I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

[snowthrower]

I bought a Doel fin last night and when I got home I was checking it out and the directions are vague as to where to mount it fore to aft. <br /><br />What do you think should I mount it towards the front, or the back or right in the middle.

 

[LubeDude]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

Most do not give you much choice, your cavitation plate is stronger towards the front.<br /><br />My feelings are that you shouldnt mount it at all, take it back, and save more money to by smart Tabs. There is no comparison as to the performance of the Tabs. You are trying to make your engine do something your boat should be doing.

 

[Bondo]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

Very Well Said, LubeDude................<br /><br />Exactly the Way I Feel...............

 

[snowthrower]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

Thanks for the sales pitch!!<br /><br />But I think the hydrofoil will work just fine. I just wanted an answer to my question. All I hear about are these smart tabs and I don't buy it that they will perform that well. <br /><br />Sorry if I seem short I'm sorry my father has been running a hydrofoils for years on many differant setups and he swears by them. <br /><br />I have a 1967 17' seaswirl w/120hp I/O if that will help.

 

[Ralph 123]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

I use Doel-Fins. The way they recommend mounting it is to place the trailing edge of the fins centered over the prop. The trailing edge is the edge furthest aft (i.e., widest part). That is what they told me in response to a call. They work great for me but I have a very long narrow boat with twins. I no longer use my trim tabs at all.

 

[rnsi]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

I *used* to swear by fins. No more. Get the smart tabs, and if you're not completely convinced they'll give you your money back. I still can't believe the improvement since I removed my fin and installed the tabs. Now my fin is mounted in the trash. Best place for it!

 

[LubeDude]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

Originally posted by snowthrower:<br /> All I hear about are these smart tabs and I don't buy it that they will perform that well. <br />

Well, have you EVER heard a post by ANYONE That didnt say they loved the Smart Tabs???<br /><br />Sure the fins do work to a point, but you wont believe the performance of the Smart Tabs.<br /><br />Its not just a sales pitch, we get nothing for saying they are great. They work so well, you couldnt pay me enough to take them off my boat. Well maybe, but I would put them back on my new one.

 

[Jdeagro]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

Snowthrower;<br /><br />It's nice to see you support your Dad, he must be a good guy! I realy mean that.<br /><br />Most likely when your Dad bought his first hydrofoil, we were not in business with Smart Tabs. In any event I promise you, with a written guarantee (find that in you hydrofoil package) that they do everything we claim.<br /><br />By the way my Dads first TV was Black and White, and VCR's were not invented yet. I wish he was here to see what we have today, actually I just wish he was here.

 

[snowthrower]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

My big thing with the tabs is the cost, you call them smart but there is nothing controling them. They leave to much to chance for me. I just don't see paying half of what i paid for my boat for some tabs.<br /><br />BTW Doel Fin has a 100% money back guarentee printed on the package.

 

[LubeDude]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

Originally posted by snowthrower:<br />BTW Doel Fin has a 100% money back guarentee printed on the package.

So do the Smart Tabs, and you are wrong about there being "nothing controlling them", There are small self adjusting actuators on each tab that adjust faster than you could do it youself.<br /><br />Trust us, they are awesome and worth the money.

 

[snowthrower]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

I don't doute that they are worth the money, I'm just saying that " I " don't think they are " worth the money for MY boat " <br /><br />I bought the boat for a song and dance ($500.00 for boat and trailer, it ran good but needed TLC) and I'm not in the postion to put that much money into it for better ride quilty. All I am looking for was to get a better holeshot and get my bow down a bit at speed.<br /><br />As the boat progresses I may turn towards the trim tabs but for now the tail works "VERY" well. <br /><br />I did not mean there is nothing controling them, I realize there is a gas charged shock there to control them, I am just saying that the term "smart" is a bit missleading, "automatic" would much better suite the pruduct.

 

[Jdeagro]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

Snowthrower;<br /><br />There is a bit more to the overall design than immediately meets the eye, but between you and I, "Smart Tabs" was never my most favorite name either as it realy doen't describe the product well. However, I was out voted and the name is easy to remember.

 

[JasonJ]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

NautiJohn, what the heck are these things? No way did you guys make these things, right? <br /><br /> http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/e...tem=2488693215&category=31283&sspagename=WDVW

 

[Mark42]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

Snowthrower,<br /><br />I don't know much about I/O, but I bought a hydrofoil fin and it did help my boat run better. But after making changes and re-testing I found the boat ran its best without the fin, and trimmed in one more notch on the outboard. My point being that the boat just needed to be set up properly to perform its best. The fin helped me realize that. <br /><br />Do I/O's have a trim adjustment like outboards do? <br /><br />Mark.<br /><br />PS, I ran in salt water 4 or 5 times with the fin on, and when I took it off, the aluminum was already corroding where the fin bolts went through ventilation plate. If you do use the fin, put some sealer on the holes. Now I have to fill the holes in with something. Probably use Marine Tex epoxy.

 

[Mark42]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

Jason,<br /><br />Those things are just snow shovels without the handles.

 

[Barnacle_Bill]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

I've never tried the Smart Tab and I agree the doel type fins will not work for everyone. But for some they do. I have a fin on my 16 foot bass boat with 150 Merc and it allows me to maintain plane at a much lower speed. Sure trimming it helped, but not near as much. My only gripe is that it makes the T&T very sensitive.

 

[rnsi]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

IBNFSHN-<br /><br />I have a 18' glass bass boat w/ a 150 Merc. Took off the fin and installed Smart Tabs. I still can't believe the difference. It's like driving a car. They're really that good. And reading other posts on this forum, I was starting to get concerned about the safty of the fin. I'm on plane now almost immediately, and I stay on plane at lower speeds. The boat just stays level.

 

[Jdeagro]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

JasonJ;<br /><br />They were made by Taylor at one point, and are simply abs plastic. They will flex to some degree but they are essentialy rigid trim tabs. Hole shot would be better but the high speed performance will not be good. They will drive the bow down, and make the boat bow steer.<br /><br />No we did not nor would we make anything like this.

 

[Jdeagro]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

IBNFSHN;<br /><br />There is no question that foils will assist a boat to plane. It is the adverse affect they have on the boat once it is on plane. You are experiencing one of the issues. Lifting the boat by the motor / steering mechanism / center of the boat is not condusive to good handling.<br /><br />As a matter of comparison, there is none when it comes to making the boat plane easier. Trim Tabs have much more surface area and they attach the water more agrresively (at an angle) at slow speeds. There is no need to accelerate hard to get on plane, simply drive the boat up to speed. Much less stress on the engine, and less fuel consumption. They cost more, Yes! But only in the beginning, from then on they save money.

 

[Elk Chaser]

Re: I bought a Doel Fin...... Now I have a Question

I have not used smart tabs and like you I don't like the idea of putting something on the boat that I cannot control. <br /><br />But, I have used a foil (on my 165 HP 19' boat) and I will tell you straight up. I took it off after running it only three times, actaully tried to modify it (made it smaller) to make the thing work better at speed. It is long ago in the trash and I wish I had never bothered.<br /><br />These guys are right, they work OK for getting the boat on plane but after that they are completely worthless and a waste of good money spent. I did not like the thing at all.<br /><br />If you don't want to spend the money on the smart tabs so be it. IMO, don't waste your money on a foil.