stessl 3.7M handling probs?

[johnny roger]

Last weekend i was towing a biskit with one child in it, and 3 other kids on board the boat. i noticed the handling of the old stessl was a bit hit and miss. on one instance while tracking striaght, it would suddenly lurch to port so badly i thought we were going to tip over! Admitadly, there was a slight chop on the lake, but nothing serious.
does anyone have any ideas as to why this would happen? On the back there is a 18HP Tohatsu. The hull is 23 years old.

[Kleyny]

Have you got a hydrofoil on it?
Does it do it only when your not towing?
did any one move suddenly?
If it has only done it the once i would assume it was a one off thing hit a wave at the same time someone moved, and the tube might have pulled the tinny that way as well.
If its the tinny in your avatar i would say its farely light. so anything that happens to the tube will be amplified through to the tinny.
just my thoughts

neil

[Mark-P]

possibly over loaded ... 5 people in a little tinnie ?? ( 4 in the boat & 1 on a tube )

Mark

[r3volt]

Kids up to a certain age count as half a person i thought, Prob just they weight of the boat mixed with hitting a certain wave ,

[kingtin]

Any wind? pulling a biccy in yours would lift the nose up, even with kids up front, I'm assuming.

My 3.95 didn't like it at all with nobody up front. With just me in the back end, it would suddenly lurch without warning. For some reason, the wind just seemed to get under it, (I sussed), even though I had it trimmed right in............probably just 'cause I'm a fat bastard ;D

kev

[johnny roger]

yes i fact there was a bit of wind for the port bow. i had my 11 year old son up front at the time. i think you are right though about the wind and waves doing it to the boat. just one of those things i guess. i have bought a new 469 stacer, and will take delivery of it in about 5 weeks time. i hope it doesn't do the same thing!

[Gon Fishun]

Check your outboard clamps to transom are tight and engine mounts are not broken.

[Kleyny]

i cant see that size boat doing it as bad.

neil

[Grahamwj]

Sorry to hear of your experience. Years ago, I had one of those 3.9M Stessl runabouts with a 15 HP Evinrude. Diabolical handling in a following sea. Running down the front of a wave it would suddenly dig its nose in and broach sideways. It turned out the keel had a prominent downturn or "hook" about 0.5m in front of the transom. This gave the boat excessive lift at the stern. I tried everything from putting a heavier engine on the back (25HP), to carrying two boxes of lead in the back. Nothing made any difference. Eventually upgraded to a Stacer 414, and now a Stacer 474. Good luck.

[FNQCairns]

Honest, it's just a little little to tow like this, small prop trying to muscle the boat and the biscuit levering at an angle to travel.

You are a candidate to do a fast flip if you get it going fast enough that the first 1/3 of the hull is no longer railing the boat straight.
It's do-able towing with a small boat as so many have, me included just be careful with the speed and go slow enough to keep a fair amount of the hull in the water so whatever is being towed cannot overpower it.

cheers fnq

[johnny roger]

graham,
funny you should say that. it actually happened to me on a following sea too. well it wasnt on the sea. the lake was fairly choppy with white caps etc. but i tried to motor as per the text book and 1/4 the weather, but it still almost broached. anyway, glad i am getting rid of it now and getting a bigger boat.

[johnny roger]

FNQ,
thanks for that. the only reason i tried it is cos me mate has s 4m stessl and he tows his kids etc. he reckons he even got a 17 year old kid up on skis behind it. he has a 25 HP behind it.
but in light of this thread, i have to say that i am a careful boaty. i realised the little boat is not quite as sturdy to do the towing and stopped the excersise and started this thread to see what was wrong.
its a good thing that i dont try and modify it somehow to make it do what it wasn't built to do.
so have now gone and got a bigger boat!