Out with old and in with the new..

[194268]

Pick up a 1978 Check Mate V mate II last Saturday, Plan to put a 1988 200 Merc on it. My Son seems to think it needs at least a 4" setback it. Looking at the hull it looks like it has a 6" set back built in to the hull. I am open for any suggestions to improve handling and top speed.....

[194268]

No suggestions ???? Do I need additional set back ????? Will the boat handle 200 HP ?????

[XstreamVking]

Back when new , they ran low 60's with a 150 IL-6 bolted to the trans. A 200 on it might be a 70 mph boat. Try with the jack plate and w/o the plate when dialing it in. Seems I remember the Checks of that vintage were light and liked to hop. Check the bottom carefully before running it. Being a pad boat, driver is the biggest factor in whether it will handle 200 hp or not. Start with the cav plate 1-2'' above the bottom and watch the water pressure. 26p chopper would be my prop of choice.

[194268]

Thanks guys...

[checkmate45]

Should be around 70 mph without the jackplate. 26 or 28 chopper would work for props, ours ran 80, no jackplate with a 225 hp johnson and a 28 chopper.

[194268]

Any problem with chine walk ??????

[checkmate45]

Only if you let it, the boat handled the speeds i wanted it to without wanting to walk much. Dual ride guide or hydraulic steering is a must.

[CircleHook]

What lenght is that boat? Does it have a bench across the back with storage underneath instead of the loungers on each Side? I may have owned that boat long ago-
The one I had would do low 50's with a 200hp 1978 Evinrude- Fantastic boat but very heavy- V6 motors had just come out and builders were loading up on glass because they did not know what the motors in recerational hands were going to do to the transoms.
Very thuristy set up too- boy did we make a lot of family memories in that rig.

[194268]

It's a '78 17 footer, and as far as I know, the boat has been in Wisconsin since day one. Last owner had a Johnson 115 on it and claimed med 40's. The boat was built with a bench rear seat and two buckets up front. Also built with a 15 or 16 gallon tank behind rear seat...

[CircleHook]

Not mine - it was a 20'

[Magcat 62]

OULD try it right on transom first thats a lot of weight for small boat might porpoise easily and sit real low with add set back? Idont think your gonna like that hull with a v 200. only my opinion with c-mates ART

[FUJIMO]

Great running old 17' CheckMate V-Mate ll, when set up properly. Hard to find any at all these days, at all, due to the fact they only made them for about three years or so. Not to be confused with its predecessor, the V-Mate 1. I had one with a 200 Merc, striped out interior, and rigged with a center-steer set-up & only one bucket. 14 1/2" x 30" pitch, out of the box, over-the-hub, Merc Hi-Perf. Cleaver. This was back in the very early 80's & I wanna say it ran between 80 & 85 mph, and steady as a rock at those speeds. I was actually surprised at how well it ran back then. Congradulations!

[W2F a V-King]

I had 2 back years ago, a 15 in !977 then the latest one (1992) was a 16' that I gutted and did a full restore, pulled the windshield, covered the motor well and made the transom full depth across, set a warmed up 7 pedal 225 on a home made bracket with a power lift jack plate. It was very stable at speed. I made the mistake of leaving the fuel cell in the bow, but as long as it was near empty all was good.

I did not have a working speedometer in the boat, and no GPS (In 1992 it was Loran C). But with a 26" merc chopper, 1.87 lower unit run near the surface I got about 7500+ rpms. Guessing that would be near or about 80ish. It was a fun versatile ride. I put a set of Bennett trim tabs on it for slow speed planing for water skiing/tubing. They were no where near the water when I had the boat trimmed and aired out.

So yes, your Checkmate would love a 200 Merc and a setback if your boat is bow heavy. You could always add one later if bolting it to the transom requires to much trim to get the boat aired out.

James

[FUJIMO]

...194268...? How did the boat turn out?