Trim Tabs on your Rib

[malamute man]

hi folks im looking some advice on fitting Trim Tabs to a Rib. i want to fit them to a 7m rib with twin 140 outboards. the rib weighs approx 2250kg fully loaded with crew and fuel etc. top speed is 40 knots + the boat is listing quite far to port at speed

ive been looking online and it seems there are basically 3 types: hydraulic self levelling and electric.

what is the best and most reliable system. im interested in the lectrotab wireless 12v electric system. anyone have any experience of these?

look forward to any advice you can give

[Erin]

I fitted lectrotabs last year and they make a noticable differences to handling. If I had the space I would have gone for Bennett hydraulic tabs as they are less likely to cause problems in the future, but the electric versions won me over for simplicity of installation.

Do a search as there are photos of my install.

[malamute man]

hi Erin
did you install the wireless system or wired connection to the dash?

[yam man]

My advice would be to got bennets hydraulic ,the amount of electric actuators iv changed for customers ie lenco's and not cheap

[Erin]

I went wired. Only needs two wires down each duct the the transom boxes.

[Dirk Diggler]

Originally Posted by yam man

My advice would be to got bennets hydraulic ,the amount of electric actuators iv changed for customers ie lenco's and not cheap

+1, Bennetts even do a kit to make the swap real easy!

[malamute man]

Bennetts trim tabs seem to have a really good reputation ! Does the fit take up much room

[Lee argyle]

Bennetts get my vote, ran them on a phantom and really good at levelling the boat out and you also find you pop on the plane quicker . tried smart tabs on another boat ( self adjusting ) and didn't like them

[Razorbill RIBs]

We have Bennett hydraulic tabs on the Ocean (really useful btw....esp for us when lugging lots of water samples about etc.....not always possible to load as evenly as you'd like).

The reservoir does take up a fair bit of space tbh.......no problem with a large 'Ocean' console but could be an issue /def worth taking into account.

If you do go the Hydraulic route, a top tip I was given on here was to use Hydraulic steering fluid in the reservoir.....MUCH quicker to operate

[Razorbill RIBs]

Oh, and ours are manual hydraulic..... not self levelling......

[Chris]

I had Lenco tabs fitted to my last rib and will shortly be fitting some to the current rib. They performed well after 4 years use.

[Rokraider]

Got Bennetts on the Pacific, seem to be quite efficient. I find getting them balanced from side to side takes some practice.

[gotchiguy]

We have Lencos and the difference is amazing. As Erin will testify from running side by side with us last year when he didn't have them, you can run a lot smoother and faster with a couple of stages down.

[dougcrock]

got lencos 3yrs ago made a big difference in rough conditions we could really trim down
in smooth high speed balanced the load of persons and kit
easy to fit

[Jacek]

To my 9m inboard Parker - Bennett with manual trim, huge improvement in handling.