surprising handling characteristic 268 islander

[pbaygrady]

Thought I would bounce this off of you guys that have owned 25-30' Gradys for a while. I owned an adventure 208 for three years untill this fall, when I moved up to a 268 islander. We were looking for more space and a little bigger boat to handle the chop more comfortably. I powered the 268 with a single new F300 and am very happy with fuel economy, power, ect, and I am VERY happy with the head sea and direct following sea ride compared to the smaller 208 we had. BUT, I am very surprised at the pitching and rolling the larger 268 is subject to at a beam sea, or even a follwing at an angle. It seems like the drag is so much more, that it is pulling the sides down and realy listng to the side even in mild seas (1-2ft). It really makes the wife nervous, and I have to admit it takes more concentration to operate and counter steer in those very mild conditions than I would ever think it would. Is this just a case of me (us) getting use to a bigger boat that is deeper, as well as a motor with a 30" shaft making it more reactive to current/waves? or am I missing something with the set up ? By set up, I mean trim tabs, prop anode adjustment, ect..
thanks

 

[ocnslr]

We bought our 270 Islander new in March 2002 and it was powered with a single 250HP OX66. Handling was, at times, a bit challenging, and she would sometimes "chine walk" on one side or the other.

When we repowered with twin F150s the handling improved significantly, and I attribute most of that to the change in trim due to the greater weight on the transom. I believe the hull sits better and handles better with the weight of twins aft.

JMHO.

Brian

 

[dduflo]

I have, on occasion, experienced similar chararistics with our 270 Islander. A combination of motor tilt and trim tab adjustments will cure your issues.

 

[little jenny]

i have a 2001 265 express i love the boat but have also had some problems with the handling. I have tried to trim up the engins a bit but it does little to improve the handling. If anyone has had the same problem what do i need to do to correct it. I have read that the guys who have the boat love it you just need to find the optimal running angle.

 

[BobP]

Did you notice a difference with fuel loading?

Try keeping the fuel cells more full than empty, this will add weight shifting the bias to the stern not bow, as grady cabins generally are (vs. CCs). The Islander has a narrow beam which doesn't help. Same goes for anything heavy in the forward cabin or anchor locker. If fitted with a hardtop, it adds to the rolling effect. Get anything off the hardop of substantial weight like if there is a raft up there, etc, to lower the center of gravity.

The Islander is a narrower (trailerable) version of the Sailfish, which also allows it to be single engine capable.

 

[slapshot1848]

I have a 2000 265 express, I trim engines with only 2-3bars showing on engine trim then adjust for weight of people on board which often times isn't even an issue. The trim tabs on these boats are large so only press down for a second or two and see how boat evens out. Also remember to start out of your hole shot with tabs tucked in all the way in so when u adjust you are doing so "zeroed out"

Check out the 265 threads on this topic there are a million, big wide boats with deep vees have this tendency until u figure out optimal running angles for various conditions.

 

[Kai Lover]

My Islander can also be challenging (sensitive) to get dialed in with trim and tabs. Once set correctly though she does well as long as weight is not shifted around (passengers). I think it is a tradeoff As the ride is good in most conditions. I was 50 miles offshore Sunday and had 3' head sea going out. A contender was following in my wake and he turned around 30 miles out. I ended up with load of grouper and snapper.

 

[Salinity Now]

My last boat was a Sailfish 2360 CC with a single F250, that was a deep V boat single engine, the long shaft on the Deep V caused the boat to have a few tendencies you described, I discussed this with many sailfish owners, general consensus was all the torque created by that long shaft at the pivot point in the center of the deep V. I used to have to counter the lean with extra tab on one side, but then you have to worry about quartering seas on that side as it will surf the boat and really push it around at certain speeds.

I switched to a 4 blade, made a world of difference.

I now have a 265, no leaning issues specifically, but definitely doesnt like tab in quartering seas (no boat does really), but over tab is an issue on these boats.....well its an issue if you don't know how to adjust it pending conditions. I think with anything you can tweak and learn the sweet spot with time.

Good Luck, if you have the ability to switch to a 4 blade prop, it may really surprise you.

 

[pbaygrady]

Thats interesting about the 4 blade prop. What were some of the negatives you felt from making the switch?
I'm glad to hear that others have experienced this and its not just me. Thanks everyone for all the input.