[Steve91T]

Got them installed! Much easier than I thought. I must have spent 30 minutes making sure everything was perfect to drill that first hole, then once I got over that, the rest of the instal went very fast.

I can't wait to get it out on the water!

[Dredd]

Looks good. Nice work. I think most of us can probably empathize with the whole drilling part.

[Steve91T]

Wow, what a difference! I took it out yesterday for about 30 minutes by myself to test them out. I couldn't believe how it quickly it jumped on plane! Virtually no bow rise. I could see over the bow at all times. I had the 80# actuators on the 3rd position, which were too stiff. I couldn't get the bow out of the water. So, next was the fun part. I jumped into the water, and had to adjust the tabs totally blind. The water was murky, I couldn't see a thing. I can't believe that I didn't drop anything.

Anyway, I adjusted them to the 1st hold, least resistance. They seem perfect now. It used to be that, once on plane, I would just barely raise the drive and the bow would start bouncing. Now I can trim way up. The bow bouncing is gone, I can now stay on plane down to 15 MPH, zero wander at no wake zones, and I have more use of the trim.

The only thing is top speed is more or less unchanged. Maybe slightly reduced. My wife and myself were able to hit 52-53 and with 4 people, 49 MPH, per GPS. Just by myself with the tabs, I hit 51 MPH.

The instructions say I should see a 2-3 MPH increase in top speed.

The other thing I need to mess with is trimming to much. If I am cruising along at say, 40, and I trim until the prop slips, then back it down to a "sweet" spot, it almost feels like I'm loosing steering. Like the drive is too far out of the water. If I trim down a little more, I get all my steering back.

Maybe the 80 lb actuators are too strong? I'll give them a call this morning and see what they say.

Anyway, I love them. A lot of products have claims that are far from true. These honestly do exactly what they say. It's a whole different boat now.

Steve

[Paul F]

We told ya!!!

That's a pretty snug installation with those trailer bunks!

[Steve91T]

It is, and I was worried about it, but it works! The guide on the trailer keeps the tabs away from the bunks.

[mikeyt]

Congrats! The 60's probably wont be strong enough for your 202. My install didn't show a speed increase either ( i actually may have dropped 1-2mph) but i installed them for the other benefits which far outweigh the speed issue.

[00 diablo 00]

I know it has been 4 or 5 years since you were talking about this, but I just bought a 2001 diablo and what I am experiencing is trying to trim the boat up at high speed to reach my top speed and the boat starts to porpous. I have been recommended to try the smart tabs, but I was hoping to hear from someone first hand if it helps. your thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Jeff B.

[00 diablo 00]

Originally Posted by Steve91T

Wow, what a difference! I took it out yesterday for about 30 minutes by myself to test them out. I couldn't believe how it quickly it jumped on plane! Virtually no bow rise. I could see over the bow at all times. I had the 80# actuators on the 3rd position, which were too stiff. I couldn't get the bow out of the water. So, next was the fun part. I jumped into the water, and had to adjust the tabs totally blind. The water was murky, I couldn't see a thing. I can't believe that I didn't drop anything.

Anyway, I adjusted them to the 1st hold, least resistance. They seem perfect now. It used to be that, once on plane, I would just barely raise the drive and the bow would start bouncing. Now I can trim way up. The bow bouncing is gone, I can now stay on plane down to 15 MPH, zero wander at no wake zones, and I have more use of the trim.

The only thing is top speed is more or less unchanged. Maybe slightly reduced. My wife and myself were able to hit 52-53 and with 4 people, 49 MPH, per GPS. Just by myself with the tabs, I hit 51 MPH.

The instructions say I should see a 2-3 MPH increase in top speed.

The other thing I need to mess with is trimming to much. If I am cruising along at say, 40, and I trim until the prop slips, then back it down to a "sweet" spot, it almost feels like I'm loosing steering. Like the drive is too far out of the water. If I trim down a little more, I get all my steering back.

Maybe the 80 lb actuators are too strong? I'll give them a call this morning and see what they say.

Anyway, I love them. A lot of products have claims that are far from true. These honestly do exactly what they say. It's a whole different boat now.

Steve

Hey Steve,
Which smart tabs did you buy. I bought a 2001 diablo 180 and I am experiencing the bow jumping when I try to raise the trim at high speeds. It sounds like these completly fixed your problem. Let me know your thoughts.

Thanks,
Jeff

[nglauer]

I have a 2001 Diablo 180 with the 3.0L. Buy the smart tab sx's you won't regret it. They changed the whole characteristics of my boat. No left to right swerving when cruising through no wake zones, no fighting for plane, or making passengers move around. I also noticed better acceleration, and my boat stays on plane at lower speeds, much lower. I was also able to go back to my 14x19 vs my 14x17. I had went with the 17 to help get out of the hole, no need for it now unless tubing or skiing. I also saved gas....I don't know the exact numbers... but I know we were able to almost squeeze an extra day out of the tank.

Sorry if anything sounds like giberish. I'm trying to post from my android phone.

Good luck,
Nick

[00 diablo 00]

Originally Posted by nglauer

I have a 2001 Diablo 180 with the 3.0L. Buy the smart tab sx's you won't regret it. They changed the whole characteristics of my boat. No left to right swerving when cruising through no wake zones, no fighting for plane, or making passengers move around. I also noticed better acceleration, and my boat stays on plane at lower speeds, much lower. I was also able to go back to my 14x19 vs my 14x17. I had went with the 17 to help get out of the hole, no need for it now unless tubing or skiing. I also saved gas....I don't know the exact numbers... but I know we were able to almost squeeze an extra day out of the tank.

Sorry if anything sounds like giberish. I'm trying to post from my android phone.

Good luck,
Nick

Thanks Nick, That was really helpfull. I have to look at my specs, because I don't remember. Is the 3.0L the 4 cylinder with 135 hp. I know my boat is a 4 cylinder with 135 hp. Also is smart tab the brand name? If not, what brand name are youres? Sorry for all of the questions, just trying to make sure I get the right thing.