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Posts: 555
Location: Tennessee | I'm running a Lowe FM160 Tiller and we've played with motor adjustment some and I'm getting decent speed however with me, fuel, and 3 batteries in the back its light in the bow and will start to bounce with just a few degrees of trim. With me alone it will occasionally do it even on smoother water unless I fill the livewell some. I'm looking at adding a hydrofoil to help but have no personal experience with them. |
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Posts: 1752
Location: Mt. Zion, IL | I have a similar boat. mine is stable, but I had to move the two TM batteries to the bow. You may have luck with a DoelFin, but I would not install any other brand. I do not have one currently. Try loading more weight in the front to see if that helps first. Your other option is to find a prop with more stern lift. I'm guessing you have a 3 blade prop now. You may have to go to a 4 of a different style. Call the motor mfg and see what props they offer that have more stern lift if weight distribution doesn't help.
I have an Alumacraft Lunker 165 Mag T with a 25 hp. Dad has a similar lund with a 25 hp and both perform nearly the same. Dad has a hydrofoil, I do not. Feel free to shoot me a message or get my number from Mr. Gunkel. |
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Posts: 1209
| Are you running max speed/ max rpm? I have experienced this wth much more boat if I'm just trying to economy drive. However more power and more trim pulls it out. I like the four blade prop idea and if your max rpm maybe a steeper pitch to power through it.
Edited by Fishysam 8/14/2016 1:27 AM
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Posts: 555
Location: Tennessee | Yea with fishing load I'm running max rpm currently. I have been considering picking up one of the Mercury spitfire 4 blades for it anyways but several mechanics I've talked to keep recommending the whale tails. Another thing is I try to cruise around 4500-4800rpm but unless I wind it up to around 5700-6000 the bow still stays up a little more than I like |
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Posts: 483
| i have a 14.5 prince craft i put a hydrofoil on and i does allow me to get the bow down a lower speed ! |
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Posts: 20254
Location: oswego, il | I have a 142 princecraft with a 25 Johnson on it. With 2 people it took a while to flatten out. With 3 it won't. I put a foil on it and now it gets up and goes right away even with 3. Mine is an SE Sport and it works great.
Edited by ToddM 8/14/2016 4:59 PM
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Posts: 377
Location: On the River | I had a 40hp Evinrude on a 16ft King Troller added the Doel fin and was able to plane out much faster |
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Posts: 106
| I have experience with hydrofoils on 6 different boats with 35 hp - 150 hp. And in every case the hydrofoil resulted in quicker planing, lower on plane speeds, and less porpoising. I haven't seen any down side.
I liked the SE Sport the best. |
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Posts: 555
Location: Tennessee | Well I bought a new 10.6x12 Spitfire prop im going to test out first and if there's still some issue I've got an SE300 foil used in good shape for $15 to try. Hopefully I'll know this coming weekend if it'll work or if I'll have to try the hydrofoil too. |
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Posts: 3508
Location: Elk River, Minnesota | Hiya,
I'm wondering why the boat has 3 batteries in back? Does the boat not have battery storage up front for TM? Do you have a bow mount up front? I could not find any layout schematics of the boat to see, but 3 batteries in the back (in my humble opinion) is a touch odd as compared to how most battery set-ups are done in a boat...especially one with a livewell up front. Please excuse my ignorance of not knowing the boat layout.
If I may ask, what motor do you have on it and where is the trim lock pin located? Is the motor tucked all the way under or is it out a hole or two? If it is out a couple of holes, that is definitely your starting point.
In almost all cases, a hydrofoil is only a bandaid for a set-up issue. In most cases, the foil is used for an improperly set-up boat, with the main situation being a boat that is way underpowered as compared to the max HP rating of the boat.
My gut instinct says you would be further ahead if there was a way to relocated two of the 3 batteries to the front of the rig. In doing so, you will have a boat that will balance much better overall, and the bow will move around less in the wind (albeit a small bit..)
Steve |
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Posts: 797
Location: North Central IL USA | ranger618 - 8/21/2016 7:44 PM
the hydrofoil resulted in quicker planing, lower on plane speeds, and less porpoising. I haven't seen any down side.
I liked the SE Sport the best.
This! |
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Posts: 555
Location: Tennessee | Steve, it's in the second notch from the top. And as for the battery location I do have a large storage locker up front ahead of the livewell but no battery storage. And I'm running an Ulterra, hence the 2 trolling batteries and starting. Running it with just me after installing the Spitfire I picked up about 1mph, still running 5900rpm with light load and most of the porpoising issue is fixed. I can actually give it a little trim now and with my buddy were doing great. Holeshot is improved noticeably and is still getting 5650-5700 with second person and extra gear in the boat. |
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Posts: 3508
Location: Elk River, Minnesota | Hiya,
The second notch from the top is a long way trimmed out already. I would suggest moving that pin to the second hole out from the bottom so the motor actually is slightly tucked under when fully down. This will give you even better hole shot, and allow you to trim to your liking without making the bow porpoise.
Knowing that position on the motor I have a sneaking suspicion it is taking away much of your trimming ability as the motor is trimmed way out already. You will find the motor will not get anywhere near as high on RPMs when you are tucked under, but as you trim out, the rpms will come up nicely, and you will find a sweet spot where the boat just floats along at decent speed.
If you would be willing to try this, I have a feeling you might find there is no need for the foil.
Steve
Edited by VMS 8/27/2016 8:08 PM
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Posts: 409
Location: Almond, WI | I have a 16ft Smokercraft tiller with a 45hp Honda, was very slow onto plane. Added a SE300 and it's on plane almost instantly. Didn't loose too much top end either, maybe 1 mph at most. |
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Posts: 1283
| My boat is under powered for sure but It gets on plane decently if I start with it trimmed all the way down and as the RPMS come up I trim the motor up till just before it starts to cavitate. Takes some practice but works for me. |
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Posts: 3508
Location: Elk River, Minnesota | Hiya!!
Adding a foil to an outboard is really only a band-aid to a set-up issue...mostly used for rigs that are underpowered. Underpowered rigs have a very hard time getting the boat up on plane because the power in the rear is not enough to push the rear upward with enough thrust. What the foils do is act like a wing on a plane....it creates more surface area on the top of the wing thus creating "lift." Just like a plane wing... The water traveling above the wing moves faster than that below the wing, thus creating a low pressure area, thus the rear lifts better.
The major downside on foils is that extra surface area as well...it takes away your top end speed unless you are underpowered. Most boats when they are set up have the motor too low on the transom. A properly set up rig will have the anti-ventilation plate just above the water line while on plane....in other words, it's not in the water creating drag. If you run a foil and your motor is all the way down on the transom, you are robbing your motor of speed as that foil will be running in the water. But...to keep the boat up on plane, that foil needs to be in the water. That is why underpowered boats work better having the foil.
Speed is not always the key element in boat set-up, though... Some people want the handling more so than speed, while others want speed over handling. Then there are those who love to tweak things and find a good happy medium.
No matter what you want out of your rig, a foil helps those boats that are significantly underpowered. If your motor is within 10 - 15% of your max boat HP, a foil should not be needed...In most cases set-up issues on boats is propeller related when the boat has a motor that is at or close to max HP.
Steve |
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