Re: what does get it on plane mean
A boat can travel through the water (displacement hull) like a canoe or a sailboat, or it can travel on top of the plane of the water (up on a "plane") which is where most outboards spend a lot of their time unless they are trolling (idle speed). Way less resistance skittering on top of the water than trying to push (displace)several thousand gallons out of the way. That why it takes full or nearly full throttle to get on a plane but you can back off to 1/2 throttle or so once you get there. Trim is the angle of thrust of the outboard. If the prop is angled so it is pushing up the stern will be pushed up and the bow down which will get it on a plane sooner but because the bow is down more hull than necessary is in the water and more friction. If the prop is pushing down the stern will be pushed down and the bow up and it will take longer to get on a plane but will have a higher top speed because of reduced wetted area of the hull.<br /><br />Displacement hulls all have a hull speed that can be calculated from a formula I forget that is dependent on length and width. Longer narrower hull have higher hull speeds all other things being equal. A huge standing wave build up as you approach the hull speed and limits further speed increases unless you power through and the hull has enough lift to get on a plane. We were able to get a J24 monohull sailboat up on a plane at about 12 knots with a spinaker surfing down a wave even though it has a hull speed of about 7 knots ( a rush). That is also why windsurfers can hit 50 knots in speed trials, the miracle of "planeing".
