4.5" or 6" jack plate on 175txw?

[Highcentered]

I have a 2016 175txw with a 75 4-stroke. I've gotten mixed answers from Tracker about whether or not my hull warranty would be voided with a jack plate. They simply won't give a simple yes or no although they also tried to discourage me from doing it. Well, I'm to the point where I'm about to do it especially considering the 190tx seems to have the exact same transom with a 115hp in most cases on a boat that's a foot longer.

I have an Ultrex up front (HEAVY) and probably 75+ pounds of tackle and rods up front. I want to dial the setup in but also don't want the front to sit up much higher at rest than it already does while fishing. So, 4.5" or 6"? Obviously the 4.5" plate wouldn't put as much extra stress on the transom.

I wouldn't consider a jack plate for this hull if me and my buddy who's really good at boat setup wouldn't have agreed that my center of gravity needed to move back a little. I can hit 40 gps on a regular basis even with all that weight up front so happy with that but refinement is obviously needed. Would probably do 43-44 with this prop and perfect conditions if I had the stock trolling motor and minimal tackle up front but that's not gonna happen and also realize my hull isn't a performance hull either. At least it's not nearly as sensitive to weight up front as my old and crusty BassCat Pantera Classic was so there's that...

[Brennan1233]

I had a 2007 175txw with a 2007 90hp Merc flashed to the 125hp. Obviously no warranty concerns since I purchased it second hand. I put a 4" atlas on it and didnt notice any higher nose stance in the water. 52mph was the most it could get out of it with some dents in the bottom from previous owner.

My purpose for the jackplate was more shallow water maneuvering. It did help it a lot though in rough water being able to bury the motor to help run the bigger waves.

[Ship]

I have a 6'' Vance on a 2012 175 TXW with a 75 Optimax. I believe my ECU was flashed in 2013 and that is when the jack plate went on. No issues at all. I did always wish I had paid up from the beginning and put a hydraulic jack plate on it. On the fly adjustments in shallow water or other conditions would be nice. I always considered my hull warranty voided but I did have warranty work done on the motor after the flash for a leaking oil pump. The mechanic noticed right away that it had a 24'' prop on it.

[Highcentered]

I ordered a 4.5" Slidemaster. I've had both manual and hydraulic (8" Slidemaster and 5.5" CMC hydraulic) on different glass rigs and was always a set it and forget it kind of guy. That said, I ALMOST bought a 5.5" CMC hydraulic but backed out. The one lake I fish that would require me to jack it up for shallow water I can just jack it up at the house before I leave because only idiots run the trails on plane on this particular lake I rarely fish. I've killed my motor on a couple stumps while idling in the middle of the trails. Other than that, mostly highland reservoir type lakes with plenty of deep channels to run if going outside the channel is risky. Just gotta know how deep you have to be to avoid flooded trees.

[bassfisher444]

I have had a 6" Vance Manual on mine for almost 3 years now, 2010 model with a 90 hp, no issues.

[bassfisher444]

I had a 2007 175txw with a 2007 90hp Merc flashed to the 125hp. Obviously no warranty concerns since I purchased it second hand. I put a 4" atlas on it and didnt notice any higher nose stance in the water. 52mph was the most it could get out of it with some dents in the bottom from previous owner.

My purpose for the jackplate was more shallow water maneuvering. It did help it a lot though in rough water being able to bury the motor to help run the bigger waves.

What prop did you use? I have a 2010 with a 90 HP flashed to a 115 with a 6" jack plate and I can't get more than 46-47 out of it. Tried several props including a 22 and 24" pitch laser 2 both worked and cupped by Mark Croxton and a Powertech PTR3 22" pitch. The Power tech runs the best and fastest out of all of them but still not getting the speed I am after. Runs great loaded though. I thought the 24" pitch laser 2 would do well but I could only get 45 MPH out of it with the motor hitting the rev limiter.

[GeauxTide]

You can bet that Tracker will not honor warranty issues if you put on a JP. I spent a lot of money and time trying to get more lift from my Lowe 18HP. It had a pad hull but wouldn't lift past the console. Got a 6" TH JP and a 19" Spitfire and only got 2mph out of it and blow out on the steep turns. Spend your money on a SS Spitfire and mount it at hole #3. That prop gives great stern lift, and my hull stays on plane down to 2200rpm. You'll thank me later.

[bassfisher444]

You can bet that Tracker will not honor warranty issues if you put on a JP.

They can only legally avoid a warranty claim if they proved that the jack plate is what caused the issue, Federal law.

[Crappie Bob]

I have a 2001 Tracker 185 XT - Merc 90 HP 2 Stroke - put a 6 inch manual on mine, improved everything about the boat

[Highcentered]

You can bet that Tracker will not honor warranty issues if you put on a JP. I spent a lot of money and time trying to get more lift from my Lowe 18HP. It had a pad hull but wouldn't lift past the console. Got a 6" TH JP and a 19" Spitfire and only got 2mph out of it and blow out on the steep turns. Spend your money on a SS Spitfire and mount it at hole #3. That prop gives great stern lift, and my hull stays on plane down to 2200rpm. You'll thank me later.

Plenty on here have run 6" of setback on their 175txw with some engines flashed to 115 or 125hp and even a real 115hp on Roy's and no transom issues. I should be OK especially since the 190 has the same transom and a 115hp on it. One guy even had a 150hp on a 190tx and doing 70+ in it. I wouldn't think 4.5" of setback on mine would cause much if any more stress than a 115hp on a 190 but could be wrong. If I have a hull failure caused by the jack plate I'll deal with it. Transom seems to be built pretty strong though. I know a good welder who has worked for a few of the local tin boat companies.

[Brennan1233]

What prop did you use? I have a 2010 with a 90 HP flashed to a 115 with a 6" jack plate and I can't get more than 46-47 out of it. Tried several props including a 22 and 24" pitch laser 2 both worked and cupped by Mark Croxton and a Powertech PTR3 22" pitch. The Power tech runs the best and fastest out of all of them but still not getting the speed I am after. Runs great loaded though. I thought the 24" pitch laser 2 would do well but I could only get 45 MPH out of it with the motor hitting the rev limiter.

The laser props (same 22 & 24p) did not work for me at all. I tried with and without plugs and the mid to low 40s is what I could get without going over 6200rpms. I landed on a PowerTech PRO3 in the 23pitch as an all around prop, If I fished more solo I could have easily gotten the 24p and gained some speed. Livewells and second person would have hurt the holeshot too bad with the 24p.

[msupc]

I have had the Vance JPL4500 6" jack plate on my 2016 175TXW with 75hp 4 stroke flashed to 115hp for two years with no issues. I am running a 19" Apollo prop and see 42-45mph at 5400 RPM depending on many factors including current, water temp, ambient air temp, etc. As an aside, the back end of the boat was very heavy before the jack plate with the big 4 stroke and two lead acid group 27s and one lead acid group 24 and got worse moving the motor back 6". I recently converted to Ionic lithium batteries (two 50ah for trolling motor and one 125ah for electronics), which removed 83lb from the back of the boat and really improved the boat's hole shot and handling.

[Highcentered]

Finally got the 4.5" Slidemaster installed and took for the first run this morning. The back end sags a little more but not too bad. I started low and ended up about an inch higher from where I started. Boat rides way higher than it did before, possibly smoother ride, porpoising isn't nearly as bad as it was at top speed. Speed and holeshot are about the same as they were without the plate. Over all better performance considering how much weight I keep up front (Ultrex and over 50 pounds of tackle). I'm no stranger to jack plate adjustment from my 19' glitter sled days and adjusted this one for best midrange performance. I refuse to run my motor wot for more than short bursts and cruise between 4000-4500. I'll probably tweak it a little more after a couple more trips before finalizing exactly where it will stay. No clue on prop to pad because we simply didn't care to measure it. I started slightly higher than stock height and went up from there letting the boat tell me where it wanted to be.

[bassfisher444]

I refuse to run my motor wot for more than short bursts and cruise between 4000-4500.

You know that's not good for it right? Outboards are designed to run wide open and max RPM, not running them hard enough can cause problems with oil dilution in the 4 strokes.

[06 SB]

You know that's not good for it right? Outboards are designed to run wide open and max RPM, not running them hard enough can cause problems with oil dilution in the 4 strokes.

Not true. 4500 is about the perfect, cleanest burning RPM. Back when I had a 2 stroke with fully integrated Smartcraft instruments and GPS inputs, the best MPG and range was 4500-4750. That is its most efficient running which correlates to cleanest burning. Using the right fuel is critical as well.

[bassfisher444]

Not true. 4500 is about the perfect, cleanest burning RPM. Back when I had a 2 stroke with fully integrated Smartcraft instruments and GPS inputs, the best MPG and range was 4500-4750. That is its most efficient running which correlates to cleanest burning. Using the right fuel is critical as well.

2 stroke is not a 4 stroke. Can't have oil dilution with a 2 stroke since it doesn't have any oil that stays in the crank case. Local marine tech told me every time he sees a newer 4 stroke come in with that issue the first thing he does is get a readout of the RPM range they spend most of their time operating in and it is almost always not being ran hard enough in the upper RPM range.

[06 SB]

Believe what you want. I posted my experience. Don Weed has posted many times confirming it based on vastly more extensive experience than any of us.

[Highcentered]

I'm going to settle this with my personal experience. Between my yearly oil changes my 4-stroke doesn't seem to use or make oil and it doesn't have any hint of gas smell in it. I also don't idle around a lot like some people. In other words, I'll keep running my motor the way I have been because everything seems to be going great with it. I run the suggested 87 octane in it also. 7 year warranty will be expired on March 31. From what I've heard the oil dilution issues are from people scanning at idle speeds for hours on end.

[bassfisher444]

I'm going to settle this with my personal experience. Between my yearly oil changes my 4-stroke doesn't seem to use or make oil and it doesn't have any hint of gas smell in it. I also don't idle around a lot like some people. In other words, I'll keep running my motor the way I have been because everything seems to be going great with it. I run the suggested 87 octane in it also. 7 year warranty will be expired on March 31. From what I've heard the oil dilution issues are from people scanning at idle speeds for hours on end.

Why would you refuse to run your motor wide open for more than a short burst? Running wide open is exactly how they are designed to operate, won't hurt anything at all.

[Highcentered]

Why would you refuse to run your motor wide open for more than a short burst? Running wide open is exactly how they are designed to operate, won't hurt anything at all.

Just how I was taught by people who know how to make a motor last.