Weight placement

[Lunkerhunter3]

Everyone says to put as much weight in the rear of the boat as possible. Is there such a thing as too much weight in the rear and not enough up front?

[Idaho Sandman]

How is that possible when all the storage is up front?

[Bassmeister]

Lighter stuff up front....you want to still be able to lift the bow....sometimes a different prop helps....

[bgibson]

Put stuff where you want and is practical. Then set your engine height and prop.

[Idaho Sandman]

Put stuff where you want and is practical. Then set your engine height and prop.

Exactly. My tackle is the heaviest but I want it up front so I can quickly access it. Rods weigh nothing. I store some stuff at the back but majority is up front then prop accordingly.

[TrackerPro16]

I put two 31's and my tackle in the front to improve the ride and attitude of my boat at lower speeds. It seems to have a softer ride at speed as well.

[JHelms]

I think loading a bass boat with your equipment putting the "heaviest" in back is negligible at best. JMHO but with the exception of any anchor (if your state requires one) everything else is pretty light and I think you just stuff it where you want it.

Think about it. Most of the weight in a bass boat is already aft of amidship. The batteries which may be the single heaviest thing are in the back. Your battery charger is in the back. Your oil reservoir is in the back. The gas tank is either aft of amidship or in the back (or both). Your live wells are in the back. The passengers are aft of amidship. In other words everything that is already heavily and over which you have no control is already in the back.


The other things you have to put in your boat are not going to make a difference compared to these items.

[catch5]

I think it’s all hocus pocus. I mean I guess it could a tenth of mph, but if you got that damn tackle in your boat then you got bigger problems. I don’t think moving 25 lbs Of tackle around is gonna make enough difference to matter. Set your boat up how you like and makes you efficient.

[itsahog]

The reason for me allocating where I put things is for boat handling / balancing, nothing else.

[Ben Danbleume]

Weight of the boat factors in think, light weight hulls are more weight sensitive, maybe.

[Hchamberlin1]

Weight distribution is around 5 mph on my Skeeter. With plastics and terminal up front I only get 67. If I move it to the rear and put my life jackets and such up front it run 72 and change. Also drives like a different boat

[Commanche20]

I don't worry a lot about front to back weight distribution since all the really heavy things are either in the rear or close to it and I really can't change them. So I concentrate on equalization of weight between port and starboard sides to give me a more balanced and controlled ride.

[BMCD]

Especially on smaller boats weight matters. My biggest issue is counter balancing my weight.

[jarhead175]

Depends on the hull and what you want out of it. Most run best high and flat on the water some have to run nose high and compact air to get lift/speed. If your getting up on the pad and trying to balance everything on a small section of glass at high speed balance matters if your plowing water and just going fishing it's irrelevant.

[catch5]

The reason for me allocating where I put things is for boat handling / balancing, nothing else.

Interesting. That’s last on my list. I put stuff where I want it based ease of access while fishing. I’m not putting my sinker/jigs/ and plastics in the back because I think it will change my ride. I’ve had tackle all over my boats and have organized things all kinds of different ways. I’ve never seen enough difference in Anything to make a difference. You all must carry a tremendous amount of tackle compared to me.

[angle iron]

Some of us have performance capable rigs and some don't. If you do and you're trying to max out your rig then it matters.

[itsahog]

Interesting. That’s last on my list. I put stuff where I want it based ease of access while fishing. I’m not putting my sinker/jigs/ and plastics in the back because I think it will change my ride. I’ve had tackle all over my boats and have organized things all kinds of different ways. I’ve never seen enough difference in Anything to make a difference. You all must carry a tremendous amount of tackle compared to me.

i am referring to things like tool bags, fire extinguishers, first aid kits extra props and other things that have some weight to them. I keep them in places that keeps my boat balanced and it makes a big difference in my Boat. I am not talking about jigs.

[PolarKraft195]

I'd rather have my stuff "where I want it" rather than "where it should be because of optimum weight distribution to get top performance out of boat".........

[5 BASS ASSASIN]

Depends on the hull and what you want out of it. Most run best high and flat on the water some have to run nose high and compact air to get lift/speed. If your getting up on the pad and trying to balance everything on a small section of glass at high speed balance matters if your plowing water and just going fishing it's irrelevant.

THIS

[JAMZYANDERSON]

After putting 2 huge acid mat batteries in my boat, it was slow to come out on hole shot. I was actually leaning foward to help it. I had not ever replaced my water pump so I ordered that and replaced the pump. I took the boat back out and it wouldn't plane out. Maybe I need to slide a battery forward.