Re: Motor height on bracket
 

Almost a two year anniversery for this thread, lol. Long before me. Maybe I'll pull a measurement and post a pic.

Re: Motor height on bracket
 

Thanks Don....removed it to drop and service LU...I can put it aside :D Prop is a 15x15 OMC Alum.

Bruce...this thread was saved in my favorites ;)

Re: Motor height on bracket
 

I run an el-cheapo original Stingray fin on my bracket set-up. It works so well for me that I skipped putting trim tabs on and just run a 15x17 3 blade and might actually go up to a 19. It may not be the norm but it sure runs good on mine.

When I first got the boat wet my only complaint was popping it up on plane and that is a complete non-issue for me now along with having some other advantages. Seems to really help with blowout in hard turns in a sea which I love. Some people don't like that you lose some top end speed which I have seen on other boats. Not with mine, I lost nothing up top. My performance #'s are very good for an old 150 crossflow that sat neglected outside for six years and it surely isn't 150hp, it's not tired it's 22yo, with 40yo technology. I can get 44mph with half fuel and me and the wifey with normal gear, and I'm a few hundred rpm to much at full trim. Really a old OMC 140 V-4 looper would probably run faster and is far from a modern engine. I think the perfect motor for me would be a 25" 90's 60deg. V-6 looper 175 OMC. At only 350 lbs. I could probably lose the foil and the boat run just as good if not better and definitely faster.

I honestly always looked at fins/foils as crutch for various reasons and if it had any weird side affects I would have thrown it in the garbage and got a 4 blade and tabs. The fact that I have had such good results has me changing my thinking on foils/fins on some set-ups. I'll probably be running the foil on this motor til it dies, then we'll see for the next outboard.

Re: Motor height on bracket
 

That shoots my theory down! Good to know they work on brackets, I have used and installed on many boats without and like the results but never on a bracket boat. BruceB
do you know how high from keel you have the motor mounted?

Re: Motor height on bracket
 

Nah... I moved it up and down three times...I'll try to get a measurement and a pic today. I do remember thinking it looked to deep/low to me no matter what height I had it at...lol

Motor Height Measurement
 

I had a nice length of thin wall 1/2" aluminum that I duct taped to the keel and to the motor and checked it a few times. About 3" to the cav. plate and a setbeck of 30"

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_...0136_large.jpg
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_...133_medium.jpg
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_...132_medium.jpg
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_...134_medium.jpg

Re: Motor Height Measurement
 

I have a fin on my 20...when I bought the motor it already had one on it so I just left it on...the boat really jumps on plane and turns on a dime without any cavitation. My trim tabs were an unnecessary addition to this boat. Bushwacker has a fin on his Hermco bracket and he has said that he thinks it helps as well. I used to have a fin on a bracketed 23 Arena craft....cant remember exactly why I put it on but I think it was because of blowing out in turns and it fixed the problem. I think the main advantage of a fin is that it will get the bracketed boat up on plane faster. BTW I think fins look ugly..... but if they help

Re: Motor height on bracket
 

Don,

I raised my motor 2 holes from where you mounted it. Cav plate is now 3.25" above keel. It still handles fine; can put helm hard over at most any speed with no ventilation.
http://i188.photobucket.com/albums/z...thtclsup-1.jpg

I had a Doelfin on the old 115 and it seemed to help planning when I was heavily loaded on my Bahama trips; I could trim motor down and plane easily at 12-13 mph, allowing me to run comfortably SITTING DOWN in 3-4' head seas. When I added the 30" setback bracket and increased motor weight from 300 to 429 lbs, it wouldn't plane below about 18-20 mph! I added the Doelfin and that reduced min planing speed a couple mph, but it still wasn't as good as what I had before. I then tried a 4 blade prop and that got me back to where I was with the old motor. Denny

Re: Motor height on bracket
 

Thanks for the info guys. The fins seem to be a big plus. Now can you buy some more boats and let me install brackets for more testing? :D Just joking. The info you have provided will be quite useful to me and others with bracketed boats. ;)

Re: Motor height on bracket
 

After glassing/filling/painting/re drilling. I am @ 3". I paid the price for not drilling right the first time . Need to give it a try next month. One move up would still leave me a little lower than before. Going to seatrial without fin. Then fin can go back on if need be.