25.20 Mod V In a hard Head Sea

[DaleH]

The tabs i have (SEE PICTURE) seem to work fine , i would say they are 24"long and 9-10" wide....

They seem to work well but since been reading i have some ?'s

Longer tabs, versus wider, seriously KILL your fuel efficiency. Proven by Bennett Marine and my boat with wider tabs runs up to 40% more efficiently than a neighbor's identcal Parker using narrow Lenco, that are long off the hull, so we both have the same square-inches of surface for the planes.

Like you said, they work. And they do, but ...

 

[ReelyNauti]

ok but alot of you are making statements that big tabs make it dangerous in a tight turn????

So why did you "Dale" only use 24" and some others show 30"

 

[samj]

Your 18-21 kts. in very sloppy conditions is right on. We slow down until it is dooable. Like I said in previous post, these boats are not Contenders. However the Parker pilot house can provide assests that most others cannot. 2520 DV twin f-150's. 115 miles one way to the tuna grounds in the Gulf Of Mexico. I know what it is like to get the sh..eat beat out of you!!!! Slow it down and make it happen. Sam J.

 

[esfishdoc]

ok but alot of you are making statements that big tabs make it dangerous in a tight turn????

So why did you "Dale" only use 24" and some others show 30"

I doubt if many have the 30" tabs. The norm for upgrade is the 24". I went with the 30 if nothing else to be different.

Concerning effeciency and ride, I find that even with calm waters a bit of tabs improves fuel mileage. That may be due to the way my boat is set up and weight is distributed. Even after trimming the motor for max efficiency the the tabs deployed a couple of degrees improves it.

Richard

 

[Megabyte]

So why did you "Dale" only use 24" and some others show 30"

Dale and I were early adopters of larger tabs. We both realized early on that the 12x12's that we had weren't cutting it, so we went to Bennett Marine for some advice.

Bennett probably had more data on trim tab size versus performance than any company in the industry. They also had performance data on boats much larger than ours, that were using their tabs. That data showed that if you had the transom real estate, a wider tab performed better all-around than a longer tab (in most cases).

Tab makers call this span (width) versus chord (depth) and we were advised that a 24x9 tab should be a major improvement on our boats, and it was. Owners with twins have had to compromise, depending on the room they had available, and sized their tabs to fit their particular application.

Some folks, with the room on the transom of a single outboard powered boat, increased span to 30" and chord to 12" and have been happy with the results, but we always warn folks that you need to be cognizent of the related effects of larger tabs, and plan accordingly.

I don't recall anyone having difficulty in making tight turns with larger tabs, but we do warn that when operating in following seas or traversing a fast moving inlet, to fully retract the tabs. Failure to do so will allow a following sea to act on the larger tab surface area and push the stern around, sometimes dangerously so.

It is no secret that the older 12x12 tabs were marginal performers at best, but they did keep the uninformed boat operator out of trouble.
For those who want better performance, and are more aware of the conditions they operate in, upgrading tabs is a good way to make instant performance gains.

Recent changes by the factory in tab size and design shows that the engineers have been listening to owners. The newest offerings reflect the evolution of tab design and implemention, to the benefit of owners.

Can an upgrade in tab size still result in increased performance?
Absolutely.
Just be aware that an increase in performance requires an increase in awareness by the boat operator to maximize the benefits and reduce the risks.

Hope this helps.

 

[DaleH]

Very interesting ... nowhere else have I ever heard discussion about wider tabs being dangerous in a turn. I can easily see it impeding a tight turn to a degree, but dangerous? I dunnoh ... but remain open to the possibility.

I'd like to hear some hydronamics engineering speak on this, from some authority like D. Geer or perhaps more info from Bennett Marine.

 

[CCparker]

I vote for trim it up and skim the tops. Thats how I run Barnegat alot.

 

[TheOtherLine]

I'm either the exception or I don't know how bad I have it.

On my 06 2520, I have the stock tabs that are "recessed" into the hull. While I can't tell you the exact measurements, I have never found them to be lacking in performance. They seem to do exactly what I need them to do and they seem to do it very well.

Just sayin'...

 

[Megabyte]

On my 06 2520, I have the stock tabs that are "recessed" into the hull. While I can't tell you the exact measurements, I have never found them to be lacking in performance. They seem to do exactly what I need them to do and they seem to do it very well.

If your tabs look like the ones in the photos below, you have the 'improved' tabs that came out as a result of customer feedback (we believe).

Now... if you want to see some seriously small tabs, take a look at these.
How effective do you think these are?

 

[CaptainJim]

just watched the video - last summer I ran my boat down to Cedar Creek and encountered similar conditions - blowing out of the SW hard 20-25 by the time I came out of the canal. When I left sandy hook at 6am it was 10-15 out of the south with 5' rollers, I made 13kts avg from the hook to manasquan, motor trimmed all the way in, ran the boat at 2700-3000rpm. My laptop chartplotter fell off the seat twice haha.


I do not have tabs, and I have a 14deg, but after seeing your video I can surely say trim tabs are my project for next year.