Testing Polls Trim Tabs

[Themis]

Bennett or Lenco

 

[DaleH]

Bennett Marine 24" span (width) by 9" chord (setback off the hull) planes. The stock Lenco 12"x12" planes are woefully inadequate and in side-by-side testing of my boat versus another with same horsepower OB, you need to deploy the Lencos much deeper to get the same effect as the wider Bennett tab. That causes drag and kills your fuel efficiency.

 

[Themis]

Is it possible to just swap out the size tab but stay with Lenco? I agree that my tabs are small.

 

[DaleH]

Sal ... not sure on Lencos, but call them, as their Customer Service is supposed to be pretty good (which it needs to be in order to complete effectively with Bennett ! ).

 

[cbigma]

C. None of the Above........

My 2000 25MVSC came equipped from the factory with 12X12 Hydraulic-actuated tabs manufactured by Boat Leveler. Use 'em maybe every third trip out....

 

[Megabyte]

I followed Dales advice and removed my (leaking) 12x12 BoatLevelers and replaced them with 24x9 Bennetts.
What a difference!

 

[cbigma]

I followed Dales advice and removed my (leaking) 12x12 BoatLevelers and replaced them with 24x9 Bennetts.

How many years on the Levelers before they started leaking?
>6?
I think Tabman told me once that he had a kit that allowed for replacement of the thru-hull fittings for the actuators when converting from Leveler to Bennett that avoided having to hack any more real estate out of my transom. Except for a dozen more screw holes for the longer planes

But Geez,,,,wait a minute,, that's three projects I have on my list for spring. At this rate I wont splash until Labor Day!

 

[Megabyte]

How many years on the Levelers before they started leaking? >6?

The boat is a 96 but the tabs were dealer installed for the original owner in 1998.
When I bought the boat the bilge was an oily mess, full of water, dirt, and ATF.

It took me awhile, but I got her cleaned up now.

 

[Graybeard]

My esteemed fellow Parker owwners,
I have a 7 year old 2110 and it came with the BoatLeveler trim tabs. I think the reason why Parker went to Lenco's is because of the BoatLeveler trip tabs were/are problematic. Mine leaked at all the barbed hose fittings until I replaced all the hose and used hose clamps. Then my hydraulic unit went up and it was luck for me that Boater's World had the exact replacement. And the rocker switch tends to stick.....lets see, did I leave anything out???

 

[DaleH]

I think the reason why Parker went to Lenco's is because of the BoatLeveler trip tabs were/are problematic.

FWIW an engineer at Parker admitted to me over the phone that Parker went with Lenco over Bennett tabs solely for a somewhat faster install. He also admitted that the stock 12x12" plane is not optimum for all Parker hulls and that on his boat - it wore Bennett tabs. He doesn't work there anymore ... but I don't think it's related to this situation :shock: !

 

[DaleH]

Originally posted by Porkchunker:

Posted: Sun Feb 26, 2006 7:30 pm

Puny trim tabs, and no fuel shut-off valves were the only gripes I've had about my 2510. The fuel shut-off valve problem was easy to fix in a couple of hours.

I ended up overcoming the puny tabs by placing Cobra Marine trim plates on each of my F115s. The plates are solid SS, and bolt to the bottom of the anti-ventilation plate of the motor. They are stronger than the hydrofoils that bolt to the top or the ends of the plates (which end up causing the plates to crack and break). With the addition of the plates, the trim tabs are much more sensitive.

Parker should have put larger trim tabs on the 25' hull. Have told them so several times, but I don't think they listen to me very much.

Moderator's Edit: I moved the new info on shut-off valves into a new and separate post ...

 

[SteveBAZ]

I do not know how to vote this b/c I cant find it but 9X12s or 12X12 Bennet. They have some of the finest customer service in the industry and to me that counts sometimes more the product performance.

JMHO

BAZ...

 

[Fishinfireman]

ParkerSal, as far as I know you can't go to a wider tab without moving the actuators so they will be centered on the tab. Lenco makes a 12" wide x 18" chord racing tab but take my advice and don't go that route. The racing planes will bolt up without a lot of fuss but all they will do is shower your outboard with water and they will not benefit the boats performance. This was an expensive mistake for me . I wound up removing the Lencos and selling them. I had a good fiberglass man (in the family) come over and plug up all the old holes in the transom and then I mounted 30" wide x 12" chord Bennetts. I am very happy with these. I may have gone a little overboard on the size but I wanted all the tab I could get on the boat. The 9 x 24's that others have recommended are probably just as good and will not stick out as far. If you go with the 9 x 24's on a DV hull like mine you will want to make sure that the holes that you have to drill in the transom for the hydraulic hoses will come through below the cockpit deck. If I had mounted 24's on my boat I would have had to use the shortened actuator that Bennett can provide.