Smart tabs

Z

Z-man

New Member
Dec 25, 2021
26
Lake Hopatcong, NJ
Boat Info
220 Sundeck 2008
Engines
Mercruiser 350 mag mpi with bravo 3
I'm new to the forum. I had a 208lr stingray as my first boat. I live on Lake Hopatcong in NJ and the center of the lake on weekends can get pretty choppy. My old boat had a horrible porpoising problem. People would get injured if they were sitting up in the front which made the problem even worse because no one would sit up in the front section of the boat. I bought smart tabs for it and then found my 220 so I never actually installed them, I just bought a Sundeck 220 with a 350 mag. I I saw some mention of smart tabs on one of the previous posts but not much detail. I'm thinking about installing them before the season. Anyone who has them. What are your thoughts? And does anyone have a picture of where they mounted them? It'll be my first time putting them on and I'd rather just do it myself but just want to make sure I put it in the right spot. Thank you!
 
Z-Man, welcome. I installed Smart tabs on my 205 Sport with a 5.0 Alpha last spring. Almost eliminated low speed wander. Lowered the speed that I was able to maintain plane. Reduced the amount of time fiddling with the trim. I'm a fan. I wish I had pictures for you. I had them until my phone was accidently wiped. Now the boat is in storage until spring. Just follow the manufactures directions. Use the pictures on their website for guidance. Get them as wide from center as practical.
 
You'll have to hold them in position and see if there's room for the piston to mount on the transom or if the swimdeck prevents it.

They will only help, but you might find that between the larger engine and the Bravo III that you find no need for them. I'd run the boat for a bit before installing them.
 
I added smart tabs to a 19’ rinker with a 4.3L and it really kept the bow down and got on plane fast. It was night and day and lived them. With that said, the 350 mag and guessing bravo drive, I would do as @Lazy Daze suggesred and use the boat for a season, I think you will be fine without
 
Z-man, FYI, porpoising happens from running too fast for the conditions with the drive trimmed too far up. Trimming down and operating at an appropriate speed for the conditions will help. Just offering some info for the future.
 
Lazy Daze said:
Z-man, FYI, porpoising happens from running too fast for the conditions with the drive trimmed too far up. Trimming down and operating at an appropriate speed for the conditions will help. Just offering some info for the future.
Click to expand...
That's with the engine all the way down -6 degrees and the factory tabs down, going as slow as I could work keeping the boat on plane
 
Z-man said:
That's with the engine all the way down -6 degrees and the factory tabs down, going as slow as I could work keeping the boat on plane
Click to expand...
Hmmm. Stingray's aren't "high end", but they're decent enough. I've run a few of those and don't ever recall that problem. But that's neither here nor there at this point.

Just curious... why would you buy Smart Tabs for it if you already had tabs (probably hyd or elec) on there from the factory?
 
Z-man said:
It was recommended to me the factory tab button didn't do much
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OK, for reference, they're better than Smart Tabs.

Tabs, though, should have made a VERY noticeable difference in hole shot and slow speed planing. If they didn't, then they must not have been working. They will have a tremendous impact on a boats running attitude - even more so on a small boat.

Thinking more about your Stingray problem - maybe it wasn't so much actual "porpoising" but just simply getting tossed around in a smaller boat on a busy day? As I noted above, "porpoising" is a higher speed problem.
 
I'm less concerned with the stingray since I'll only drive it for a sea trial or two in the spring and would love to hear people's experiences with sea rays, thank you though for your help
 
Z-man said:
I'm less concerned with the stingray since I'll only drive it for a sea trial or two in the spring and would love to hear people's experiences with sea rays, thank you though for your help
Click to expand...
Sure, understood - just offering some info in case there may be more to the reason for the bounciness - which if it was due to user error, the same thing could happen with a new boat.

Back to the Sea Ray - see my advice above. I've run more of these than I can shake a stick at. Good riding boat.
 
They build the stingray to be fastest in class so the boat only weighs 3000 lbs, this might have been part of the problems. Lots and lots of people complain about it on the stingray forums. The tabs are a switch on the console but only a minimal change and not electric or pneumatic.
 
Z-man said:
The tabs are a switch on the console but only a minimal change and not electric or pneumatic.
Click to expand...
Now you have me curious - how do they work if they're not electric or hydraulic?
 
You're not talking about a switch for the exhaust, are you? One that diverts exhaust down through the prop or out pipes on the hull side or transom?
 
Lazy thanks again but I'm really only concerned with people's experiences with smart tabs and sea rays. Preferably 22' ones. Thank you for the advice above as well
 
The answer for the Sea Ray is already given. But there's a reason to my madness in referring to your Stingray. "From what you written", it seems you may not fully understand the functions of the motor/drive/buttons. If you can understand how to better operate your existing boat (again, because you have the experience there), the knowledge will transfer to another boat. I understand you're primarily concerned with the Sea Ray - but talking more about "how" to properly operate ANY boat will only help you with the Sea Ray. But, it's your call - if you want to stop that conversation, that's completely fine with me - no harm, no foul.
 
Maybe I can offer some valid info since I've been there, done that. We had a Stingray for 35 years and as a matter of fact my son had a 208.

Stingray's ZPlane hull is very susceptible to porpoising. The issue is exacerbated by having to much weight aft. We solved the problem by moving people and/or gear forward, but I didn't like having to do that. I added short fixed (but adjustable) tabs and after I dialed it in I could get perfect performance even with the outdrive trimmed way out for maximum speed.

We boat in the Niagara River above Niagara Falls. I travel all over the country and have never seen inland water choppier than what we have to deal with every Sunday.

My son added a Doelfin to his 208 and also a stern lifting prop. His problem was solved without having to drill all those holes in the boat.

While on business in SC I stopped in the Stingray plant and low and behold I got a tour of the facility by the CEO himself. I commented to him about what we had done to eliminate the porpoising and he swore up and down that I didn't know what I was talking about. I understood why he got mad, but what made ME mad was that the very next year fixed sport trim tabs were offered as an option.

I don't believe Stingray ever offered any tabs on hulls as small as a 208 other than the fixed aluminum ones. If one of their boats has a dash switch it must have been installed by a previous owner.

Now to the good news. We are now a SeaRay family, including my son. I got all kinds of weight aft and I can't make that boat porpoise at all. Hole shot bow rise is almosyt non-existent. I wouldn't drill any holes until after the boat is broken in and some WOT sea trials are done.
 
I installed Smart Tabs myself on my classic SRV180. The hardest part was working up the nerve to drill into my gelcoat. So I purchased a new titanium drill bit which cut like a hot knife through butter.

They did exactly as advertised including gaining 1-2 mph at WOT. Faster time to plain, increased cruise speed at lower rpm, no bow rise.

BUT, no control means you can’t correct for listing due to unbalanced load from passengers.

Next time I’m buying electric.
 
Jim, thank you very much. I appreciate the insight. I'll follow yours and Lazy's advice and just run the boat. I can always take it out of the water and add the tabs later. I'm relieved it wasn't just me, but thrilled that the new boat may not need any help at all.
 
I think you're going to find that you are going to have a huge smile on your face when comparing the performance and ride quality of the new boat vs the old one. :)
 
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