OK, I bought my first offshore performance boat; now what?
 

I've been around 20' runabouts all my life, but this is my first offshore boat with twins. I'm not going to be naive and think it's the same thing, just bigger. Is there a primer online somewhere to learn the do's and don'ts? I want to have fun with this, but I don't want to put my family & friends at risk. We will be boating in water that's pretty rough at times (LOTO).

Some general questions:

• General use of the K-planes
• How to avoid a position where the nose gets stuffed
• Drive trim; where to set it, when to change it
• What's the relationship between safe speed and wave size? Is it a skill that's acquired?

I found this on maneuvering with twins.....Maneuvering strategies for twin engines

....but it's oriented more towards twin inboards. Is there something similar for I/O's, or do the principles still apply?

Thanks for helping a newbie....

Re: OK, I bought my first offshore performance boat; now what?
 

I'm sure there are plenty of guys at LOTO to give you hands-on training that you will find invaluable.
Good luck and be careful until you really understand what your new boat is all about.

Many times accidents are caused because the operator asked his boat to do something for which it was not designed.

Re: OK, I bought my first offshore performance boat; now what?
 

What did you purchase?

Re: OK, I bought my first offshore performance boat; now what?
 

Formula 336, w/502's....

Re: OK, I bought my first offshore performance boat; now what?
 

The above link is pretty much true for I/Os also but since I'm in tidal waters I've never tried the parallel docking trick. There are a few spots of protected water where it might work. I'll try myself next season. You'll wonder how you ever did it without twins :cool:

Re: OK, I bought my first offshore performance boat; now what?
 

Lot of good questions you ask, and while there are differences between your boats, the important parts are the same (smart and reasonable boat driver). Just bring more gas money.

Does your boat have a stepped hull? That will reverse a few instructions, so I won't address those here, but wait for your answer.

Starting: don't hammer the boat onto plane like you might a skiboat. Your new boat weighs enough to break the drive doing that. Ease into it about half throttle or around 3000 rpm until she gets out of the hole. You'll quickly gain a feel for it. Some drop their tabs to help, but you may not need to. Dropped tabs will reduce the bow rise though. Trim in the drives when getting on plane. (IN and DOWN mean bring the outdrives close to the transom, OUT and UP mean just the opposite) After up on plane, start with the drives and tabs neutral and see how that feels. While the boat is on the trailer, set the prop shafts parallel with the running surface of the boat and note where your indicators are. Do the same with the tabs. This way you know where neutral is on the indicator. After getting on plane, you can back off the throttles (WELL IT'S POSSIBLE!!! :D ) and stay on plane at a slow speed, especially if the tabs are down.

Very few boat stuff. Usually that is racing where a boat is airborne and lands on the back of a wave quickly forcing the nose down too far, and the speed pushes it into the next wave. But, it can also happen on the Busch's Bluewater's wakes, or one of the 53' Carvers that plow down the main channel if you try to pass them at just the right slow speed. In normal boating on LOTO I've never gotten close to stuffing. The ONE time was a slow speed passing of a cruiser from behind, going real gentle to not scare my passengers, and the huge wake was just the size that we almost poked the other half with the nose while still going down the "hill". You have to stay on the throttles at that time, or the slowing action will lower the bow/raise the stern and we would have taken water over the deck.

If your boat is listing to one side due to wind or weight dist of people and things, then drop the tab on the lower side a little to see how that evens up the ride. Do it again if need be. Generally speaking, less tab is better than more. If raising the high side tab is an option, that is better than lowering the low side tab. Some boats run better with a little tab down on both side while underway. If your boat is porpoising, then that is an option. So is trimming in the drives or adding speed.

Start running with neutral drives and tabs on smooth water. Trimming in forces more bow in the water, lengthens your hull at the water line, and can smooth a rough water ride. Doing this at high speed makes the boat handle and steer funny. Trimming out brings the bow out of the water, improves efficiency, can lead to porpoising and if you do hit an big wave or wake at high speed, can cause you to launch with too much bow lift, and on landing can contribute to stuffing. Neutral is a nice setting to learn a new boat. IF you do get airborne (and that is kind of fun, and your boat is built for it) you'll probably fly level and enjoy it.

Good things about Formula sport boats: They are built better than most of us are drivers. You'll start to get beat up personally before the boat is over-taxed. If the speed you're going is comfortable for the waves you're in, you're probably safe. You'll get the feel for it.

Two last things: Don't back off the throttles too fast or you might get lake water running up over your sundeck and into the cockpit. Your wife will love you for that :rolleyes: . And secondly, docking can be easy with two engines. Keep the steering wheel centered and use the forward and reverse levers against each other to move the boat. Note: your props bite better in forward than reverse.

Don't forget to let us know if your boat has a stepped hull, as there is a lesson there too.

You're going to do great. This will be a lot of fun for you.

Re: OK, I bought my first offshore performance boat; now what?
 

Thanks, Chart; just the type of advice I was looking for. I'd love to meet up with you sometime and buy you a beer or 6! :drink:

The 336 is not a stepped hull, but it does have a notched transom, if that makes any difference.

Also, I think I know the answer, but what is porpoising? Is that bouncing the bow up and down?

Re: OK, I bought my first offshore performance boat; now what?
 

This is KEY. Get everything level with the bottom of the boat and then use a dot of nail polish and mark the indicators panel so you know where everything is level. Also make sure the buttons are wired correctly. When you push the top of the button (toward bow) the tabs should drop and the drives should come in. Pushing the back side of the buttons should raise the bow - lift tabs-push drives out. Get comfortable so you don't do it backwards while running.

Also, check for prop rotation. The boat is easier to handle if the props spin outward while your going forward.

Enjoy your new toy and play safe.

Re: OK, I bought my first offshore performance boat; now what?
 

In a nutshell, get the largest home equity loan you can get and send in all those credit card applications. Summer is coming and you'll need the extra credit for all the gas you're going to use.
Oh, and buy the biggest, baddest pickup truck that you can find to pull it with.

Re: OK, I bought my first offshore performance boat; now what?
 

I can't wait to try docking with twins...anything will be easier than a single engine inboard. Try backing up with one sometime...it goes anywhere you want as long as you want the stern to move starboard. I often get into positions where I have to spin the boat 270 degrees to get out of tight situations. People look at me very funny.... :rolleyes: