Aftermarket hydrofoils

[ChrisL]

Hey remember me? 

I'm thinking about adding an aftermarket hydrofoil to my outboard.  Without much experience I don't necessarily have a problem I'm trying to correct with it.  It just seems like I'm churning the water way to much and wasting horsepower cavitating the water. 

Are they worth it? 

I'm running a 28hp Evinrude on a 14ft aluminum boat.  The cavitation plates on the motor seem very small.

[fluke - u]

  ... To the best of my knowledge, The only thing I ever heard them fixing was a porpoising bow when on plane. Don't know if it will help with cavitation. Trim down..

[Treebeard]

Hi Chris  I have one on the 40hp Evinrude on my 18' Jon.. in that set-up it actually made a dramatic difference.. The problem I had was with the weight of the motor, fuel tank, 3 batteries, and my copious behind all being aft, it would wallow like a hog before getting on plane.... and would not stay up on the pad unless I was hard on the throttle.. With the fin (and negative trim of course),  it pops up on plane quick, and once properly trimmed will stay there even at much lower speeds... Only cavitation I ever encountered prior was in rougher water, and it does help keep the prop in the water in those conditions.. but if you are getting bad cavitation  that could possibly be addressed with a different prop, or adjusting the motor height    

[BigAl13]

I had one on my 18' manatee, had a 75 horse johnson on it. Didnt do anything as far as cavitation but did help steady the boat while on plane

[Dibbs]

 

[Takes Prizoners]

does the outboard shaft length match the hull?

[ChrisL]

does the outboard shaft length match the hull?

Ummm....yeah....uhhhh.....I have no idea. 

The cavitation plate on the motor only sticks out about 2-3in on either side.  So the prop is larger wider than the plate.  Just seems with foils on there it would keep the water "cleaner" and be more efficient. 

With my lack of knowledge and experience, I could be experiencing other handling problems that would be corrected and don't know enough to recognize it. 

[Pops Soul]

Chris I have one on my 14 footer with a 25 HP Merc. It will get you on plan quicker which I need in the Delaware River but it does make the boat quicker to react, if you shift your weight while running that Hydra foil whats to dig inand make the boat turn is the best I can explain it.Hope this helps your decision

[wb]

looks like the motor is too low

if you can get it on plane, at that point, trimmed for best speed, the cav plate should be right about even with the water level.

from the looks of yours at that point your entire boat would be out of the water. Raise up the motor on the transom if possible first.