Quote:
Originally Posted by dginge
I have always.heard these boats are tailheavy but mine sure seams low in the.water in the back I have a 150 ocean pro (runs like a top by the way). . .
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That's probably because it's getting hard to find the 300 lb motors that these boats were designed for! The boats are also relatively narrow compared to modern boats, which is one of many reasons they ride so well, but they are definitely more weight sensitive and the 18 is more sensitive than the 20. The optimum motor for the 18 seems to be an earlier carb'd V-4 like a 130 Yamaha or equivalent, but 76Red18 is running the same motor you have, and he's never complained about balance. Snookerd also has a lot of experience with different motors on the 18. You might consider moving batteries to center console, along with moving the whole console and gas tank forward, which I think they did on the later 18's, along with changing them to 25" transoms. To check for a soft transom, try jumping on lower unit and see if it flexes.