Anyone here own a boat, or know a lot about boats?

[The Evil Twin]

Thanks for the information. The Yamaha factory service manual specifically states that grease should be applied to the impeller, inside the impeller housing and the various o-rings. I don't know enough to be clever so I opted to buy all factory parts including Yamaha grease, oil and filters.

One thing I noticed when operating the boat is that it's harder to steer to port compared to starboard. After reading the service manual and engine owner's manual, I noticed a section on steering and adjusting the trim tab anode. When I removed it in order to remove the lower unit I marked its position which was rotated 5 to 10 degrees to starboard and returned it to that position. I'm going to center it up since the manual states that if it's hard to steer to port you should rotate the trim tab to port. We'll see this weekend if that makes a difference. I was surprised by how heavy the steering is when under way. There's a lot of resistance to turning, which given the chunk of metal in the water is not that surprising I suppose.

FWIW, the lube for the impeller is a glycerin base and water soluble. It's basically to aid in installation, hold O rings in place and provide a little lube because the first couple seconds of operation will be dry. Even if the unit is placed in the water, air is trapped in the chamber. Folks that use a petrol grease are the ones that have issues. Likely because they used too much to begin with.
Regarding the trim (torque) tab- depending in the pitch of the prop, 10° should be plenty. Maybe to much. You will have to play with it a bit though. The issue isn't the mass of the lower unit. It's the rotation of the prop. A lot of twin engine craft just have flat plates in place. The counter rotating props cancel each other. Some folks want them in their twins as added surface area for the zinc surface.

 

[dirtydeed]

The issue isn't the mass of the lower unit. It's the rotation of the prop.

+1. It's usually more difficult to steer in one direction over the other when on plane (was always harder for me to turn starboard) due to prop rotation.

 

[CGMKCM]

Thanks for the information. The Yamaha factory service manual specifically states that grease should be applied to the impeller, inside the impeller housing and the various o-rings. I don't know enough to be clever so I opted to buy all factory parts including Yamaha grease, oil and filters.

One thing I noticed when operating the boat is that it's harder to steer to port compared to starboard. After reading the service manual and engine owner's manual, I noticed a section on steering and adjusting the trim tab anode. When I removed it in order to remove the lower unit I marked its position which was rotated 5 to 10 degrees to starboard and returned it to that position. I'm going to center it up since the manual states that if it's hard to steer to port you should rotate the trim tab to port. We'll see this weekend if that makes a difference. I was surprised by how heavy the steering is when under way. There's a lot of resistance to turning, which given the chunk of metal in the water is not that surprising I suppose.

Have you had a chance to look up lubricating/greasing the steering cable assembly? Old grease on a push/pull steering cable system can add to steering effort. Does your boat steer easy both directions when stopped or on the trailer?

 

[mcmxi]

The issue isn't the mass of the lower unit. It's the rotation of the prop.

That's really interesting and I hadn't thought about that. Kind of like torque steer with a front wheel drive car?

 

[mcmxi]

Have you had a chance to look up lubricating/greasing the steering cable assembly? Old grease on a push/pull steering cable system can add to steering effort. Does your boat steer easy both directions when stopped or on the trailer?

The steering is hydraulic and the steering wheel and engine seem to turn easily and with equal effort in both directions with the boat on the trailer.

 

[B737]

mcm, regarding steering, its called 'gyroscopic precession' its normal on single engine outboards, you'll need to move to two engines to make that go away ; )

Robalos are such great little boats, it looks great, they are so stout for their size. You are spoiled having the best backdrop of nature both on and off land. Plus running an inshore ocean boat in a lake, im sure it stands out among the bayliners and sea rays

I keep a few extra garden hose washers on hand, the one from the flush port easily falls out. In a lake you prob dont have to worry about flushing every single time, unless you kick up a lot of mud at some point.

since we've turned this thread into the official OTT boating chat thread... im in the midst of breaking in a 200 I-4 yamaha, checked the oil after 12 hours to find the dip stick over the full mark by about 4 inches . Sucked out about a full quart of oil to bring it back down. Did some reading to find it's not uncommon for fuel to get past the rings until they are seated. Coated cylinders, which are a pain. I ran it WOT yesterday for almost two hours straight, hopefully that did the trick. Will know after a few more days fishing if it worked.

thats how much i had to take out

ocean yesterday was like a lake, perfect condition to wring it out
it was so calm I took this photo at 30 knots, looks like we were stopped

 

[mcmxi]

mcm, regarding steering, its called 'p-factor' its normal on single engine outboards, you'll need to move to two engines to make that go away ; )

Robalos are such great little boats, it looks great, they are so stout for their size. You are spoiled having the best backdrop of nature both on and off land. Plus running an inshore ocean boat in a lake, im sure it stands out among the bayliners and sea rays

I keep a few extra garden hose washers on hand, the one from the flush port easily falls out. In a lake you prob dont have to worry about flushing every single time, unless you kick up a lot of mud at some point.

since we've turned this thread into the official OTT boating chat thread... im in the midst of breaking in a 200 I-4 yamaha, checked the oil after 12 hours to find the dip stick over the full mark by about 4 inches . Sucked out about a full quart of oil to bring it back down. Did some reading to find it's not uncommon for fuel to get past the rings until they are seated. Coated cylinders, which are a pain. I ran it WOT yesterday for almost two hours straight, hopefully that did the trick. Will know after a few more days fishing if it worked.

thats how much i had to take out

ocean yesterday was like a LAKE, perfect condition to wring it out
it was so calm I took this photo at 30 knots, looks like we were stopped

I'm not sure where to start but I want to see more photos of your boat for sure! It looks like a beauty. Thanks for your explanation of the p-factor. As a first time boat owner there are many things I know nothing about so am always learning and appreciate all of the knowledge shared on this forum.

Yeah, the Robalo does tend to stand out and it is a really stout boat for sure. It feels "heavy" and solid and the 70 gallon fuel tank is kind of awesome. The previous owner told me that it's a very safe boat when the wind picks up on the lake.

That sure is a lot of oil to have to remove. Are you concerned about the oil thinning due to fuel mixing with it? My instinct would be to drain the oil and refill but I'm sure you have it covered.

 

[B737]

yes I am concerned about dilution. I will change the oil in the next few run hours and monitor the oil level. Low RPM trolling which is all we do around here does not help. It didnt smell of gasoline, I'm sure there is also a chance the dealer overfilled slightly as well, but that was a lot to suck out.

I forgot to mention regarding the ski tower. I wont steer you away from something you want to do to optimize water-skiing/wakeboarding on the lake. But since our center consoles here are primarily on fishing duty, for occasional water-skiing, we often attach a stainless steel carabiner hook to each lift ring on the transom. Attach rope between the two hooks, then the ski rope hooks to that rope. The ski rope will then be centered behind the outboard when pulling. You can slip pool noodles accordingly on the triangular section of the rope to help when you are stopped keeping everything at the surface.

 

[jimh406]

A few things that could impact steering in the water vs not.

1. The depth of the motor is in the water either by trim or where it sits relative to the height of the stern of the boat. https://www.boats.com/how-to/the-ou...h the motor trimmed so,is at the right height.
2. Where the weight is located in the boat. That is, if people are on one side to the front, or if the hull is water logged. I don't know if water logging is possible in that model of boat or not. Some boats have foam that can be waterlogged. It can add a lot of weight to the boat.

Now that you are on the water, you probably should spend some effort toward learning how to handle the boat in rough water if you haven't. Flathead is large enough to get large wind waves all of a sudden. It would be better to figure that out before needing to know.

How To Drive A Boat In Rough Water - Marine Waterline

Do we really know how to drive a boat in rough water? Some people just enjoy white water rafting. So they know what they are doing. But if we find ourselves in a storm or in a rough weather do we know how to handle that? If you don't know how to manage the situation it's going to be hard to...

www.marinewaterline.com

 

[B737]

lol there is nothing wrong with mcm's steering. Robalo hulls have been wood free since 2006. They are composite w fiberglass, there is nothing to get water logged. That boat will handle any sea state a lake can throw at it with complete disregard by the operator, trust me.

 

[jimh406]

That boat will handle any sea state a lake can throw at it with complete disregard by the operator, trust me.

Well, it's the internet, so trust but verify.

I don't know if you know that Flathead is the largest lake West of the Mississippi. Maybe an overloaded boat with an inexperienced operator will do just fine. A knowledgeable one will likely be safer.

Flathead has the potential for over 6 ft waves. As you might know, it's not height but duration that can be an issue. Just one article ...

Huge waves, power outages likely

A high wind warning was issued Friday for Flathead and Mission valley residents as a rare and potentially historic winter storm was expected to roar into the region overnight.

dailyinterlake.com

 

[B737]

ah yes, good points, there is no telling what is possible in the absence of common sense!

 

[mcmxi]

yes I am concerned about dilution. I will change the oil in the next few run hours and monitor the oil level. Low RPM trolling which is all we do around here does not help. It didnt smell of gasoline, I'm sure there is also a chance the dealer overfilled slightly as well, but that was a lot to suck out.

I forgot to mention regarding the ski tower. I wont steer you away from something you want to do to optimize water-skiing/wakeboarding on the lake. But since our center consoles here are primarily on fishing duty, for occasional water-skiing, we often attach a stainless steel carabiner hook to each lift ring on the transom. Attach rope between the two hooks, then the ski rope hooks to that rope. The ski rope will then be centered behind the outboard when pulling. You can slip pool noodles accordingly on the triangular section of the rope to help when you are stopped keeping everything at the surface.

I did some research a few weeks ago about pulling tubes and such behind the boat, and as you said, the consensus is to pull off the transom attachment points. There are lots of towing harnesses on Amazon and similar for this very thing.

I don't plan on pulling anyone around the lake, either on a tube or skis, but I like options though and you never know if a friend's kids want to do that sort of thing. A ski tower does provide some assistance (as a handrail) when getting up the swim ladder, so although it's not a priority it's still something I'm considering.

 

[B737]

MCM dont you have a drone? i think you'll need to get some running photos of the boat with your drone next time you're out : )

 

[mcmxi]

A few things that could impact steering in the water vs not.

1. The depth of the motor is in the water either by trim or where it sits relative to the height of the stern of the boat. https://www.boats.com/how-to/the-outboard-expert-boost-speed-with-outboard-engine-height-adjustments/#:~:text=With the motor trimmed so,is at the right height.
2. Where the weight is located in the boat. That is, if people are on one side to the front, or if the hull is water logged. I don't know if water logging is possible in that model of boat or not. Some boats have foam that can be waterlogged. It can add a lot of weight to the boat.

Now that you are on the water, you probably should spend some effort toward learning how to handle the boat in rough water if you haven't. Flathead is large enough to get large wind waves all of a sudden. It would be better to figure that out before needing to know.

How To Drive A Boat In Rough Water - Marine Waterline

Do we really know how to drive a boat in rough water? Some people just enjoy white water rafting. So they know what they are doing. But if we find ourselves in a storm or in a rough weather do we know how to handle that? If you don't know how to manage the situation it's going to be hard to...

www.marinewaterline.com

Yes, Flathead Lake must be taken seriously. The friend whose boat ramp I use was with his dad on that lake a few years ago when a storm came out of nowhere and the waves almost swamped their boat. They tried to outrun it but it was moving at 35 mph or something and it got serious very quickly.

 

[mcmxi]

MCM dont you have a drone? i think you'll need to get some running photos of the boat with your drone next time you're out : )

I don't have a drone but I've thought about getting one for spotting hits on steel at 1,000 yards. If the drone could carry and operate a spray can I'd probably have one already.

 

[The Evil Twin]

That's really interesting and I hadn't thought about that. Kind of like torque steer with a front wheel drive car?

Sorta.
Think of a paddle boat. A prop is nothing but a paddle with the blades at an angle.
Same theory applied to early propeller driven aircraft. They turned faster in one direction because of the rotational forces of the blade (and engine mass).

 

[B737]

Sorta.
Think of a paddle boat. A prop is nothing but a paddle with the blades at an angle.
Same theory applied to early propeller driven aircraft. They turned faster in one direction because of the rotational forces of the blade (and engine mass).

basic physics has not changed, the rules still apply as they did 'early' days ; )
on an airplane its called gyroscopic precession, this is why single screw outboard is easier to turn one way than the other.

 

[mcmxi]

basic physics has not changed, the rules still apply as they did 'early' days ; )
on an airplane its called gyroscopic precession, this is why single screw outboard is easier to turn one way than the other.

View attachment 104969

This is all fascinating stuff. I have some reading to do.

 

[The Evil Twin]

basic physics has not changed, the rules still apply as they did 'early' days ; )
on an airplane its called gyroscopic precession, this is why single screw outboard is easier to turn one way than the other.

View attachment 104969

True. My understanding is that modern aircraft use trim tabs and other aero to combat most of that. I'm not a plane guy though. My uncle is.