Hydrofoil on my new motor

Two weeks ago I bought a 2002 Yamaha 25 hp 4 stroke and the previous owner had a hydrofoil on it. I have not yet got the boat on a lake because of work and family, but I am looking for opinions. Is a hydrofoil really worth it? I hunt and fish a lot of stumpy areas and it seems to me that the hydrofoil is just more surface area to hit a stump with. Will any gains from having the foil on there really be worth the extra area to potentially get hung up?

Chris

If you hit a stump with a foil you'd hit the same stump with the hull first, as it should be right at the water's surface.

See here for more info: https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=39462&hilit=se+sport

On smaller hulls I for one find tremendous advantages! Of course, motor HP can help alleviate some of the potential, but not all of it.

But also check out the 'Smart Tabs' that RichG suggested, in that same link.

My 14' Starcraft has a '95 25hp motor that came with a foil on it. One day I took it off to see how different it was and with two people in the boat it took almost 40 seconds to come up on plane no matter how I trimmed the motor. With the foil on it's basically instant. Now once it was on plane I was easily 3-4mph faster, but no thanks- I put it back on. Also the biggest advantage is I can maintain plane at much slower speeds which is great for fuel economy.

Not to thread Jack but what is the best hydrofoil out there?

Sent from the dust in front of you!

Hey guys, Just my humble opinion...(and experience on three boats)...at least watch the Comparison Video on the Smart tabs site, before you buy a hydrofoil.

richg99

https://www.nauticusinc.com/smart_tabs_automatic_trim_tabs.htm

Texas Prowler said:

Not to thread Jack but what is the best hydrofoil out there?

Click to expand...

Independent testing appears to show that the foils by SE Sport rate the best.

But see Rich's input about Smart Tabs. I'd consider them on larger tin hulls, but the foil is an easier install.

I have a "Whale Tail" on my 16' sea nymph w/40hp. The biggest improvements I see are a smoother ride, less cavitation when trimmed up, and it planes out at a lower speed. It was easy to install on my merc.


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