Joys of boats

mommucked said:
How does it run w that whale tail on it? I assume it was on the boat when you bought it? Lot's of them fer sure supposed to help get on plane faster an or stop porpoising. I had some issues w my boat I bought used and stock from the dealer. After 4/6 years I was about to put a whale tail on mine, but I decided to get a 4 blade prop after researching my problems. Got an alum. one on sale for about 2 times the $$ for a tail. That prop changed my boats performance like night and day and I kicked myself for not trying to fix it sooner. The steering , time to plane, and the all over performance change was amazing. You can get your own advise about this, but I bet you could put a 4 blade on it, take the tail off, and the boats perf. might surprise you.
Click to expand...

Depends on size of motor they don’t make 4 blades for most outboards that small. I’ve added a whale tail to every boat I have had and it makes night and day difference. I’ve had outboards and stern drive and both have improved from one


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
How do they do on a heavier boat/ bigger motor? I have a 20ft fiberglass McKee craft with a 125 and have considered the whale tail or 4 blade prop. I know it's a heavy boat just wondering if there's real world improvement with either
 
Silverado_Express said:
How do they do on a heavier boat/ bigger motor? I have a 20ft fiberglass McKee craft with a 125 and have considered the whale tail or 4 blade prop. I know it's a heavy boat just wondering if there's real world improvement with either
Click to expand...

I put one on a 21ft run about boat with a 4.3 stern drive. It struggled to get onto plane. I tried different props and nothing really helped it till I put a whale tail on it. That’s not the brand I used it was one from bass pro that required no drilling and it was night and day difference after I put it on I’d didn’t matter how much wait I had it would pop up on plane in seconds


Edit: it was a se sport 300 hydrofoil

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Oh and I worked on my trailer today. The front winch upright had came loose from the trailer and walked a couple inches forward slid it back and welded it in instead of clamping it


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I sold my easy/cheap 14' alumicraft w/ a 25hp tiller over the winter. About 6-8 weeks ago I replaced it with a procraft 18' fish/ski w/ a Mercury 150 on it.
So far it's been worth every penny just to see my 9 yr old ski like a pro on his second trip skiing. Man is he excited.

With that said the boat has developed a hiccup as I start to really get on it. Other than that everything is perfect. So if anyone has any recommendations of what would cause it to studder about three seconds into full throttle I'm all ears.
 
lockedup5 said:
With that said the boat has developed a hiccup as I start to really get on it. Other than that everything is perfect. So if anyone has any recommendations of what would cause it to studder about three seconds into full throttle I'm all ears.
Click to expand...

How old?

With a delay like that, I always think of a fuel delivery problem first. A problem with things like plugs or injectors generally doesn't wait for 3 seconds to show itself.

Does it have a primer bulb, and is the bulb getting sucked flat?
I'd always change the fuel filter first, especially if you haven't replaced it yet, and double especially if it's a water separating fuel filter. It's amazing how quickly and easily a fuel filter gets clogged on a boat of any significant age. Buy two, so you always have a spare on hand when you actually need it, instead of on Sunday when everyone is closed or no one stocks it. Also, buy OEM filters because they're still a relatively cheap part, and the generic aftermarket filters (Sierra, etc.) are often only available in larger micron ratings.

There are some other easy things too, like not waiting for the ECU to fully boot on some outboards until you hear the beep (like Evinrude, not sure about Mercury stuff). If this is not done on an Evinrude ETEC for example, the min throttle position adapt is not done properly and can cause all kinds of stumbling and hesitation problems (the fix is to turn off, and re-start properly the next time).

If you haven't had the boat long, you might be overlooking something simple from lack of familiarity.
 
Last edited:
XJsavage said:
Boating is the only legal hobby known to man or Asians that I would drop driving a Jeep for (or off roading in general to be fair) full-time.
It's dirt cheap for me though.
:flipoff2:
Click to expand...
You got that right. Nothing like being on a boat. I have the offshore fishing bug at the moment can't wait to go again.

6DEC5B93-D74D-4924-90CF-19AF3E1C5590.jpeg
 
Black Bear said:
You got that right. Nothing like being on a boat. I have the offshore fishing bug at the moment can't wait to go again.

View attachment 293832
Click to expand...
I still have that same bug from about twelve years ago (which seems like an entire lifetime) when I lived down in Charleston and used to go offshore with my HVAC boss to a few locations. He had a 24' BW with a 225. There's no greater feeling in the world than cutting ass across an endless body of water doing about 65-70 watching the sun set.
 
Fabrik8 said:
How old?

With a delay like that, I always think of a fuel delivery problem first. A problem with things like plugs or injectors generally doesn't wait for 3 seconds to show itself.

Does it have a primer bulb, and is the bulb getting sucked flat?
I'd always change the fuel filter first, especially if you haven't replaced it yet, and double especially if it's a water separating fuel filter. It's amazing how quickly and easily a fuel filter gets clogged on a boat of any significant age. Buy two, so you always have a spare on hand when you actually need it, instead of on Sunday when everyone is closed or no one stocks it. Also, buy OEM filters because they're still a relatively cheap part, and the generic aftermarket filters (Sierra, etc.) are often only available in larger micron ratings.

There are some other easy things too, like not waiting for the ECU to fully boot on some outboards until you hear the beep (like Evinrude, not sure about Mercury stuff). If this is not done on an Evinrude ETEC for example, the min throttle position adapt is not done properly and can cause all kinds of stumbling and hesitation problems (the fix is to turn off, and re-start properly the next time).

If you haven't had the boat long, you might be overlooking something simple from lack of familiarity.
Click to expand...

Its a 2003 model. It does have a bulb but not sure if it's sucked flat. It had a complete tune up just before I bought it including a compression test. Seems like the fuel filter says Dec -18. And coil packs were replaced in 2015.
Once it hiccups that split second it runs perfect. So idk.
I've been guessing it's fuel delivery also and may go ahead and change the filter but seems like it would hiccup at 60mph but it doesn't.
And yes I've had it <two months and had it on the water maybe 12-15 times so I'm really still learning it. Another funny thing is it just developed the hiccup when I started pulling my boy on skis.
 
lockedup5 said:
Its a 2003 model. It does have a bulb but not sure if it's sucked flat. It had a complete tune up just before I bought it including a compression test. Seems like the fuel filter says Dec -18. And coil packs were replaced in 2015.
Once it hiccups that split second it runs perfect. So idk.
I've been guessing it's fuel delivery also and may go ahead and change the filter but seems like it would hiccup at 60mph but it doesn't.
And yes I've had it <two months and had it on the water maybe 12-15 times so I'm really still learning it. Another funny thing is it just developed the hiccup when I started pulling my boy on skis.
Click to expand...

The extra load from pulling a skier is probably what's showing a problem that you didn't see before, or the fact that you're applying a different throttle ramp to get him out of the water or whatever.. Have you noticed that the hiccup correlates to the amount of fuel in the tank, or how fast you give it throttle, things like that....?

Mercury had a pretty mixed bag of stuff in 2003; is yours carb'd or injected, and is it 2-stroke or 4-stroke? I'm assuming injected because of the coil packs.
 
lockedup5 said:
Its a 2003 model. It does have a bulb but not sure if it's sucked flat. It had a complete tune up just before I bought it including a compression test. Seems like the fuel filter says Dec -18. And coil packs were replaced in 2015.
Once it hiccups that split second it runs perfect. So idk.
I've been guessing it's fuel delivery also and may go ahead and change the filter but seems like it would hiccup at 60mph but it doesn't.
And yes I've had it <two months and had it on the water maybe 12-15 times so I'm really still learning it. Another funny thing is it just developed the hiccup when I started pulling my boy on skis.
Click to expand...
what fuel are you running? my parents boat had a problem similar to yours if he wasn't using 93+ fuel, or if he ended up getting fuel on the lake he would have the same problem.
 
Bruiser! You talking S t about My boat? :flipoff2: Really, I Am Surprised at the transom! Yes, I had the boat less than a year, [had been sitting 5 years] before replacing the transom. My Boating/Carpenter friend did most of the work! And even the Totally, rotted wood, was hard to get out! We went to Lowe's & bought a sheet of top grade plywood. Made 2 pieces, opposite grain, primed, sealed, & glued together. Ran some screws in it to hold together. Primed & painted after it had dried & installed. Replaced every screw & bolt, & sealed each one with marine sealer. Both times I had to replace the engine, I sealed the engine mount bolts, again! I can't understand How it could have rotted, again. Was only used through 3-4 summers, & then sat covered for 3 years. Then you bought it. I'm happy to see it again, & glad it's no longer mine!
 
rodney eppes said:
Bruiser! You talking S t about My boat? :flipoff2: Really, I Am Surprised at the transom! Yes, I had the boat less than a year, [had been sitting 5 years] before replacing the transom. My Boating/Carpenter friend did most of the work! And even the Totally, rotted wood, was hard to get out! We went to Lowe's & bought a sheet of top grade plywood. Made 2 pieces, opposite grain, primed, sealed, & glued together. Ran some screws in it to hold together. Primed & painted after it had dried & installed. Replaced every screw & bolt, & sealed each one with marine sealer. Both times I had to replace the engine, I sealed the engine mount bolts, again! I can't understand How it could have rotted, again. Was only used through 3-4 summers, & then sat covered for 3 years. Then you bought it. I'm happy to see it again, & glad it's no longer mine!
Click to expand...

HAHA no shit talking here..

I was happy using it last year and hope to continue the enjoyment again this year. I guess the good news is I know how to fix it if I need to again :)

Besides this issue it has been a great boat and my dad and son have really enjoyed it
 
Fabrik8 said:
The extra load from pulling a skier is probably what's showing a problem that you didn't see before, or the fact that you're applying a different throttle ramp to get him out of the water or whatever.. Have you noticed that the hiccup correlates to the amount of fuel in the tank, or how fast you give it throttle, things like that....?

Mercury had a pretty mixed bag of stuff in 2003; is yours carb'd or injected, and is it 2-stroke or 4-stroke? I'm assuming injected because of the coil packs.
Click to expand...

I've not ran it below a half tank since I've had it.
Seems like it only does it when pulling a skier but I'll check it out again and make sure this weekend.
It's 2-stroke.
I'm pretty sure it's carburated but honestly I've not paid any attention. I've only had the hood off twice and the fuel delivery system is completely covered by the air intake shroud.
I'll look and make sure tomorrow.
 
This is why i bought a newer boat/motor. 2011 Carolina Skiff/40 Suzuki. I have not had a single issue in the 5 years i have owned it. I flush, store inside and drain fuel before winter/spring. I watched my Dad and his friends struggle getting shit going every year so I learned that maintenance and storage are keys to longevity, just like every thing else
 
Franklin said:
This is why i bought a newer boat/motor. 2011 Carolina Skiff/40 Suzuki. I have not had a single issue in the 5 years i have owned it. I flush, store inside and drain fuel before winter/spring. I watched my Dad and his friends struggle getting shit going every year so I learned that maintenance and storage are keys to longevity, just like every thing else
Click to expand...

Your doing it wrong use the boat year round and you have no problems


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
^Fact! I've woken up from a campsite when it was so damn cold there were icycles hanging off the side of the boat. 9am, running back down river curled up in a WW2 mummy bag with just my head and left arm sticking out of it so I could drive.
One of my DNR buddies was hanging out at the landing when I get there. Only truck in the parking lot besides mine. As I'm backing my trailer in, he walks up and says:" you're a f*n idiot for that.
Looks over at his partner in training and tells him "I never check his license or req stuff, I already know he's good". "See ya next weekend Mr Reed."
:lol:
 
Buddy of mine said I could have his parents old boat. Trying to clean up at their lake house. They bought a new boat a few years back so winterized and covered the old one and put it beside the garage. 24' Welcraft Scarab with cuddy cabin. 454 inboard. Probably will pick it up, said it needs some work on the engine cover and carb needs rebuilt.
 
Blaze said:
Buddy of mine said I could have his parents old boat. Trying to clean up at their lake house. They bought a new boat a few years back so winterized and covered the old one and put it beside the garage. 24' Welcraft Scarab with cuddy cabin. 454 inboard. Probably will pick it up, said it needs some work on the engine cover and carb needs rebuilt.
Click to expand...

If it’s a stern drive, which I’m assuming it probably is plan on taking the outdrive off and replacing all the bellows. They are bad to dry rot If a boat has just sat


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Loganwayne said:
If it’s a stern drive, which I’m assuming it probably is plan on taking the outdrive off and replacing all the bellows. They are bad to dry rot If a boat has just sat
Click to expand...

Thanks. I don't know much about boats so this is a big help! :)
 
Back
Top