sticky water

[nate.]

i have a 19' flats boat with short sponsons powered by a 150 ho etec. im runnin a 20 raker. today i was in water that had less than 1' of chop and best i could get was 51 @ 5500rpm. i have seen 58 in 1'-2' chop and a 22 raker. my question is, what prop should i try to get the boat to run faster in smoother water? i think i need to get it up out of the water more. the boat wants to porpoise if i trim it up too much without a bunch of tab.

the boat is 19'2" and weighs just about 900#. it has a running pad and bobs jack plate...

this is the boat....

[fastcat300]

is this a tunnel style bottom??, if so there was a thread about venting the tunnel on here recently.

[nate.]

no. i think its 12 or 14 degrees of deadrise with a running pad. heres a pic of the transom...........


and you can get an idea how long the pad is with the hull in the mold just after it got a gel coat and skin coat..........

[nate.]

oh , those are strakes to help it to be push poled straight, not lifting strakes.......

[John.Vaught]

Have you added any gear to the front of the boat? Are your tabs even with the bottom of the boat were they down a little bit? Is the bottom aft 1/3 of the boat hull shiney or dull.

Was your top speed in salt water and the lower speed in fresh water?

Super Nice boat by the way.

[imq707s]

Try a Trophy...they give lots more lift than a Raker.....

[nate.]

i talked to a guy runnin my same setup bout this yesterday. this was his response.....

"Don't do a trophy. We tried a 21 and it ran terrible. If your not going fast enough to be up on the pad its going to stick. There is no sharp edge transitioning from the running surface to the hull side. If your not going fast enough the water just rolls right up the side of the boat. The calmer it is the worse the boat rides. The vantage would rather a stiff chop versus slick calm. It will take some time but you'll figure the boat out. Theres a setup you'll dial in. I like the Bravo, alot. I think we've sacrificed some speed but the boats on the pad at 38 mph, that was in slick calm water. Jumps out of the water and lands straight as an arrow. Yes, i said jumps. I've barked the motor quite a bit. The raker torques left when you leave the water. With the bravo its rock solid on the pad, and the rough water handling is incredible compared to the raker. We're only pulling high 54's with the Bravo but I'll let the 1 mph go for the the advantages it's given the boat. Light with the Bravo its running just as fast as your 22 raker, but effortlessly. The prop is back with croxton getting some of the cup relieved out of it. Can't fully trim out cause theres too much bow lift."

[nate.]

Have you added any gear to the front of the boat? Are your tabs even with the bottom of the boat were they down a little bit? Is the bottom aft 1/3 of the boat hull shiney or dull.

Was your top speed in salt water and the lower speed in fresh water?

Super Nice boat by the way.

thanks for the compliment! the boat has all 3 batteries in the console along with the jackplate pump. run with 20 gallons of gas (36 gallon capacity) the tank is just forward of the cockpit, trollin motor on the bow. all electronics, oil tank and power pole pump are in the port and starboard lockers. tabs are maybe 1/16"-1/8" above the bottom of the boat. in water under 1' chop you need to run 1/4 tab or so at higher speeds or she wants to start to hop. im adding wedges monday for this. in choppier water you can pick the tabs up and she flies. i think a different prop will help the bouncing as well. the hull bottom is slick. and the boat is always ran in salt water. fresh water is for drinking. ;-)

[John.Vaught]

Cool,

I love those boats I sit and watch Kevin (I think) do a walk around on the boats they put out and they seem to really love what they are doing.

A bravo I is a strong prop I wish I could try one on my rig but they only go down to a 22p pitch I think and I need a 19p. Kevin from prop gods let me try a hydromotive quad 4 x and all I can say is wow that prop lifted the bow and stern and the fit and finish was outstanding. My boat is a lot heavier than yours so one should work miricles on your rig.