Volvo QL Trim Tabs - The Hull Truth

bencashen · 01-09-2008, 07:54 AM

Has anyone had any experience with these? seen here: http://www.great-water.com/pages/pro...L_Trim_Sys.htm
A customer of mine here at the boatyard wants some tabs put on -- and unforutnatly due to the transom of the boat (Dyer 29) it doesn't seem like regular Bennet or Lenco tabs will work, however these will... So...anyone tried them...have any thoughts...?

tprice · 01-09-2008, 08:02 AM

Ship Shape TV had a segment with them sometime this past year and seemed like they worked pretty well. They had the company President on and the theory made a lot of sense

B-Faithful · 01-09-2008, 08:21 AM

I spoke with Bill Judge at Judge Yachts about them (local builder here) and he uses them on his boats. He said they work wonderfully.

blitzen · 01-09-2008, 08:25 AM

Bencashen,

I was in contact with the owner who has the blue Calvin Beal downeast pictured on the QL web sight. He has been very happy with all aspects of the product. They were easy to install and work very well. You may get good feed back if you post your question on noreast.com under boat angler.

John

bencashen · 01-09-2008, 11:56 AM

Thanks a lot for the info guys-- its really helpful to have real world product info- everything looks good on paper or in an ad ,but we all know the truth is in real world application- If we end up putting the QL tabs on this Dyer 29, I'll post pics

Thanks a bunch guys

Ben

Flot · 01-09-2008, 04:01 PM

They were factory installed on my Pro-Line 23CC and I am very happy with the tabs and the controller. The electronic control is completely idiot proof and is nice for balancing a side-to-side load on the boat. I rarely have them deployed more than 1/3 of the way but it makes an obvious difference and although I have not run the same hull with traditional tabs, they seem as good as any. I believe as you move up to bigger boats they may recommend putting pairs next to each other on either side?

It is very nice not having a big sharp piece of metal sticking out the back of the boat when climbing up the ladder. Only had the boat in the water for about 2 months but growth cleaned right off.

blacklabmarine · 01-09-2008, 04:15 PM

I've been wondering about them as well. Saw that Tiara is using them - that's a pretty good endorsement - they test everything.

If you use them please let us know the result...

Florida R227 · 01-09-2008, 06:59 PM

Not sure if it's true, but it seems to me that traditional trim tabs would offer more stability for your boat in that they almost extend the waterline of your boat even when not deployed (in tight turns or when in rough or confused seas). Is this the case or am I thinking more of my traditional tabs than they are. I do like the low profile out of the way look of those QL tabs though.

BRDog · 01-09-2008, 08:12 PM

We installed a set of 12" tabs on a 40' custom Carolina express boat we built and are very pleased with their performance.

This boat has tunnels and there was not room for traditional trim tabs. Installation was very straightforward. We filled in a portion of the top of the tunnel to form a straight section for the tabs to fit.

It's amazing how much impact these small devices have on the ride angle and ability to balance the boat side to side.

BTW, all the local "experts" told us they would never work or would get torn off by the force of the water or would create too much drag and slow the boat down. None of these concerns had been a problem.

GradySailfish25 · 01-09-2008, 08:49 PM

I have them on my Judge 27. I was very skeptical at first, but once I started using them I was amazed. On every other boat I have owned, you lose speed when you start putting the tabs down, which makes sense, because the cause drag, but not the QL tabs, the work great.
Rick

Stevens · 01-10-2008, 01:49 AM

As everyone above, I was very pleased with these QL interceptors on my last boat. Added benefits include automatic retract on shut-off and indicator lights on the switch panel, which others would charge extra for.

There's also a Finnish company called Mente Marine that makes a very sophisticated, fully automatic trim adjustment system, also in a plug-n-play version compatible with the QL tabs. It adjusts the trim tabs and engine trim better & faster than you could yourself.

Edit: I noticed that this boat ( http://www.hydrolift.com/boats/c-27.html) came with the QL-tabs fitted from the factory, like several other very discerning boat builders over here.

peterbo3 · 01-10-2008, 03:19 AM

Hi Ben,
Cold enough for you in Camden. I'm typing this in a T-Shirt & shorts thinking about starting up the aircon. But back to the QLs.
I was going to put Bennetts on my new alloy rig but after a ride in the demo boat, the QLs have been ordered. As the others have said, easy to use & very responsive. No bad reports from down this end of town.

Capt Dave · 01-10-2008, 05:07 AM

Just bought a set on these to put on my 28' Northern Bay. All feedback I got about these for a downeast style boat was positive. My main purpose for these is to balance the boat side to side. I can provide feedback on how these work once I get back in tha water in April.

bencashen · 01-10-2008, 06:31 AM

Wow! Thanks again everyone-- great info. They seem like a very worthwhile product to try out--- The guys at Great Water- who supply QL products to us, emailed us an article fromsome kind of DYI boat magazine, and they claimed an install of 4 hours- I think I might get a set for the Grady now. Again- Thanks guys-

Peter! Good to hear from you-- We've had a serious warm spell this week in Camden, Tuesday it was 62 degrees! Lots of snow previous to that- We had around 18 inches on the ground- I thought you were going to post some pics of your tour of the US?

best,

Ben