14ft Tinny problem

I have a 14ft tinny with a 4 stroke 9.9 Yamaha and the problem I’m running into is the bow of the boat won’t come down, I’ve tried adjusting the angle of the motor but no difference and the only way I have been able to drop the bow is the weigh it down with sand bags. The wife reckons it’s my weight as I have gained 20lbs but I have had this problem ever since switching up to the 4stroke after my 2 stroke died, I never really noticed it before as I always had a fishing buddy in boat also but now fish solo. So I’m on here looking for advice (and yes working on the body weight so don’t need backup for the wifeLOL), any constructive advice would be appreciated.

Is it a light (shallow) 14' or a heavy (deep) one? And is the transom 15 or 20?

My shallow 14' with my 2 stroke 9.9 (short shaft) used to be prone to wind gusts and wouldn't plane quite properly until I put some 5/4 decking down as a platform, towards the front, to keep things dry, clean and flat. Just that bit of weight (I'd guess about 30 lbs of wood) made a difference.

I am 250lbs of forged steel and sex appeal. I get the same problem with the bow going up. I extended my back bench and used an extension on the throttle so I could sit farther forward. I also keep my gas tank full in the front which just took a longer hose. I keep a seat in the front and any other weight gets moved up. That all helped a lot and she planes out now.

That 4 stroke may weigh a few pounds more than the older 2 stroke 9.9 so that along with a few extra pounds you might have put on do make a big difference to the balance of the boat. I have the exact same issue with my setup, a 9.9 2 stroke Yamaha on a 14 ft Princecraft.
I just solved the problem by placing my 5 gal gas can as far forward as the length of the fuel line allows. That completely eliminated the porpoising. You may likely have to add a few pounds of weight in the bow to get rid of the problem completely.

Sounds like good advice all away around that they gave you, I am lucky my 12' doesn't give me any issues like that and I can carry it by myself and I don't need to trailer it, it's fits into my truck. savage308

I think you are asking a lot of a 9.9 to plane out a 14 footer, with an adult running the tiller. As posted already, try it with your tank up front. Probably a 20 would serve you better. I had a 14 MirroCraft with a 20. No issues with planing, even with three guys aboard.

Hi and thanks for all the input I will look into moving heavier equipment to front of the tinny to get bow down (it is a wide shallow one) as I would say 95% of my fishing is either trolling or slow moving from spot to spot and if any wind the front gets blown about

I have the same "porpoise" problem with my 16' tiller. I weigh 240lbs.have a 30 Merc with batteries at the stern. The fuel tank is port side a three feet to the beam with a livewell on the starboard side. To off-set,I have a removable 4' casting deck/swivel armchair seat mount that attaches at the bow where I store extra tackle boxes,PFD's,two anchors and a trolling motor mounted on the front top deck. At full throttle,it planes beautifully,rides solid and goes like stink. Balance is the key.

If your motor has a notched gimble thingy try to adjust it so the motor shaft is closer to the transom so that the thrust is angled in a downward direction. This should lift the stern.............................Daniel

If you already have the motor angled as far forward as it will go, then about all you can do is move weight forward. Gas tanks, batteries, passengers....

Pop a bow mount electric and a couple of batteries in the front. The weight will keep the nose down running and it's a lot easier to troll into the wind with a bow mount pulling you. The I-pilot gps steering ones are sweet too, just lock in your heading and speed and you're hands free. If you are doing a lot of solo fishing would be well worth the expense.

When setting up your motor, the driveshaft on your prop should start out parallel to your keel, not angled up or down. The gimbal thingy is there to accommodate various transom angles. You should never have to go more than one notch either way to get a properly balanced boat to plane, assuming that it is a planing hull....

You can solve a lot of the trolling problems by trolling backwards. This works well specially for pickerel.

You can try putting what we call a " Whale Tail " on your motor. It is two pieces, plastic, and mounts just above the prop. You have to drill a couple of holes to install it. It really helps in bringing the bow down.

save money and put a couple of sand bags up front.

[QUOTE=fishing1;884451]save money and put a couple of sand bags up front.[/QU

I already have sandbags upfront and played with the gimble looks like I will leave as is for now till I can afford a center console boat. Thanks for all the responces:goodstuff:

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Originally Posted by rick_iles

I think you are asking a lot of a 9.9 to plane out a 14 footer, with an adult running the tiller. Probably a 20 would serve you better. I had a 14 MirroCraft with a 20. No issues with planing, even with three guys aboard.

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Bingo! I have a 20 on my 14ft Yukon. Perfect size. Plenty of power. I put a low pitch prop on it and I can troll for Greys but still hit 23mph to get around.

Far cheaper solution for now. Trade up or buy used and sell the 9.9. Even a 15hp might be enough.

Cheers

My 14 ft Princecraft gets up on plane much faster than my 12 ft Bluefin. The reason is simple. Both boats are probably not much more than 30 lbs difference in weight but the center of gravity on the 14 ft is further away from the motor. That's the same as moving weight forward to get the nose down.