Re: Bennett trim tabs
I bought an older set of Bennett trim tabs and was wondering if anybody knows what this gauge is exactly?
Also just wondering if there is a limitation on the lengths for the hydraulic tubes from the pump to the actuators?
Thanks!
Wow, that's an oldie. Never saw one like that....Looks like the first rev of LED indicators. Like you, just installed a set of new tabs (ST16 tabs) with "pre-owned" pump, wiring, control switch and new auto retract relay. The used stuff was just fine with the exception of needing to replace the "red" solenoid on the pump. No indicators, though, and am looking into some. I know the indicators are for referance only and 90% of the adjustments are done by feel, but having a visual indication at a glance would be helpful. Am leaning toward the older dual guages setup (one for each tab), just because I'm not a huge fan of LED's (especially at night) mixed in amongst the OEM anolog dash guages, but that one looks like it would fit quite nicely in the space my old / unused radio remote is filling. Looks like it may have been an OEM one from the origional boat manufacturer, since Bennett has thier logo on the front of all thier indicators.
Although the tubing lengths are different between the port and stbd tabs, my tabs operate at the exact same speed, although kind of slow, since there are 4 rams (2 on each tab), sharing the same pump output normally supplied by a 2 ram setup. Can't comment on max tubing length, but the folks over at Bennett will return e-mails and answer any questions you have very promptly. I think thier customer service is second to none.
The boat now behaves like an entirely different boat. Planes at a much slower speed (16 mph instead of 24), much lower RPM, much lower fuel consumption, able to adjust list from varrying load (passengers moving about) with the flick of a switch instead of constantly telling folks where to move to make boat level again. I wonder why I just didn't put them on when I first got the boat. Will never have another Deep "V" without them.
It is an easy install, once you get past the worries of drilling all the holes in your transom. I used 3M 5200 on everything to seal every hole I made. Best of luck with the install and once it's all said and done, you'll love those things.
