Home › Forums › Bass Cat Boats › PANTERA 3 ENGINE HEIGHT OFF PAD
BIGDOG.
Ive read several posts regarding engine height.On this particluar hull ive seen it range from 2 to 3-1/2″ below pad.I have tried two different props.A 25p trophy and a 25p tempest.The trophy is a good all around prop,good bow lift,neutral steering with little steering torque,however the holeshot is sluggish.The tempest is better out of the hole has great speed but will blow out in rough choppy water if you come off plane and then try to power back up.Its a 2000 p3 with a 2000/200hp optimax.6″manual power lift jackplate.Trying to get an idea of what might be the best all around set up for this rig.Any help would be appreciated.
1. Choose the engine height that is right for you. You can raise 1/4″ at a time until you start to lose speed, then drop back 1/4 ” and start lowering until you start to lose speed. Now you have a “range” where you get max speed. The bottom of that range is optimal for maximizing speed.running that high has some issues. Water pressure needs to be 12 psi or better. No exceptions. Engine torque will be present. The prop will likely blow out a bit as the bow drops as you get on plane. And it might blow out at odd times, such as you describe. You can lower the motor a bit at the time until you reach a point where you are happy with the blow-out problem, and are willing to give up the loss in top speed for the gain in handling. Ditto for torque, if it is too much for you, lower the motor. Each 1/4″ will drop the torque a bit. The lower the motor, the better the prop bites, the lower the torque goes, but the more drag (which reduces top speed) you have. It is a big trade-off. Personally I run a 28″ or 30″ chopper (depending on weather) and blow out badly as I drop over on plane. But I easily blow past 85mph with a 200 motor too.2. once you get the height set, if you have PVS plugs you can adjust them to help get you out of the hole more quickly.If you change props, you should re-visit height and then plug settings again. Takes time but you will eventually reach something you can live with. I run on the ragged edge myself. With just me, at 50mph I am running nearly 5000 RPM. Lots of slip. But wrap it up to 6K and its gone. Cruising sucks. Ripping is fun. Put a partner in the boat and Im going to lower it down a bit as slip is way too high when heavily loaded. But I accept that to blow the 250s off the water when I run down the river. 2008 Pantera Classic2014 Mercury Pro XS 200
OT57 is a pure enthusiast on performance, and he is blessed with a tremendous amount of knowledge. He obviously has a fundamental common sense approach that has given him that knowledge, and he often is over extended on the needs of a BCB. But he is definitely catching on to what we find works. He is close on the engine height, and you may need to drop it a hair. He is also accurate on the PVS plugs adjusting the ventilation. If the Tempest works well, then run it and adjust it. The P3 is a totally different hull than other BCB models. It does not have a blazing hole shot, as we depend on that bow rise for rough water performance. Engine heights are related to steering torque on most all BCB hulls. As you gain steering torque, then you are loosing a bit of performance. Find the right engine height for you selected propeller, and then adjsut the hole shot for minimizing ventilation. Please dont take this wrong OT57, we have had more propellers for Toys than you can even imagine. From fancy made for us Mazcos and HOSS T series, to one off Merc forged Clever wheels, we have had some awesome toys! As engines developed, they became expensive paper weights. Eventually we sold most of them to the play boys out around Cali and Havasu.We used them on some of our go fast HP boats. Though we see no reason to even mention them as they will not ever work on the exhaust of a newer Optimax or direct injection style engines.We have had some of the fastest bass rigs in the USA and from winning when we used to race in the 80s, to setting records in the old APBA annual system, we have had our share of fun. Though in todays bass fishing environment, it just is not there anymore.Man do we sometimes miss those days, though times do change and so must we. If you play with ventilation and heights you will get it there. BCB
I have had 2 PIII with 200 optis and I found that the boat does better about 2″ from the bottom. I also tried both the Trophy and the Tempest and I personally did not like the Trophy at all. The Tempest came out of the hole better and it also picked up a couple mph. I did not have any of the plugs removed from the prop. The PIII does not ride as good as my Puma but it sure was fun boat to drive.
My 01 P3 w/ 2006 200 Opti is a very good runner with the 26 tempest with 2 holes plugged and 1 with the small hole, holeshot is not the fastest in the summer down here with 90-95deg temps but I am still getting 73-74 on the gps with full tanks, livewels and myself and my 13 year old son. I have the propshaft 2 3/4″ below pad. With one person and full load I will hit 74.5-75. in the winter I will have to change to a 27 pitch because I hit the rev limiter when the air temp gets below 75 and the humidity drops.Hope this answers some of your questions.Joe FuerstHouma, La.
where do you measure from? Center of prob shaft to bottom of hull pad?… im ready to get my set and quit messing with it…
zoom,It is not able to be simply measured, because all boats, engines and propellers are different. You just raise the engine up till you feel a touch of steering wheel torque on the top end running, and lower it 1/4″ from there. Then you adjust your hole shot. Every time you change a propeller, this should change also. BCB
I realize that most purely fish, and just want to get from A to B in a hurry, where “hurry” is defined as “fast”. I want to get from A to B in a “big hurry” where “big hurry” is defined “as fast as humanly possible.”I love to fish, and running up and down the river is also a blast that my son/dog/I love. There is a local marine dealer that kept asking me a few years ago “when in the hell are you going to sell that boat. Everytime I take a customer on a ride, this boat with a 150 comes by and I know to not even try to catch it.” There are fishing trips, and there are trips to set the water on fire. I do a bit of both, just because it is something different to do. I probably get a bit over-enthusiastic on top speed from time to time. At least my wife thinks so. Ever since my son let it slip that we had just broken 90, shes had her opinion of my “boat”… But shes lived with me for 39 years and counting now, so that covers a lot of misdeeds over the years. At least her tolerance of certain things has increased. But she wont go fishing with me, period…But I wont ever forget any of the fun Ive had either, neither will my son or other family members that go with us from time to time… There are so many stories to tell, as you well know. 2008 Pantera Classic2014 Mercury Pro XS 200
Old Timer where are you from? Did you ever race at Lake Ferguson when they used to have the river runs? 90 in boat, that has to get the adrenline going!
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