On Topic: What a difference a new engine makes...
The service manager and head mechanic at my dealership went out with
me today to kill the last couple of bugs in the electrical system. Turns out that the Ranger had some corrosion behind the console (which
was my fault actually - when I installed the VHF, I neglected to
reseal the instrument bezel with silicone. New wiring harness, kill
switch and key switch fixed all that plus a new set of gauges which
will be changed over to the "smart" all-in-one gauge as soon as the
new instrument bezel arrives. I need to install a new small boat
radar anyway and change the location of my VHF so that's the winter
Ranger project this year.To tell you the truth, I was a little hesitant about switching from
the 20" to a 25" shaft on a mechanical jack plate to fine tune the
lower units relationship with the hull, but it proved it's worth today
in relatively heavy weather (for the Ranger that is - 2 to 4 footers
with the occasional 5) in Niantic Bay. With the old engine, a 20" FICHT, I could never get the bow lift I
needed even with a 4 blade 23p prop. Invariable, the bow would ship
water even if the wave period was short. I could never get the boat
to run at some kind of plane because it would pound, fall out of synch
with the waves, prop would cavitate, etc. Now, I can run head on and quartering - no cavitation, boat stays on
plane, no pounding and, considering the conditions, very dry ride. In
a following sea, I can lift the engine a little with the trim keeping
the stern higher - it's amazing how much power when applied to a four
blade prop is available to you. I have to apologize to the poster a few years ago who put his bay boat
on a jack plate - I didn't think it would make that much of a
difference, but it sure as hell does. That fine positioning, plus the
four blade 21p prop makes all the difference in the world. By the way, on average, I'm burning 3.37 gph on average - cruise,
troll and WOT - roughly equal times on that by the way. I'd be curious what it would be if I ran WOT all the time, but I won't
try it - I'm perfectly content with 25/35 mph between 3.5/4..1 K rpm,
a dry ride and, well, a new boat. :>) Later, Tom |
Shortwave
Sep 3
2006
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