Trim tabs

[Theremikegoes]

Those of you that have trim tabs and a good amount of weight forward(batteries forward/belly gas tank/etc), how much tab do you actually run? I don't have tabs but after moving batteries forward I notice the ride is noticeably improved. I'm curious how much tab you can truly run when balanced with weight forward? Someday I'd like to do the belly tank mod and want to make sure trim tabs would still be worthwhile or can proper weight balance get you 90% of the way there?

[martin3]

With my belly tank,  I use my tabs less than most people.
Trimming up my motor is all I need to do most of the time.
If going into a chop,  will trim down to keep the bow from slapping.

Belly tank definitely helps trim the boat.
It definitely makes a big difference compared to running the stock tank.
But you still want the tabs to deal with weather conditions.

[headduck]

Helps with the list as well. That's where I'd find the value. But still haven't made the improvement.

[christianbrat]

Even with a pilot house, full 12g water tank and 18 gallons of gas in the cuddy, I use them a lot.

[Theremikegoes]

Well dang, 18 gallons of gas is more ballast than I'll have. Sounds like I still "need" trim tabs!

[nomlas]

I guess you might as well put them on as I did, but I only occasionally use my tabs, maybe 10 percent of the time.
Just me, the ocean is lumpy and I just run usually using more throttle control than anything else.

[davidsea]

    I have tabs and rarely use them.  Generally, slowing down and trimming down eases the rough-water ride enough to suit me, but I have used them on occasion in bad tide rip conditions, and also to stay on plane at lower speeds.  They are also very useful to level the boat in strong beam winds, which makes for a much drier ride. 
   I have not moved weight forward to 'fix' the ride.  Once you do that, you're stuck with a lower running angle and the result is lower speed and efficiency in ALL conditions. In really difficult low-period wind/swell conditions, the last thing I want is extra weight stuffing the bow and possibly broaching. Think of tabs as a ride improvement device with a quick 'on-off' switch.  I've said it before, but yes, it is possible to stuff a lightly loaded SR19, and once you get a bunch of water on the foredeck, handling gets scary......

[Theremikegoes]

Thanks for the thoughts. I think I'm at a decent balance with 2 batteries forward, usually full water, and the trolling motor-that's what made me wonder whether the boat would even run cleanly with more bow in the water. Sounds like arimas are more tolerant of bow down trim than my glasply- can't get much over 40% tab on that boat before it bow steers alarmingly!

Funny I have a mental image of my own Arima similar-luckily for me the anchor pulpit stayed clear and didn't take green water up the deck!

[Crackerbox]

I have a 19ft Chaser and fish out of Neah Bay and into the ocean. I have a 115hp and 9.9 kicker.  I have never needed them and when it comes to listing I just move people around.  I have also never had trims before so maybe I don't know what I am missing.

Joe