I’m trying to figure this out. Who can help?
I have a 14 foot aluminum boat, with a 25HP Evinrude, and I want to know, do I adjust the trim of the motor to keep the nose of the boat down? I don’t want to add a bunch more weight to the front, when I take the boat out by myself. With my son, its fine, he’s added 125 pounds to help, but if I go solo, I do not want to add extra weight, if I don’t have to. What else can be done to counteract that problem?
Just wondering out loud here...
To keep the bow of the boat down, the motor should be fully trimmed down. If your motor is in fact fully trimmed down, and your bow is still up in the air I would think that you either have too much motor for your boat, or you have a higher transom, and require a long shaft motor.
I have the exact same issue with my 14 foot fishing boat. However, I know what the problem is - I have a high transom, and I need a long shaft motor. When my father passed, he left me his 14 foot boat with no motor. I just happened to have a short shaft 9.9 motor in my garage, so I decided to give it a try.
Does your set-up by chance look anything like the attached pic?
Notice where the cavitation plate is in relation to the the bottom of the transom - it’s not low enough!
For me the solution is a long shaft motor.
Also, out or curiosity, what is the max hp your boat is rated for?
Hydrofoils are just a bandage for a poorly setup motor and prop.If the motor and prop are setup correct no hydrofoil is needed.I had to make a few changes on mine and the first thing was to take off the hydro and throw it away.I just needed the right pitch 4 bladed prop.Find some one that know how to setup motors correctly to work with.
Make sure your motor is trimmed all the way in while you are alone. Mine has manual pin settings to adjust the starting point of how the motor sits on the transom. While alone, I have the pin in the 1st hole. When fully weighted down hunters, dogs, decoys, gear... I move the pin accordingly. Also make sure your prop is at the proper height... you may need to mount your outboard on a jack plate to get things just right. Does the motor try to turn harder to one side while on plane as well? If so, you can adjust your trim tab toward the position the boat is pulling. Getting your trim tab and trim positioning 'just right' will make the boat glide through the water. You could start by putting a 4-blade prop on your motor... it did wonders for my 15' jon with 25hp. It jumps out of the hole and glides nicely on full plane with no porpoising or bouncing.
lenghten the gas tank hose and put it in the bow when alone.. make sure the motor static setting is at its lowest point on motor bracket IF that doesnt work you can add a wedge to the motor bracket ... I had to do that on a 14' I had years ago.. Kendor marine in Oak Creek sells the wedges..
I have a 14 1/2 foot Alumacraft Escape with a 30 hp ETec tiller. I do not have any problems keeping the nose of the boat down or up. Like Carpio said, if there is a steel rod that runs through the bracket on the mount of the motor, make sure it is in the closest holes to the transom. This will allow you to trim the motor in as tight as possible when trying to keep the bow down. When the boat is up and running on plane, trim the motor out to lift the bow to increase speed. If you are doing both of these things I would bet that you have the wrong prop on your boat. I cannot imagine the need for a hydrofoil on a 14’ boat.
25 hp SHOULD be strong enough to keep the bow down provided: The pin that allows the lower unit to be in its lowest setting and your tilt bracket is down on it. Maybe a different pitch prop? But a hydrofoil would work. If your boat is fiberglass then definitely a hydrofoil. Carpio
