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I just added a speedometer to my Montauk. I mounted the pickup tube to the stern. It hangs down, as per the directions, one and a half inches below the bottom of the boat. I made a test run and the speedometer was showing 2 mph less than what the gps showed--I can live with that.
Here's the thing. My boat never pulled and now it is. Do you think that little bit of pickup tube in the water is making a difference. My old striper had a Suzuki and it pulled. I adjusted that little "rudder" (I'm sure it has a specific name) at the cavitation plate and straightened it out.
I'm wondering if this would be a solution. Obviously, their is one way to find out, but I was just curious if anyone else out there had a similar experience. Thanks.
There is no way that little pick up could do that... unless it is the size of catchers mitt... The Pulling may have something to do with weight distribution or the tab on the engine shifted... adjusting that is a solution.
The 2 MPH difference from the GPS is not bad at all... The speedos are rarely accurate. I see about the same difference... Weeds will also seriously effect accuracy.
Edited by joninnj on 06/11/09 - 9:11 PM
Jon in NJ
Many other boats and outboards in my boating history
The Whaler is the one I like the best!!!
In my experience those speedos are only good at the higher end of the speed curve, that is, they will give you a good ball park reference to your boat's 'top speed' but are less and less reliable the slower you are going. Before I installed my first LORAN years and years ago i used to use Dead Reconing (TimeXSpeed=Distance) to navigate to areas I could troll off-shore, then use it (the speedo) to set my trolling speed. NOT!! When I did get my first LORAN, it was then I realized how pitiful the pitot tube speedo was. Purdy much just good for putting three holes in your hull below the water line, maybe a good back-up reference for checking speed in "Max Speed" zones on your waterway if your GPS punks out.
In reference to the 'pull'; Do you have power trim? My boat (17 Montauk) will track straight, 'hands off' the wheel, on plane doing 21 kts. That is what I set my trim tab on the lower unit to do. There is no one setting of that little trim tab that will set your boat 'neutral' at all speeds with a simple steering system (unless it is binding/locked up and hard to steer). It will pull starboard off plane, and port at top speed, with the power trim set to 'neutral'. I can compensate that pull by adding trim; nose low will pull to the starboard, nose high to port.
Dash board trim indicators can wander, hydraulic systems can lose pressure causing desparity between what the guage is telling you and where your trim actually is. Perhaps what you thought was the 'trim' you were used to has chnaged.
My 13' pulls to the right ever so slightly ever since I installed a speedo pick up. If I move my fat butt more to the center of the boat, she straightens up. Before I installed the pick up, she used to track straight with me sitting off to the right a little. Of course, this could be a number of things too........but it is a big coincidence.
Cliff
1966 13' Sport with a 1993 40hp Yamaha 2 Smoker
nvaccaro wrote:
I adjusted that little "rudder" (I'm sure it has a specific name) at the cavitation plate and straightened it out.
There is your problem right there, the tab should not be straight. The torque tab adjustment should counter act the torque of the prop, you actually move the tab the same direction that it is pulling. Its sounds wrong but it is not. The tab should face a few degrees towards the direction of pull, more if you have a steeper pitched prop.
