Dean Ferry

Found an interesting thread on Donzi.net about Arneson rocker plates:

Arneson Rocker Plates--Why Won't Regular Tabs Do the Same Thing?? [Archive] - The Donzi Registry

Skater30

My 30 was originally built with the rocker plates, but the boat didn't seem to like any setting other than neutral/straight. I had Skater take them off and fill the transom. I attached pictures of when it first arrived with the rocker plates and then after they were removed. Before we removed them, Rik had even built aluminum pieces to continue the lifting strakes back on the plates to match the bottom of the sponsons - they didn't do anything. The rocker plates would only unsettle the boat when any negative angle past neutral was applied. And the boat didn't really react to any difference between neutral and full-up on the plates. Since we wound up just setting them at neutral and never using them, we decided to get rid of the additional weight/compexity of them when it went back to Skater in late 2006. Both my 36 and 46 have the standard Mercury K-Planes, along with every other pleasure or race Skater I've seen (if they have tabs, not all run them).

Tartilla

Seems the Rocket Plate system needs calm water to function effectively. That would make sense, how could the hull maintain consistent bow lift in rough choppy water as the rocker gets aerated.

Not to mention the huge issue of losing the bow lift at speed.

Seems the standard bow lift methods with prop rake, props turning in, and extention boxes for more leverage are the way to go.