No trim tabs, engine pulls hard

[helodoc]

Hi all, I have a 13 ft. Valco w/20 hp evinrude, short shaft. Boat is rated at 20 hp and is a tiller. When I run it up on plane the engine pulls hard and wears me out after a hour or so. I talked to the dealers and they say it never came with a trim tab anode. The engine is a 1989. The skeg is roughly 1 to 1.5 inches below the bottom of the transom. Any way to fix this?...AL

 

[digimortal777]

Re: No trim tabs, engine pulls hard

i dont mean to be rude but none of that makes any sense to me

 

[DJ]

Re: No trim tabs, engine pulls hard

helodoc,<br /><br />Do you mean the cavitation plate is below the bottom of the boat?<br /><br />If so, you have alot drag going on. That could be part of your problem.

 

[mark peacemaker]

Re: No trim tabs, engine pulls hard

is your motor centered on the back?

 

[helodoc]

Re: No trim tabs, engine pulls hard

Sorry, I meant the cavitation plate is 1- 1.5 inches below the bottom of the transom. The engine is centered. Could 1+ inches really cause all this?...AL

 

[steelespike]

Re: No trim tabs, engine pulls hard

It sure could. Also if trimmed in too far or out to far another words if it is trimmed too far for that boat.Most motors have a tension bolt to help take some of the strain out of holding the motor straight.

 

[helodoc]

Re: No trim tabs, engine pulls hard

Thanks, looks like I need to hike the engine an inch or so and try the different engine angles until one suits me and the boat. Appreciate the needed info...AL

 

[Jdeagro]

Re: No trim tabs, engine pulls hard

You probably have the motor (down) adjusted all the way down with the pin in the hole closest to the transom. This will help you get the bow down and the boat on plane sooner, but when running at cruising speeds it will make the boat bow steer ( because the bow is too far down). You may want to move this pin up one or two holes. If the motor height is too low (cavitation plate below the bottom of the boat) the ability to plane without the motor tilt/trim at full down position could be hard. Raise the motor, trim it out one or two holes and try it again.

 

[envy83]

Re: No trim tabs, engine pulls hard

Does the motor pull hard up, or just to one side? If it's pulling hard to one side, on a small boat/motor setup like this the easiest fix it just to move the motor towards the side its pulling on on the transom. i.e if the boat pulls right, shift the motor slightly right.