weight displacement

[alumacraft716]

i added a casting platform and and a higher platform for the tm. The boat now rides really low in the bow. any of you guys have any suggestions on how to make the bow ride a little higher

 

[thudpucker]

Put in a photo, it might help.

How far back can you move the platform and Butt seat, and still reach the foot control?
That will help in any case.

 

[clarkbre]

Give us some more details on your boat (i.e. size, HP, when does the bow ride low, or pictures).

Just from the initial sounds of it, there might be a few cheap solutions.

1. Redistribute the weight in your boat. Put the battery and gas towards the rear.
2. adjust the tilt pin on your outboard. Push it out a hole or two to see if that will raise the bow and get on plain.

 

[longjohn119]

i added a casting platform and and a higher platform for the tm. The boat now rides really low in the bow. any of you guys have any suggestions on how to make the bow ride a little higher

I had a 1436 Polarkraft and when I had a 15HP Force I had to have the battery in the back to keep it from being nose heavy. When I put a 20 HP Merc on the back I had to move the battery to the front to balance out the extra weight of the motor and to keep the front mounted trolling motor from coming out of the water when plowing through waves.

Currently I have a Monark 1644 with a 24 series cranking battery and gas tank in the back, a 27 series deep cycle mounted in the front and the console is in the middle of the boat and the balance is the best I've seen in a small boat. I like to keep my batteries as close to center as possible in the boat whether front or back although in my Polarkraft when I had the battery in the front I put it off center to balance out my weight (And the weight of my livewell when filled) I made sure the livewell was on the opposite side of the driver position this time to balance out my weight, front battery dead center and the rear slightly off center just enough to avoid the transom knee brace.

You can also play around with how you load/store your gear in the boat, I'm sure the first few times I have my Monark out I'll be rearranging gear until I find the sweet spot for balance and easy access. Generally the smaller/narrower the boat the more difference shifting weight around makes. Also when you are on the front deck you want the nose to dip lower so more of it is in the water so the boat doesn't tip side to side as much. If you have all the weight in the back and the nose is still out of the water when you are on the front deck you'll find it extremely unstable. Try to keep any weight you add to the front as low as possible, weight below the waterline gives a lower center of gravity and more stability, weight added above the water line can make you even more 'tippier' than no weight at all. Keep your heaviest gear to the bottom of the boat as much as possible, especially batteries.