Repositioning batteries for better lift, weight distribution, etc...

[Johnnyred]

battery_box_marked_up.jpg

In an attempt to positively affect the balance point of the hull and promote bow lift on my 2021 Ranger RT198P, do you think it is worth the effort to move my 3 batts... let's call that 160lbs... from where they are to the positions I have marked up in red? So 2 batts as far back against the transom as possible on either side of the open access to the bilge, and the 3rd turned sideways and centered in front of that bilge access?

Hoping someone who has done similar to a 19-21ft tin or glass bass boat will chime in... especially to boats with the gas tank under the seats like mine. Because of my boat's balance point, and because of needing some more horsepower, the boat naturally wants to run flat but will get up on pad. Searching for a little more lift.


Pretty sure it will not hurt but not sure if it will help...

[Mechanic Bob]

Move them as you can always move them back.

[GeauxTide]

You have a pad hull, which are designed for weight back in order to get the lift point as far back as possible. Moving the batteries forward will change your lift point forward and possibly impact the handling. If you don't have a JP, I'd have a 6" installed.

[Extremeboating]

With a triple battery setup if you want optimization for better weight distribution on an aluminum rig which yours obviously is) then what you need to do is take the heaviest battery and place it on the passenger side to counter your weight as you drive. Depending on the weights it may even benefit you to place two of the batteries on the passenger side, then the final lighter one on your side. If space allows then it is ideal to place it wide ways over long ways.

The way I run my setup is dual batteries on passenger side, long ways (I have space constraints) fuel tank in the near dead center on the rear of the compartment and then finally my standard size and weight cranking battery. Both batteries on the passenger side have a combined weight the equal to the cranking battery on the driver's side, so the only thing I ever have to worry about as far as weight distribution goes is the amount of fuel in the tank, but that's unavoidable obviously, regardless the weight is near dead center so for my rig, it's the most ideal the setup should be and the boat never feels lopsided when at rest in the water. You can see in my photos how near evenly distributed my setup is and then in water you can see how even the transom sits in the water left and right, even with part of my weight placed bias driver side.

If you want to maximize lift on what seems like may be a stern heavy boat, then a 4 blade stainless prop is the most ideal as the way they are designed allows for better stern lifting properties over their three blade counterparts. You may lose a mph or two, but it's a worthwhile mod due to the benefit it gives to the stern.

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[bassfisher444]

If you want to maximize lift on what seems like may be a stern heavy boat, then a 4 blade stainless prop is the most ideal as the way they are designed allows for better stern lifting properties over their three blade counterparts. You may lose a mph or two, but it's a worthwhile mod due to the benefit it gives to the stern.

That is the general consensus however every boat is different. My stern heavy Tracker 175 did very poorly with a 4 blade stainless, I lost 4-5 mph in the top end, hole shot stayed about the same and handling didn't improve like everyone said it would, it got worse if anything. Mine runs best with a cupped 3 blade stainless.

[Extremeboating]

That is the general consensus however every boat is different. My stern heavy Tracker 175 did very poorly with a 4 blade stainless, I lost 4-5 mph in the top end, hole shot stayed about the same and handling didn't improve like everyone said it would, it got worse if anything. Mine runs best with a cupped 3 blade stainless.

You were probably setup wrong if that's the case. You can't just slap a 4 blade stainless from a 3 blade aluminum (or whatever you had) and call it a day. Adding that extra blade affects the way the boat will be happiest at plane. Even the age of the hull can play a factor into it. Not sure if you knew that or not, but just saying to make sure.

I sort of would like to know what happened with your setup that caused that much of a negative change. If you want to delve into it deeper I'd be more than happy to talk about it if you're open to it.

[bassfisher444]

You were probably setup wrong if that's the case. You can't just slap a 4 blade stainless from a 3 blade aluminum (or whatever you had) and call it a day. Adding that extra blade affects the way the boat will be happiest at plane. Even the age of the hull can play a factor into it. Not sure if you knew that or not, but just saying to make sure.

I sort of would like to know what happened with your setup that caused that much of a negative change. If you want to delve into it deeper I'd be more than happy to talk about it if you're open to it.

I have a 6" jack plate on it and I started out at 5.5" prop to pad and I made several adjustments all the way up to 4" prop to pad and at that point it was loosing grip and would top out at about 37-38 MPH, it ran best around 5" prop to pad but would barley hit 41 MPH with just me in it. My cupped Laser 2 would get me 45-46 with just me in it and about 43-44 loaded with 3 people, running at about 5.25" prop to pad. The 4 blade wouldn't give me enough bow lift.

[Aj14]

I am not understanding why anyone would have to reposition anything on a 2021 boat.
I may understand this on a boat that is ten or twenty years old with the advancement of powerpoles, high current electronics adding larger capacity batteries, heavier jackplates, etc. This boat must have cost some big money. Many times I see on our forums new boat owners buying high dollar boats and then asking what prop they should be running.
Do these boat manufacturers just build the boats and never test them on the water?
What am I missing.

[Extremeboating]

I have a 6" jack plate on it and I started out at 5.5" prop to pad and I made several adjustments all the way up to 4" prop to pad and at that point it was loosing grip and would top out at about 37-38 MPH, it ran best around 5" prop to pad but would barley hit 41 MPH with just me in it. My cupped Laser 2 would get me 45-46 with just me in it and about 43-44 loaded with 3 people, running at about 5.25" prop to pad. The 4 blade wouldn't give me enough bow lift.

I take it you had the 75 HP motor on it? You had to have the motor the equal to the 3rd hole on it for sure. You shouldn't have lost that much speed on the 4 blade, what brand props were you using, stainless? And what year is your boat?

[Extremeboating]

I am not understanding why anyone would have to reposition anything on a 2021 boat.
I may understand this on a boat that is ten or twenty years old with the advancement of powerpoles, high current electronics adding larger capacity batteries, heavier jackplates, etc. This boat must have cost some big money. Many times I see on our forums new boat owners buying high dollar boats and then asking what prop they should be running.
Do these boat manufacturers just build the boats and never test them on the water?
What am I missing.

Most boats from the factory are not layed out the proper design that most fisherman want their bass boat and with saying that the same goes for their layout on the rear compartment. They just don't optimize them correctly for some reason.

From the factory is not always the best.

[bassfisher444]

I take it you had the 75 HP motor on it? You had to have the motor the equal to the 3rd hole on it for sure. You shouldn't have lost that much speed on the 4 blade, what brand props were you using, stainless? And what year is your boat?

2010 with a 90 Optimax with a 115 ECU, restrictor ring removed from the throttle body and composite reeds. I have tried a Turning point Mach 4 Express stainless 23" pitch. I also tried a 21" pitch Solas 4 blade when the motor was stock and the results weren't good either.

[Extremeboating]

2010 with a 90 Optimax with a 115 ECU, restrictor ring removed from the throttle body and composite reeds. I have tried a Turning point Mach 4 Express stainless 23" pitch. I also tried a 21" pitch Solas 4 blade when the motor was stock and the results weren't good either.

Ah, 2 stroke? I found that those year 175's for some reason perform best with the higher PTP of 5.25".

I'm wondering if the bottom of your hull has dents, because if it does that creates air pockets that can affect performance from one prop to another.

[bassfisher444]

Ah, 2 stroke? I found that those year 175's for some reason perform best with the higher PTP of 5.25".

I'm wondering if the bottom of your hull has dents, because if it does that creates air pockets that can affect performance from one prop to another.

I have checked it with a straight edge towards the back and it is straight with no dents. There is a small dent in the bottom of the boat in front of the console from me hitting a log last year but that area is out of the water when on plane and It didn't affect speed or the way it handles.

[Extremeboating]

I have checked it with a straight edge towards the back and it is straight with no dents. There is a small dent in the bottom of the boat in front of the console from me hitting a log last year but that area is out of the water when on plane and It didn't affect speed or the way it handles.

Interesting. Be aware however that not all 4 blade props are the same, and out of all of the props available for motors the fastest ones available are made by Yamaha which is designed in such a way that is the most efficient. We have a Mercury and while nothing is impossible as far as fitment goes, the next fastest props available are the X7's. You used neither of those, so that very well may be the issue alone. The props for Solas and Turning Point have been known and logged by many folks across the internet to show a drop in speed by a few mph outside of what they should really be achieving all other things equal.

Yours being a 3 cylinder 2 stroke, engine efficiency due to the lack of that extra cylinder hurts you in the speed department as well.

[bassfisher444]

Yours being a 3 cylinder 2 stroke, engine efficiency due to the lack of that extra cylinder hurts you in the speed department as well.

Not really with a 2 stroke you are getting twice the amount of power strokes vs a 4 stroke at any RPM. The 75-115 Optimax engines generally run slightly faster than the newer 75-115 4 strokes on the same boat. I was able to get 48 MPH with a Powertech PTR3 and It handles great with a good hole shot. I also got a used 24" pitch Laser 2 that I have only tried once so far but I think I had the jack plate too high I was maxing out the RPMs and only getting 45 MPH, I'm gonna drop it another 1/2" and see what happens but that won't be until Spring.

[Extremeboating]

Not really with a 2 stroke you are getting twice the amount of power strokes vs a 4 stroke at any RPM. The 75-115 Optimax engines generally run slightly faster than the newer 75-115 4 strokes on the same boat. I was able to get 48 MPH with a Powertech PTR3 and It handles great with a good hole shot. I also got a used 24" pitch Laser 2 that I have only tried once so far but I think I had the jack plate too high I was maxing out the RPMs and only getting 45 MPH, I'm gonna drop it another 1/2" and see what happens but that won't be until Spring.

I feel like it's a hit or miss, I read a lot of reports where people indicate their 4 stroke 75- 115 engine is fast, but I also see a lot of two strokes running equal to them, so I don't know at this point. Lol.

For example, my 60HP converted 4 cylinder Mercury 4 stroke runs pretty close in speeds to some of the 3 cylinder 90 Optimax's on the older 175's. I don't know if I just got a factory freak where the measurements were perfect, or if it's the lack of the revolution hull on mine or what, but regardless, the boats a runner. I do have a Classic XL though, so I think the overall length of the boat may have something to do with it due to less overall hull resistance in the water.

[bassfisher444]

I feel like it's a hit or miss, I read a lot of reports where people indicate their 4 stroke 75- 115 engine is fast, but I also see a lot of two strokes running equal to them, so I don't know at this point. Lol.

For example, my 60HP converted 4 cylinder Mercury 4 stroke runs pretty close in speeds to some of the 3 cylinder 90 Optimax's on the older 175's. I don't know if I just got a factory freak where the measurements were perfect, or if it's the lack of the revolution hull on mine or what, but regardless, the boats a runner. I do have a Classic XL though, so I think the overall length of the boat may have something to do with it due to less overall hull resistance in the water.

A 175 with a 60hp will run 34-36 MPH, if setup right. Your hull is lighter, shorter and narrower, so you could easily run a few MPH faster.

[Extremeboating]

A 175 with a 60hp will run 34-36 MPH, if setup right. Your hull is lighter, shorter and narrower, so you could easily run a few MPH faster.

41-42 mph is what I run with my normal gear on there when I'm solo or with someone who doesn't weigh 250- 300 lbs. My hull now weighs about the equal to a 175 with all the mods I have on there. I attribute a lot of it due to the narrower and shorter hull.

I feel bad because I feel like we blew up this guy's thread.

[bassfisher444]

41-42 mph is what I run with my normal gear on there when I'm solo or with someone who doesn't weigh 250- 300 lbs. My hull now weighs about the equal to a 175 with all the mods I have on there. I attribute a lot of it due to the narrower and shorter hull.

I feel bad because I feel like we blew up this guy's thread.

What mods do you have that make it heavier? I have 3 batteries 2 group 27s and one group 31, 8 foot power pole, 3 bank on board charger, a 21 gallon gas tank that I try to keep full, 60 lbs of tackle, two anchors, 17-18 rods, some tools, and a cooler. I only weigh about 200 lbs, but I have had two other people in the boat that each weigh about 250 lbs plus their rods and tackle, and I am still able to hit 44 MPH even with a full livewell. which I think is pretty good for that weight. My goal is to be able to hit 50 MPH by myself, which should be possible since Tracker 190s with 115s on them are running that speed.

[Extremeboating]

What mods do you have that make it heavier? I have 3 batteries 2 group 27s and one group 31, 8 foot power pole, 3 bank on board charger, a 21 gallon gas tank that I try to keep full, 60 lbs of tackle, two anchors, 17-18 rods, some tools, and a cooler. I only weigh about 200 lbs, but I have had two other people in the boat that each weigh about 250 lbs plus their rods and tackle, and I am still able to hit 44 MPH even with a full livewell. which I think is pretty good for that weight. My goal is to be able to hit 50 MPH by myself, which should be possible since Tracker 190s with 115s on them are running that speed.

I have a lot to list, but when I calculated my nominal dry weight and compared that to a 175 I found it to be about 100 lbs less than them. Now it's even less since I have now converted to a 16 gallon livewell in the rear storage compartment.

Here's the long list breakdown of what I put on mine.

http://www.bbcboards.net/showthread....1#post12136167

50 mph is not undoable, but I've seen it done more on the FourStroke 90's which have been reflashed to 115's and not so much the older Optimax's.