has opinions on hydrofoil accessories on motors?
I was also wondering if one put one of these things on your motor, would it affect the ability to add a trolling plat later?
I have a 16 1/2' aluminum fishing boat that I'm putting a new 50HP on. My old motor, which I had gotten used, was a 25HP that already had a hydrofoil when I bought it.
I will also add that I do fish when it's rough and the combination of better handling in rough water, holeshot and topspeed all factor in.
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Posts: 1663
Location: Kodiak, AK | I asked this very same question a while back. Basically, if your motor is big enough for your boat, you won't need it. The replies I got were that they're a compensation for an underpowered boat. My 200 pushes me just fine out of the hole, and handles 2'-4' chop just fine without any add-ons.
http://muskie.outdoorsfirst.com/board/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=40... | |
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Posts: 516
| Thanks | |
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Posts: 3518
Location: north central wisconsin | Check these out. For those of us with big tillers, of which most are underpowered by nature, these could save the day. I have heard nothing but good reports from those who have installed these correctly on their rigs. It will eliminate the need for a trolling plate on your rig as well.
www.nauticusinc.com | |
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Posts: 43
Location: Roch NY | just remember that hydrofoils are not a cure all. they might help in some respects but compromise others. I had one on my rig when I bought it and was having a lot of problems with fouled plugs. turns out: the foil, if the motor is not trimmed to level with the water can put a drag on the boat and thus a strain on the motor when at speed. the motor strain caused the fouling plugs.
for instance, if I wanted to stay on plane at lower speeds and kept the motor trimmed all the way in, you could hear the strain of the motor trying to propel the boat forward while the foil acted as a drag on the boat creating more resistance for the motor. once I took it off all my problems went away. in my case, the holeshot didn't really change either once I properly vented the prop.
BTW- got a foil to sell...cheap... | |
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| Hiya,
First question, What is the max HP for the boat and is it a tiller or console? Second, Have you gone out and tested the boat with the 50hp on it to see if you need one at all?
Depending on the hull, the motor, the prop etc. A foil will only work as an aide to your rig if it is under-powered. If you are close to max HP on the boat, a motor height change and/or prop change will be your biggest benefit, both in handling and speed.
If you click on the link that was supplied by Esoxfly, it has quite a bit of information there.....I will stand by my statement, though...a hydrofoil is just a band-aide for a set-up issue or an under-powered boat...
If you are close to max HP, I would bet you would not need one...
Steve | |
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Posts: 3518
Location: north central wisconsin | The trim tabs, if used properly, will totally eliminate any need for a 'whale tail'. The nice thing about tabs, is that once the boat is up and on plane, they are no longer in the water, and will not effect the handling/speed of your rig as a whale tail(hydrofoil) will. The tabs will also add stability to your ride through out, if listing or porpoising is an issue. They also can serve as a brake for trolling, and also help the boat maintain steerage throughout. You might check out the boat page at walleyecentral.com as there are several threads concerning the way the tabs outweigh a tail. There are alot of walleye guys that run big underpowered tillers over there, which brings more insight to this type of issue than most Musky guys can bring.
Good luck bro!! | |
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Hydrofoils?