94 Montego Porposing

[Seapg]

Any way to rid myself of the annoying porposing on this model? I have the Montego Deluxe (two of them). It porposes regardless of the "sea state".

[Technical Support]

Re: 94 Montego Porposing

Search Ebay and post a wanted ad for an aftermarket ride plate - I'm not sure you'll find one, however.

[dank]

Re: 94 Montego Porposing

Normal for the ski. You can shim the rear of the ride plate down a little or get an aftermarket plate. I may have one or two here. I will look and let you know.

[Seapg]

Re: 94 Montego Porposing

Thx, Dank. Do you know the physics involved in making these things porpoise so bad? Is it due to pump going in/out of prime as you ride?

[mikey20]

Re: 94 Montego Porposing

usually it's from actual hull design and geometry .

[dank]

Re: 94 Montego Porposing

If you get used to it for a while you can control most of it with throttle control.

[DaveG]

Re: 94 Montego Porposing

When a watercraft porposes it is usuall the function of several things. Hull design is a major factor as is drive, or in the case of pwc's, jet pump angle. Speed also plays a big roll as does weight distribution. You can make just about any sport boat or jet ski porpose as long as it has an adjustable propulsion system. The kids at the lake love it when I make my bowrider porpose on purpose. By adjusting the outdrive trim and and the boat speed I can get almost 3' of bow deflection. It makes for quite a rollercoaster ride in the bow.
You can make most boats, including pwc's, less prone by lowering the thrust angle of the propulsion unit. shifting weight forward on the boat will also help. I have one ski that is much more prone to porpose with a 1/2 tank of gas or less. If it's not possable to trim the problem away you can usually improve the situation by adding length to the rear of the hull. Ride plates and trim tabs are the most common methods used on PWC's. If you cannot find a ride plate specifically for your ski, it's not that hard to make trim tabs. Especially if the transom is flat, curved fiberglass makes it a little harder. Adding tabs on each side of the hull that extend between 1" to 2" will make a difference.
On the brighter side, be glad your ski doesn't "chine walk". That is a much scarier riding condition and much harder to fix.
Dave

[Seapg]

Re: 94 Montego Porposing

Dave...thx for your response. I may be able to add some length as you mention. Perhaps some ballast in the front compartment, too.....or max fuel in tank.