How fast should my bass boat go?

[tinkerguy70]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Wait, so your telling me you can catch fish in a boat thats NOT moving? Why do the bass boats on my lake all have 200's?

Oh, I'm so confused now!

 

[phillipdi]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Hello I took another look at my prop its 17pitch allumim and yes it is has dings on it. Also when you mentioned waterlogged foam. I do after every weekend spray out the inside of it to clean the carpet. I never thought about that. I am pretty sure the engine is running corretly I just had it serviced, carb rebuild and getting ready to install a hot foot throttle on it. I was just thinking that it should probally go a little faster than 39, now this is based off of my GPS my boat speed odometer is stuck at 20 mph.

 

[jestor68]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Hello I took another look at my prop its 17pitch allumim and yes it is has dings on it. Also when you mentioned waterlogged foam. I do after every weekend spray out the inside of it to clean the carpet. I never thought about that. I am pretty sure the engine is running corretly I just had it serviced, carb rebuild and getting ready to install a hot foot throttle on it. I was just thinking that it should probally go a little faster than 39, now this is based off of my GPS my boat speed odometer is stuck at 20 mph.

Maybe I missed it, but I don't recall you mentioning what rpm your motor is turning at WOT. Need to know that.

Target is 5000-5500 rpm.

 

[mr 88]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

The dings have to be fixed.Your prop is one of the most critical part of the whole operation.A small ding can translate to mph and fuel loss not to mention your prop shaft beating up the bearings with the vibration.Remember the last time you drove a car with a unbalanced wheel,same thing on the whole drive-train.Waterlogged flotation is between your floor and the bottom of the boat,not your carpet.

 

[CharlieB]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Mounting height of the motor on the transom is very important, mounted too low leaves too much gearcase dragging in the water, reducing speed and efficiency.

With the boat on the trailer and the motor trimmed level, the A/V plate just above the prop should be about one inch above a straight line extended back from the bottom of the hull. If the motor is mounted an a jack plate so as to be farther back from the hull it may be raised higher such that once on 'plane' and at max speed the A/V plate is 'just' under the water.

 

[jestor68]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Mounting height of the motor on the transom is very important. at max speed the A/V plate is 'just' under the water.

Come again? On a bass boat?

 

[MH Hawker]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

I thought it was illegal to own a bass boat that ran under 90.

 

[5150abf]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Pull the plug and get the front of the trailer as high as you can and see if it stops dripping from the drain hole, if it drips for more than a couple hours you may have foam issues, if memory serves weren't Triton boats always woodless.

As for the prop just take a file and smooth the edges offthe dings and that should help, it will still not be balanced but it shouldn't cavitate to much.

Engine height is something you will have to play with to get right, there is no one position that works on all boats.

Everyone goes through the "how fast will my boat go" phase, eventually you get over it and just fish but it is a fun distraction.

I have a 16' v hull with a 50 and I have tried everything to make it go faster, the absolute world record is 31 mph gps, I know I could pick up few by going lighter but I like all my stuff and being a catman I normally only run wot for 15-20 minutes per trip anyhow.

 

[beardeddone]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Hello, I am trying to figure out how fast should my 1999 triton tr-17 bass boat with a 1999 90hp mercury outboard should go. I have topped out at about 39 miles an hour. Is that about correct?

I don't know how many gallons of fuel your boat holds, but I had a 17' Nitro bass boat with a Mercury 90hp and it would only go about 40-42mph with a full tank which held right at 25 gallons and with a half tank or less it would get up to right at 45 mph and this was with just me in the boat, there are many factors involved like weight, HP and water conditions, head wind and I only used aluminum props, my preference as I would rather destroy the prop then the motor if I should hit some rocks and it happens..

 

[phillipdi]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Got it I think my motor is mounted correctly it was bought at a triton dealership. Based on what everyone is saying I think I will try a new prop because currently I have a 17 pitch prop. Looking at switching to a 22 or 23 pitch stainless steel. Hopefully that will make it go faster. What do you think.

 

[spoilsofwar]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Got it I think my motor is mounted correctly it was bought at a triton dealership. Based on what everyone is saying I think I will try a new prop because currently I have a 17 pitch prop. Looking at switching to a 22 or 23 pitch stainless steel. Hopefully that will make it go faster. What do you think.

In theory a 23 pitch prop will run faster then a 17 pitch prop, but only if you can turn it at max rated WOT RPM. You've not told us what your current WOT RPM is (or I missed it amongst all the humor in this thread), so theres no way to know for sure, but I'll wager that a 22/23P will be too much prop.

 

[beardeddone]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Got it I think my motor is mounted correctly it was bought at a triton dealership. Based on what everyone is saying I think I will try a new prop because currently I have a 17 pitch prop. Looking at switching to a 22 or 23 pitch stainless steel. Hopefully that will make it go faster. What do you think.

BTW, the pitch on my aluminum prop was a 19, so you might loose some top end with a 22 or 23, it's costly, but you'll have to try which one works the best..Unless you can borrow or rent them..

 

[Maclin]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Got it I think my motor is mounted correctly it was bought at a triton dealership. Based on what everyone is saying I think I will try a new prop because currently I have a 17 pitch prop. Looking at switching to a 22 or 23 pitch stainless steel. Hopefully that will make it go faster. What do you think.

That is a big jump in pitch. If you can over-rev and hit the top RPM in under 5 seconds with the prop you have now now then a big jump like that might work, but in the real world a 5 points jump like that usually ends up with a miserably lugged engine.

 

[gm280]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

If you set down and looked at the top RPMs that your motor is to turn, and then find the final drive ratio so you know the output prop shaft RPMs you can mathematically figure out the absolute max you could ever get out of any boat. A 22" pitch prop will only move a boat 22" forward per RPM in a PERFECT world. So knowing the output shaft RPMs and multiply that times the prop pitch will again give you the maximum forward movement that prop could possible move your boat. But in the REAL world, props DO SLIP in the water. And you have so many friction places to be concerned with as well. So while figuring out the max capability you could go, you have to at least figure in a normal 20 percent slippage of most props too. If your motor is capable of 5600 RPMs max and your final drive ratio is 2:1, then your output prop shaft is only going to turn 2800 RPMs max…ever! Times a 22” pitch prop and you have 61600 inches per minute. Convert that to MPH and you have roughly 58.33 MPH in a PERFECT world. But that is never going to happen ever… As you load up the pitch via prop size you will reduce engine output directly too. So what you need to seriously look for is a unique match of prop vs engine capability and boat weight and be happy with your results. Want more speed, get a larger motor…that simple…this isn't rocket science...:lol:

 

[cyclops2]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

I take the air cleaner off & fill it up with Hi-Test Sunoco for 5 more mph ?

 

[CharlieB]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

If you do not have a tach then install one or buy one of the clamp-on inductive mini tachs so you can test and KNOW your real WOT RPM.

Without knowing your WOT RPM and increasing prop pitch or diameter you WILL cause expensive motor damage when WOT RPM drops near or below recommended RPM.

Even if you never open the throttle to WOT, engine load is still greater than designed and engine life is greatly reduced.

RPM is critical in diagnosing many motor problems, prop selection absolutely requires knowing RPM before and after making any change.

 

[lncoop]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

I take the air cleaner off & fill it up with Hi-Test Sunoco for 5 more mph ?

Amateur. I use nitrous.

 

[greenbush future]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

I thought it was illegal to own a bass boat that ran under 90.

Is this thread not as typical as it get's regarding Bass Boats and their insatiable desire to have a rig that will break the sound barrier? The speed at which a bass travels should be calculated when purchasing the next bass boat, the new hybrid bass in Cali. will require a special fuel if you plan on keeping up. Maybe I'm just getting old!

 

[lncoop]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

Maybe I'm just getting old!

Well, I didn't want to say anything........:redface:

 

[emilsr]

Re: How fast should my bass boat go?

My Brother in law has the same boat/motor....

We did some playing around with props and got it up to about 47 on the GPS (speedo said 52) with 2 people and a light fuel load (and lots of trim). I believe we wound up with 20" of pitch (Laser II). I had a 23" Laser II in my prop locker that we tried just because we had one, and it was way too much prop....4500rpm or something like that, it was a pig. You'll need to prop for as close to 5500rpm as you can for best speeds.

Great little boat, but his doesn't really like to run at anything other than wide open, otherwise it has a distinct lean to port.