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Pro's & Cons of hydrofoils on outboards


Catchin Jack

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Hi Raiders,

I've got hydrofoils on my outboard which are like wings on either side of the cavitation plate, i'm looking at taking them off and running the boat without them to see how it goes. They were on the boat when I bought it but a gut feeling is telling me to take them off, I really can't see how it's improving my ride or top end speed.

It gets out of the hole with ease and when trimmed up at speed I find the steering stiffer.

Has anyone else done this and what sort of results did you get from it, good or bad?

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Fezza,

Foils effect all boats differently for example I had a foil on a 60hp yammie 2 stroke and haines 445F and basically all it did was help achieving planing at trolling speed. My mate fitted the same foil to a 4.3m stacer 50hp honda and it had a severe effct on his downsea performance causing extreme broaching in any reasonable swell.

So take it off and compare what happens. They are normally fitted to assist with achieving planing at lower speed as a priority.

Cheers

Marlin

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Thanks Marlin, I have no problem at all getting on the plane and don't think removing it will affect it getting out of the hole quick.

I just can't see why it's on there, before taking it off I wanted to get other members opinions on it and maybe others that have run it with and without it on.

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Thanks Marlin, I have no problem at all getting on the plane and don't think removing it will affect it getting out of the hole quick.

I just can't see why it's on there, before taking it off I wanted to get other members opinions on it and maybe others that have run it with and without it on.

i actually took my old ones off they were the ones that hang out the back more se 200 ithink

but didnt like em unless the motor was perfectly trimmed up theyd dig in and the boat would go on its side all most

but on the weekend i got the wings i had them on a 25 hp before and they were awesome it made the whole boat more stable when underway specially turning

but yeah they were only 30 bucks

so if i find its doin the same ill just take em off

cheers

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Definitely depends on the boat. I've got a 4.5m Hinton Fibreglass half cab and it really used to struggle getting up on the plane. Recently added a permatrim and i cant beleive the improvement, feels like a totaly different boat and i absolutley love it :thumbup: No more asking the passengers to move up near the nose to help get it on the plane. Guess the only way to tell how it will work with yours is to take them off an see how it feels.

R

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I've got a 4.75 Bar Raider with a 50hp Mercury on it, might take it off and if all good leave it off and if not I might try the permatrim type, it just seems to be really stiff to turn on the plane with the wings on.

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Hi Fezza, I have the same boat with a 60hp yamaha on it and no hydrofoils (never had them), but I still find that it is stiff to turn when on the plane. Not sure if removing them will give you the improvement in steering you are looking for but I guess it's worth a try.

Cheers

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I've got a 4.75 Bar Raider with a 50hp Mercury on it, might take it off and if all good leave it off and if not I might try the permatrim type, it just seems to be really stiff to turn on the plane with the wings on.

Hey Fezza.I have the same boat but with a 70 Yam and no foils and I do not see any reason why it would need them.

Regards Stuart.

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Hi all,

i know this topic has been raised many times before.. i guess it is up to the individual user as to whether you may benefit or actually lose handling performance by fitting these. For mine, if the manufacturers of outboard motors thought they were needed would they not have changed the design of the outboard legs to be different from say 30 years ago, which i beleive hasnt changewd much on most motors i have seen?

For the record, i had one on a Johnson 55hp motor fitted to a 13ft glass runabout once and while it helped the boat to plane a little easier, the boats handling was that shocking i took it off (almost dangerous in swell or rough conditions) and yes while it was harder to get up on the plane (from what i was used to) it actually turned and handled properly which was something it hadnt done prior too.

would i buy one? No!!! but that is only my opinion on this!!!

Cheers

Mick

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