Hydrofoils - do they work????

[JT]

Hi All,

I have just finished a reno on my little 400 Hornet Trophy. I added a livewell to the front casting deck which when full holds about 80 litres. The boat is fitted with a 40HP Merc Lite and once on the plane still gets along very nicely. The problem is when the boat has two people in it, all the fishing gear and a full livewell it struggles to get onto the plane. My question is - will a hydrofoil help with the hole shot. Also what will be the positives and negatives with adding the foil. I understand I might lose a bit of top end speed, but I would be happy for this to happen if it will get out of the hole quicker.

Thanks in advance

John

[kelo]

check out http://www.marinedirect.com.au/catalogue/category336 just another option. helped me with my new seajay nomade elite when i first go it.i had a major problem getting onto a plane,took ages to get out of the hole and ont the plane.the permatrim did all it promised. cheers.

[brad017]

with my 50 on a 15ft, it made a huge difference to how fast it got on the plane specially when you have all the fishing gear on,and when playing on the wake board highly reconmend..

[Forrester]

John
Check the motor manufacturer's specs as to where the motor should be sited on the transom. Too high or too low can make a difference. The cavitation plate should usually be covered with 0-2 inches of water, according to Honda anyway. Might make enough difference to save a purchase, but most people say they work. My suggestion is to follow the recommendations first then look around.. Hope this helps.
Roy

[Rogues]

John,
a hydrofoil will work for you, assisting the boat in getting up onto the plane quicker and it should enable you to retain the planing effect at lower speeds than what you can maintain at at present,....
Permatrim would probably be the most recommended followed by an SE Sport model.......DONT scrimp and put on a cheap one if you must have one >
Personally I would look at every other avenue before installing one, I would never have one if you paid me.........they have been known to cause very unpleasant situation in a boat..
To quote the CEO of Haines...........
"Take it off, they are bloody dangerous"

Just my 2-Bob's worth
Cheers, Rogues

[RayB]

John,
a hydrofoil will work for you, assisting the boat in getting up onto the plane quicker and it should enable you to retain the planing effect at lower speeds than what you can maintain at at present,....
Permatrim would probably be the most recommended followed by an SE Sport model.......DONT scrimp and put on a cheap one if you must have one >
Personally I would look at every other avenue before installing one, I would never have one if you paid me.........they have been known to cause very unpleasant situation in a boat..
To quote the CEO of Haines...........
"Take it off, they are bloody dangerous"

Just my 2-Bob's worth
Cheers, Rogues

I have heard this comment made before and I am curious about what makes the foil dangerous.

cheers
Ray

[griz066]

Yup me too I have one on my boat been there since I bought it, so don,t know any different.

PLEASE TELL US ALL WHAT MAKES THEM DANGEROUS?

Should I take mine off?

[billfisher]

If your boat handles well with the foil don't take it off! They are only dangerous when they are put on a boat that does not need a foil (I don't know why anyone would want to do this). In this case you end up with too much lift at the stern which can create all sorts of problems such as digging in and broaching and erratic handling.

Naturally you would only put a foil on when the stern is too heavy and lacking in lift. The foil is also useful if you boat is a bit underpowered. In this case you boat will handle better and be safer - not dangerous.

A foil is a simple solution which can transform a boat for the better. I don't really know why some people are so dead-set against them.

[Dodgy_Back]

Hi John

I put one on my little boat (30 hp)
It did get me on the plane quicker but it slowed me down a little.
So I took them off to keep my blistering speed of 50 kph going.

What I learnt at the recent Tweed comp ,
My boat was taking a bit of time to get on the plane so my non boater sat on the live well for a moment and once on the plane sat back in the seat. Job done !,

I have a cheapy set of foils if you want to try them ?

Mick

I also don't have the luxery of pwer trim

[Smithy]

Ditto what billfisher had to say. We find the Lazilas upward sloping type foils the best value for money amongst my circle of friends. They have no vices and are the cheapest around at about $40. The should produce minimal drag once you have clean plane as the tips of them are above water. The Stingray type foils certainly produce more lift but are more expensive and are often the brand mentioned when a foil makes a boat worse off. The selling point of an SE Sport is it makes the least amount of difference with top end speed (all foils create drag) but I found it created hardly any lift on my Blackfin compared to a Stingray. That said I know of one fitted to a Webster cat and causes it no problems but helps it to plane and we all know how touchy cat setups can be.

[ahoj]

People that do not know how to adjust their motor trim, must not use Hydrofoil in fact they should have no license to operate a boat and should not be on the water---- Twits.

Ahoj

[redbloke1956]

Hi JT, just my two bobs worth, I bought my first boat a few months back and it was fitted with a foil, first time in the water while accelerating up to about half speed it veered VIOLENTLY to one side and leaned quite dramatically, the guys on fishnet told me to "get rid of the foil" which I did, cured the problem and never occured again.....have heard many similar stories.

Cheers
Kevin

[JT]

Cheers for all the advise guys, certainly a lot to consider before I make a decision. First I'll check the motor height, but I am pretty sure its OK. Next some testing with weight distribution in the boat.

Mick, if after all this I still have problems I would love to take you up on your offer to do some trials, I'll let you know.

Ultimately in the next 18 months or so I'll be looking at putting on a 40 Etec ans I'll see how it performs after that.

Thanks again.

John

[Dodgy_Back]

John

The main problem is that , us fellas that go in the odd brem comp carry a lot of stuff, too many rods, too much tackle, 80 odd ltr live well and then theres the non boater !!

Our little boats are probably a touch small for what we expect them to do !

Maybe we should all upgrade to a Pro strike and we won't have a problem at all.

Mick

[JT]

Mick, I agree, I carry to much crap on my little boat, but I need very bit (actually I think I need more ). Could you speak to my fiance, I am sure that if the request for a Pro-strike came from you she'll let me get one .

See you on the water soon.

John