Can't find the speed

[Scott Cross]

I have a 97 Nitro 912 with an merc. 200 EFI, I have had the boat for about two months now. I can't get the boat to do over 59.8 (gps)miles per hour at 5800 rpm. I am running 4.5 inch jack plate, with a tempest 2 prop (p25). The dealer has been no help. I love the boat, but need the speed. I have been playing with the jack plate it does not seem to help. The hole shot seems slow also. Feels and sounds like everything is working fine, the boat is just not going fast. Any Ideas

 

[Staci Matheis]

Scott -



About 4 years ago, Bass & Walleye Boats did a test of about 2 dozen different props on a 912. I can't remember exactly when or what the outcome was....... But, if you contact them, maybe they can be of some assistance.



me!

(Or am I "you!"?)

 

[Bill McElroy]

Scott,...a 912 is a big boat for a 200,....I ran a 200 on my old 896 and she screams!!!......Your boat is rated for a 225, so you aren't going to get the blazing top end that you would with a 225. On the other hand you'll have to decide if you want to tweek it for top end speed or if you'd rather have a great holeshot and good rough water performance,.....with you being in the north and fishing the bigger waters like I do here in Michigan,...I'd say you'd probably want the holeshot and rough water performance over the top end,.....how often can you really let her rip?? Adam's right,...I'd suggest you try a Trophy 4 Blade with a 24Pitch and take 2 vent plugs out,.....I'm running that same prop on my 901 with a 200 Opti, and it performs great. Give that a try and see if it helps....but even under the best conditions, with your boat and the 200, I think you'll be lucky to hit 62-63mph (Gps) just because of the weight of your boat.....especially with a full load and full livewells. Good luck and keep us posted!

Mac

 

[Dave Tully]

Dumb question of the day. I see numerous post relating to the "jack plate". Just what is that?

 

[Russ Charles]

Dave,



It is really more like a bracket usually made of heavy gage aluminum. It mounts between the engine and transom. It provides a means of mounting the engine higher and setting it back further from the transom allowing the prop to operate in cleaner water. They can be fixed (no adjustments), they can be manually adjusted in height(usually by means of a jack screw), or they can be hydraulically adjusted for height with driver control (like the trim). The amount of set back is usually not adjustable, but may be specified anywhere from 2 inches out to about 12 inches. Hope this helps.



Russ

 

[Scott Cross]

Big thanks to everyone for there help, I am tring a throphy 25p and 24p prop on Friday I will let you know how it worked out. Russ thanks for the web sit very cool. Gary let me know how the 10" jack plate worked. I am thinking the same, but seems like the motor would sit in the water to far.



Scott