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My 2000 Jag is the fastest boat I have owned and I have a few questions about things that I have noticed. First I have noticed that it starts to chine walk at about 71.5 in warmer weather and in cool weather I didnt have any chine walk, is this normal? Second I have noticed that if I leave off the gas a little to suddenly when at WOT the boat wants to hook, is this normal or does it indicate that my set up is wrong. I also noticed that my holeshot is terrible with a 26P Trophy plus in warm weather but I have removed all of the PVS plugs now and hope that it helps, it would go to about 1850 and just lug for a while and finally take off (when it felt like it) with all the 1/2″ plugs installed. The engine is about 1/4″ to 3/8″ lower now than it was in the winter, could this be making a huge difference? I understand that driving with chine walk has to be learned but is it something that is constant while at WOT or can it be “driven through”? I am running a 250 EFI (5850 max rpm)with the factory manual jack plate, stock 26 pitch Trophy plus and I am running @ 5750, the engine is sitting about 3 3/4 below the pad. Cool weather speed is 74.1 and I havent stayed in the throttle in warm weather due to the chine walk. Thanks!
you were either going slower during the cooler months or you were doing a good job driving. Theres no such thing as chine walking sometimes and other times not. Its all driver input. chine walk is constant until you figure out how to drive. once you learn how to drive, chine walk disappears.when you reduce the throttle from max to min its the boat falling of pad. trim down or reduce throttle as you arrive at your destination.removing plugs from the prop will cause your prop to ventillate and allow the engine to build hp and rpms thus improving you holeshot. if you remove too many plugs, your engine will blow out as it comes out of the hole.
Phil, both speeds in fall and summer are GPS, its almost like something has changed but I dont know what. During the cooler months the engine may have been a little higher but other than that nothing on the set up has changed other than the addition of a blow out ring and the PVS plugs. Can the chine walk be eliminated or reduced by engine height or will it stay constant no matter where its set? I can insert plugs as needed once I get a chance to run the boat, I know that it needs more than one removed. Thanks for your response, its appreciated
Olddawg, We do think the engine might be a little high from the numbers you are giving. Also if you use a hot foot, and back off the throttle fast, you will experience hull scrub, that can grab and force the nose right or left depending on the attitude of the hull and water conditions. You fundamentally land a boat hull, by trimming first in increments to slow a boat down, then you back off the throttle in steps also. Allowing the hull to slow down as it trims into the water. Thus you have propeller, skeg and more control. If you chop the throttle, the nose dropping moves the skeg up and you have a higher likelihood of grabbing the nose or having a control issue. High performance boats are a learning curve, and this one with a 250 would be a strong runner we feel. So take your time and learn to drive it with the trim as well as the throttle, and if you have a hot foot dont jerk all the power off the throttle. You would not do this in your car, and especially not in a curve where you have pressure on the tires. You always have hull pressure, thus you are experiencing that. If you have a keel or bow protector then it amplifies all the forces, and a Hamby is the thickest, thus the most impacting. The ventilation holes are a process of playing with the combination till you get a little ventilation on the lower end, and then close it up a tad more to get just a split second of propeller venting. Also learn to hold the throttle down during set up as you have to have maxxed throttle to properly set up the hole shot ventilation. Hope this helps! BCB
BCB, so you are saying that I should lower the engine down so its like 4 to 4 1/4″ below the pad? I didnt chop the throttle but lifted my foot slightly and understand now what happened (duh on my part) and yes I do have a hull protector. Without looking I would guess that the adjustable part of my jack plate is about 3/4″ above the static part of the plate and top of the tansom so I do have room to lower it. Thank you very much for your info!
Bob, I would still look to try a 25P Fury, I think all your hole shot issues would disappear. Mike
Olddawg, We would prefer to know what your actual engine height is? Not necessarily, though it depends. It also depends on the engine case style, and since you say 250 EFI, we dont know if that is a Torquemaster on a 250 Pro XB case or an older straight EFi which has a different case entirely. http://basscatowners.yuku.com/topic/12254The pressures on any performance hull must be consistent. And the skeg must remain in the equation with force against it as well to continue the rudder action with enough face to control the hull. The bow protectors do now add a rudder or pinning action to the bow, thus when you loose rear surface area, the front area takes more control. Just last week we heard a comment concerning an individual we are aware of who runs another brand of boat. The fact that he bound himself in a corner did not surprise us as those in the conversation are aware of the driving style. As you learn, learn to work the hull to the max throttle you are comfortable with. You will see that the hull is scrubbing speed as there is excessive drag. Bump the trim up and you will learn that the performance is controlled by the trim, and you can manage the rest from there. Just take your time and be careful! BCB
Its sitting at 24″ now (J-bracket to bottom of the pad) and according to BCB factory setting is 24 1/4″ to 24 3/8″ so I am lower that it should be. I also realized that I may have caused the chine walk by adding/moving equipment inside the boat so I am going to try to center up some equipment to see if it eliminates the problem. I will play with the PVS plugs and blow out ring until I get it where it needs to be and hope for the best.
We think you are close on engine height, and maybe a 1/4″ high for some applications, though you are within the range of operation for most.
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