New 280 Owner

Trim and tabs down to get on plane. Once on plane, bring the tabs up and you're good to go.
 
Only time I use tabs to plane is when I'm ready loaded heavy, other than that just to balance uneven load
 
Only time I use tabs to plane is when I'm ready loaded heavy, other than that just to balance uneven load

No genny and tuned props helps a little too. I'm usually full on fuel water and coolers full of cold frosties!
 
I was told on the alphas to use them to reduce the strain on the outdrives since the 280 is azz heavy especially when loaded. Since it doesn't take any effort to hold down two buttons for a few seconds I always do it.
 
I was told on the alphas to use them to reduce the strain on the outdrives since the 280 is azz heavy especially when loaded. Since it doesn't take any effort to hold down two buttons for a few seconds I always do it.
Our little 4.3's are'nt putting any strain on our drives, its when you have 350mag or more attached to the front of it that ya need to take care
 
Our little 4.3's are'nt putting any strain on our drives, its when you have 350mag or more attached to the front of it that ya need to take care

Agreed. I only need tabs when loaded for long trip. If I'm not heavy enough, tabs down will cause my props to lose bite.
 
Nhi

It takes a little practice to get the boat to do what you want but once you have it down it then becomes automatic and you'll be in and out of the dock in no time. Even when things are going good be prepared for something to happen. Check out my blogspot when you get a chance from this past weekend.

http://mysearayadventures.blogspot.com/
 
Ouch!!! Man, I hope I don't have to go through something like that ... yet! :)
 
Our little 4.3's are'nt putting any strain on our drives, its when you have 350mag or more attached to the front of it that ya need to take care

So if it takes your boat 8 seconds to plane without tabs compared to 4 with tabs it isn't putting any additional torque/force on your outdrives? I don't see your reasoning.

My props never cavitate with a lighter load and tabs down? Although I hit 49.9mph on GPS which Lance hasn't come close to. Although we have the same boats it seems they all react differently.
 
But Lance has 20 h.p.'s less than you..... :) No little 4.3 isn't gonna hurt an alpha drive...
 
My props never cavitate with a lighter load and tabs down? Although I hit 49.9mph on GPS which Lance hasn't come close to. Although we have the same boats it seems they all react differently.

My boat will not come anywhere near 49.9 MPH. Max is 42.2MPH with clean bottom and a slight tail wind. My props are tunned for cruise speed. I would need an 18p or 19p props to get near 49.9 MPH.

I alway take off tabs down. It doesn't need it, but it does make a difference.
 
So if it takes your boat 8 seconds to plane without tabs compared to 4 with tabs it isn't putting any additional torque/force on your outdrives? I don't see your reasoning.

4 seconds? What mods have you done to your 4.3's!? :smt001 I have never actually timed my boats planing speed, but it's a lot longer than that. Maybe it's because when I use tabs, its because I need too. Meaning I have extra people on board and so the end result is the same time to plane. 8-10 seconds I'd guess normally. I'll have to measure it some time.

Plus, with full tabs down, my boat doesn't seem to retract the tabs at the same rate. So as I'm trying to raise them with both fingers, it'll be heeling all over the place. So I generally only use them when I need to (as I wouldn't get on plane otherwise).

Related, I also hate the trim tabs pushbutton panel. Why couldn't they just give us those nice big toggle switches like other boats? Then I'd know I was pressing them when they clicked, instead of wondering if my 50lbs of pressure with my two little fingers is actually doing anything...
 
I was just using that as an example. Not sure what my actual planning time is. Luckily my tabs come u pretty even so no listing. The next time I'm light on fuel, water, holding tank and just me in the boat I'll take a picture of the GPS speed. I almost hit 47mph with 5 people, half tank and coolers on board a few weeks ago. They couldn't believe the boat would run that fast.
 
His boat is a race boat w/hi-performance manifolds though......:smt043
 
- cabin upholstery is dirty with some stain & dark spots (maybe mold).

Regarding what might be mildew in your cabin, I had a little bit of mildew that formed on my cabin headliner up near the bow. I was skeptical, but bought into some claims made by people that swore by a product called Kanberra Gel. I'm no longer skeptical. After one year and two 8 oz. jars (one at a time) of the stuff sitting in the cabin, the mildew and stains are nearly gone and barely even detectable. You might check into that stuff. I think there are some competitor products on the market now, but the Kanberra Gel really surprised me. As a bonus, it clears up odors as well. I now just leave a jar exposed in the cabin and let it "do its stuff".
 
Regarding what might be mildew in your cabin, I had a little bit of mildew that formed on my cabin headliner up near the bow. I was skeptical, but bought into some claims made by people that swore by a product called Kanberra Gel. I'm no longer skeptical. After one year and two 8 oz. jars (one at a time) of the stuff sitting in the cabin, the mildew and stains are nearly gone and barely even detectable. You might check into that stuff. I think there are some competitor products on the market now, but the Kanberra Gel really surprised me. As a bonus, it clears up odors as well. I now just leave a jar exposed in the cabin and let it "do its stuff".

+1 on that stuff...I keep one in the head as well
 
His boat is a race boat w/hi-performance manifolds though......:smt043

With all the canvas completely off, half tank of gas and no load, I have hit mid to high 40's. Over RPM's alarms stat going off around 48-49mph.
 

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