Offshoreonly.com - Stock Bravo lower - what speed is sportmaster style lower needed?

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Quote:

Originally Posted by articfriends (Post 2165198)

I run all the boatable lakes in Michigan: higgins,torch,lk charlevoix,saginaw bay,saginaw river,houghton lake,hardy pond,lk huron,st claire river,lk st claire,lk Mi, plus I go out of state too sometimes. When it comes to rough water,it really depends on the spacing and wave/chop size and the load I have in my boat. My boat really suxx in true 3 plus foot waves and cross chop,most my high speed running is in smooth water to 2 footers,when I get into 3 footers if they are spaced right i can sometimes get on top of them running hard 50-70 mph with some positive trim with tabs dragging (they are longer than the stock bennets my boat came with),other times I just have to bury my bow somewhat a plow thru them bouncing around getting my bones jarred,3 footers can be accompanied by rogue waves where I have been air born out of control with nasty landings,my boat really isn't worth a crap in true 3-4 footers and I have had to return from places at 40 even 20 mph just getting pounded,any one with a boat my size that tells you different is usually over estimating the size of the waves they are running in,Smitty

Oh well, I was hoping you were going to tell me a secret to running fast on washboard in a small boat. I guess there's no magic! :(

I was out on St.Clair a couple weeks ago. 2-3ft washboard from every direction. Was managing 60 with 20in tabs full down, but I know if I had passengers they wouldn't have been happy and I was probably losening every screw on the boat. :evilb:

Thanks

PS. Did you build longer tabs to use with the bennet actuators? That's what it looks like in the pics. I did the same this year. Went to 20in, and now I wish I had gone longer.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bcarpman (Post 2165407)

Thats exactly what I did,I built stanless plates that were longer that the stock tabs then used the bennets rams and hinge mount,it works ok but there is slop in it,I'm sure that I could benefit from a better set of tabs but at what point do you quit dumping money in a single engine boat,Smitty

Smitty,

I wanted to thank you for your response. I like hearing answers from people who have actually been there/done that. I am surprised the extender box didn't help, or worst had no change in performance or handling.

Is it possible that at 90 mph or so your bottom might have some flex, thereby creating a hook, and causing the bow to drop (as compared to transom lift from the prop)? I don't know, that's just a wild-ass guess.

I like reading about boaters who actually try different set-ups, and continue to try to squeeze speed and better handling out of a boat. Thanks for the input. Go get that 95 mph+/- ..... I am interested to hear about how you get there (speed) and your mods (because what works for you, may work for us too). :D

Thanks,

Stephen "Smarty" Jones

i've been lookin to add a nose cone to my bravo, can you guys recommend one, are they all the same. i seen one on e-bay but the shape seemed funny??