240 Sundancer

[ligolfgal29]

Help or advice please! In July we bought a brand new 2011 Sundancer 240. We are new to boating but had a boat years ago. We just CANNOT get it to not list from side to side. We are constantly tapping the trim tabs and eventually give up and stop the boat. We have grown to hate going out and are almost ready to give up on boating altogether. Has anyone had this problem? Any solutions? We are on the south shore of Long Island and the water is never smooth.

 

[rbh]

Re: 240 Sundancer

Help or advice please! In July we bought a brand new 2011 Sundancer 240. We are new to boating but had a boat years ago. We just CANNOT get it to not list from side to side. We are constantly tapping the trim tabs and eventually give up and stop the boat. We have grown to hate going out and are almost ready to give up on boating altogether. Has anyone had this problem? Any solutions? We are on the south shore of Long Island and the water is never smooth.

When you say list from side to side this while underway or stopped?
How fast are you going?
Besides the trim tabs have you trimmed the drive.
Trim tabs get you out of the water and up on plain faster for the most part, after that you really should'nt need them as they drag your boats speed down and if they are not "BOTH" basically fully up (one up, one down) that will pull you one direction or another

How much weight have you have on the upper deck as compared to in the cuddy (top heavy?)
Full fuel and water tank?

just thinking aloud here

 

[444]

Re: 240 Sundancer

How much are you trimming your drive? That can affect list. How is weight distribution inside the boat? Everything balanced decently?

 

[TilliamWe]

Re: 240 Sundancer

Are you sure you're moving the trim tabs the right direction? My dad's second boat with trim tabs seemed to have them wired backwards.

 

[QC]

Re: 240 Sundancer

They are supposed to be wired "backwards" . . . Well sort of, depending on what backwards is. On Bennett's, and many that are installed the same way. The left button controls the port bow which is the starboard tab. So when you push the left button it "pushes" the port bow down, which is actually the starboard tab gong down. I tell people to hold out there hands palms forward, and fingers pointing up. If you push the left hand forward this is how the buttons work on the bow. Left hand forward = left button pushed on the top down equals port bow down. Of course right hand, same but opposite tab and bow. Confusing until you think about it more.

Bennett's site explains this.

 

[OllieC]

Re: 240 Sundancer

I keep my tabs fully deployed when on plane and then make adjustments to the listing. I'm assuming you have the same Bennet system I have. If the tabs are fully deployed "down" and lets say the port side is listing, tap the port side tab in the bow "UP" position and it should straighten her out.
Love those things.......

 

[QC]

Re: 240 Sundancer

Also, you should wait a few seconds after each tab adjustment for her to settle before doing anything else . . . I would not own a v-hull without tabs, especially a cruiser with decent deadrise.

 

[JoLin]

Re: 240 Sundancer

They are supposed to be wired "backwards" . . . Well sort of, depending on what backwards is. On Bennett's, and many that are installed the same way. The left button controls the port bow which is the starboard tab. So when you push the left button it "pushes" the port bow down, which is actually the starboard tab gong down.

Hi, and welcome to iboats, ligolfgal. You and I boat in the same waters- I'm in the Babylon area. My last boat was a 24' Chris*Craft express cruiser, essentially the same as your 'Dancer.

First, what QC said. My immediate reaction is that your tabs either aren't working properly or you aren't using them properly, so pay close attention to his instructions.

Second, the Great South Bay is tricky... between wind, tide, wake action, and the shallowness of the water- there are many, many days when the Bay is simply 'confused', and no direction of travel will provide a stable ride. That typical strong east wind also plays havoc with your boat when you're in one of the North-South channels. There are times when I simply can't trim the boat completely level (like yesterday) because she's leaning hard into a 20+ -knot wind.

See if you can elaborate on your problems. I'd hate to see anyone give it up because of a problem like this.

 

[Alwhite00]

Re: 240 Sundancer

I have a 97 250 Dancer and I believe the hull dimensions are very close to yours and I use my tabs a lot - Boat is very finiky about them for some reason. M last boat (210 Seville Mid Cabin) I hardly used them so I am not sure what the difference is but they are used a lot.

LK

 

[ligolfgal29]

Re: 240 Sundancer

Hi All - thanks for the info.

The engine trim is all the way down. Our salesman told us not to use that, only to use the trim tab buttons.

When you say list from side to side this while underway or stopped? UNDERWAY

How fast are you going? 15-25

Besides the trim tabs have you trimmed the drive. It's all the way down.

Trim tabs get you out of the water and up on plain faster for the most part, after that you really should'nt need them as they drag your boats speed down and if they are not "BOTH" basically fully up (one up, one down) that will pull you one direction or another

How much weight have you have on the upper deck as compared to in the cuddy (top heavy?) Nothing extra, just a cooler

Full fuel and water tank? 1/2 tank fuel and 20 gal water.

 

[NYBo]

Re: 240 Sundancer

Welcome to iboats!

I find it odd that the salesman told you not to use the drive trim. I don't have any experience piloting a boat the size of yours, but that doesn't sound right. Pulling the bow up by trimming the drive up once on plane might help your problem.

But I may be all wet.:redface:

 

[rbh]

Re: 240 Sundancer

Hi All - thanks for the info.

The engine trim is all the way down. Our salesman told us not to use that, only to use the trim tab buttons.

When you say list from side to side this while underway or stopped? UNDERWAY

How fast are you going? 15-25

Besides the trim tabs have you trimmed the drive. It's all the way down.

Trim tabs get you out of the water and up on plain faster for the most part, after that you really should'nt need them as they drag your boats speed down and if they are not "BOTH" basically fully up (one up, one down) that will pull you one direction or another

How much weight have you have on the upper deck as compared to in the cuddy (top heavy?) Nothing extra, just a cooler

Full fuel and water tank? 1/2 tank fuel and 20 gal water.

Hey Bud-
Lets see if we can help you through this dillema.
As JoLin said you are probably fighting wind and swells, thats really not much fun is it?
So go with the wind or against it for now. (unless there are huge swells)
While I do not have a ton of salt water expierence all I can say is find a calm day.
(little wave action or go to a fresh water lake)
Set your trim tabs at ZERO and try to trim out the boat with the drive (Minumum RPM to max MPH)
Then go and practice with the trim tabs to optimise.

 

[JoLin]

Re: 240 Sundancer

OP-

The salesman didn't give you very good advice, so maybe a couple of tips will help. Some will disagree a bit with some of my points, but try it.

1. Outdrive trim- trim the drive IN to start. When you've come up on plane trim it out to raise the bow out of the water. My best results have always come from 'bumping' the trim button a bit at a time, and waiting a few seconds between bumps. Eventually you'll reach a point where the boat starts to 'porpoise' at which point you'll trim back in just a bit. Now you're running level. In rough water you generally want to trim in a little more to reduce bow 'bounce'.

If you're fiully trimmed in all the time with bow down into the water, you're experiencing bow steer, where every swell or bit of chip is pulling the boat off course and adding to it's side-to-side 'roll'.

2. Trim tabs- I don't use them to help get on plane. Your boat has plenty of power and you don't need to complicate the 'getting on plane' process with another pair of buttons. I use the tabs strictly to control side-to-side trim, and the instructions for doing so are well stated by QC above.

Fact is, between the outdrive trim and trim tabs, there's a lot to manipulate when you're new to it all. If you practice you'll start getting the hang of it after a few times out. My advice would be to go out early (8:00 or 9:00) , before the bay starts kicking up. Put the trim tabs all the way up and practice using the outdrive trim so you see how it affects your 'fore and aft' running attitude. Once you have a handle on that, play with the trim tabs to understand how those help control your 'side to side' attitude.

Take your time. If you live anywhere near Babylon, you can PM me. If we can work out the logistics I'd be glad to give you some hands-on instruction on your boat, if you'd like.

 

[JoLin]

Re: 240 Sundancer

I have a 97 250 Dancer and I believe the hull dimensions are very close to yours and I use my tabs a lot - Boat is very finiky about them for some reason.
LK

Not hard to explain if you understand the dynamics at work. The OP's boat, my '99 Chris and yours all have similar characteristics that contribute to their 'finicky-ness'

1. Narrow beam (8' 6")
2. Fairly 'sharp' V-hull (18-22 deg deadrise)
3. A significant percentage of the boat's weight is above the waterline.

Those factors make the boat naturally 'tippy'. It isn't dangerous in the least, but takes some getting used to. My Chris had an unusual amount of deadrise (22 deg. at the transom) for this class of boat. It was the best rough water boat I've ever driven (much better than my larger Four Winns), but a sudden strong gust of wind would toss it on its side (figuratively speaking). Once you realize it's just a 'surprise' and nothing to worry about you can get on with enjoying the boat.

 

[TilliamWe]

Re: 240 Sundancer

and 20 gal water.

That's 166lbs on one side of the boat, near the back, I'll guess. That can't be helping. Where are the batteries? Same side? That would be even worse.

QC, I know how trim tabs are supposed to be wired. And once you get used to them, they are intuitive. What I said was, on my dad's SECOND boat that had them, someone had changed from the accepted wiring. Apparently they couldn't get used to them, and so they reversed it.

 

[QC]

Re: 240 Sundancer

QC, I know how trim tabs are supposed to be wired. And once you get used to them, they are intuitive. What I said was, on my dad's SECOND boat that had them, someone had changed from the accepted wiring. Apparently they couldn't get used to them, and so they reversed it.

I understood you as I have seen the same before. I wasn't sure though which way was "backwards" as I believe one of the manufacturers actually recommends wiring 'em that way. All good. Just wanted to clarify for the OP.

 

[ligolfgal29]

Re: 240 Sundancer

Thanks all - next time out, which will be Sunday, we are going to try and trim the drive first and use trim tabs to tweak it. Hopefully it's not too choppy out there.

 

[TilliamWe]

Re: 240 Sundancer

I understood you as I have seen the same before. I wasn't sure though which way was "backwards" as I believe one of the manufacturers actually recommends wiring 'em that way. All good. Just wanted to clarify for the OP.

Are you kidding? One manufacturer recommend wiring them "backwards" from the other manufacturers? No wonder people have a hard time adjusting them!