99 ciera 2452 express trim tabs-gctid390985

[Guest]

Just purchased a 1999 24' Ciera Express. Boat runs fine, just find that the bow pulls up too high at higher speeds. The trim tabs seem to work. Was wondering if anyone else has this issue. Not sure if I need to replace the trim tabs or if it is something inherent to the boat.

[Go Aweigh2452]

You can see the trim tabs at the dock if they go up and down. Keep them down a tad to keep the bow down. Many of us have installed 12x9 drop drop fins to help planing and idle speed wandering.

[LPurcell]

I believe it's inherent to the boat due to the amount of weight in the stern. As you apply throttle, the stern squats and the bow rises. It will continue to do so until you approach planing speed, then the bow will start to lower - but will aways remain up a bit. Of course, while the bow is high, you can't see where you are going - not a good thing! Which is why most of us have tabs; they shorten the time the bow is too high. To minimize bow rise, I usually put my tabs all the way down before accelerating, then start to raise them as I get on plane (you get alot of drag if you leave them down). Unless you have a bunch of really big guys sitting in the cockpit, it works pretty well. I replaced my stock 9x12 tabs with 12x12 tabs to get a quicker response; it made a noticable difference.

If your bow stays too high once on plane, then I would guess that either the tabs aren't fully extending or the outdrive is not fully down or you need to redistribute your cargo.

[BLCarl]

+1 on moving the cargo

Mine did the same thing I couldn't see over the bow for a few scarry seconds while getting up on plane.

Store your heavy stuff under the V birth. I moved my house batteries under the helm , the canned goods tool box and spare prop under the V birth, It didn't take much in addition to trimming the drive and tabs. With the generator stored on the floor up front it rides flat all the time .

[Guest]

My tabs are 12"x12" and they're drop fins. I also have a Wander Fin which reputedly are helpful for planing.

Good Luck

Sarah

[Go Aweigh2452]

12x12 look like:

[Tabman]

I did a little research on the web this morning and it appears that the 2452 came from the factory with 12" x 9" Trim Tabs



They are indeed undersized, and replacing them with 12" x 12" with the 3" drop fins like the ones in Go Aweigh2452's picture would make a big difference. It is an easy upgrade since the actuator (ram) and mounting plates will be reused and stay in the same place. You would need two Trim Planes, the part number is TPO1212DF.

Tom

Bennett Marine

[Davidlyne]

Can I ask what he drop fins are for. Mine has them and I am thinking of cutting the fins off. Reason is that when the forklift lifts the boat out of the water, the forks catch on the trim tabs and bend them even though they are fully "up". I can't see any other boats in the marina that have the fins.

[Guest]

The 2452 has a lot of frontal area rather high up as well. This contributes to the bow up, stern down at planing speeds. The hull really isn't designed for that much aero drag well above the thrust line. Bigger tabs are a 'fix' to the problem, but a properly designed weight distribution, or change in the longitudinal CG would really help(very costly).

[Tabman]

Davidlyne wrote:
Can I ask what he drop fins are for. Mine has them and I am thinking of cutting the fins off. Reason is that when the forklift lifts the boat out of the water, the forks catch on the trim tabs and bend them even though they are fully "up". I can't see any other boats in the marina that have the fins.

David,

I responded to your other post on this subject.

Tom

Bennett Marine