Issues running in choppy water

[viper1216]

Looking for a little advice. I got my boat earlier this year. 18' 2004 Maxum SR3 with a 3.0 alpha 1 gen 2. I primarily took it in the local ponds at the beginning of the year, but more recently have been taking it out in our local bay. The bay is known for being nice in the AM but gets choppy in the afternoon. I don't go out if local forecast says it's going to be rough, but I am talking about 1 foot waves or so. I take the waves head on and the boat does fine but it sometimes slams pretty hard depending on the set coming in. I usually run about 20 mph or so. I try to trim up a bit to get some of the bow out of water, and it smooths out for a few seconds but then starts porpoising and remains doing it until I either throttle down or trim down again. I'm sure this is just my inexperience and I'm doing something wrong, so looking for some seasoned advice on what others think.

Thanks!
Dave

 

[Old Ironmaker]

Dave I don't believe 20MPH is enough speed to trim her properly. Each and every boat has it's unique sweet spot when trimming is concerned. A 1 foot chop is nothing for a glass boat like yours. It's easy to run a boat on water like glass which you won't find every day so learn to live with some chop as well as bigger waves and white caps. You don't want to be caught in wind when you don't expect it if you aren't comfortable and don't know how to handle it, that causes undo stress. Keep running the boat and playing with your trim you will eventually find what she wants and you will be able to run her in all conditions.

 

[tpenfield]

Typically, you would trim in to put the bow into the waves a bit to get the sharper entry into the waves. If you trim up, like you mentioned, you will take the waves more mid-ship where the hull is flatter and feel the pounding.

18 feet is not a lot of boat to be out in a bay, but with small waves (1-2 feet) you should do OK. Keep in mind that if you go faster, you could have a few hard landings on some wave sets and the boat will not always come down level, which results in pounding as well.

 

[viper1216]

Thanks for the input. So it sounds like I may be doing things the right way then (that's a relief). I know the boat is small for the bay, which is why I pick and choose they days, but unfortunately in Narragansett Bay, it can be beautiful in the AM but it's ALWAYS choppy in the afternoon.I have already enticed the wife into getting a bigger boat, but gotta keep my current one for at least another year. I really wish I could keep her, engine is a 2010 and only has 70 hours on it!! She runs like a top, but the Bay is far more interesting than our local ponds.

 

[Old Ironmaker]

I know guys here on Erie that will go out in 1 meter waves in even smaller boats. I wouldn't but it is doable if you have a good back and lesser intelligence.

 

[tpenfield]

Thanks for the input. So it sounds like I may be doing things the right way then (that's a relief). I know the boat is small for the bay, which is why I pick and choose they days, but unfortunately in Narragansett Bay, it can be beautiful in the AM but it's ALWAYS choppy in the afternoon.I have already enticed the wife into getting a bigger boat, but gotta keep my current one for at least another year. I really wish I could keep her, engine is a 2010 and only has 70 hours on it!! She runs like a top, but the Bay is far more interesting than our local ponds.

I know the feeling . . . we are in Buzzards Bay and typically will go out in 1-2 foot chop and come home in 4-6 foot slop.

 

[Maxum21]

my first boat was a 17' Maxum. While it was a good boat, it was not a rough water boat. IMO, they're designed more for calm lakes. You could try trim tabs. They will help you plane easier and help you keep the bow down which may help the ride a little. Best to just slow down when the water gets choppy

 

[WIMUSKY]

1 foot chop isn't much for any boat. Try speeding up a little to stay on top of the chop...... I like the bow up "some" too. Let the boat take the brunt, not me...

 

[gm280]

I remember on open water, be it a large lake or ocean, you had to find the acceptable speed to go as easily as you could over chop. And even white caps can be iffy if you don' control the hull and the speed. There is a point that you will find that allows the best forward movement while lessening the bounce as best you can. Too slow or too fast and you will take a pounding for sure. It varies with the water and chop. Of course common sense has to be used always. JMHO

 

[WIMUSKY]

I remember on open water, be it a large lake or ocean, you had to find the acceptable speed to go as easily as you could over chop. And even white caps can be iffy if you don' control the hull and the speed. There is a point that you will find that allows the best forward movement while lessening the bounce as best you can. Too slow or too fast and you will take a pounding for sure. It varies with the water and chop. Of course common sense has to be used always. JMHO

Spot on! Like has been said, need to find that sweet spot..

 

[dingbat]

I usually run about 20 mph or so. I try to trim up a bit to get some of the bow out of water, and it smooths out for a few seconds but then starts porpoising and remains doing it until I either throttle down or trim down again.

Your doing the exact opposite of what you should be doing.

When things get rough, you want your bow down to help cut thru the waves. Trimming up causes the waves to hit the flat portion of the hull causing it to pound with each successive wave.

I/O are transom heavy and don't take to rough very well in general. Adjustable trim tabs will help. A prop that provides a lot of transom lift will help as well.

 

[viper1216]

I have seen trim tabs mentioned a few times now. Anyone have recommendations on what the best ones would be (without dropping more than the boats worth on them). There seem to be auto adjusting and fixed. Any benefit to one over the other? I would like something I can install myself. I am very handy, and would rather not pay to have things installed. On my last boat, I had this, for lack of a better term, whale tale on the back of the boat. It was bolted on just below where the trim cylinders mount to the outdrive. I have a swim platform on my new boat, so something like that would not work as it would hit when I went to raise the outdrive.

 

[jkust]

I get why you are trimming up to get the bow out of the water and also understand the annoyance of when you have a hull that likes to porpoise. My previous boat was very succeptible to porpoising once I changed props whereas it wasn't with the earlier prop. If when you get back on the water and decide that cutting through the waves with your boat is less pleasant then having the waves hit amidships with the bow up, I would possibly consider the easiest thing which is to change props. Of course tabs won't allow it to porpoise but they are much more of a commitment to install.
I was on our lake this weekend on a very windy day and found it more pleasant to not cut through the waves and instead bow over them. You don't get the constant spray that on a windy day hits you while standing at the helm. There is just a lot less drama going over them than through them IMO.

 

[viper1216]

Do the trim tabs provide a different effect than just trimming the outdrive? In reading about them, it seems like they are doing the same thing.

 

[Philster]

i don't think you have much of a V on that boat. Something like 16 or 17 degrees of deadrise... which is good for a lake.

Light boats with not much of a V = pounding in almost any chop.

Slamming = all of the above PLUS a bow too high (engine/drive trimmed wrong) and the slamming comes from the mid-section of the already flattened V belly flopping instead of a V cutting into a wave/chop.

.

 

[dingbat]

I have seen trim tabs mentioned a few times now. Anyone have recommendations on what the best ones would be (without dropping more than the boats worth on them). There seem to be auto adjusting and fixed. Any benefit to one over the other?

Adjustable hydraulic tabs are the only way to go in tidal water.

The ability to move the tabs to a neutral position is a must in a following sea. Fixed or auto adjusting can be darn right dangerous in certain situations.

Using the motor trim helps in pushing the bow down but does nothing to lift the stern to give you a better running angle to work with. The combination of adjustable tabs and a stern lifting prop will help but there is only so much you can do given the configuration of your hull.

i don't think you have much of a V on that boat. Something like 16 or 17 degrees of deadrise... which is good for a lake.

Agree.
To put things into perspective, the deadrise at the bow of my boat is in excess of 45 degrees, tapers back to 22 degrees at the stern.

 

[viper1216]

Ok, so it seems like this boat may not be the best choice for the bay here. Let me get some more input then. I am planning to rent out a slip in the bay next year so I don't have to trailer this boat. This is going to require me to put anti fouling paint on it. And now adding trim tabs as well. I was thinking of getting a bigger boat after next year maybe 2. Preferably a cruiser type. Am I just wasting time and money putting this stuff on this current boat if it's really made for a lake?

 

[tpenfield]

18 foot Maxum . . . Would be a lake boat, IMO.

 

[jkust]

18 foot Maxum . . . Would be a lake boat, IMO.

And even then, we got rid of our 18 foot much heavier and steeper deadrise Chaparral as our lake was too much for it as far as the pleasentness factor on a rough day. No way on a large bay would I have an 18 foot Maxum. If you aren't constrained by a budget too bad, I would start shopping now to get the lay of the land of what is and isn't a good deal ahead of next season where a cruiser is concerned. The thing about cruisers, you can get a steal on them dollar for dollar as for example your 2 million dollar home is 8 times better with much more land than a $500k house or something like that.

 

[viper1216]

Unfortunately, next year is not in the cards for a new boat. Possibly the following year. So do you think it's worth it for me to add in the trim tabs and add the bottom paint, or is it a waste of money and just run her as is next year and grab something the following year?