Boat setup

[Joe W2]

Hello to all, just joined the other day and so I thought an introduction was in order.

I am new to fiberglass boats and have just purchased a 1998 Nitro LX700 with a 1998 Mercury 90elpto and was wondering if I may find a few suggestions on boat setup as far as motor and prop.



I ran the boat the other day for the first time with my wife onboard and she was really sluggish to get on plane, nose straight up in the air.



Had full fuel (24 gal), full livewell, I weigh 250ish and the wife 170ish, WOT was 5000rpm with a Mercury 23p aluminum prop. Didn't have a GPS so I don't know what the speed was. Earlier in the day before we filled the livewell the boat planed out but took a little time, i'd say 10sec plus.



I did check motor height from bottom of the running surface to centerline of prop shaft and it looked to be 6" the best I could tell.



Any help would greatly be appreciated.



Thanks,

Dobber

 

[ND Bass]

Welcome Dobber! You'll find lost of knowledge here. I'll start with my initial thought. It may go without asking but those smarter than I would want to know; Did you have the motor trimmed all the way down on take off? Then, did you slowly trim up as you came on plane?

 

[Joe W2]

ND,



Hello, yes I started with the trim all the way down and as the boat picked up speed I slowly added up trim until the boat seemed to run the best. I ran it up until the rpm rose and I could tell she was loosing bite then I let the motor back down a tad until she settled down.



Dobber

 

[Joe Potaczek]

A Stainless steel prop would help alot. I don't know alot about props but A 23p prop seems a little high for that. I had a 1996 17ft nitro with a 125 mercury and i was running a 23p

 

[Joe W2]

Joe,



From what I have read I agree that the 23p prop seems to big. I would like to go with stainless as my final setup, my thoughts are if I were able to get the prop close to the right size using a cheaper aluminum could I then know more closely which stainless prop would work without spending unecessarily and use the aluminum for a backup.



Dobber

 

[Marty Klein]

"with my wife onboard and she was really sluggish to get on plane, nose straight up in the air."



Roll her over nose down and your wife will be on plane in no time -- :lol::wacko::lol::wacko::lol:

 

[joseph currier]

the 700 LX factory rigging spec calls out 12.5 x 23 alu. with the 2 stroke 90hp

with a 90 optimax it calls for a 12.75 x 21 alu. you could try the 21 but be careful not to over rev or you can damage your motor.

 

[Marty Klein]

I will have to check my 90hp big mo ... seems like it is marked "13."

 

[Joe W2]

Joe C,



I have read that there are differences in similar motors like you had mentioned such as the Optimax taking a smaller pitch prop as compared to the elpto. I don't know enough about them to make an educated decision as to which prop would be better suited.



I understand the theory behind smaller pitch more rpm and such, I just don't have the experience with different motors to anticipate how one might react with different prop loads. Each engines characteristics are different as some have more low end torque and others don't. Even, to engines alike can be considerably different dependent on several factors.



So if the 90elpto calls for a 23p by way of factory specs could I assume this is a low end motor built for torque?



Would you happen to know what is suggested for motor height?



Thanks,

Dobber

 

[Joe W2]

Marty,



Sometimes I would like to get her on plane! The wife that is. On a plane out of this state!



Married life can be a challenge at times.:unsure:

 

[joseph currier]

dobber,

the mount should have a 1&1/2" space between the transom and the top part of the mount that a person might think hangs on the transome.

 

[Joe W2]

Joe,



Thank you for the information, I will give that a look and see where it sits. Want to get the boat out this weekend if the wife lets me and do some tuning. I did pick up a 21p Mercury prop to give a try so hopefully we will know something this weekend.



Thanks again,



Dobber

 

[joseph currier]

good luck, and have fun aftyer all that what it's suposed to be about.

 

[TOMMY RICH]

I'm running a 13"x21P Quicksilver SS prop and works well on my 90

 

[joseph currier]

tee,

do you have it on a 700 LX? i seem to remember you having a pt 190 with bad welds?

in order to compare motor setup proformance the hulls must be the same.

that is the only way the comparison is even relivant.

 

[tightline 700lx]

I have a 2001 700lx and bofore it blew up I had a 90hp ELPTO on it. Now I have a 115 optimax. Here was my setup and performance:



13 1/8x21P Balistic SS prop

motor bracket was 1" above top of transom

stingray hydrofoil (optional)



with full tank, livewell, gear, and two people: 47mph GPS @ 5650 rpm

with half tank, light gear and one person: 50-51mph @ 5850 rpm



I never had any problems getting on plane with that setup even with a full load but I would recomend a Laser II prop over the ballistic...



Hope this helps.

 

[Joe W2]

Thank's to all for your help and suggestions. I did purchase a 21p aluminum prop and installed it, haven't had a chance to get to the lake and try it out just yet. I will comment on how things turn out with the new prop when I have a chance to try it out.



The weather has not been cooperating very well lately so hopefully this weekend I may have a chance to make it out.



Dobbber