Trimming Your Boat - Four winns 378 Vista Owner's Manual

as the "hump". Because visibility, handling, and perfor-
mance are reduced, it is advisable to get "over the
hump" as soon as possible. A few seconds at full throttle
should get the boat over the hump and into its planing
attitude.
After getting over the hump, accelerate until reaching
a comfortable plane, then throttle down to cruising
speed. This also will provide for better fuel efficiency.
S - 7

TRIMMING YOUR BOAT

Trim tabs are used to add lift to the boat's stern, thereby
changing the boat's attitude (see Figure S1). This lift
can help the boat get on plane faster and remain on
plane at slower speeds than if no tabs were used. Used
independently, tabs can also correct listing conditions
caused by crosswinds, unbalanced loading and quar-
tering seas. Trimming your inboard boat properly in-
volves setting the trim tabs.
When you are sitting dead in the water, your trim tab
switches are in the BOW UP position. Accelerate until
you get onto plane. At this point your boat will be plow-
ing through the water with the bow down too far. Trim
the tabs down slightly until the bow comes up. If you
trim the tabs down too far, the propeller will cavitate.
Your boat is trimmed correctly when it is just short of
propeller cavitation, under ideal running conditions.
Trim your boat to compensate for seas, winds, or un-
even loads.
378 Vista™ Owner's Manual
™
378
Head Seas
Following Seas
over
Listing Due to
Quartering Seas, adjust for list. If listing to star-
Beam Wind, or
Uneven Load
Remember that most boats react very slowly to trim
tabs. Often boat owners do not give trim tabs time to
work. Press the trim tab switches for only one second
at a time and then allow some time for the boat to re-
act. If the boat is still listing after a minute or two, press
the trim tab switch again for a one second interval. The
labels on the trim tab switches indicate what you want
your boat to do, not what you want the tabs to do.
It is a good idea to take your boat out onto open water
shortly after you get it and experiment with the trim
tabs. After you get your boat onto plane, set the tabs in
various positions and note how your boat reacts. This
will give you a feel for how the trim tabs work.
It is possible to extend the cylinder life expectancy on
your trim tabs. To do this, keep the cylinders retracted
while at dockside. Press both trim tab controls down
until tabs reach their full up position.
Figure S1: Trimming the Boat with Trim Tabs
Use tabs to keep bow down
and go at a slower speed.
To prevent taking seawater
the bow, keep tabs up to keep
bow up.
Use tabs independently to
board, press port bow down
switch. If listing to port, press
starboard bow down switch.
Section S
Page 5