Home Made Trim Tabs

[gordon]

I own 2 boats, a NauticStar 18ft Bay Boat with a 90hp Yamaha and an old 17ft Tracker Aluminum jon boat with a 25HP tiller Yamaha.

I recently purchased and fitted Nauticus trim tabs to my bay boat, the difference is night and day - faster planing at lower speeds, smooths out the bumps, feels nice and flat when making tight turns.

Having realized that Trim tabs are very positive for smaller craft, I am in the middle of constructing some for my Jon boat. These will be made of Aircraft grade aluminum and also be adjustable with some kind of turnbuckle arrangement. The sides of the tabs will be reinforced with 90 degree aluminum elbow which may also help with how they run in the water too.

Anyone out there had a go at making trim tabs before?

[fishycharacter]

I tried to put a 9.9 on my Scadden 12' inflatable for going upstream on western rivers. The boat plowed too much so I added a 12" stainless disc as a trim tab and the boat performs fine. The stainless disc was about .10 thick and was a scrap from another project. I hope to use it at the Land of the Giants in Montana. It is my only attempt at making a trim tab.

[Musky Glenn]

I made one for one of my first wooden boats and found out it doesn't take much angle to really affect the hole shot. I had an old power trim motor and hooked it up to one side of the tab. Good luck.

[smooth move]

my nephew and i made some like you're talking about. they were just light aluminum plate and flexed as you picked up speed. they took away a little of the top end, but it was worth it for the hole shot and the turning list, or lack of. we just bent the leading edge about 30 degrees and welded em on. th boat was a 16' bare bones from tracker.