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Posts: 206
| Re: your question about Yamaha VTS vs. Merc Big Tiller handle...
I'm sitting here in my Yamaha hat and have been a die-hard "blue" fan for years. Had the 150 4 stroke on my Ranger Reata and now have the 60 4 stroke with VTS handle on my 16 foot Yarcraft tiller. Flawless motors, but i admit being quite disappointed in the VTS handle. Perhaps my expectations were too high. That being said, i would rename the handle "Variable RPM handle" not "Variable SPEED handle." For two years I have tried to adjust my trolling speed with the VTS handle to no avail. Maybe it will occasionally go up or down 1/10 of a mph...but maybe it's just me wanting and willing it to adjust and is more in my head. I have had it into the dealership and they hooked it up to the computer. They have also talked to the Yamaha tech and the answer is the same - yes with the VTS handle you can adjust the RPM's maybe from 600 to 900 but the total amount is maybe 400 RPM's max. This equates to no difference in speed on the water.
They did say larger HP tillers may have more of a variance in RPM's and that will equate to more/less speed but I'm guessing a couple tenths of a mph which seems insignificant to me in most cases.
Also, the VTS does nothing for torque reduction on the shoulder or power steering.
Of course the Merc Big Tiller handle reduces torque and provides easy steering. I guess I don't know how many RPM's, or more importantly, how many MPH the handle can make at 60, 75 or 90 HP, or whatever - and I would be very interested to hear personal feedback.
I do have to agree that the price on the Big Tiller handle seems outrageous. This is how tillers with less horsepower and no added console end up costing as much as SC or DW that have more HP. Will the cost eventually come down or do we just need another competitor with similar capability to drive the price down to something more reasonable?
Or, will I bite the bullet and end up wearing a black hat this time next year? | |
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