JnamJnam Posted July 10, 2018 Report Share Posted July 10, 2018 Hello All, I know a similar topic has been discussed before... I have a 2013 18HPXV with a 115. I absolutely love the boat! My only complaint is that when I am under a half tank of fuel I start to get hull slap when push poling an angler due the chines being right at the water line. (this is without the trolling motor on the bow. 95% of the time I keep the trolling motor off. Yes I could keep it on and eliminate the slap but that's not the point. I dont want it on the bow because of fly line) The boat came rigged with the main starting battery in the front hatch and the two trolling motor batteries in the console. (Kinda backwards I would say) I know I have room to put all 3 batteries up front (If i move the starting battery vertical and put the two trolling motor batteries in horizontal right up against the fuel tank) but I wanted to see your guys suggestions on how to mount... where to put the breaker... where to run the inline changer ect... If you think this will be too much weight for the front of the boat. If you think its crazy to have 3 batteries right next to 30G of fuel.... Hoping somebody out there has already run this setup and that I could see pictures. Pictures attached of my current bow. Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conocean Posted July 10, 2018 Report Share Posted July 10, 2018 My 2 TM batteries are mounted in a box (much like your house battery) and I think my setup yields about 25lbs more weight than your setup. I move my 65qt RTIC cooler against the forward bulkhead and make sure I have at least 1/2+ tank of fuel to eliminate hull slap while poling 1 angler when my TM is not on the boat. I have found that my boat tracks better & is better balanced with more fuel than less. Maybe you should move your TM batteries up front & move the house battery in console. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JnamJnam Posted July 10, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2018 Wow. Very clean setup. I like the box with the breaker on the outside. Do you know who makes that box? Or was that an aftermarket creation? I have to do the same thing with a my cooler however that is also not a solution for me. I want to have the boat balanced at all times regardless of how much ice I have in my cooler or fuel in my tank. I really think the best option is to have all 3 batteries in the front hatch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conocean Posted July 10, 2018 Report Share Posted July 10, 2018 Thank you. Bob at IMS has done all my boat work for almost 15 years. (I feel bad for him, lol) He made both boxes for my 18HPX as well as rigged my old 17MA and 17T with custom boxes. There is no way to balance the boat at all times but if you mostly pole with 1 angler then I think your boat will be very well balanced with 1/2 tank of gas & all 3 batteries forward of the tank. But when you add the TM or an extra angler & a full tank of gas then you will be very nose heavy. I suggest you rig it geared towards how you use the boat 75%+ of the time and you will be happiest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurricane Posted July 11, 2018 Report Share Posted July 11, 2018 Just wondering, I don't have HPX. If the boat is nose heavy with a full tank, could you fill the livewell to offset it? I know it adds draft, but maybe just for the long morning run, help get the bow up some. Then empty the well at the spot or as gas gets used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
conocean Posted July 11, 2018 Report Share Posted July 11, 2018 Even when my livewell is full my 18HPX feels nose heavy with a full tank, TM batteries in forward hatch & TM on the bow. I suppose that's because water is displaced differently towards the transom? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dabear Posted July 11, 2018 Report Share Posted July 11, 2018 Every 18 HPX set up is a little different , trolling motor or no trolling motor , 1 , 2 , or 3 battery’s . Battery’s can be mounted a variety of different locations some run them way up in the nose , one in the nose one in the console , up front they can be as far forward as possible to on top on the tank as far to the rear as possible in the front storage . Two in the front and one in the console , two in console and one up front , all three in the console . When my HPX had a 150 hanging on the rear my boat performed and rode best with the front trolling motor battery’s-in the front compartment on the tank as far back as possible and the cranking battery in the center console as far forward as I could get it ( moving the battery’s around a couple feet does make a difference in the way these boats perform and ride) When I down sized my motor from a 150 to a SHO 115 my boat performs best with all three battery’s in the center console . I always have a 24 volt trolling motor mounted and never pole, 85% of the time I fish one on the bow running the trolling motor and fishing up front and one on the rear . My boat is balanced pretty good fishing this way . Motor size and torque also effect how easy it is to hold the bow up and ride on the pad as much as the balance of your ride. My set up would be different if I poled my boat or had a different HP and torque motor . A boat that doesn’t weight a lot and is narrow usually is more weight sensitive than a heavier wider boat . If you want better gas mileage and speed and a better ride in calm conditions these things need to be out of the water riding on the pad . If your more interested in poling than your boat set up may be more towards a heavier bow . Can’t have everything you have to set it up for what you use your boat for most of the time. Joe R Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mulligan Posted July 11, 2018 Report Share Posted July 11, 2018 Sounds like you guys need water ballast like a wakeboard boat! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dabear Posted July 11, 2018 Report Share Posted July 11, 2018 On 7/11/2018 at 3:33 PM, mulligan said: Sounds like you guys need water ballast like a wakeboard boat! Nope just need to move things around until you get the best performance and ride as possible . Getting the balance correct can really make a big difference in a boats ride . Weight on the very tip or rear end of a boat really changes the balance which effect how much trim is needed to get the attitude of the boat correct less boat in the water creating less drag helps speed . A well balanced boat will perform best when the boat is on the pad and out of the water without using a excessive amount of positive trim to raise the bow robbing HP that could be used to push the boat forward . A properly balanced boat wil have the boat hull out of the water and riding on the pad at the same time the prop is pushing the boat forward almost parallel with the water not over trimmed which is pushing the nose of the lower unit down to lift a nose heavy boat (to much positive trim) not over trimmed so much that it porpoises because it’s needed to hold that unbalanced heavy nose up but not the correct set up for max. Performance . Boats balance is like a see-saw that kids play on . If you move the motor back it will help bow lift but you will gain draft a thing that a lot of us do not want to do , if we move heavy weight from the front to the center we can also gain bow lift with out gaining draft . Joe R Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurricane Posted July 11, 2018 Report Share Posted July 11, 2018 4 hours ago, conocean said: Even when my livewell is full my 18HPX feels nose heavy with a full tank, TM batteries in forward hatch & TM on the bow. I suppose that's because water is displaced differently towards the transom? Makes sense, I was just thinking out loud!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.