Any opinions on hyrofoils?

[rverano]

I recently purchased a 16' Sylvan with a 45hp Mercury outboard. The motor has an SE Sport Hydrofoil mounted on it. Any opinions on them? Do they really work well or can it create more drag? Without removing it and seeing how it runs without it, I'm not sure if it makes a difference or not.

 

[achris]

Re: Any opinions on hyrofoils?

Hi there,<br /><br />My opinion of those ***** things is that they should be outlawed! They work by pushing the stern of the boat up. Because they are attached to the engine, then all that up force is being transmitted throught the mountings of the outboard. Outboards (and stern drive) were not designed for forces in that direction. I have seen some pretty impressive damage done by those things! The other, more dangerous thing, is that as boat speed increases the stern lift also increases. This can cause very serious handling issues. Have you ever heard the term 'bow steer'? That's what they generate and in some situations that's lethal!<br /><br />Just my $0.02.<br /><br />Chris...........

 

[POINTER94]

Re: Any opinions on hyrofoils?

I'm with achris, I would not have one on my boat. Some people find success with them, but in my opinion, they are a cheap substitute for smart tabs or adjustable hydraulic trim tabs with some unjustifiable side effects. <br /><br />JMHO

 

[DJ]

Re: Any opinions on hyrofoils?

This is a much better solution.<br /><br /> http://www.iboats.com/mall/index.cgi?prod_id=39283&current_category=trim tab&*******=856498121

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Any opinions on hyrofoils?

Ive had them on two boats, (came on them). both had power trim, as long as the engine is mounted high enough, and has power trim, the negatives are not so severe, but if the engine is too low, these things can be real troublesome. You are trying to make the engine do something that the boat should be doing. Smart Tabs are far superior.

 

[Link]

Re: Any opinions on hyrofoils?

Used to have customers who swore by them. "Doel-Fins" and then the "Stingray" Hydrofoils. But these were 98 % first time and first season boat owners (Bayliner dealership) <br /><br />For awhile we pulled them from the shelves when a fin broke off (somewhere USA) and a kid was thrown over board and killed. But after a month or so they were back. (Don't remember which brand)<br />It was in 1989 or 1990<br /><br />I'd say pick a lake and put the boat to a test!<br />Hole shot, WOT, wide turns then tight turns.<br /><br />Take the thing off (4 bolts) and do the same test again.<br /><br />If the first test was better then look into setting the boat up properly and get rid of the hydrofoil. <br /><br />Motor to high/low, trim, proper pitch on prop and tabs<br /><br />I'm not a big fan of them for the above mentioned by the others.

 

[Arnold96]

Re: Any opinions on hyrofoils?

Mine was one of the best $30 I ever spent on my boat. It so improves the ride in heavy chop you would swear you were on two different boats. Trim tabs will do an even better job of course, but then again it's only another $450.00.......

 

[Solittle]

Re: Any opinions on hyrofoils?

Well - well - seems we got ourselves some differing opinions.<br /><br />As for me I have almost more controls than I care to fiddle with. I have twin 110 hp on a 23' CC. My motors have trim & tilt. Then there are the hydralic trim tabs and to top it off I have the foils on both motors. All this stuff works well for me. It gets to be a bit of a pain sometimes as just after I get things trimmed the way I want them someone lets their hat fly off. I have to slow down , get the damn hat and start trimmin stuff all over again.<br /><br />Really I think it depends on your boat and what it is doing. For some they work real well.

 

[BillP]

Re: Any opinions on hyrofoils?

There isn't a yes or no answer with these foils. Since the mid 1980s I've been using a Doelfin and like it. I orginally put it on after talking to small (24')commercial clammers who said do it. 95% of them in this area were using foils. Now clamming is banned. <br /><br />Anyway, I put it on just to see what would happen. It's place on this boat is to keep the prop from blowing out when trimmed up for high speed running. It also keeps water feeding into the cooling water intake. Mine is mounted above the boat bottom and there are no other problems people talk of. The boat has a fairly flat bottom and pops up on a plane quickly so I see little affect on getting on a plane faster. Fast hole shots and low planning speeds aren't a concern to me either. Like already posted, many have good luck with foils and each boat is a different deal.

 

[ThomWV]

Re: Any opinions on hyrofoils?

Well, here are my observations on the things, and I've used them.<br /><br />The first is the size of the boat. I've noticed that the smaller the boat the greater the chance of them having a noticable effect. By the time the boat gets up to about 20 feet they don't do much of anything, but on smaller boats they do.<br /><br />The next is more important, its about what they can and can't do. At rest they don't do anything of course but what a lot of guys don't seem to understand is that on a properly mounted outboard they don't do anyting at cruising speed either. That is because they mount to the cavitation plate and if the engine is at the right height it is even with or just out of the water when the boat is up on plane. The fins are bolted to this plate. If its out of the water its not doing anything to the boat.<br /><br />There are claims that the things will improve top end speed or improve fuel economy. They will not do either, and in fact just the opposite is always true. The only time they can have any effect at all is when they are in the water, I think most anyone would agree with that. Well, if they are in the water they are causing additional drag. That drag has to be overcome and that requires additional power, hence additional fuel to produce that power. The additional drag also slows the boat down for any given power level as well, no way around that one either.<br /><br />By the way, on those smaller boats, the ones where fins have a noticable effect, you can usually accomplish as much by moving weight around as you can with a fin.<br /><br />Thom

 

[CalicoKid]

Re: Any opinions on hyrofoils?

On my 16' bowrider I have a stingray on a 110 hp v4. With the foil I can remain planed and level at a lower speed than without. This is important to me as I need to creep along the river watching for ever changing channels and sandbars while keeping my boat as high as I can. My foil is out of the water when I'm running fast though. If it works it's a simple and inexpensive solution.