www.iFourWinns.com

Hello - I was wondering what everyone else does to get on plane quickly. This past weekend, I had a semi full load. 5 people, probably around 1200lbs. total people weight. Also had a half full fresh water tank and a full fuel tank (79 gallons).

My normal procedure is to put the tab's and engine trim all the way down. Then I have to give it full throttle and work the tabs and trim to get the boat up. This past weekend i had a heck of a time. I moved some passengers down below deck to even out the weight and this helped a bit. I also took down the Bimini and this seemed to help too.

Am I doing something wrong?

Boat is a 2000 248 vista with a 5.7 GS (not DP)



Thanks,

Well, the DP would have helped... What I do when I get a load of people is trim the drive down and trim the bow down as well.. Once the speed picks up, I trim the bow up and trim the drive as needed..

I've had like 10 people on board and had a heck of a time getting it on plane.. Almost hat to put people on the deck! lol

Also, try not to plane too quickly, with a lot of weight, gradual is better.

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2000 Four Winns 248 Vista (Nice toys, no Air)
2001 Highly Modified Yamaha GP1200R (75+MPH)

We have a 5.7L GSI DPS and when loaded for camping at the lake for the week, the poor little motor just doesnt have it to get the boat on plane, or at least on plane within 5 miles (or what seemed forever!!!)

IMHO, the 248 really needs a 8.1L

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2000 248 5.7L DP
'92, '94 SXI 750, '08 STX 15F, '12 Ultra LX 300
Videos

I have the 5.0Gi duoprop 250hp in my 1998 238 Vista with no trim tabs, we are normally loaded to the hilt (kitchen sink included) full water, full fuel (50 gallons) but only 2 adults, we leave the marina at 5mph I give it about 75% throttle and we are on the plane within 5 seconds, it planes at 20mph at 2800 revs, cruises best at 24mph at 3000 revs, and top speed is 32mph at WOT which is 3800 revs.

I appreciate that the 248 is a slightly larger boat but you do have a slightly larger engine. What is the horse power on the 5.7?

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Regards
Beyond the Blue

"If we improve with age I'm now excellent"


Ex 1998 238 Vista 5.0Gi SX DP
Lexus RX300

ours is 280 hp, and I forgot to mention that we boat a 4000 to 7000 ft elevation, which sucks all the power out of a motor.
There is no doubt that a 5.0 at sea level performs OK.

The only time we can not get on plane is when we are loaded for a week of beach camping, and carrying everyones tents, gear, coolers, 40 gallons in gas cans on swim deck ect....

If it is just me and wife on boat, half tank of fuel, no fresh water, boat is just mildly sluggish, but gets on plane in reasonable amount of time. But remember I did not buy this underpowered boat to cruise very much, we have the jet skis for fun factor. 248 is just to carry supplies to camp, and a comfortable bed for me, more or less. Some cruising after supplies dropped of at camp site.

After reading your reply, and due to the fact that I have nothing better to do right now, I have done a quick search on the web and found some amazing statistics on atmospheric/altitude effects on boat engines.
After reading one quite in-depth report based on engine ratings in ideal conditions of 77° air temp. 29 inches absolute pressure,0% humidity giving quoted horsepower of 280. In conditions of 85°air temp, 25 inches absolute pressure, 40% humidity (maybe nearer to the truth in your neck of the woods) the horsepower would be reduced to around 227. According to their report you can expect a further reduction of 9hp for every 1000ft above sea level, so at 5,500ft as an average, your horsepower could be reduced to around 178. So its no wonder you can struggle sometimes (its now time I went and got a life)

_________________
Regards
Beyond the Blue

"If we improve with age I'm now excellent"


Ex 1998 238 Vista 5.0Gi SX DP
Lexus RX300

Hey, thanks for putting a little science behind it!!!

I always knew that it was something like 5% reduction for every 1000 ft elevation gain. My thought was not too far off.

Have a good one.

Are you sure you are operating in the proper RPM range? You might want to re-prop the boat to better suit your needs. Did you buy the boat in the high altitude area? Sometimes the dealer will re-prop to adjust for the elevation.

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2000 Four Winns 248 Vista (Nice toys, no Air)
2001 Highly Modified Yamaha GP1200R (75+MPH)

Yes, it was set up for high alt. and I have looked into reproping, but a set of F2 prop will let the motor over rev. I have checked accuracy of tach gage.

Bottom line, I just need more ponies. The little 5.7 gets us from point A to B, but if I ever need to repower, a 8.1L is going in. Then I know it will perform to my expectations. My last boat had the 7.4L and was lighter, so, maybe this is why I may be a little harsh on hole shot with regards to the 248.

my 2000 H-260 is new too me with a Volvo 5.7 and duoprop. I have been surprised how it hops up that big of a boat. The first few times out I didn't hammer it. But 2 weeks ago I had a trip with relatives and full fresh water tank, exactly 80 gallons of premium ( I just drained out old gas) and 8 adults and 3 kids and full cooler It seemed to barely notice the difference using my normal plane procedure. I am new to this big a boat so I haven't used trim tabs yet.
I did level the load with them on that run but I don't touch them for getting the boat up on plane yet.
I go from rolling fats idle to nearly wide open as I come up on the trim button by the time my gauge reads middle trim I am usually up...luckily my gauge seems very accurate as well for my RPM levels and WOT speed...I max out right about mid level trim....My boat tops out at about 44 mph with just me and the Mrs. my three young sons and 3 guests this Sunday it was a little rough and I am down to about 3/4 a tanknow too. My combo seems to work well because it is very fast too 30-35mph and planing and I don't really use the above 40mph much at all. I was about 4500 rpm yesterday to get up to 44 mph.

The problem with the 24X Vistas (and most boats this size) is that the fuel tank, fresh water tank, engine, batteries and cockpit with passengers are all behind amidship. That's probably 85% of the weight of the boat.

With me at the helm of my '89 245 Vista and three passengers sitting on the stern seat bench, and a fully belly of gas and water, it takes me a lot of patience to get her up.

My simple solution is to put a passenger or two up front in the V berth until I start putting again. Not the best seat in the house, but oh well!

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Vic
"Byte Me"
1989 Vista 245
Lake Norman, NC

The cheapest thing you could do to improve your planning performance would be to outfit your outdrive with a duo-prop conversion if you only have a single prop. (http://www.boatsunlimitedny.com/products/outdrives1.php) I have a 00' 268 with a full fuel tank, water tank, 2-3 coolers of stuff and 6-8 people on the boat when I leave the marina all the time. I have the 22" and 18" stainless Steel duo-prop setup on mine. When I leave I have the trim tabs all the way down and just gas it for a few seconds then level off around 20 mph or 3000 rpm. Takes about 5-10 seconds to plane. I think it works kind of like a turbo kit in a car. I even Ski and Wake board behind my FW.

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~ GADawg

2000 268 Vista
http://sites.google.com/site/ourcruiser/

i have a 2000 248 with the 5.0 and duo stainless props....i have 4 or 5 adults full water and half fuel...plus all the regular gear on board regularly......ive come realize ..with lots of practice that my boat has to be dead slow before i take off...if not it struggles.....i start by making sure im dead slow...trim the outdrive all the way down.....i trim the tabs down just a bit..to much creates lots of drag with all that weight .. then hammer it......as the engine revs higher i raise the trim tabs all the way up....then trim the outdrive up as my speed and rpms increase......this works everytime ....except in rough water.....but 95 percent success...keep me posted if you give this method a try

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2000 [img][img][/img][/img]248 vista 5.0 gi dp
orillia ontario canada

Glad I found this site and article. I have a 93 vista 245 and it seems nearly impossible to get up on plane so hopefully someone here can help me. I have the drive trimmed all the way down and trim tabs adjusted. I think the problem is I have an Omc 5.8 260hp engine in it which doesn't seem like enough power. Just yesterday with 4 people on board, coolers and gear it took about 3-4 minutes to get up on plane at about 20mph. Any ideas how I can fix this? Also my trim gauge is not working.

I'm surprised you are having those problems. I also have a 93 Vista 245 and don't have any of the problems you mentioned. We routinely have full fuel, half water, 2 coolers, 4-6 adults/2 kids and regularly ski/tube with everyone onboard. With 6 adults onboard, I would estimate time to plane at about 8-10 seconds. (with drive and tabs down) I'm no mechanic but I'm wondering if there is an issue with your engine. Maybe mine is just an over-achiever, dunno.