Motor Trim Adjustment

[sandpointsailor]

I have a 26M with a 40 hp Suzuki engine that runs great. After lowering into the water, I know I can trim the motor when motoring fast but I don't know how to properly tip, or trim, the engine for optimum performance. Can anyone offer suggestions? Also, what kind of gas mileage, speed, and max RPM are people getting with this configuration? Thanks!

[Neo]

Very dependant on weight distribution and conditions but just try trimming to best speed per RPM .... but one way or the other it doesn't make a lot of difference on an ... It's a sailboat not a powerboat

[Starscream]

For me (26X), the problem is that the boat always runs nose high under power, even with the motor installed on wedges to angle it down more. So I always trim full down. I've experimented with bringing it up a couple of degrees but it didn't help at all.

[Wind Chime]

We are always full down as well, except when blowing off kelp stuck around leg.

[beene]

Full down with wedges

Tilt up from there, speed drops

This is at high speeds only

At lower speeds you can trim to the point where you can let go of the wheel and the boat still goes straight.

That means you are in balance

At hull speed or less, 90 deg to waterline is best unless you are trying to beach it

G

[BOAT]

The M boat runs best with the nose down - it gets a good plane that skims the top of the water in that configuration - I have walked my 220 pounds fore and aft whilst watching the GPS speed on the iphone and noticed a slight increase as the nose gets heavier. Now I keep my shore boat under the forward berth for extra weight. I have all my water packed around the bottom of the DB well too and when it's all full I get good sailing performance too. The nice thing about a heavy bow on the M is if you hit a wave the boat just cuts thru it - so just a little weight up front and your good on the M - no wedges and it works pretty good cutting waves at 18 knots but it does take a while to get the boat out of the water - it's not very quick off the line. I almost always run with the ballast tank empty when I am at any speed over 15 knots

The X boat is way better getting on a plane - but it's harder to keep the nose down on the X because it does not have the deep angle on the hull so I would think wedges would probably be the best way to go to get the nose back down after hitting a wave. Both boats are great in flat water - that's not the issue - the problem is getting the bow back down after hitting chopnstuff because the bow up angle puts a lot of drag at the transom.

[Neo]

At lower speeds you can trim to the point where you can let go of the wheel and the boat still goes straight.

Now this I have to try ... thanks for that

[Jeff Stagg]

When purchasing my new 26X in 1998 I had a demo with the dealer rep Jeff Mott of Arena Yacht Sales, San Rafael, CA on San Francisco Bay. I have a Yamaha 50 four stroke carburetor. On the lake I trim the motor up in shallow water to avoid dinging the prop, but keep the water intake screen in the water. I carry a solid copper wire in my boat toolbox similar in size to a metal coat hangar to dig out the mud in the pilot (pee) tube that cakes up on the trailer sometimes at low lake levels. Motor trimming, Jeff taught me to feel the floor of the cockpit with your feet (barefoot is best) when underway. First off the best operating RPM for this boat and this motor and gas mileage is 4200 as this is on a plane; lower RPM is also better, but not on a plane, such as around 2300 about 7 mph. Over 4800 RPM and your just pouring gas down the drain, but I do it every time anyway. MPH speeds for these are dependent on weight onboard, i.e. anchors, coolers. water, and people.

So for trimming, feel the floor of the cockpit when behind the wheel for vibration. To reduce vibration, trim up a bit and down a bit. You will easily find the groove of less vibration on your feet, and that is ideal. As for trimming for keeping the bow down, send some crew up to the V-berth. Too much weight forward and your boat will lose the stability of the flat aft cockpit area and the nose will steer the boat into a capsize if the wheel is turned off of straight; there are several deaths due to weight forward or on deck in Macs, there were also other stupid issues involved.

Jeff

[kurz]

I'm happy with foil on the ob. Unfortunately I did not mesure the differens with an angle meter before and after. But without foil I could hardly see over the bow when high speed planing. No I feel its much beter. So the hydre foil stayed for some seasons


By the way I do not get over 30kmh/16kn max.
Motor is Merc60, reaching 5500-6000... but its ok so far prop is 14/10