Nauticus Smart Tabs - Amazing!!

R

rktktpaul

New Member
Oct 4, 2006
189
Chicago, Illinois
Boat Info
185 Sport
Engines
Mercruiser 4.3l TKS w/ Alpha I Gen II
I purchased a set of Nauticus Smart Tabs to put on the boat before the family and I left to vacation in the North Woods of Wisconsin last week. As with most of my projects I didn't quite get around to putting them on in time. I did, however, decide to bring the package with me.

After dropping in and out of plane while pulling the boys around behind the boat, I couldn't take it anymore. I pulled the boat out of the water and took it over to Watercraft Sales Inc. in Three Lakes, Wisconsin to put the tabs on for me. They did an absolutely beautiful job installing the tabs; chamfered the drilled holes so the gel coat wouldn't crack, used the proper sealant to seal around the screws - definitely money wells spent to have them install the tabs!!

After picking up the wife and kids, we went to drop the boat in the water. My oldest son and wife drove the boat while I drove the trailer back to the resort with my other two boys. When I went down to the dock to meet the boat, first words out of my wife's mouth were, "Best money spent on the boat so far!!".

These tabs are amazing!! Boat planes out at 10 - 11 mph now where as before I needed to get to 14 - 16 mph. I never lose sight of the horzon at WOT, and the boat just really gets up and goes. And the thing I liked most was that I was able to pull the little guys around in the tube at a slower speed without dropping out of plane!!!

I have to give the Nauticus Smart Tabs a big :thumbsup: !!
 
They are nice aren't they, I don't know which ones you have, I have the stainless steel version. If you play with the adjustments you may improve even more. Post some pics in the virtual marina. :grin:
 
Hmm, I've been thinking of this very thing.

How well do they help in a large chop / bigger waves?

We ride out in Lake Michigan... and anything over 1 ft waves actually tosses us around a bit...

I've been told either tabs - or a 'hydrofoil' would help... I just have to decide which... :smt001
 
RedGST said:
Hmm, I've been thinking of this very thing.
How well do they help in a large chop / bigger waves?
We ride out in Lake Michigan... and anything over 1 ft waves actually tosses us around a bit...
I've been told either tabs - or a 'hydrofoil' would help... I just have to decide which... :smt001
Click to expand...

Red

I can tell you that tabs make a huge difference. We were in Lake Michigan last weekend going from Saugatuck to Holland around 7pm. The lake had turned from 0 to 1' waves to 1' to 2' or 3' waves.

I had the tabs all the way down to force the bow into the water. We came over the top of a 3 footer and I was waiting for the large slap and the only thing I felt was the nice glide as the bow cut through the water. I turned to the wife and she had the same surprised look that I had.

The tabs can force the bow lower then the trim on the outdrive can. I can keep the trim neutral and get better fuel mileage while the tabs push the bow down.

I installed the Bennett tabs. The install was easy but they are not cheap. I wished I did this 2 years ago when I got the boat. I went with adjustable ones since I can change the angle for different things like rough water or wake boarding / tubing.

I heard a lot of good things about the smart tabs. I don't think the foil is going to help you a lot.
 
Red, I can say that I can stay on plane below 20 mph, I can run in the rough water slow but without being beat to death where before the smart tabs I would get beat pretty bad. I run in the sound here and it can be smooth as glass or 2 to 4, sometimes worse, I don't go out if worse. I can work with the 2 to 4 pretty well with the tabs and the drive trim, sometimes if I am in the 20 plus range I split the water and it shoots straight up either side of the bow. When really rough I do not get much above 20. They save gas, give a better ride, cut down on bow rise when getting on plane, cut down on idle speed wander, and a few other things. I am not sure if you would want the 60 or 80 lb cylinders on your boat, probably the 80 lb. You can call John at Nauticus and ask, he will be glad to help you.
 
I have heard that trim tabs can make backing up the boat a little more difficult. Is this true?
 
I have no problem backing in to the beach or into a slip or just backing up in the river, in fact I think they help keep the boat straight.
I do not know what would happen if you backed up really fast since I have never done that. But normal backing is no problem.
 
My dad's 240 has the tabs... and yeah, they are nice
(He was actually surprised the other day when he drove mine - as to how hard it was to 'keep it smooth' as compared to his.)

Im a little nervous about drilling into the exterior of my boat - especially below the water line - so I've already talked with my local marina... and they quoted me around $600 to completely install the trim tabs. (and they guarantee their work)

I didnt realize there were actually different brands... I'd have to check to see which they would install with that quote.

I had thought about a hydrofoil... but I just dont know about them.

I dont want to loose top speed, and I dont think the tabs would do that (in a neutral / up position)
 
Smart Tabs are great, they are not helm controlled, they have gas shocks that you adjust to your boat and they just seem to work from there. They are constantly adjusting to the conditions as you are running. You make running adjustments with outdrive trim. If you want to have the ability to adjust the tabs from the helm then I would recomend Bennetts. John, (Smart Tabs) and Tabman, (Bennetts) are a lot alike, they are both good people and they both support their product.
 
Yeah, just looked into it and Bennett tabs seem like the way I want to go... and actually, if my marine quote was for Bennetts... then that might not be too bad!
 
Yes at the price of Bennetts that would not be bad at all, if that qoute was for Smart Tabs I would say it is way high. Smart Tabs around $200.00 and Bennetts around $500.00.
 
$600 installed is a good price. I got my Bennetts for about $425 and its about 2 hours of work.
 
Do the smart tabs help with crosswinds, etc.? I would think that you'd have to work each tab separately to level your ride, but maybe not? Do they self-adjust for that?
 
I do not know about the crosswind compensation, the area I boat in I do not run a straight line long enough to know. The area that I can run straight line in usually is rough to some degree if the wind is blowing. In the times that the water has been smooth I have noticed any list from crosswind but then I am watching the water very closely for crab trap floats so I don't wrap one on my prop.
 
They are not just in the middle of the creek, they are allover the rivers and the sound, some of the floats are old and dark and almost submerged so you have to keep a close watch for them. Every time they pull the traps they also move a little when the drop them again. :smt013 You just learn to live with them.
 
I thought all tabs were adjustable from the helm. So the Smartabs just adjust to the water pressure? Conversely, the Bennett system would create less drag?

I need this. My wife hates getting beat up. I don't notice it as much hanging on to the steering wheel.
 
Fasterblaster said:
I thought all tabs were adjustable from the helm. So the Smartabs just adjust to the water pressure? Conversely, the Bennett system would create less drag?

I need this. My wife hates getting beat up. I don't notice it as much hanging on to the steering wheel.
Click to expand...

Yep, Smartabs are self adjusting so you're right (I think, 'cause I can't see it being any other way) they create drag but the offset is the handling benefits. Same deal with HP boats which most all have tabs. They create some drag but the benefit at 100 MPH is keeping the boat wet side down! :smt043

I much prefer regular tabs because I use mine for load balancing and list correction in high winds etc. I tried using them for keeping it nose low towing a tube, but the kids always want to stop and tell me to turn the fountain off! :lol: Yes, with both tabs down, the nose is slightly lower at low speeds (18-22 MPH) but they create a splash about 30' back that comes together and throws up a spray that mists them in the face on a tube with a 60' rope. :smt101
 
Took the boat out again today, and I'm still very happy about installing these.

I purchased the plastic version, the SX model. Very well fabricated, and it matches the color of the drive very nicely. I meant to take pictures to post, but it got pretty dark before I put the boat away in the garage. I'll get some pictures up very soon.
 
Smart Tabs are constantly active, they have gas shocks that are always trying to hold the tabs down, water pressure raises them. Do they create drag, I feel sure they do but they raise the boat out of the water enough to counter act the drag, I use less fuel, can run a little faster at given rpm. They are well worth the investment to me. You still raise and lower the bow with the drive trim. In rough water they smooth out the ride, you can stay on plane at slower speeds.
 
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