Location: Minneapolis, MN | I have a manual jack plate on my Triton bass boat. I wish I had a hydraulic plate. I think there is a bit of a misconception about hyd jack plates though. Jack plates get as much of your lower unit out of the water as you desire which typically improves performance on a bass boat and can help on some walleye rigs. Typically you setup a jackplate for optimum performance and forget it. I have seen people adjust them every time they get on plane. That really is not necessary and can lead to your motor sucking a lot of air if you are not paying attention to your water presure guage. They way I was taught to setup a jack plate was to start at a medium height note your water pressure and then start jacking it 1/4" or 1/2" each run. This is a real pain on a manual plate as it can take 7-10 runs to get it dailed in requiring you to go back to the dock or trailer each run. With a hyd plate you can make these adjustments in one long run without leaving your seat. If you change props on your boat from one season to another to get better whole shot in denser/less dense water (temp related) then having a hdy plate will be a great advantage. A word of caution if you are not already aware, make sure you have a water presure guage before you add a jack plate. If you jack it up too high and don't get minimum water presure per mfg specs you can overheat your motor. |
