no speedometer

[rick hatch]

speedometer stopped working.Used to work once i got up to speed. usually when i started to plane. needle would go to 20 but now nothing. Just got the 1998 sea ray open bow.Also been playing with the motor while on plane and saw that if i brought the motor up i went faster till either the propeller sounded like it almost out of water or i couldn't really steer it. What is best watch your speed or what

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: no speedometer

Check the speedo pick up is clear of all debris. GPS works great for actual speed. You need to fine tune your trim for best performance and handling. Tell us all more about your set up. What boat, what motor, what prop, what RPM, what speeds you are getting etc for better input.

 

[Subliminal]

Re: no speedometer

My speedo clogs up almost every time I go out. It's like if there's a piece of wood anywhere in the water, it's going right into that hole.

For me, on the outdrive directly behind the prop, there's a little hole, about the 1/8 inch, and it gets wood in it. I go out there with a few different sized nails and poke around, pull wood out until water comes out of it, and then i can usually clear it right up.

 

[ziggy]

Re: no speedometer

imho, give up on the speedo. replace the gauge with something else and use a gps if ya really gotta know what speed your going...

been playing with the motor while on plane and saw that if i brought the motor up i went faster till either the propeller sounded like it almost out of water or i couldn't really steer it. What is best watch your speed or what

not watch your speed but watch your tach. start with trim in and come up close to your desired speed. then start to trim out and watch the tach. it'll go up by a hundie or two as it lifts the boat out of the water and speed will increase. if ya raise it to far the prop will start to ventilate and rpms will increase rapidly. if ya raise it that far, it's too far. trim down some till your still achieving max rpms but still trimmed out for best performance.

edit, fwiw. i've got no speedo on my boat. my boat mfg didn't put one on it, only a tach... but i do have a gps...

 

[geeco1]

Re: no speedometer

I've always heard that speedometers on a boat are worthless. Mine will sometimes show fairly accurate, other times it will be pegged at 50 mph or zero mph. The pitot can get partially or fully obstructed with anything that you run across in the water. Wood, grass, algae, weeds, sand, etc. You can clean them out, but the very next outing it can get clogged again. GPS is way more accurate.

What I do is start with the motor trimmed all the way down. Once on plane, slowly trim up until you see(or hear) a slight increase in rpm's. If you trim up too far, obviously your prop will be out of the water. You should only have to trim up a couple of short hits on your trim switch.

That trim setting is only good for that throttle position. If you decrease or increase throttle, you will have to re-adjust the trim setting.

[edit] ooppsss looks like Ziggy beat me to it.

 

[Brewman61]

Re: no speedometer

I was rather surprised to find out that my boat's speedo was reletively accurate when compared to my gps. I had no idea if the thing was anywhere even in the ballpark, but it was within a couple mph of the gps.
Our lake has an enforced speed limit on weekends, nights, and holidays, and the water patrol is pretty agressive with their laser gun- so I'm glad I can at least use the built in speedo as a rough estimater. Or course, the gps is much more fun.

 

[xeddog]

Re: no speedometer

Personally, if my speedo quit working I don't think I would spend any money to fix it. I might make sure the pitot was clean, clear, and moved freely. Perhaps check to make sure that the tubing that runs from there to the speedo was free, clear, in good condition, and not kinked. But when I am running I am running at a given rpm or a given "feel" and not a specific speed. About the only time that I use a very specific speed is when trolling and at those slow speeds the speedo isn't going to help anyway.

Wayne

 

[dsiekman]

Re: no speedometer

You may also want to check the connection at the back of the speedo. You should have a tube, approx. 1/4" dia. over a barbed or threaded fitting. If it comes loose the gauge won't read.

You should be able to hear your prop(s) begin to cavitate. This will coincide with an increase in rpm but drop or stable speed. It will also be ever so slightly different each time you go out due to water and wind conditions, people on board, amount of fuel, etc.

 

[Subliminal]

Re: no speedometer

As far as trim goes, I usually trim up until i start porpoising, and then trim back down until it stops...seems to be my best setting.