HYD. Jack Plate

ProsRaise the engine in shallow waters applications to give better control of the boat with the trolling motor and while at idling speedsRaise the engine in stumpy waters to give better control with the trolling motor and while at idling speedsHole shot in shallow water may be improvedAble to adjust for weight differences to get improved top end speedsThe extra set back (1 3/8″) alone may get you a little more top end speed.Easier to test a number of props for best performance.Able to adjust engine height for better rough water rides.ConsCost – will cost in the neighborhood of 1K and thats if you do it yourselfWill add about 40 lbs to your boatCan break, but so can a manual plate and the reliability history of Detwiler plates in the last 3-4 years are very goodPersonally speaking…………….I wouldnt have a boat without one! Though you do have a choice and it is your hard earned money!

Im with Phil. My kitty cat is the first boat Ive had with a HJP and I wont own one without from now on. But I fish alot of shallow water.

Ive used both manual and hydraulic on my two most recent boats. Did I need hydraulic? Absolutely NOT! Do I like it? Yes, it is fine. Doesnt really do as much for me and the areas I fish. So why did I go hydraulic on my Pantera II (97 model) and the 96 Eyra that I have now? Because they were both removed from my brothers two different Cougar FTD/250 XS boats when he decided to upgrade and had them in storage in his garage! It does have some advantages in stump fields as Phil mentioned…..raising jp up allows boat to ride more level and not bottom out the transom on every submerged stump.It does allow more rapid way to test props. And it could make it easier to tweak performance………..but………….You have a Sabre with 150 XR6. You are limited by the hp as to how much more you can gain performance wise. BassCat states quite often they feel a Sabre owner doesnt even need a jackplate for this boat. Plus, as stated, when they break down (and they do more often than a manual jackplate) it can get costly to repair.Determine your fishing habits (super shallow/stumps, deep or combination), what your budget is, what your goal for performance is, how long you plan to keep the boat (you can reap the rewards long term or lose $ short term ) and keep in mind that you can do almost anything with a manual jackplate that you can with hydraulic, just manually.You can buy a lot of other goodies for the price difference of manual vs hydraulic. Imho….96 Eyra/12 Mercury 175 Pro XS with 2015 single axle trailer2017 Victory Gunner