I just purchased a Makco Bay Shark. Has a 90 Merc. Manufacture specification says 15 inch draft. Does that mean from the bottom of skeg to the water line on plane? Boat has horrible hole shot, will not get on plane with 21 prop.

Tracker is CLUELESS on how to prop their bay boats. Their "book" sucks, their knowledge on center console requirements is very lacking....I battled them constantly on how to properly setup a bay boat, so here's what I learned from rigging and setting up their bay boats.

The 18' transom is horribly low, you can't get the motor high enough flat against the transom. A 4" jackplate is necessary.

W/90 ELPTO merc, the best prop was a 18" Powertech four blade with small vents. Set the propshaft 4" below the center keel of the hull, and you'll be amazed at how good it runs.

Yea I am sick of hearing "thats what the book says" or "that is what the book calls for" If I hear that 1 more time I am gonna PUKE! I have resolved to a jack plate but I am not sure what to get. I spoke with the manager and the told me they would put one on free of charge if I buy one....Jim

This is the boat in question...Jim


http://www.mako-boats.com/boat/specs.cfm?boat=3062

Got the boat back from the shop after 3 weeks of waiting for them to figure out what I said was right. The motor is now raised 6 1/4" above the top of the transom with a 5 in setback jack plate adjusted almost all the way up. It seems to run ok but it looks awful. I think this boat should have a short shaft motor in it. See the boat with the above link. You boat setup guys help me out here. I will post a pic tomorrow

btt

That hull doesn't have a 25" transom...if they put an XL motor on it, it'll never run right.

The only measurement that matters is prop shaft to pad or lowest point on the hull, it should be set at 4" with a decent prop.

I hate to sound like a hardass, but they can really be clueless at tracker when it comes to their bay boats, you'll have to teach them what works and what doesn't work.

Please tell us that they did NOT put an XL on that boat.

It is a long shaft. Don't know if that is an xl or not.

pics of motor on boat. Does not look right to me....

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj287/WM5L/016.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj287/WM5L/013.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj287/WM5L/012.jpg

http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj287/WM5L/011.jpg

The specs say that's a 25 inch transom according to the web site link you posted....but it sure does look like that engine is jacked up a little high for a stock setup.

Kind of what I am thinking. I wished I knew somebody at mako or mercury.....

That is definatelly an XL motor. Measure your transom, all the kenner/nitro/mako 18' I ever saw were 20" transoms, don't care what the book says. Right is right, if they made a mistake (twice) then they need to put the proper (20") motor on your boat.

+1

Did you buy the boat new? Where did it come from so we know to avois that place like the plague?

If that's a 20 inch transom, then the specs are WRONG and the idiots that installed that engine didnt have a clue as to what they were doing.....OR....a more likely scenario is that they didnt HAVE any 20 inch shaft models in stock, but wanted to make the sale, anyway.