Triton trials...

[usngsm2]

I recently brought this boat (Triton '08 TR-196) and was just moving along
when a piece of advice came to me. Time on the water seems to be the
only way to get to know this boat. SOOOOO........ I was on the water and at various speeds and trim just started to swing it in figure 8's , hard
lefts and rights. What I found immediately was fear. I nearly throw myself
overboard. However I learned some good valuable lessons.
With the trim down and making a hard turn makes it hard to come out
of the turn. Its like doing circles involuntarily, after seeing what was happening I was able to correct myself. At one time I found it hard to turn left and after doing some high speed figure 8's and dounuts the boat seemed to loosen up but it was as if I had broken in the hydraulics and now turning left is just as loose as turning right. Its was as if I had to exceed some point for this to happen and I could tell immediately when it did. I have a merc200 Opti on back with what I think is a 6 inch jackplate. After putting this boat through its paces which at one point I had to brace myself on the sidewall in order to not go over. I will say that I have gained more respect for the boat than I originally had. I have to take the boat back into the dealer for some minor things like, the trolling motor is not aligned properly, and there is a crack in the compartment floor. I just wanted to work out the bugs before I took it in.

This boat chime walk at about 5000 rpm 65mph when I am raising the trim.
What can I do to get more speed and most importantly stop it from chime
walking without voiding my warranty? The dealer told me NOT to touch the engine and I am wondering if that is externally as well as (and understandably so ) internally?

I have some color and b/w lowrance unit questions if anyone has the time?
522c igps and X-135

[Bender]

Here's a video on the chine walk: http://s88.photobucket.com/albums/k1...iondelete2.flv
Mine has not done it so I don't have any personal experience, thankfully.
I don't know that well the sonars, but depending on your question I might be able to help since I have a 520 and had an X125 and X135 before.

Edit: Here's another article on it: http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/st...ptId=000000000

man oh man,iwatched that video and if i ever buy a new boat or any boat that does that it will have a new owner quick.guess i should just stay with my tracker,nice smooth,slow,but safe ride.

[carolina-rig-01]

my boat starts chime walking right at or a little 65mph. i am still learning how to drive out of it, but i am getting better. when you start making the corrections with the steering wheel you will know immediatly if you went the right way or the wrong way. there are several articles on the internet about chime walking so read up on it and spend some time in the seat and you will get it figured out.

congrats on the new boat by the way.

[zooker]

you don't DRIVE out of the chine and NOTHING made will fix the chine walk. a toon is a notoiusly bad chine walker most start at 65 some start at 70. you can only control the chine walk with small normally left turns of the wheel..

belive me it is the easiest handlin problems to correct..

with a 200 opti-popper you should be hitting 72+ when broke in. i am not a fan of a toon boats..

zooker

[carolina-rig-01]

yeah i worded that wrong.........i should have said i am still learning to drive through chime walking. i have never reccomended another site other than bassfishin.com but if you go to bass boat central they have a lot of articles on chime walking, how to drive through it, and even some guys that are willing to take you out and teach you first hand.......it's worth a look.

[Captmikestarrett]

As far as the motor is concerned do not mess with it. Do the break in and be nice to it. I know 5 years on a warrenty seems like a great endorsement but when it breaks you will not be fishing. No loaners from boat dealers... And Hertz rentals do not include boats.

The plugs in the prop can be changed to help with speed.

200hp can kill you quick. Respect it. But enjoy it too.

Capt Mike

[woody]

Originally Posted by Captmikestarrett

200hp can kill you quick. Respect it. But enjoy it too

Don't forget the PFD and KS

[ally260]

Practice, practice and more practice! Gotta get tha seat time, Agree with Zook. If ya don't "catch" it instantly ya ain't gonna drive throught it until ya get lots n lots experience in tha boat. Hell, I gotta kid that drives their Drag Boats 220 plus but can't drive any of my Hot Rods past 70. Really ticks him off.
Just keep at it and be sure ta be SAFE.............T

[usngsm2]

Thanks for the info. You have me wondering if I made a bad purchase?
I got what I could afford. I'd rather have something bigger but it is what it is.
I love to fish and after getting a $1000.00 speeding ticket some time ago I
knew a motorcycle was out of the question since a got that ticket in a car.
An import at that.

Still I just wanted to become more intimate with the boat and not so afraid of it
that all I do is taxi it. I wanted to know what it can handle and although my skills
are on the novice level, I feel I could grow into the boat.

[bamabassman]

correct me if i am wrong here ok? isn't your boat 19'6"? buddy that is a big bass boat. mine is 20'1". and i am guessing the ticket came from you being on a crotch rocket huh? hahaha, better to sell that and get a cruiser bike pal,lmao. that way you can go fishing instead of being the fish behind bars, hahahaha. joking ok?

[bassboogieman]

Be nice to know what prop you are turning, and what your outboard motor height is. Tritons like the motor high on the transom, most I've seen are set too low by the dealership, which may be part of your problem. A 4-blade prop will give you a little better control once you get the motor set right, but that will drop your top end a couple MPH. The recent toon hulls are a bit more stable than the earlier models, so you should be able to run upper 60's to 70 with minimal chine walk with your outboard at the correct height and a 4 blade prop. Somewhere around 2.5" - 2.75" below the pad is generally where they run best, and each boat is a little different. Adjust with your jackplate and watch the water pressure doesn't drop, until you find your boat's sweet spot. You can't drive through chine walk, but can learn to counter it with seat time. With practice and proper set-up you should be running low to mid - 70's.

[zooker]

note the guys that know are all stressing seat time.. here's why.. you are driving a 19 foot boat that at full power literly is running on a spot the size of a large skate board sidways.. you must learn to balance you boat on this skate board. chine walking is the act of the boat fallin off the skate board.it is basicly the pyshical act of bouncing from wide spot to wide spot on either side of the hull. the boat is designed to run on this skate board. when you finally hit the sweet spot you WILL know it..


ally 260 can a test to this every boat handles differant even the same boat models.. after hours spent behind the wheel he is used to his boats funk.as i am mine.no two boats handle the same..

the best way to find the sweet spot is to have some one who has the seat time in simalar boats take you for a drive in yours. that way you know what it feels like and sounds like.

btw winter is the best time to figure out the driving as you have less poeple on the water which means less wakes and less dodgin..
zooker

[Bob Smith]

Zooker analogy witht he skate board is about the best, and most accurate description I have ever heard (Good One, Bubba!).
Tritons are notorious for Chine walking, and it is true that no two hulls are absolutely alike.
Here's something I have tried with considerable success one of my buddies Triton TR20 in Texas but it didn't work worth a dang on another friend's TR-19. I raised his jackplat till the centerline of the lower unit was 2 3/4" below the center of the pad (Just sitting on top of the trim pistons before going into full tilt). That took a great deal of the Chine out. Then I put my 25P Trophy four blade on the boat and it took the rest of the Chine out of it. You could turn loose of the wheel at 73 MPH (GPS) with the boat fully loaded.
The other buddy with the TR-19, we tried everything, raise, lower, long rake, four blade, you name it? You hit 65 MPH and it was like riding a bull! The big difference is that it felt more like a wild "rolling" or "twisting" affect more than a typical chine walk. The boat still had plenty of pedal left so he was no where near top end on that rig. That was three years ago. When I left Texas last year he still have enough seat time to drive it through completely (better, but bad enough that I wouldn't ride with him anymore!). I don't subscribe to the seat time and driving through it theory. I like a rock steady ride and most boats will give you that when you get them dialed in correctly.

[usngsm2]

Yeah the boat is 19'6" and when I was in this bass club that was about the minimum that was recommened to me for two people and since I wanted to bring my son at times
I wanted him to have some room. The speeding ticket came from a car for exceeding the speed limit by at least three times (55mph is what was posted )

I have been taking all the winter time I can to learn more about the boat. I really don't know the specifics on the jackplate or engine but I did note that the hydraulic steering seems to be broken into so far as making turns.
I will play with it so more today and try to put into action what I've learned.
thanks

[Tall]

I got my Ranger 488 vs 20' 3" with the whale tail the motor is on Comanche, last summer and have never been in a boat with a 200 optimax on one or bigger before. When I took mine out the fist time and began to trim it up I really felt the speed go up and at 64 it started to chim and I had not a clue what or why it was doing it so I eased the throttle back and tried the trim in different positions but when I got it right the speed felt good but the chim started again. So I ran around below full throttle 55 -60 MPH till I could back to ask questions at the fire station what I did or could do to prevent it.

Thats when I found out what chine walking was and I internet search and found the vedio that shows how to take it out. Since then I just pust pressure left or right to smooth the chine out.

I am thinking of putting a jack plate and a tuned prop for better peformance and to save fuel. When you have had a 50 merc on a 17' alum flatbottom since 1978 this boat seems fast just like it is. I don't know if $800-1000 is worth a jack plat and tuned prop. I guess the first time I get blowed away by a simular boat and motor, the bait monkey will be picking on my shoulder.

[lowrider]

tall, you're way out of the bait monkeys realm...your gettin into boat gorrilla territory. way way scarier than a little monkey

[Tall]

My wife would agree especially after the little stop in at acad sports today, k mart Friday night, Walmart Saturday night. You know just killing time while they shop, I only picked up about $50 dollars of stuff each place. Things I might not have, and oh ya my Bass pro order just came in yeaterday $92 but I had credit for 63 so not bad on all those cordall super spots 3 sizes and several colors for the buzz bait make up rigs, and a yellow magic etc. and well I will stop there. I did make a good haul l going hunting when I got butane. The place started keeping some very nice good baits, war eagle spinners, super flukes, and large power worms. I need to go try this stuff out. Pick some jigs up to that I don't use much. I hope the bait monkey gives me a break. :-)

[1FASTLASER]

Everyone here has hitten all the good points. I am just adding mu 2 cents. SEAT TIME .......SEAT TIME and did I mention SEAT TIME. GOT IT!!! A hipo boat is nothing like a 50hp aluminum boat just like a Toyata Corrola is Nothing like a Ferrari. Yes they both float and fish as well as the 2 cars will get a loaf of bread but you have to learn YOUR rig. 10 196 Tritoons all rigged identical and no 2 will drive the same or act the same. Yo many physical differencs in production. Its the nature of the beast. Take your time and LEARN your boat. Try and go to fast with the learning and someone else will be telling us what happened to ya. Chine walk is in EVERY boat out there. Some argue that there's dont but trust me it does to some point on ALL boats. You learn how to correct the walk only by time in the seat and knowing what your hull is telling you. Around 2 3/4 below pad on your rig is a good start and either a Tempest Plus or a Fury prop if you want every mph as far as speed is concerened or a Trophy Plus tailored to your rig if want ALL around performance. Now those are stock props and there are better ones out there but of course more money as well.

[zooker]

i would not add a whale tail for NOTHING on any consule steered boat. they are a band aid plus will lead to busting the lower unit.. seen it happen...

now on a tiller boat i actually would recomend one.. as it lessens the sterring tourqe..

zooker

[Tall]

Thanks 1FastLaser.

I have the Temptest plus in 25P so I guess I have a pretty good prop on my 200 already on my Ranger. Kevin in Pratsville said he gets a special prop I (forget the name) and he raises the motor on the Rangers to prevent drag so that you get better fuel milage. He said with the whale tale he did not need the extension but height to raise the motor up to prevent drag with a jack plate. I just looked at the set up that is on it now and looks like I could raise it one more notch they way it is setting now. It sure seems like it jumps out of the hole plenty good now. It will probably due me just fine like it is. I have not had much time on the water with it and when I am, I am fishing. I will get to spend some time this coming year maybe and smooth the operation of it out. I noticed the skag I think it is called has some damage that I need to file down to make it smooth. I did see a product advertised that will fit right over it, but I don't know if it is to that point yet.

Maybe they can get the Triton worked out with your info.

I have been reading your post for some time before I joined and looks let you have helped a lot of folks out on here. Keep the good information coming. Kevin does a lot of racing in his boats and seems pretty knowledgeable on boat and motor preformance as well but he has not seen this rig yet.

[t1365]

Like everybody else said...seat time. My last boat was a 19' Skeeter and it walked pretty bad with the jack plate at the factory height. I raised it an 1/8 inch at a time till I found its' sweet spot. Once I was there the boat ran alot cleaner and with less walk.

[Tall]

Welcome t1365

[t1365]

Thanks Tall

[boater]

Everyone is sugesting seat time and it is in fact the only way to get farmiliar with your rig .AND.......Its FUN .