Boatymcboater
Member
I have a 97 sportster with 717 and it really has trouble getting out of the hole , but once it’s on plane it really moves effortlessly .. what can I do to fix this .. any help would be awsome
Engine revs fine but bottom end doesn’t really get moving for a while , thanks for replyWhat are the symptoms? Engine reving, and doesn't go?? or engine not coming up to speed?
What should compression be ? I have not replaced any fuel lines or rebuilt carbs but I will . Thanks for reply reallyWhat's your compression? Have you replaced the gray fuel lines if it has them? Have you rebuilt your carburetor recently?
How did the install go? I have a 1996 Speedster and have been worried about fitment of the SX tab because of my drain plug. I would go with the original metal Smart Tab because of the smaller hinge plate that has to mount to the back of the boat, but those tabs appear to only accept up to 40lb shocks.This is my first post on this forum, but I've been using it as a reference for a while and I appreciate all the great advice I've gotten from it, so I thought I would take a few minutes to reply to your post.
I have a 97 Speedster. Yesterday, I put a single Nauticus Trim Tab on it and it makes a huge difference in performance. This may be what you're looking for. (nauticusinc dot com/smart-tabs-sx/)
It stopped all the porpoising in chop and gets it up on plane with far less effort. It still doesn't jump out of the hole like my standup ski, but it gets up on plane in close to half the time because it cuts down on the bow rise. I can also keep it on plane at a slower speed (4k instead of 5k).
When I was trying to pull kids on the tubes previously, the bow rise was so great that it was sucking air into the impellers from the front of the boat, causing the engines to rev up to limit. Now the bow rises about half as much and no more hitting the rev limit. I've been trying to solve this issue for the last two years - impellers good, new wear rings, re-aligned drive shafts, new carbon rings and boots, etc... I wish I had tried this first. Even if there are other problems, these trim tabs are well worth it.
For the twin engine Speedster, there's not enough room to put two tabs on the boat, so I had to put a single tab in the middle. I bought the 80lb actuator and I've been running it in the #3 position (adjustable from 1 to 5, so the "medium" pressure setting). For the Sportster, you can probably get both tabs on the back, so I would try two tabs with the 40 lb actuators. Email the guy on the Nauticus website - he was helpful. He also said he'll sell you a single tab, but I had already bought a pair from Amazon.
The only possible negative - I may have lost a little top-end speed. I need a calm day and flat water to really tell, but with the bow rise issue solved and increase in speed in chop, I don't care.
I hope that helps.