Newly purchased 21' Polar center console, semi v / 150hp Yamaha OX66
Saturday:
Shakedown run on local large lake, all went well- no issues.
Later Saturday:
Took it out on the Suwannee, REALLLY shallow and ran into some submerged trees. Wasn't fun going 5mph up and down the river with the motor sitting on top of the water trimmed up, still it was a nice cruise and the thing ran GREAT. Bit into the bottom a couple of times and kicked up mud and rocks- but I kept seeing i/o boats flying by me- I had to be doing something wrong; but didn't feel comfortable enough to get to a plane speed there- if I trimmed all the way up to where the prop was sitting on top and gunned it, I wasn't happy with the mass splash, nose rising up, etc etc etc... What's the proper way to get proper speeds for the river in 3-5ft waters in this boat? Or was the boat just too big for the river (I'd imagine not, being I DID see other boats of my style (maybe a 19') out there running outboards.
Sunday:
Took it to Horseshoe Beach for some inshore fishing, got 7mi out and started to porpoise really hard on some bigger swells- we spent the day in 3-9 ft waters and had a blast. Hopefully I have that term right (porpoising)- basically when hitting a 2-3ft swell while planing, not head on, but pulling slightly to the side to slightly surf it as we hit it (i read this was the proper way to attack a wave)- I had a guy sitting toward the bow, dead center, but would slam him down on a tailbone as he hit- I was used to this in a smaller boat, but I thought this heavier boat would break the bigger waves a little better than it was- perhaps trim tabs will help and cut through it better? Or am I doing something way wrong--- I have no doubt experience is key here, and I don't have it.
Basically, I start out motor trimmed all the way down, build up to a plane and then I go for the trimming to the optimal rpm / mph combo to determine least resistance and proper angle (this was pretty hard considering the tach and speedo weren't working and I was going on gps speed and my ears for the revs). However: even trimmed completely down, sitting at 25 mph we were catching air going over some waves. I also noticed it was a pain in the butt, if not impossible to trim back down while the boat was moving- that may be a safety feature- broken, or perhaps it's too hard to trim down under a strong current against it. I did hear lots of creaking and grinding coming down when the motor hit the rods - probably a bit of marine grease will solve that.
I also found myself using the trim a LOT trying to figure out a perfect setting- I never really got it right, I was a little obsessed with toggling the trim setting all day long, and i'm not sure if that's normal to use the trim at every start/stop or if I should set it and only adjust when environment changes.
I also brought the motor out of the water at every fishing stop / drift- probably unnecessary, but I had a ton of rods / chum, etc going out the back of the boat and got nervous.
Anyways- I guess I'm curious if this is normal to touch the trim this much and constantly wrestle with the setting to get it right- or if there's a need to add trim tabs to the boat. I'd assume if it was necessary, was running 3 adults and 2 children, 1 medium ice-chest - not really a huge load for this boat.
I wouldn't think I would HAVE to sit someone in the front of the boat at all- but with me at helm, another adult in the back, and one in the front of the console- it still wanted to raise up too high when the motor was trimmed down all the way.
Saturday:
Shakedown run on local large lake, all went well- no issues.
Later Saturday:
Took it out on the Suwannee, REALLLY shallow and ran into some submerged trees. Wasn't fun going 5mph up and down the river with the motor sitting on top of the water trimmed up, still it was a nice cruise and the thing ran GREAT. Bit into the bottom a couple of times and kicked up mud and rocks- but I kept seeing i/o boats flying by me- I had to be doing something wrong; but didn't feel comfortable enough to get to a plane speed there- if I trimmed all the way up to where the prop was sitting on top and gunned it, I wasn't happy with the mass splash, nose rising up, etc etc etc... What's the proper way to get proper speeds for the river in 3-5ft waters in this boat? Or was the boat just too big for the river (I'd imagine not, being I DID see other boats of my style (maybe a 19') out there running outboards.
Sunday:
Took it to Horseshoe Beach for some inshore fishing, got 7mi out and started to porpoise really hard on some bigger swells- we spent the day in 3-9 ft waters and had a blast. Hopefully I have that term right (porpoising)- basically when hitting a 2-3ft swell while planing, not head on, but pulling slightly to the side to slightly surf it as we hit it (i read this was the proper way to attack a wave)- I had a guy sitting toward the bow, dead center, but would slam him down on a tailbone as he hit- I was used to this in a smaller boat, but I thought this heavier boat would break the bigger waves a little better than it was- perhaps trim tabs will help and cut through it better? Or am I doing something way wrong--- I have no doubt experience is key here, and I don't have it.
Basically, I start out motor trimmed all the way down, build up to a plane and then I go for the trimming to the optimal rpm / mph combo to determine least resistance and proper angle (this was pretty hard considering the tach and speedo weren't working and I was going on gps speed and my ears for the revs). However: even trimmed completely down, sitting at 25 mph we were catching air going over some waves. I also noticed it was a pain in the butt, if not impossible to trim back down while the boat was moving- that may be a safety feature- broken, or perhaps it's too hard to trim down under a strong current against it. I did hear lots of creaking and grinding coming down when the motor hit the rods - probably a bit of marine grease will solve that.
I also found myself using the trim a LOT trying to figure out a perfect setting- I never really got it right, I was a little obsessed with toggling the trim setting all day long, and i'm not sure if that's normal to use the trim at every start/stop or if I should set it and only adjust when environment changes.
I also brought the motor out of the water at every fishing stop / drift- probably unnecessary, but I had a ton of rods / chum, etc going out the back of the boat and got nervous.
Anyways- I guess I'm curious if this is normal to touch the trim this much and constantly wrestle with the setting to get it right- or if there's a need to add trim tabs to the boat. I'd assume if it was necessary, was running 3 adults and 2 children, 1 medium ice-chest - not really a huge load for this boat.
I wouldn't think I would HAVE to sit someone in the front of the boat at all- but with me at helm, another adult in the back, and one in the front of the console- it still wanted to raise up too high when the motor was trimmed down all the way.
and I appreciate the knowledgeable, well thought out responses- without sounding condescending considering I'm relatively green to boating. It's nice to know there are mentalities out there that understand we all had to start at some point.