Chine Walking ???

tpenfield · 06-04-2005, 07:56 AM

I just came accross some info on the web about "chine walking". It appears to be a control issue at higher speeds.

Since I have only about 1.5 hours of drive time on my 242SS under my belt, I thought I would ask the question rather than risk a possible bad experience.

Based on what I have read so far, it would appear to me that the smaller Formulas do not go quite fast enough to chine walk, but perhaps the larger boats or more powerful ones do.

I noticed that the inboard set of lifting strakes on my 242SS stop about 5 feet short of the transom. I am wondering if that is to reduce the lift at higher speeds and avoid chine walk (?). Anyway, is chine walking an issue for the smaller Formulas ? Is it an issue for the bigger ones? What speeds are we talking?

Thanks for your guidance.

t500hps · 06-04-2005, 08:06 AM

More info will come from others w /242's, but yours is a straight bottom hull running up to 65 w/ stock power. That boat would be hard to MAKE chine walk if you wanted to.
Anyone else?

mopower · 06-04-2005, 08:33 AM

A friend has a '91 242 with a 502 Mag. Tops out at 62 mph(GPS) with a 23" Mirage and is solid as a rock.

offshoredrillin · 06-04-2005, 08:45 AM

Chine walking is when you have too much horsepower to weight ratio and it wants to push the boat so far out of the water that it becomes unstable. usually when people put massive hp in smaller crafts.

captaindave · 06-04-2005, 11:32 AM

I was recently in a 230 SS Stingray w/350 mag and it will chine walk but you have to have a lot of trim for it to happen. On a lot of boats the drive will start slipping before you can trim it high enough for the boat to chine walk. I have had two experiences in a 353 that the boat leaned to the starboard running surface and stuck there, this will get your attention in a hurry, but if you just hold your line or slightly steer to port and add a little more throttle the boat will straighten up. I know that this is not a chine walk. It is worse!!! Whats happening??? I may have also had it happen in a 292, hard to remember!!!

captaindave · 06-04-2005, 11:43 AM

I guess this is just a characteristic of a stepped hull but it will scare the sh!@ out of you the first time that it happens.

formuladude312 · 06-04-2005, 03:13 PM

With the 21 degree dead rise on the formula hulls they like to lean into the wind a bit, But the chine walk happens in the 70 mph+ range and will really get your boating skills attention, it is a combination of full throttle and overtrimming the 2 times it has happen to me