Manual Jack Plate

ScottM · #1 06-27-2003, 09:53 AM

As some of you may know, the transom setup on our 23 Sceptre is a little funky. The previous owner notched another 5" out of it to put on a single 25" motor, as the boat originally came with twins so the transom is 30". Because of this extra notch, the engine has never tilted all the way up - the cowling hits the splash well. Now that we're having a new (to us) Yamaha 225 put on, we want to get it all the way out of the water while at the slip. Unfortunately the Yami is a 25" as well, so filling the extra notch is not an option at the moment.

Soooooo, this is what we've decided to do:
http://www.rmind.com/jackplates.php?...0199.232.152.9

Have any of you had experience with manual jack plates? We went with the 8" set back, and with 4" of vertical travel, we should be able to dial this thing in to tilt the engine completely up and gain a little more performance as a side effect.

ScottM · #2 06-27-2003, 02:32 PM

Joe - we had a water pressure gauge put in 2 seasons ago, so I'll keep an eye on it once we get the boat back in the water. A couple weeks ago our glass guy (30+ years experience) checked out the transom for us and didn't find any rot. Granted, he didn't drill any core samples, but by banging on the hull he couldn't detect any problems.

Ikan - I would appreicate those pics to get an idea of your setup. We're supposed to receive the jack plate Monday, and then the new engine goes on. Welcome to the board.

Ed · #3 06-27-2003, 08:01 PM

Hey Scott-

BE CAREFUL with the jackplate.....if you run the engine hard while it is in the high position, you can overheat or blow the motor. How do I know? My old Mako 20 had a hydraulic jackplate on it (COOK Manufacturing)and while trimming both the engine and the jackplate up....I overheated it and had to get it rebuilt through Monahans.

As far as transoms go...I am sure the core is wet/damp, especially considering the boats age. Dont worry almost all of them are...but as long as they're are no cracks indicating weakness and it is stable, you'll be fine.

Good luck.

-Ed-

barnacle · #4 06-28-2003, 01:12 AM

Be sure to have a water pressure gauge installed. You can take these engine up to high and air enter the coolong systems during a high speed run. Also be sure your transome is has no rot. anywhere around the cecter of the boat. I have seen many brackets rip of boats with so called good transomes. Your putting that weight out there.

Ikan Besar · #5 06-28-2003, 01:20 AM

I did nearly exactly what you are proposing and it helped immensely. I'll email you photos of what the setup looked like on mine.

ScottM · #6 06-28-2003, 11:31 AM

Ikan - received your pic, thanks!

Ed - being a manual jack plate we won't have the opportunity to play with the setting while underway, but I hear what you're saying. It'll take a little tweaking to get it dialed in right, but at the first sign of ventilation or loss of H2O pressure we'll slow right down and make adjustments. We'll take you for a spin when it's running just right.