Jackie Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 Hey guys, I just bought a 1999 Ranger R61 with a 2004 115hp Opti. I installed a 5.5 inch jackplate and put on a 22" Laser II SS prop. I went out today to test it, didn't get a good result. I can only get it up to 66kph/41mph at 5100 RPM...it won't go higher... Another weird thing is that I cannot trim the motor all the way up while running at high speed. I can only trim it half way as shown on the trim indicator on the dash, it just won't allow me...But I was able to trim the motor all the way up while idling. Just wondering what should I do...should I lower the jackplate or raise it up? and by how much? do I need to get another prop? and what size? Thanks a bunch! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skipper D Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 Hey guys, I just bought a 1999 Ranger R61 with a 2004 115hp Opti. I installed a 5.5 inch jackplate and put on a 22" Laser II SS prop. I went out today to test it, didn't get a good result. I can only get it up to 66kph/41mph at 5100 RPM...it won't go higher... Another weird thing is that I cannot trim the motor all the way up while running at high speed. I can only trim it half way as shown on the trim indicator on the dash, it just won't allow me...But I was able to trim the motor all the way up while idling. Just wondering what should I do...should I lower the jackplate or raise it up? and by how much? do I need to get another prop? and what size? Thanks a bunch! I don't know any thing about jack plates but for 115 hp it sounds like its right at where it should be when i compare it to where my 115 runs , only dif is i am running a 19 pt prop which is faster out of the hole with a bit less top end , wounder if your jack plates are slowing you down a bit ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skipper D Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 I have no trim gage on mine , when i leave the dock and my trim is all the way down and i am at full throtle , the splash will say is coming out the sides in line with me , then i keep picking it up til i see the splash coming out half way between me and the back of the boat , thats where mine seems to be the fastes . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gerry Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 Your RPMs at WOT should be 5500. Your prop is too big. You could try raising the jackplate but watch your water pressure. Don't fool with it if you don't have a water pressure guage. Also, a 115 can only deliver so much, I would expect to see no more than 45 mph. As you raise the jackplate you will get more slip which will counteract your quest for more speed. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish_fishburn Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 Prop set up is a tricky thing. First you cannot lift your motor past high trim at wide open throttle. The motor has a built in safety feature that only allows you to use the trim phase only when the motor is running higher than about 2500 rpm. Get yourself a 21 pitch and try that before you start adjusting the motor height. Then go to bassboat .com and read the posts on prop setup. Lots of valuable info on there from some really knowledgable people. Not sure if a jack plate is going to help you much with a 115. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ecmilley Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 your close on prop, may have to drop it to a 21p i believe that anywhere from 5000-5500rpm wot your in the ball park, also remember Rangers are built heavy and stable takes a little more to get em going i.e my 363v 18ft ranger boat with a 150 runs 58mph so running 41 seems only iittle off. now where do you got the jackplate set? set the motor to 3.5 inches off the pad and work from there. INSTALL a WATER PRESSURE GUAUGE this has already cost me one engine by the time the alarm goes off when your on plane it's usually to late Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 (edited) when you say you can't trim all the way up are you saying you can't raise it high enough to get a big rooster tail a 115 on that boat which I think is 16... 16' 3" or around there you should be doing 52 to 56 mph at 5500rpm when the trim is down and you look at the back of the boat where does the center of the prop line up with the bottom of the hull maybe the motor engine is too low Edited April 7, 2012 by Terry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solopaddler Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 I'm certainly no expert, but my guess would be the jackplate needs to go. In all probability it's impeding the motor which is why you can't fully trim at high speed as well. I had a plate on my boat initially and kept fooling with different motor heights, props, trim levels, etc, and it never really ran properly no matter what I did. Finally ditched it and installed trim tabs at the back. Honestly it was like night and day. I found a marked increase in performance when I installed them. Both in the handling and smoothness of the ride, and in how quickly the boat went up on plane. Even at low speed the boat goes on plane. Those tabs are amazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skeeter99 Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 Hey guys, I just bought a 1999 Ranger R61 with a 2004 115hp Opti. I installed a 5.5 inch jackplate and put on a 22" Laser II SS prop. I went out today to test it, didn't get a good result. I can only get it up to 66kph/41mph at 5100 RPM...it won't go higher... Another weird thing is that I cannot trim the motor all the way up while running at high speed. I can only trim it half way as shown on the trim indicator on the dash, it just won't allow me...But I was able to trim the motor all the way up while idling. Just wondering what should I do...should I lower the jackplate or raise it up? and by how much? do I need to get another prop? and what size? Thanks a bunch! 1. the jackplate is set to low (if it is manual raise until no blow out but decent out of hole shot) 2. I think it is a bit to much prop (especially for a ranger quite a heavy boat) 20 or 21 would be better 3. you cannot trim all the way up, (most bass boats you cannot and will blow out) if your jackplate is hydraulic drop it lower while you are running to achieve maximum/optimum trim angle just for reference I have a Skeeter ss90 with a merc 90hp 2 stroke , I run 51 to 53 mph depending on load/passengers I am running a 20 pitch Lazer II prop 2 inches below pad(no Jackplate) at WOT 5100 to 5600 rpms depending on trim angle and load but unfortunately it is a ranger (the best boat to fish out of in the world IMO) but they are not fast at all, that is why you see them with 250 hp and even 300 hp offshore engines on them and they cannot break that magical 70 mph, but other boats with a 200 hp can achieve 70 mph quite easily with the right setup Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HTHM Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 Look here: http://www.kencook.net/Setupart.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan668 Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 (edited) If I'm not mistaken, that's around the fastest they go. Your just missing a few mph. if you look that model online, most achieve low to mid forties Edited April 7, 2012 by danbob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 99 Ranger R 61 01 115 Johnson Carb - 6" setback. 22" Raker Eagle Optimas (2), Humminbird Temp Digital, Magellan GPS, MinnKota Maxxum 50# TM. CMC 2 piece Full deck extension, onboard twin bank charger. 60 mph @ 5700 rpm (gps) "Great boat for the smaller lakes here up north with less than ideal landings. Classic Ranger construction & feel in a very manageable & fishable package. This baby will run with ALL the 150's on the bigger lakes too!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbac31 Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 Thats close to where the boat needs to be Jackie. Call me later this evening muk muk. I will try and come by to set it up for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hirk Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 (edited) I wouldnt put it up more than 2 1/2" below pad max without a pressure gauge. You real gain will likely be found in dumping the lazer and running a tempest due to better bow lift,this maybe why your r's are low now since you may be running too flat due to the lazer.The merc is a inline vs the johnson v4 it doesnt have the same punch but you should hit 52- 53 light setup good. Edited April 7, 2012 by hirk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ecmilley Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 I wouldnt put it up more than 2 1/2" below pad max without a pressure gauge. You real gain will likely be found in dumping the lazer and running a tempest due to better bow lift,this maybe why your r's are low now since you may be running too flat due to the lazer.The merc is a inline vs the johnson v4 it doesnt have the same punch but you should hit 52- 53 light setup good. hirk has most likely forgot more about a bass boat set up than i'll ever know, listen to him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ah_long Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 Hey guys... I was on the boat with Jackie on the initial run.. I'm almost 100% certain that the boat would run much faster than the top speed we hit. With the 115, the boat should hit at least high 40s and low 50s.. Right now... the boat is running around 41mph @ around 5100rpm but it's throwing a big rooster tail... trimming down the motor keeps the boat at the same speed but the RPM drops down to around 4500.. Just need some advice on whether the jack plate should be lowered for the trim to go up..... it seems that the prop is running too shallow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ecmilley Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 it's slipping at the higher setting when you lower it it's biting good and dropping rpm- change to a lower pitch prop sounds like a good starting point Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 yeah but when the prop is slipping...sucking air, shouldn't the rpm go up around maximum ... when you have rooster tail do you have bow porpoising does it take a long time to get up on plane.. if you have too big of a prop it should be slow on getting up an plane Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GBW Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 I have the same Johnson 115 fast strike on a 18.6 Northstar bowrider and I can hit high 50's (MPH) in it. just so you have an idea of how quick it can go. you should be hitting 60MPH in the smaller boat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lew Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 I have the same Johnson 115 fast strike on a 18.6 Northstar bowrider and I can hit high 50's (MPH) in it. just so you have an idea of how quick it can go. you should be hitting 60MPH in the smaller boat. Just curious Geoff, but high 50's seems really fast for an 18.6 boat with only a 115 pushing it. Are you measuring your speed with a speedometer or is that reading coming from a GPS ?? There can be quite a difference between the 2 and a speedo is very often way off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misfish Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 The 18ft ranger I had was powered by a 115 Mariner. It was equipt with a high five prop. I got 54 mph at 5400 rpms. GPS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 yeah I was in the boat when it did it...fast boat for a small motor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jackie Posted April 7, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 Thanks a bunch for these great infos guys! Really appreciated! I didnt have any problem getting the boat off plan. But really, im expecting more from this little boat with a 115 and a 5.5 jackplate on it! And yea i was getting a pretty high roostertail... But no speed... I will try lowering the jack plate by a bit and see what it will do first. Then I will try a different pitch prop. Apparently someone with a same boat same motor, same jack plate and same prop is doing 55mph... So there's gotta be something... Anyways thanks again guys !! Jackie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HTHM Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 The rootertail is the clue needed. You are trimmed too high, for optimal "traction" your roostertail should be about the same height as the top of the cowl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Posted April 7, 2012 Report Share Posted April 7, 2012 yeah but they said they tried different trim settings he is not answering all the questions but from what I read into it the bow of thew boat is not getting out of the water enough only a small area at the back of the boat should be touching the water.....you should only see water pushing away from the boat at the back of the boat at the right trim setting as you lower the trim and the front of the boat comes down you see the water being pushed out at the side of the boat , trim down more and you see it going more and more forward..slowing the boat down with the drag from the water and I am thinking that is your problem your jack plate needs adjusting and I think you need a prop that has more lift a good marina will let you try out props till you get the right one at Top Gun Marina I bought a used SS prop and kept exchanging it till I got one that worked the best a high five was the ticket for me I don't think you need a smaller pitch on the prop because you got up on plane easily.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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