a question for the experienced.

[Lucifer]

Firstly hi guys I am new so please abuse me I can take it.
My question, I have recently bought a Wilson flyer fishing boat 17ft. It is equipped with a Suzuki 55 manual trim and tilt. I have it moored at Cardiff bay and I live 160 miles from there, the trailer is at my house so it is now difficult to get it out of the water unless I drag the trailer 320 miles. I travel down at weekends and use it in the Bristol channel ( well first time this weekend ) this is only the second boat I have owned, the first being a Marshan 18ft with a 150 johnson.
I have taken the boat out this wekend and it just seems to be set up wrong. When the engine is running flat out the bow seems to sit to low in the water. It also seems to be running slower than I expected, I know its not the Marshan with a 150 at the rear, but I have watched a few videos on you tube of flyers with 60hp motors and they seem to run a lot quicker, so does anyone have any tips, am I running the engine at the wrong tilt or something.
Ooh just remembered I have a short video of it running, my brother is driving and I am videoing.
Cheers Steve.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVbNVu9luaU

 

[jfm]

Steve I have had two boats with the same hull - it has been cloned many times by various builders

I would say 55hp is small so you'll never get high speed from it. Makers of all these hulls recommended 85hp max but you needed that to get them going - I currently have a 125hp on it, pic below. This is the exact same hull and deck as yours. Only difference is that mine has no cabin top

It's hard to tell from youtube vid but the speed looked right for 55hp. I couldn't tell what trim angle yours was running at but you could try trimming it out (with the manual pin) a couple of holes to lift the bow a bit. My boat runs flattish but not at all nose buried when underway on the plane

Is there anything on your boat making it heavy generally, or bow heavy? Is the cavity under the floor drained (bung in transom)?

 

[Lucifer]

Hi and thank you for the reply. Bung in transom? Not sure if there is one If I turn on the bilge pump after we have have been out very little comes out. Does that answer your question? Where the motor is mounted the water seems to only be about an inch below and quickly fills up, it has no drain hole for the water to go back out, if I was to drill one this would be below the water line. I think if I was to fit a bigger/heavier motor the mounting point would be in the water.

 

[Warpa]

Hi and thank you for the reply. Bung in transom? Not sure if there is one If I turn on the bilge pump after we have have been out very little comes out. Does that answer your question? Where the motor is mounted the water seems to only be about an inch below and quickly fills up, it has no drain hole for the water to go back out, if I was to drill one this would be below the water line. I think if I was to fit a bigger/heavier motor the mounting point would be in the water.

Bottom of the hull under the engine at the back is a nut screwed into the bow, undo it and drain the water out, should do it after every trip, dont forget to put it back in and carry a spare

 

[Lucifer]

Bottom of the hull under the engine at the back is a nut screwed into the bow, undo it and drain the water out, should do it after every trip, dont forget to put it back in and carry a spare

Hi thank you can this be done when the boat is moored?

 

[Warpa]

Hi thank you can this be done when the boat is moored?

Never asked that question myself as i keep my boat at home, must be some way to do it...sure someone will be along to answer soon.
Just took a pic of mine so you can see what you are looking for

 

[Lucifer]

Thanks for that had one of them on my Marshan and was allways amazed at how much came out whenever I took it out, put it down to rain water.
I am sure that that is under water now, does the bilge pump not empty whatever is in there?

 

[iangrant]

Well.....

Thanks for that had one of them on my Marshan and was allways amazed at how much came out whenever I took it out, put it down to rain water.
I am sure that that is under water now, does the bilge pump not empty whatever is in there?

Let's hope it does!!

 

[Lucifer]

Let's hope it does!!

What I meant was if the bilge pump pumps water out untill it stops, does that mean there is no water in the hull and therefore no need to take the bung out?

 

[iangrant]

You're OK

What I meant was if the bilge pump pumps water out untill it stops, does that mean there is no water in the hull and therefore no need to take the bung out?

No bilge pump will dry the bulge completely, normally the float switch can't be right at the bottom so will switch off with water left in there

Ian

 

[Lucifer]

No bilge pump will dry the bulge completely, normally the float switch can't be right at the bottom so will switch off with water left in there

Ian

Ah I see what your saying but my pump is manual no float so I just switch it on untill no more water comes out.

 

[jfm]

does the bilge pump not empty whatever is in there?

Depends. It may not. On my boat pictured above it doesn't - my hull has a cavity under the floor that is meant to be sealed but never is, and removing the bung drains this space. The bilge pump on the other hand is above the deck and so only pumps out rain/spray that collects on the deck above this "sealed" cavity. But if your boat doesn't have a sealed cavity double-skin construction then it may be that all the water is in one place so to speak, and the bilge pump can pump it all out

You can't take the bung out while the boat is afloat. Has to be on trailer, preferably tipped up so bow is high

 

[Lucifer]

Depends. It may not. On my boat pictured above it doesn't - my hull has a cavity under the floor that is meant to be sealed but never is, and removing the bung drains this space. The bilge pump on the other hand is above the deck and so only pumps out rain/spray that collects on the deck above this "sealed" cavity. But if your boat doesn't have a sealed cavity double-skin construction then it may be that all the water is in one place so to speak, and the bilge pump can pump it all out

You can't take the bung out while the boat is afloat. Has to be on trailer, preferably tipped up so bow is high

Thank you for that I shall pull the bung the next time it is out of the water.

 

[iangrant]

fit an auto!!

Ah I see what your saying but my pump is manual no float so I just switch it on untill no more water comes out.

no bilge pump will drain all the water, only a sponge will do that, also if there is room fit a bilge "tampax" which absorbs any oil not water so when your auto pumps out it doesn't leave a rainbow on the water around the boat!

Ian

 

[Lucifer]

no bilge pump will drain all the water, only a sponge will do that, also if there is room fit a bilge "tampax" which absorbs any oil not water so when your auto pumps out it doesn't leave a rainbow on the water around the boat!

Ian

Will look into that Thank you.

 

[strakeryrius]

Do you have lots of gear stowed aboard? How about anchor and chain - is there a lot of chain? Excess weight at the bow could cause your problem. I know its hard to prioritise, but try unloading all unnecessary gear into your car/truck next time you're out and see if that improves things. Re-distributing the weight/load of stuff you can't leave behind further to the rear may also help.

 

[Lucifer]

Do you have lots of gear stowed aboard? How about anchor and chain - is there a lot of chain? Excess weight at the bow could cause your problem. I know its hard to prioritise, but try unloading all unnecessary gear into your car/truck next time you're out and see if that improves things. Re-distributing the weight/load of stuff you can't leave behind further to the rear may also help.

I'll give that a try also thank you.

 

[Searush]

If you can lift the engine clear, you have big tides down there so could beach her on a steep sided sandbank (bows up) to drain her off. Do it a just a couple of hours befor LW to minimise the time aground.

 

[duncan]

no bilge pump will drain all the water, only a sponge will do that, also if there is room fit a bilge "tampax" which absorbs any oil not water so when your auto pumps out it doesn't leave a rainbow on the water around the boat!

Ian

funnily enough I never had this issue with OB boats!

the only 'oil' was the fuel system (petrol) and that tended to evaporate if it leaked (which it didn't)

life was so much simpler then....

 

[duncan]

Steve,

The speed and trim look exactly what I would expect from that hull, engine and (importantly) the significant weight of all that fibreglass up front.

I don't think you would get much change in trim from adjusting the engine angle - it just won't be able to 'lift' that weight - and would probably just run less efficiently (at the moment the engine top indicates that the prop shaft is pretty horizontal when running which is where it should be for maximum efficiency)

Less wetted hull surface would be less drag but that's not going to happen with that weight (total as well as distribution).