How much weight should a 22" have in the bow?

C

ccflyer

New member
Yesterday I headed into some choppy water while I had a friend aboard. I slowed down as we began to "bang" wave to wave. My buddy, a fairly knowledgeable mariner, suggested I needed more weight in the bow. He said with the Honda 90 and 8 HP kicker, plus 30-40 gallons of fuel, I was too stern heavy. I suggested my trim tabs compensated by lowering the bow.

Presently, I'm not carrying any anchor chain but the dealer had originally outfitted the boat with 150 feet.

Any thoughts?
 
I found with my 22, the more weight forward, the better off I was from a fuel economy standpoint. When it came to pounding, only trim tabs got the bow down enough to help along with slowing down. Depending on the period of the waves that might be as slow as 12 mph.
 
Phil-

I carry 100 feet of 1/4" chain (74 lbs.) in my chain locker, plus camping gear in the v-berth, etc, and I like it. You may also need trim tabs in really rough ocean weather, depending on your stern weight. Your friend is right, so are you, and Tom as well.

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
I agree with most of the above posts but in a big following sea you will experience some real bad control problems when the bow is forced down into it. The boat will start to swing side to side at the bow in some uncomfortable ways.
My 22' was bad that way and even the 26' has some of those tendencies.
Bringing the bow up a little and slowing down is the solution.
 
my duck c22 came from cutters in (md) they to had 150 ft of chain in the front . I took out about 130ft of it and added lenco trim tabs then put on a suzuki 90 (423lb) plus 36 gallons of fuel lots of weight had to use tabs in any kind of 2-4 ft seas

I now have the cc-23 this has a lot more weight up front and has a biogger beam carried forward so not much of following sea problem also do not have to use trim tabs as much

You might want to add some of the anchor rode back maybe 50ft and try that bring more weight into the cabin etc.
 
I find the trim tabs do very little at displacement speeds and mine are oversized; the faster I go the more effective they are; therefore, in heavy short chop where you must slow to a low planing speed, the more weight in the bow the easier the ride. Remember to trim the motors also to push the bow down; dolefins or permatrims make the motor trim much more effective.

Jay
 
C-Green":1pcqq697 said:
I find the trim tabs do very little at displacement speeds and mine are oversized; the faster I go the more effective they are; therefore, in heavy short chop where you must slow to a low planing speed, the more weight in the bow the easier the ride. Remember to trim the motors also to push the bow down; dolefins or permatrims make the motor trim much more effective.

Jay
Click to expand...

Jay makes a point worth remembering. Trim tabs and Permatrims are good for dynamic adjustments. They do diddleysquat when you're not moving. They do next to nothing at low speed - the very speed required in rough conditions. Therefore, if you may be encountering rough water, particularly significant following seas, it is a good idea to think about weight distribution when the boat is static.

I would caution against more or less permanent excessive weight increase in the bow just to improve the ride going into some chop. Think about the weight up there when you have to go down hill at a speed where the trim tabs or Permatrims are ineffective. I try to keep some gear in bags that can be moved forward or aft as conditions dictate.
 
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