Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

r&s20 wrote:the height adjustment can be real sensitive. sometimes a small change can make a big difference.you may create a ventilation problem.when fine tuning mine (with a jack plate) 3/8 inch adjustment was the difference in ventilating or not.when using bolt holes for adjustment i would gain 200-300 rpm's each time.

Bamaman wrote:You have a good boat, and you have a good motor. The Enertia propeller is as good as it gets for a pontoon boat. I assume you're talking about a tritoon with lifting strakes? Your performance is simply not up to par.

Its a 2 and 1/2 toon ..... the center log is about 3/4's and has the standard bucket on the rear that the motor hangs off...

It's best if you setup your propeller after breaking in the motor, with 1-2 people and 1/2 tank of fuel--looking for that 6000 rpm redline. If anything, I would think you'd need a 14 or 15 pitch prop instead of a 13 pitch. (My next door neighbor's 150 Verado on a 22' Harris Tritoon's running a 14 pitch Enertia.)

I chose the 13 based off what I found on this site... Rarely will there be less that 4 or 5 people aboard.... I chose the 13 to keep low and mid range performance and was hoping for a descent speed.... the 13 pitch will get me 5200 with 4 people and 3/4 fuel... dont know exact speed but it was over 30 and below 40....guessing around 33 to 35...

I don't understand what you're saying about where your motor's mounted. Is it as far down on the transom, or is it lifted somewhat? And are you talking about a Verado 150 hp, Optimax 150, Optimax Pro XS 150 or 150 hp FourStroke motor?

its mounted as far down on the transom as it will go... The motor is the 150 Fourstroke...

Are you trimming your lower unit up to get the nosecones out of the water? That's where you really get your speed and efficiency.

I do use the trim to find that sweet spot....However i think the engine is mounted too low....

When it comes to pontoons, three toons and wave shields put out some mean turbulence, waves and spray out the back end. You really cannot use the rule that you should be able to clearly see your anticavitation plate.

I understand this.... However you can see that the lower end has green water over it..... its not splash water.... And the engine seems to be creating 1/2 of the turbulent water spalshing out the cack.... I mean the splash water is higher than the engine cowel....

My Bennington 24SSLX with express tubes and a Yamaha F150 is set up 3/4" above the transom--one notch up. With a 2.0:1 gear ratio, my Reliance 15 pitch prop gives me exactly 6000 rpm's and 40-41 mph GPS. I keep it trimmed up to 3/4 on the gauge most of the time, and I do get a little ventilation when accelerating fast--just like I like it.

You should also be seeing the redline and/or pushing 40 mph with your boat.

This is the goal....

I think you've just got a setup problem. On a new boat, it's up to the dealer to get your boat to perform correctly--if it means lifting/dropping the engine and experimenting with propellers. Obviously, not all dealers are as good setting up pontoons/tritoons as others. And some dealers may not have recently setup a specific model tritoon with an Optimax 150 since most 150's on tritoons are now four strokes.

Cycleman07 wrote:I have a South Bay (same boat really) and my Merc 150 with the same prop only sees 5200-5300 while loaded. I believe normal specs for the 150 Merc is 5000-6000 RPMS as normal range.

mobldj wrote:mike I feel your pain,must be friendly rv where I got mine,dont shit about a boat.