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I'm officially a Bennington owner! We got our new toon this weekend!

tyjy said:
Congrats to our fellow cheesehead! We are expecting ours on Thursday and will need to learn to park too :eek:
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Thanks tyjy!  What part of Wisconsin are you from?

Good luck on the parking practice too!  My dealer showed me the key is a directional reverse to move the rear-end where you want it...that was a great tip on his part...
 
http://www.amazon.com/Powerboat-Handling-Illustrated-Make-Exactly-ebook/dp/B0055Y8HW4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1401235434&sr=8-1&keywords=power+boat+handling

This is a GREAT book to have.  One of the eye-openers for me was how a boat has two pivot points.  In forward gear, the boat pivots around a point in the center of the boat (port to starboard) and roughly 1/3 the distance from the bow.  In reverse, the pivot point moves back to about 1/3rd the distance from the stern. 

In other words, in forward gear the rear of the boat will swing out left or right MORE than the front of the boat does as you steer.  Going in reverse, the bow of the boat will swing more than the stern does.  This is different than a car, where the pivot point is the same in forward or reverse, due to the back wheels sticking to the ground.  A boat steers from the rear, but there is nothing holding the bow in place like tires do on a car, so the front swings too.  It also explains why you can turn a much tighter circle in reverse, than you can in forward gear.

You can use this to your advantage in tight quarters.

It's a nearly 200 page book, and there are nearly 50 pages, with lots of illustrations, that show how to dock in all combinations of wind, current and dock configurations.

In slow speed conditions, you also need to understand prop walk.  The book explains it.  You'd think that if you were moving forward along a straight line, and then suddenly put it in reverse, you'd travel backwards along that exact same path.  Not true.  You would in a car due to the tires gripping the road, but due to prop walk, the back of the boat swings to port every time, and if you hold the wheel in the same position as going forward in a straight line, when you put it in reverse, you will actually travel in an arc toward the port side. 

Understanding prop walk can be extremely important in tight quarters, and it explains why you generally want to dock on the port side of the boat, because you inevitably will have to put your boat in reverse, which pulls the rear of the boat to port (or towards the dock).  When I first got my boat, I would always try to dock on the starboard side, because it was much easier to see along that side of the boat since you can just stick your head out and look.  But every time I'd put it in reverse to stop, the rear of the boat would swing away from the dock.  It was really frustrating.  But once I got the book, I understood why this happened to me all the time.  Now I dock mostly on the port side, even though it is harder to see where you are going.

Get the book.
 
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SnakeByte said:
Thanks tyjy!  What part of Wisconsin are you from?

Good luck on the parking practice too!  My dealer showed me the key is a directional reverse to move the rear-end where you want it...that was a great tip on his part...
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Main home is in Waukesha County. We travel through Mad Town all the time, especially going to our cabin on the Crawford/Vernon County line. Got a slip in the Lansing, Iowa marina, yay : ) We see tons of pontoons to the south of the belt line all the time, hooked up together and partying. Looks like a little bay there or something (marina opposite side of the road).

Have a nice summer in your boat! Looks great with your truck!

kaydano: that was a good parking/pivot explanation! Turns out our dock is on the port side so even luckier on that one now! I just put that book on my Amazon Wish List : ) DH has driven a v-hull boat for years but not mwaa and I want to learn too!
 
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Congratulations looks great.
 
tyjy said:
Main home is in Waukesha County. We travel through Mad Town all the time, especially going to our cabin on the Crawford/Vernon County line. Got a slip in the Lansing, Iowa marina, yay : ) We see tons of pontoons to the south of the belt line all the time, hooked up together and partying. Looks like a little bay there or something (marina opposite side of the road).

Have a nice summer in your boat! Looks great with your truck!

kaydano: that was a good parking/pivot explanation! Turns out our dock is on the port side so even luckier on that one now! I just put that book on my Amazon Wish List : ) DH has driven a v-hull boat for years but not mwaa and I want to learn too!
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Hey tyjy,

You can almost see my boat from that bridge, I'm literally 300 yards to North of the bridge.  The area where the boats that you see are tied up is referred to as "Gilligan's Island".  The water right there is literally 2 feet deep.  People get out and throw frisbees, footballs, etc.

And the black truck...that is the owner of my Bennington Dealership's truck...it's a nice one, with the license plates, "I SEL FUN".  Pretty cool.

Well, next time you drive through, keep an eye out for us!

-Jason
 
kaydano said:
http://www.amazon.com/Powerboat-Handling-Illustrated-Make-Exactly-ebook/dp/B0055Y8HW4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1401235434&sr=8-1&keywords=power+boat+handling

This is a GREAT book to have.  One of the eye-openers for me was how a boat has two pivot points.  In forward gear, the boat pivots around a point in the center of the boat (port to starboard) and roughly 1/3 the distance from the bow.  In reverse, the pivot point moves back to about 1/3rd the distance from the stern. 

In other words, in forward gear the rear of the boat will swing out left or right MORE than the front of the boat does as you steer.  Going in reverse, the bow of the boat will swing more than the stern does.  This is different than a car, where the pivot point is the same in forward or reverse, due to the back wheels sticking to the ground.  A boat steers from the rear, but there is nothing holding the bow in place like tires do on a car, so the front swings too.  It also explains why you can turn a much tighter circle in reverse, than you can in forward gear.

You can use this to your advantage in tight quarters.

It's a nearly 200 page book, and there are nearly 50 pages, with lots of illustrations, that show how to dock in all combinations of wind, current and dock configurations.

In slow speed conditions, you also need to understand prop walk.  The book explains it.  You'd think that if you were moving forward along a straight line, and then suddenly put it in reverse, you'd travel backwards along that exact same path.  Not true.  You would in a car due to the tires gripping the road, but due to prop walk, the back of the boat swings to port every time, and if you hold the wheel in the same position as going forward in a straight line, when you put it in reverse, you will actually travel in an arc toward the port side. 

Understanding prop walk can be extremely important in tight quarters, and it explains why you generally want to dock on the port side of the boat, because you inevitably will have to put your boat in reverse, which pulls the rear of the boat to port (or towards the dock).  When I first got my boat, I would always try to dock on the starboard side, because it was much easier to see along that side of the boat since you can just stick your head out and look.  But every time I'd put it in reverse to stop, the rear of the boat would swing away from the dock.  It was really frustrating.  But once I got the book, I understood why this happened to me all the time.  Now I dock mostly on the port side, even though it is harder to see where you are going.

Get the book.
Click to expand...
Hey kaydano,

Thanks for the great post!  Book is on it's way!  Sounds like exactly what I need, many tight quarters I'm learning in the area where we boat.
 
SnakeByte said:
Hey tyjy,

You can almost see my boat from that bridge, I'm literally 300 yards to North of the bridge.  The area where the boats that you see are tied up is referred to as "Gilligan's Island".  The water right there is literally 2 feet deep.  People get out and throw frisbees, footballs, etc.

And the black truck...that is the owner of my Bennington Dealership's truck...it's a nice one, with the license plates, "I SEL FUN".  Pretty cool.

Well, next time you drive through, keep an eye out for us!

-Jason
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It LOOKS like a "Gilligan's Island"! Perfect name. Ok, I'll look for you and hang out of the car and yell "HEYYYY SNAAAAKEBYYYTE" (haha, probably hit an orange cone though)
 
tyjy said:
It LOOKS like a "Gilligan's Island"! Perfect name. Ok, I'll look for you and hang out of the car and yell "HEYYYY SNAAAAKEBYYYTE" (haha, probably hit an orange cone though)
Click to expand...
No shortage of orange cones around here! Next time you pass through, as you leave Madison on 151, you'll pass Verona. That's where we live.
 
tyjy said:
Main home is in Waukesha County. We travel through Mad Town all the time, especially going to our cabin on the Crawford/Vernon County line. Got a slip in the Lansing, Iowa marina, yay : ) We see tons of pontoons to the south of the belt line all the time, hooked up together and partying. Looks like a little bay there or something (marina opposite side of the road).

Have a nice summer in your boat! Looks great with your truck!

kaydano: that was a good parking/pivot explanation! Turns out our dock is on the port side so even luckier on that one now! I just put that book on my Amazon Wish List : ) DH has driven a v-hull boat for years but not mwaa and I want to learn too!
Click to expand...
The Mississippi river around there is gorgeous.  I spent many vacations while growing up around Harpers Ferry, Ia, just South of Lansing.  One of my all-time favorite spots.
 
There's not too many bridges that cross the River from WI to IA but there is the Black Hawk Bridge in Lansing, IA and Prairie du Chien/McGregor routes. If we want to go to PDC we take the "Great River Road" either on the WI side OR the IA side, pass Harper's Ferry if taking IA side : ) Yup, both sides are gorgeous! They call it the "Driftless Region". Most roads have either "Kettle", "Hollow or "Ridge" in the name!
 
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Congradulations on the boat, hopefully they get your alarm figured out for you, for a minute I thought you had some fancy yamaha I didn't know about yet! ;)
 
So and update on my minor issues...

Dealer has been awesome as I expected.

He came and picked up the boat on Tuesday to see if we could get a few of the issues figured out.

1) Alarm had been going off.  Computer read overheat codes.  Essentially, there were weeds in the water intake.  Even though there was a tell-tale, it still wasn't getting enough water.  The took it all apart and cleaned everything up.  I think I just need to be more careful when I find myself going through weeds.  Once I get through, throw it in reverse to knock off anything that might have picked up.  Also, just keeping an eye on the intake to make sure it doesn't get crudded up.  Dealer is confident this is what was causing the issue.

2) Battery Switch didn't turn off the Console.  I think this was an easy fix on his part, just swapped the console line to be after the switch instead of before.  All works now.

3) Inability to Fuel.  He wasn't confident on this one.  Said the problem is not uncommon in general with newer boats.  They checked all the fuel lines and air lines and nothing seemed obvious.  I'm guessing I'll still have the problem.  Next time I have a bit of time, I'll do some digging to see if I can see what others have found with the air vent lines.

4) Depth finder issues.  You know, this problem so far seems to have resolved itself.  After the first day or so, I never really saw the same problem.  Not sure what that was about, but works now.

Overall, I've had a great experience with my boat purchase and have already had some great times on the water with the family.  Can't wait to get back out there!
 
Weeds on the transducer too maybe...
 
kaydano said:
Weeds on the transducer too maybe...
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That would be my bet, especially with weeds in the intake   Plus, I've seen that before myself on my boats.
 
I guess that's the advantage of Jarred's and my lake.  It's so full of muck, nothing grows in it, so no weeds.  Except the microscopic stuff.  I'm sure I don't even want to know what's in there that I can't see.  What doesn't kill you makes you stronger...
 
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Dan...Things grow on/in our lake all the time!!!!!!


20140606_120514_zpsgo6llpch.jpg
 
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I try not to look down when I'm out on the boat.

I was at BB the other day, and a boat of guys/girls pulls up onto the beach next to me. One guy jumps off the boat into the beach and says "I'm SOOO glad too be back on land. I hate the water!" Then there was a long silent pause... Then everyone started laughing. Including myself. He was joking, but sounded dead serious.
 
3) Inability to Fuel. 

The fuel hoses under the filler neck can easily get bent down, instead of up. 

Even though my filler neck is bent the right direction, about all the gas flow I can take in is the flow from my 5 gallon jerry can.  If I fueled at a gas station, I'd have to pay close attention to keep it from overflowing down the side of my fencing.

I'm thinking about putting in one of the old style through the hull fuel vents to allow faster fueling.
 
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