Aquasport Osprey 170 (The Ambassador) - Hv question.

[Bahi]

Hello,

I live in Doha, Qatar, since May 2006. Last month, I found & bought my 1984 (not sure) Aquasport Osprey 170, with a 1997 Yamaha 115 hp. I just posted few pictures. It needed some repairs, and I did my best with the limited budget I have for her, for the time being.

Wonderful boat & we (me, my family & my friends) enjoy fishing trips, but is the engine too big/heavy/powerful for her? Even with max load (myself, 2 adults sitting on the bow & 2 adults in the middle), when we start to move, the bow goes very high. The boat doesn't go flat again till I reach a very high speed & she starts to fly over the waves. Hence, either to go too slow, or too fast!  

Help!!

Hesham Bahi

[LilRichard]

115 is probably at the upper range of HP for that hull - I think that might be the max HP?  I know Jim here has a 75 on his and it moves fine.  

If you're having problems with the bow in the air - you might add some trim tabs.

[John Jones]

Check the rod in the motor bracket that limits down trim.  Put that thing in the last hole or even take it out if the nose cone doesn't hit the transom.

That is a LOT of power for a 17'.

[Capt. Bob]

115hp is large for that boat but...... I believe it is rated to 130hp.
My 1986 170 had a 115 Johnson hanging of the back and it flew! :o
The key here is Trim Tabs.
You will be suprised at the difference they will make in achieving a fast plane and allowing you to use less throttle much sooner.
Of course when you get into the real sloppy stuff, that 170 is like riding in a 65 Chevy with four bad tires compared to a trimmed out CCP

Good Luck!

[Mad Dog]

Check the rod in the motor bracket that limits down trim.  Put that thing in the last hole or even take it out if the nose cone doesn't hit the transom.

That is a LOT of power for a 17'.

This is not a high quality picture but I hope you can see what John was talking about.  This engine is tilted up several degrees which is the problem you may be experiencing.  Note the three open holes in the engine tilt bracket.  The fourth hole has an "L" pin which prevents the engine from tilting any further down.  If the angle engine, relative to the transom, is not closer to parallel when starting off you will get lot of bow rise.  Try moving that "L" pin closer to the transom.  I assume your engine has a power tilt/trim feature.  Make sure it is tilted as far down as possible when accelerating.  Once on plane then you can trim the bow up by tilting the engine up a little.  If you don't have power tilt/trim then you need to experiment with the pin placement  to find a compromise.

But, if you can afford trim tabs those are the best way to control the attitude of your boat.

[Miguel]

I have a 115 on my 170.  The answer here is trim tabs.  You will be amazed at the difference.  You will be able to plane at low speed and keeping the bow buried the pounding will be minimized.  It made all the difference in the world to me.
(of course, you need to be able to lower the engine more than what is shown in the above pic).
Miguel

[Miguel]

MORE:
I just finished looking at all your pics.  It looks like your console has been moved towards the stern by a previous owner, as well as the seat.  These boats tend to ride stern heavy in normal conditions with a larger engine, but your layout seems to be worsening the problem.  Is it just me that noticed or is the angle of the picture playing games with me?

[GoneFission]

Pull the pin, move the pin to the front hole, and drop the motor all the way forward.  I think you will get what you want.    

See ya on the water!  Well, maybe not where you're at...

[Bahi]

LilRichard, John Jones, Capt. Bob, Mad Dog, Miguel & Gone Fission...you are GREAT, guys! Thanks a million for your piece of advice. So, Trim Tabs is the magic solution for my problem. Fridays & Saturdays are our weekends in Qatar. I'm planning to go for a short 5 hours fishing trip, tomorrow morning. I'll try to apply all the information you gave, and get back to you with result, this Saturday.

Mad Dog...the pic is clear enough, and helped me understanding what you all mean.

Miguel...YES, I believe that the consol moved toward the stern by a previous owner, too. I started to have this doubt when I browsed the pics of other 170' on the net. I wasn't sure, and I thought that there are different models. I don't know if Trim Tabs can solve the problem, especially that there is about 229 lbs standing behind the consol pushing the stern down (me)!!!

Thanks again! I'll give you feed back, this Saturday.

[Bahi]

BTW, how do you add images here?!!!

[RickK]

Welcome aboard Bahi  :!:  :!:
Our membership is growing worldwide more each day.
I agree with what everyone said, especially about the console being moved aft.  Once you move it back forward where it should be your problems will be solved - be sure to check that pin everyone is talking about although I didn't see one in your pics (unless I missed it).
Here is a pic of where my console mounted. It sits over the fuel tank - your tank is probably under the sole.


Here is a link to how to post pics.

I have a 115 on my 170 and have no problem with bow rise unless I have 2 big guys in the aft (me included   ).  If I'm by myself she rides level all the way through the rpm range.  I don't have tabs.

[Bahi]

Thanks, Rick! The site is wonderful. I visited the States, a while ago. I lived in CT (New Town near Danbury) for about 4 months, and visited many other places, such as NY (New York City & Mount Vernon), NJ (Jersy City), RI (Providence), MA (Boston) & CA (Los Angeles - Santa Monica Beach). Have you ever visited Egypt?

I went to check the boat a couple of hours ago, and I'm quite sure now that the console was moved back; I saw clear traces. I know that the tank is inside the hull under the current console place. The fuel indicator wasn't working, and I had to change the sensor inside the tank. We found the hatch under the console. I don't have enough experience, yet, and I don't know how easy/difficult to remove the console forward. Frankly speaking, I find its current place better because it gives more front room.



I didn't find trim tabs in my boat like the ones in Mad Dog's photo above. Anyway, let's wait till after trying some up/down tricks with the engine hydraulic during my upcoming fishing trip, tomorrow morning. Who knows? It may work.

Thanks for the advices, and I'll come back to all of you with result, this Saturday.

[Mad Dog]

Bahi,  what you see on my boat is not trim tabs.  The aluminum angle brackets are just for raising the engine up and back from the transom.  These are similar to what we call a Jackplate, which allows the captain to move the engine vertically.  

Here is a link that shows what trim tabs look like.  I couldn't quickly find a picture with them on a boat, but at least this is a start.

http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?pat ... 0&id=92570

Looking forward to reading your update.

BTW, we also like to hear about the fish being caught as well.  

[GoneFission]

Keep in mind that moving the console forward IMPROVES time to plane, not the other way around.  Going bow high out of the hole is usually due to:

1.  Too much weight in the stern
2.  Motor set with trim out versus under the boat
3.  Excessive propeller pitch - top speed vs. acceleration - takes forever to get the bow down

Trim tabs will help, but to some extent they mask another problem.  Fix whichever of the above is the problem and you may find you don't need trim tabs.  Of course, some folks love a boat that runs that way:  

 

         

See ya on the water!

[Capt. Bob]

I don't know how easy/difficult to remove the console forward. Frankly speaking, I find its current place better because it gives more front room.





Well then you need to use that extra space and fill it up with ballast (read people) because if you don't move the console forward, I too doubt that tabs will help very much.