Trim Tabs????

Jencourt

Jencourt

Well-Known Member
I am looking at putting trim tabs on the new to me trophy and I am being pushed toward Lenco electric by the guys that bought willimar marine. Port boat house is suggesting Bennett hydraulic. What are your thoughts or experience?

Also Port boat house is saying that Trim Tabs will not help get the nose down at lower speed but going to a four blade prop on my 150 Yamaha 4stroke will. Any thoughts or experience on this one??

Thanks in advance: Ray
 
4 blade prop solved my nose up problem. I had trim tabs before buying the prop and could not get the nose substantially down. The 4 blade is also quicker out of the hole and lets you plane at lower speeds. It does take a little off top end speed. I highly recommend the 4 blade
 
I went with Bennet Hyd tabs, worked for me, I still nose up on take off but it comes down in half the time and allows quicker planing also alows me to adjust listing due to kicker, which is more what I was after.
I've played with them and you can noticeand feel a distinct difference (sweet spot) when on plane versus not having them,
do your own research, but I believe hydraulic is the only way to go, to many problems with electrics.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
We put Bennett hydraulic on our Hewescraft 200 searunner last year, it made the world of difference. 150 Yamaha 4stroke & 8hp high thrust, long shaft and as gydyup said, it took care of the kicker list also. Also good in medium chop, as you don't bounce as much if you keep the speed down.
 
thanks for the feed back folks. I am also running a Trophy 2002 so I am glad to hear that they make a dif. I also list to port as that is the kicker side and most of my fishing partners are a lot heavier than me.
I am getting intrigued by the four blade prop idea as well. Anyone else run the that prop on a 150 Yamaha 4 stroke

Cheers: Ray.
 
"I am getting intrigued by the four blade prop idea as well. Anyone else run the that prop on a 150 Yamaha 4 stroke"

I to am interested in the 4 blade as I've heard nothing but good about them but for the $$$$ in them in stainless I would like feed back from users before spending the $$$$. Ya I know what B.O.A.T stands for but beginning to think boat should be spelled B.O.A.T.T.
 
Hey jencourt , Bennett trim tabs are the ticket , I have them on my 91 trophy 23 and they work great. I have a buddy with a trophy 21 who swears by the planer that Craven mentioned.

A four blader is a great idea as long as you are not pushing big loads for long distances. When you run 4 bladers they do not allow as much slippage on the prop and they put additional stress on the gearcase. When I say big loads I mean 4 big guys and gear on a 21 foot boat on plane.

Hope that helps , beemer
 
Tans are the way to go. My Sea Sport came with Insta Trim "Boat Leveler" trim tabs. The boat is 20 years old next year and have never had any problems. Broke I plastic pin which is designed to break if the tab gets smacked...saves the cylinder from damage. Cheaper than Bennett's. The fact that Sea Sport which only used high end gear during the build says it all.
 
Tabs are the way to go. My Sea Sport came with Insta Trim "Boat Leveler" trim tabs. The boat is 20 years old next year and have never had any problems. Broke I plastic pin which is designed to break if the tab gets smacked...saves the cylinder from damage. Cheaper than Bennett's. The fact that Sea Sport which only used high end gear during the build says it all.
 
check this out for the pro and cons of Hyd vs Elec tabs
http://www.bennetttrimtabs.com/hydraulicvselectric.php
also I went with the M120 sport tabs they are a little smaller then most but still work well for 20-23'
I was limited for transom space between kicker and transducers, easy install and I think overall cost was about 600 bucks
I looked at Insta-trim as well same set-up but added more holes in the transom vs the bennett, with bennett the hydraulics come through the end of the ram into the inside of the transom whereas the insta-trim hose routes up the top of the piston then through an aditional hole with exposed hydraulic hoses, Bennett was just a cleaner looking install IMO, personal preferrence is what it comes down to I guess
 
Not sure about the insta/trim tabs but i just installed the self level trim tabs by sports tab(Trotac Marine Vic.) boat still leans a little on kicker side & still porpoises a little.The instructions say you can change pin placement to counter act both problems...also they must be applied to a flat surface /( i have a slight lip where the pod is attached to the the transom -1/4in. dif.) the new tabs are a fraction of the cost compared to the elec/hydraulic sport tabs.

I'll pull the boat & make further adjustments ... report later... in the mean time anyother feedback/imput would help guys...thanx in advance...sammy
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hey Sammy, were they smart tabs? I have been looking at those for my boat cause I've heard nothing but good things about them. I am going to need to get a set on my Arima to help with a little of the porposing that seems to be happening on a regular basis no matter how you trim the motor. If you don't mind, could you pm me the cost of them from trotac? Thanks
 
bigmeal said:
Hey Sammy, were they smart tabs? I have been looking at those for my boat cause I've heard nothing but good things about them. I am going to need to get a set on my Arima to help with a little of the porposing that seems to be happening on a regular basis no matter how you trim the motor. If you don't mind, could you pm me the cost of them from trotac? Thanks
Click to expand...

Hey BM......This is just my two cents on the tabs. I had a 03 Malibu 182 and faught with leaning issues and a bit of porpoising as well for a few seasons. I finally went with the smart Tabs at West Marine. They made a huge difference in the ride but they still can be a pain depending on what boat they are on for sure. For the porpoising issue I hink I solved most of that problem with a Hydrafoil......SE Sport model. With Honda's on the back being so heavy it gave me a lot of lift during take off and allowed me to plane at a slower speed. After a few adjustments I was able to get the tabs where they needed to be for my boat. However it still only solved my problems for 75% of my boating. I set them up for two men fishing with gear etc. and it rode perfect.....night and day difference. However with my old boat they wouldn't correct enough for a few extra passengers and still leaned to one side or the other and then it would require you to try and shift the load to get a better ride. On an Arima it may not be as big of an issue though....not sure. Another issue to consider depending on your boating needs is replacement parts. I replaced two Rams or Shocks over the two season's I had the boat with them at 80 bucks a shot. I think mostly from pounding out to the Bank with them and being overworked? They were rated for a bigger boat but still broke? I also know that the fella that bought my boat from me when I got my new one installed hydraulic tabs on them and was far happier. As for me now......lets just say the new boat came with hydraulic tabs.....lol To rap up my long ramble.......They definitely work but far better on some boats for sure........my two cents! :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

W
Bennet electric trim tabs on a 2016 Campion 542
Replies
16
Views
1K
Sea Chaser
Sea Chaser
M
Old boat trim tab hydraulic issue
Replies
17
Views
1K
persistent
persistent
bonez10
Double eagle 176
Replies
7
Views
2K
bonez10
bonez10
MikeyL
Looking for recommendations on Bennett trim tabs
Replies
35
Views
2K
mbowers
mbowers
MiddlepointBight
How big are you trim tabs vs. size of your boat?
Replies
15
Views
2K
23Hourston
23Hourston
Back
Top