Newbie and Bassboat Set-up

[Gene K]

Hey guys, new user. I hope you will listen to my drivel.

Boat: BumbleBee 280FD (18' - Listed Weight 1080 lb)

Outboard: 1996 Johnson 150 Faststrike (1.857 Gear?).

Setup: 10" Jackplate with Prophaft 1" (Light) or 2" (Heavy) Below Pad.

Prop: 24" Raker Blueprinted by JC's with lots of Cup (Was told to use 25.2 in Slippage formulas).

With just driver (250 lb), four batteries, trolling motor, 2 LCD Graphs, and 15 gal of fuel it runs 71.5 mph (GPS) @ 5700 rpm (OMC Tach) in 60 degree weather. With another 650 lb in 90 degree it runs 58 mph @ 5100 rpm.

This calculates to 2.4% (?) and 13% slippage using JC's numbers. Does this seem reasonable? I wonder if the tach is reading low?

Should I consider going to a smaller Four-Blade for the Summer Tourneys? The Raker still pops it onto plane pretty well although it takes about 3 seconds compared to the jumping the speedbreaker feeling you get when lightly loaded.

[The Big Al]

Run it like ya stole it!!

[nealxb2003]

If you are getting to 71 mph with an 18' bass boat/150, you are screaming. Most similar rigs are getting mid-60s at best. Low to mid 60s is about all I'd expect with a load. To get there, you are going to need a little less pitch to get your RPMs up or you can try raising the motor a little. At 5100 RPMs you are lugging the motor.