Installed
a M9 (sourced from Andy M. at SIM) on my 2006 Grady-White 228G with a
F225. This is a bracketed 22 foot walk around. I exclusively fish in the
ocean and typically carry alot of fuel (up to 150 gallons on tuna runs
or ~900 lbs.) + alot of ice (up to 200 lbs.) + by T8 kicker (130lbs.
including the mount) + sometimes a full live well (20 gallons or say 120
lbs.) + 10 gallons in my water tank + the F225 which is already heavy
and, being on a bracket, causes what I call a bit of "stern leverage".
Translation: this is a heavy, single engined boat. BTW - has Yamaha Salt
Water II series SS prop with 17" pitch.
The boat actually runs
fine as is but with all that weight, I found I was using the Bennet tabs
at 50% or 75% down which I knew wasn't optimum. Plus the boat was a bit
sluggish on plane. So two seasons later and researching hydrofoils,
Andy sets me up with a Permatrim M9 for my F225.
Yesterday,
after installing the Permatrim exactly as per Andy's tutorial, I did a
trial run. Conditions in the ocean were a 5 foot swell at 14 seconds and
zero wind. I had full fuel (~150 gallons), the T8 kicker, empty live
well, no ice and two on board - so I was "medium heavy".
My observations after yesterday's sea trial:
o As advertised, the boat pops up on a plane much faster
o Can plane slower like at ~22 mph GPS at 3800 RPMs Vs 25mph @ 4000 RPMs
o This brings the GPH down to ~9 Vs. 11 GPH so MPG is up a little (2.44 Vs. 2.3)
o Boat handling is much better since the bow rides lower for better bow entry
o Now I can use the trim tabs to trim the boat left and right Vs. bow up or bow down
o Here's a surprise: no effect on top end speed (~41 mph) and
o The F225 achieves 6K RPM at WOT much, much easier & faster than before
o To me this says the engine isn't working as hard to deliver it's propulsion
o Steering feels "different" but okay and something I can get used to
o My Simrad autopilot seems to behave better with this new steering
So
overall - I am very happy with it so far. I was not looking to gain
economy (which I might) but rather better sea handling capabilities
which it certainly seems to have done for me. Thank-you Andy for your
help!
Comments
added: Additional info. - my MPG seems to have increased from roughly
2.0-2.1 to 2.35 based on a 40 mile run in an 11 foot swell with zero
wind.
November 26, 2010
Andy,
A
few months ago, I bought a 19ft Carolina Skiff V-Series center-console
boat with a 90 hp 2-stroke Yamahe (TLRX). The first time I ran the
boat, I realized I had serious trim problems. I couldn't run more than
about 27mph without extreme porpoising, even when trimming the engine
all the way down into full "negative" trim position. Porpoising was so
bad that after about three bounces, the bow was slamming down so hard
that I had to reduce power immediately. Even with the boat loaded and
passengers up front, it would still porpoise at less than full throttle.
I researched porpoising and trim tabs on the internet. It appeared
that I was probably overpowered for the weight and design of my boat
(hull weight is only about 800 pounds and it's pretty much a
flat-bottom boat except for the bow). I spent a lot of time reading
blogs and testimonials concerning transom trim tabs, whale fluke-looking
lower unit tabs, and Permatrim. I wasn’t impressed by the
information I found about transom trim tabs and I think the whale fluke
type foils are ugly. But, I liked the appearance of the Permatrim foil
and I was very impressed with the testimonials. So I decided to try
the Permatrim foil.
I
purchased the 001 grey Permatrim for my 90 hp 2-stroke Yamaha. The
Permatrim installation was easy and resulted in tremendous improvement.
With the engine in "level" trim, the boat does not tend to porpoise at
all, and I can run full throttle without porpoising (in my case, about
37mph, or about 10 faster without porpoising). Handling is improved and
steering authority is much better, especially at no-wake speed. And,
it gets up on plane immediately upon adding power.
I
am very happy with the Permatrim. It solved my problem, installation
was easy, the color matched my original paint, and the appearance is
very neat, especially when compared to "whale-tail" type foils. I would
strongly recommend Permatrim for anyone who has trim or porpoising
problems, or just wants better stability and more positive steering
control. It’s a great product, easy to install, looks good, and the
cost is very reasonable.
John D. B
|
