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So I proceeded the rest of the way trimmed "UP" at around the 50% position. I got a few shakes also, but then I would drop it a little and it would go away.
That's stress on the universal and/or Gimbal bearing
That's what you want to avoid.
As to your depth reading, it depends upon how your sounder is setup. If you have the Keel Offset set then the reading should be the actual water depth. If the keel offset is not set (zero) then you are getting a depth reading from the transducer to bottom and not taking into account the actual depth of the water (distance from the transducer to the surface of the water)
I do not use the keel offset so my depth sounder reads from the keel to the bottom. Your boat has a static depth it draws, probably 34-38 inches. If you have 18" from the surface to the transducer of the depth sounder with the keel offset to zero and your depth guage reading 24 inches, your actually in 42" of water.
Put your drive all the way down and measure the distance it is below the transducer. That is the distance you want to be aware of when going into shallow water.
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Jvalich
http://www.badcock.com'04 FW 288 Vista "Mental Floss"