Next time you run the boat, try "rocking" it on plane. With drives and tabs down full, give it throttle. You don't need to be at 5200 RPM, the props may grab better at a lower RPM. The boat will move, trailing a big stern wave behind it. Now comes the "rocking" part. Rather than bogging along waiting for the boat to accelerate, back off the throttles suddenly and wait for that big stern wave to start pushing you, then hit the throttles again. The wave pushes the boat and covers the props so if you time this right it will help push you onto plane and make the props grab at the same time. You may find that you have to do this 2-3 times in succession to get onto plane.

I once tried some four blade cleavers on my boat. I couldn't get onto plane unless I "rocked" the boat.

Hi Doc

I've been thinking about my cocky comment above for a while

By no means did I intend to make light of your friends heart condition.

First and foremost, I hope he is doing well and is on to a quick recovery.

Sincerely
Rob

I don't run Kaama drives, but I do run a cat with very high drives.

When coming on plane if I go full throttle I will hit the rev limiters and go nowhere. (I would make a hell of a big blender though!)

In my experience, getting on plane is a matter of getting the feel for the boat and how much the props can take before they break loose. In my case I go to about 3,200 RPM where the props begin to slip. I hold there for a couple seconds till the props catch up, then increase the throttles slowly as the bow comes down. It's a matter of not using enough throttle to break loose, but at least enough to keep the forward momentum going. With my cat, the K-Planes make little to no difference when planing.

This may or may not work for your boat. When I ran Hydo Q-IV's it was near impossible to get my boat on plane. No matter how I tried.

I guess it's just a matter of getting to know your boat and experimenting with different throttle and tab settings until you find the best combination.

Good Luck!!

Jeff

jbrauer -- these break loose as soon as you get past an idle. It is pretty bizzarre.

I would consider checking that full down is actually full down.

Normally surface piercing props need to be mostly submerged to take off.

That's about how the Q-IV's were on my boat. Let's see a picture of the props and transom.

Hey all,
This is my first posting on O.S.O.

I bought a 30' Wellcraft Excalibur Cat with Kaama Surface drives last September(03) Ran it twice before boating season screeched to a halt.
The 2nd time out, got the ol gal up on plane.. it took for ever to plane out. She doesnt have trim tabs.. Sounds like it wouldnt make much difference anyway. She acted very squirrely once up, very erratic tipping from side to side and difficult to steer straight.

Had a problem with starboard engine over revving at launch and also once on plane. Come to find out, the dipstick that owned the boat previously had two different gear ratios between the left and right drives. Ive got one drive apart that has the proper gears 1:1.3 and now need to find a set for the "bad side"... Anybody know where I can pick these up? Nobody around here has ever seen such a drive let alone has parts for them.

Any help would be appreciated.

Todd
[email protected]

Todd welcome
(this is rambunctious lgged on at waterfoul's)

Cuda is the kaama expert . He has a Formula 302 with Kaamas. find him on general section or more frequently on the formula section. my understanding is the internal parts are very common. but if you can't find what you need locally, Team Archer in California has parts and repairs Kaamas. they have some of teh original empoyees of Betty Cook's Kaama company.

one other thing to verify while your drives are apart. the rubber boots wear out and are sometimes a long lead item from team archer. Cuda has a full "documentary" on how to change the boots. check them and replace if you have any dowbts. they are expensive. but, the internal parts I understand are not.

can't beat the roostertail of the surface drive.



good luck, welcome to OSO.

Ramb

Todd welcome
(this is rambunctious lgged on at waterfoul's)

Cuda is the kaama expert . He has a Formula 302 with Kaamas. find him on general section or more frequently on the formula section. my understanding is the internal parts are very common. but if you can't find what you need locally, Team Archer in California has parts and repairs Kaamas. they have some of teh original empoyees of Betty Cook's Kaama company.

one other thing to verify while your drives are apart. the rubber boots wear out and are sometimes a long lead item from team archer. Cuda has a full "documentary" on how to change the boots. check them and replace if you have any dowbts. they are expensive. but, the internal parts I understand are not.

can't beat the roostertail of the surface drive.



good luck, welcome to OSO.

Ramb

doright. Although I have a cat with kaamas and no tabs, i typically take off slow, ratchett up the sticks, gradually take it up to 3000-3200max...........and wait.

The props should break (aerate) right about 3K, for this to work, if not the boat will never come on plane. Takes a while, but then they will grab.

I've tried the "hammer down" approach and it does not buy you much, if anything.......... probably not all that healthy for the drivetrain.



Bob