Four Winns Horizon 190 lists to port

[Jimmie.jazz]

Can anyone suggest a cure for the handling problem our boat exhibits? We have a 1986 19-foot Four Winns Horizon 190. It has a Mercuiser 230 HP Alpha One with a SS Prop (unknown pitch but max RPMs are about 4700) and a Sting Ray Hydrofoil Stabilizer with torque equalizers. Had the boat a little over a month, and had it out on the lake 7-8 times. At anchor the boat sets level in the water.<br />Problem is that when under power, it has a tendency to roll onto and ride on its port side, sometimes dangerously close to the water coming over the gunwales. When the boat is in this state, no steering or outdrive trim adjustment will right it. Only backing the throttle completly off will straighten the boat. When I steer to Starboard, the boats inertia seems to push the boat farther into the water on the port side, and when I steer to port, it angles even more towards port. The hull looks straight and the leading edge of the anode is adjusted all the way to the port side, and the whale tail's torque equalizers are aligned with it. If we can't fix it, we're going to sell it, as we can't rely on the boat's stability.

 

[WillyBWright]

Re: Four Winns Horizon 190 lists to port

Take the whale tail off and you should get your stability back. On some applications they're absolutely awful. On others they work okay. What you need is trim tabs. There are expensive hydraulic models as well as less expensive manual models. Also, you probably have power steering. Get a flat plate instead of that MerCruiser torque tab. You don't need one with power steering and right now you probably have everything fighting eachother or compensating for one another. Take it all off and I'll bet it handles 100% better. You'll need the tabs for the listing problem unless you simply ballast it level.

 

[zoom50]

Re: Four Winns Horizon 190 lists to port

I have the same problem...When accelerating it will lean toward the left...I usualy have to take off power and give it another shot. One cause of this is water soaked foam under the floor that is adding weight on port side...I have a hydrofoil, so you might want to give it a shot without this...I might do the same. If not, we might have to resort to trim tabs. Good luck and let me know if the removal of the hydrofoil helps.

 

[Jimmie.jazz]

Re: Four Winns Horizon 190 lists to port

Thanks, I'll pull off the whale tail tonight, but the weather here may prevent me from testing it for a few days. Yes, it does have power steering. As for the trim anode, the previous owner had set it straight ahead, but the whale tail's tabs were toed out. (strange) I saw that the starboard guide ear on the outdrive was polished smooth but the port one was not, so I had adjusted the trim anode and whale tail's tabs to compensate, so as to keep the outdrive from putting so much pressure on itself from the torque (and hopefully alleviate some of the roll). The boat floats level when not under power, so I shouldn't need to ballast it, should I?

 

[navigator336]

Re: Four Winns Horizon 190 lists to port

No, you shouldn't need to ballast it, just shift your ballast (which are the people riding in the boat) around to level it out. If it's just you in the boat, then put your beer on the port side. I totally agree with WillyBWright that the problem is the foil. You shouldn't need one on your boat with that motor. Somebody probably put it on after seeing an ad about improved performance, better hole shots, etc. Why they didn't take it back off, who knows?

 

[Jdeagro]

Re: Four Winns Horizon 190 lists to port

Jimmie, Willy, Zoom, & Navigator;<br /><br />Go to our web site www.Nauticusinc.com , to the home page, to the bottom of the left side menu and click on Boat Balance and Performance. Down load and print the booklet, as it covers exactly what you fellows are talking about.<br /><br />Here is the Story: Boat owner wants to get up and on plane easier when he has a few people on board, or towing, or etc. The most common fixes are to change the prop (either pitch or to a SS prop) and add a hydrofoil. The boat is a family cruiser open bow deep V with a stern drive. In short the fix all revolves around the propulsion system (motor).<br /><br />Now the boat is either susceptible to bow steering, leaning in turns, listing to port, slower in top speed, or all of the above.<br /><br />Why? 1) The Deep V design makes the boat balance more sensitive. 2) the more aggressive prop induces a torque list (boat wants to rotate in the opposite direction of the rotation of the prop). 3) The hydrofoil adds additional lift to help the boat plane, but continues to lift even more after the boat is on plane. This extra lift is located dead center on the boat stern, so the boat is now trying to balance on the keel (center making it less stable port to starboard. The faster the boat goes the more the bow is pushed down, and the motor trim is not capable of lifting the bow enough. The result is excessive torque list / steering, and it lays over hard in turns. With the motor trimmed out to bring the bow up as much as possible (to compensate for the excessive stern lift from the hydrofoil) the prop is now going through the water at an angle which results in less efficiency and slower speeds. Not to mention the extra fuel consumption.<br /><br />Someone said that he might need to "resort" to trim tabs, and he is correct. A SS prop is more sexy than Trim Tabs, and a hydrofoil is less money to start with. But the hydrofoil becomes more expensive each time you use the boat because you will spend more time at the gas dock.<br /><br />Never, never use the motor and/or prop to do anything but propel the boat. The attitude adjustment should be the job of the trim tabs. They create balance front to back and side to side. They adjust the hull design to suite the conditions (extra load, towing, speed, water, etc).<br /><br />The net result is easier planing, reduced bow rise (50% to 70%), smoother ride, and more top speed. If the torque list remains, the trim tabs can be set to compensate for the list. This is done upon or after installation, not while running. It need to be set only once.

 

[Jimmie.jazz]

Re: Four Winns Horizon 190 lists to port

You guys are great. I pulled off the whale tail, and the clouds parted long enough last evening to make a quick launch palatable. Now, it's a different boat. It no longer rolls to port, it handles evenly in both directions, and is finally STABLE. We were ready to sell it, but now we're happy with it. Thanks a bunch guys, and nautiJohn, your physics are right on the money.<br /> <br />By the way, I think the reason the whale tail was on there at all was to help sell the boat. The previous owner had removed the whale tail at some point and had used JB-Weld (and a sloppy job to boot) to fill the original holes he'd drilled through the anti-ventilation plate. So to cover up the sloppy work and help the appearance of the boat, he drilled NEW holes next to the old ones and re-installed the whale tail, covering up the JB-Weld patches! (groan) I don't think JB-Weld is a bad thing, but why drill more holes? That just causes me more work filling, patching, sanding and painting. Oh well, I'd planned on re-painting the outdrive anyway.<br />Bottom Line:<br />Problem Solved- Thanks Again!