Ride plate stiffeners

[Taylorman]

Looking for thoughts on the angle iron people add to ride plates for stiffness. Is this necessary on all boats or is it a race thing?

[Duane HTP]

A 1" x 1" aluminum angle works well. It keeps the ride plate from getting a hook in it at top speeds and keeps it from flexing.

[moneysucker]

Originally posted by Duane HTP
A 1" x 1" aluminum angle works well. It keeps the ride plate from getting a hook in it at top speeds and keeps it from flexing.
I agree, It keeps the flex in the plate down and it will cost all of $5 at home depot. Just one more thing to pollish.
Cy

[Taylorman]

Originally posted by moneysucker
I agree, It keeps the flex in the plate down and it will cost all of $5 at home depot. Just one more thing to pollish.
Cy
Just one more thing to powdercoat.

[wet77]

Anyone have a pic of this mod installed on a boat:confused:

[Squirtcha?]

Woohoo dat's my cue. Somebody asked for pictures?
Three different angles. I overkilled mine (per usual) by using 1/4" wall 2" by 2" angle. I just happened to have a stick of it in my shop, so rather than go buy some new stuff, I just used it.
After running it for a season without stiffners, I had about an 1/8" of deflection or bow in the plate. Everybody kept telling me, "you'd better get some stiffners on that rideplate" Turns out they were right.
http://www.jetheaven.us/photopost/data/500/19stiffners_iii.jpg
http://www.jetheaven.us/photopost/data/500/19stiffners_ii.jpg
http://www.jetheaven.us/photopost/data/500/19stiffners_i.jpg

[wet77]

I can see clearly now:D :D

[Taylorman]

Hey squitcha. What did that snoot do for you? What did you have before?

[TexasJet]

Tman, here is mine from the Project Topless thread.http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/520/523DCP_3611cr-med.jpg

[Heatseeker]

Here's what mine look like:
http://www.hotboatpics.com/pics/data/500/3663rideplate1-med.jpg

[Squirtcha?]

Taylorman
I'll just put up this link and you can do some light reading :rolleyes:
All the information is in there, but there are links to other boards, multiple posts, personal attacks and other ***boat board type stuff. You might want to get a cold beer and a bag of pretzels if you're gonna read it all.
droop or snoot post (http://www.realjetboats.com/cgi/yabb/YaBB.pl/YaBB.pl?board=news;action=display;num=1080607175)
The bottom line is covered by my gps numbers from last weekend contained in this post.
gps numbers from last weekend (http://www.realjetboats.com/cgi/yabb/YaBB.pl/YaBB.pl?board=news;action=display;num=1082860539)
I'll just let you read it and form your own opinion.

[Taylorman]

Here is where im at now. I plan on putting some stiffeners on this weekend.
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/500/161DCP_3629-med.JPG
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/500/161DCP_3628-med.JPG
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/500/161DCP_3627.JPG

[superdave013]

Originally posted by Heatseeker
Here's what mine look like:
http://www.hotboatpics.com/pics/data/500/3663rideplate1-med.jpg
nice to see some craftsman ship!
Love the speed holes.

[Mohavekid]

TM,
Is that the E pump shoe and ride plate kit from Duane?
Looking forward to heraring how you like it, I've been toying with trying that out on my ride.

[Taylorman]

Originally posted by Mohavekid
TM,
Is that the E pump shoe and ride plate kit from Duane?
Looking forward to heraring how you like it, I've been toying with trying that out on my ride.
I put it on last summer and did not do much testing with it. The main reason is because i had the jet o vator on and could not get my ride plate up where it needed to be with the shoe. Reason being is because of the jet o vator cable running under the bowl did not allow me to raise my ride plate. I just got ride of the jet o vator and am in the process of making the necessary modifications to move my ride plate up to where is needs to be. I just finished bolting angle iron onto my rideplate for stiffness. This week i will bring my cradle to the machine shop to take about 1/2 inch off to allow my ride plate to be where Dwayne told me to put it which is about 1/4 inch higher than the flat part of the shoe.
I can say this about the shoe, it make my boat ride higher out of the water for sure. The spray created by the hull now starts behind the back seat. Before the spray was in front of it. I can notice the boat riding more nose high.
I will have the boat back in the water in about a month. Im about to order a new set of heads since i found cracks in mine. Aluminum heads are not cheap.
I will have done a few things so i doubt i will be able to pinpoint just what gains i got from the shoe.
I am now waiting for my new heads and have just about run out of things to do on my boat. I have fixed or changed every little nit picking thing i could think of. I think tomorrow im going to put my engine back in without the heads so i can hook up plumbing and stuff. Im out of thing to do and i hate being idle.
Here is before
http://www.hotboatpics.com/pics/data/500/13DCP_3628-med.JPG
After with the stiffeners i just put on.
http://www.hotboatpics.com/pics/data/500/13DCP_3631-med.JPG
http://www.hotboatpics.com/pics/data/500/13DCP_3630-med.JPG

[Mohavekid]

Thanks for the info.
I think I'll give the shoe/plate deal on mine.

[mgar_red]

Hey Taylorman,
Did you have any alignment problems when you first put the shoe up to the intake for the first time to mark the five other holes???
Reason I ask is I don't know if it was just my pump, or maybe a bad shoe casting, but mine wouldn't line up with the pumps cav plate holes. It nested in the back of the intake perfect, but had to elongate the shoe's holes to get the bolts aligned.
.http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/521/1176ridplt.jpg
I hear ya on not being able to use your factory trim cable, but I used the old method of mounting it, as listed on the instruction sheet and added angles to it. Trying to keep costs down, but that doesn't seem to go as planned.... new carb and starter rebuild. :(

[Taylorman]

I had no problems lining mine up. Can't solve that mystery for you. I did drill mine a little f***ed up. Those pumps are hard to drill into. I drilled it a little crooked on a couple bolts so it did not come out as good as i would have liked it to. I had to drill the countersunk holes on the shoe and rideplate a little deeper so the heads of the bolts would sink in more since they are a little crooked.
Got the engine back in yesterday. I just need heads now and she will be alive again.

[HBjet]

interesting thread. When you added the angle stiffeners on, did you set the ride plate on a flat surface to see if it actually made the ride plate straight again? or put a straight edge up against the bottom of it? I'm only asking because once there bent pretty good, I don't know if a few stiffeners is going to cure your problem. The amount of pressure under under the ride plate is huge when your running the boat. Just check out the bottom for burn marks! Anyways, according to my pump guy, they have had betted results when using 6061 extruded C channel on its side for stiffeners. There is actually a lot of technology that goes into a ride plate stiffness as to where the stiffeners should be placed, how many of them, the distance between each bolt that holds them into place and how many bolts per stiffener. Some of the race boats I've seen run 4 stiffeners. I'll post up a photo tonight of my ride plate, but I have 2 stiffeners and they are in a V pattern. Not completely coming together to make a V, but the front of the plate they are closer together and toward the rear, they are almost on the outside edges.
HBjet

[Squirtcha?]

Did you set the ride plate on a flat surface to see if it actually made the ride plate straight again? or put a straight edge up against the bottom of it?
I checked mine with a straight edge Randy. I think I caught it soon enough (before the bow got too severe, or it stayed in that position too long), but the stiffners put it back straight again (checked it again with a straight edge afterwards). Then again, I overkilled my stiffners too. Who's to say if it had gotten any worse. Maybe not so lucky then.

[Taylorman]

Mine is straight with the stiffeners. I still need to cut about 1/2" off the bottome of my craddle for it to sit right. I have to push it down about 3/4" to fit my craddle inbetween the ride plate and bowl.

[HBjet]

Here is my rideplate!
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/500/20rideplate.jpg
HBjet

[Taylorman]

That looks killer. Do you use a cradle or is it adjustable like it used to be.

[HBjet]

Now thats an old photo which was taken at 4am after a long game of Drunk UNO.
I have a cradle with shims to adjust the angle. The cradle installs right behind the stiffeners. If you look you can see one of the holes where it would bolt in.
HBjet

[Taylorman]

I have a bunch of pictures on my computer and thats one of them.
Whats the typical adjustment range of a rideplate in terms of inches.
Is there a tool to measure degrees of the rideplate relative to the shoe?

[HBjet]

Originally posted by Taylorman
Whats the typical adjustment range of a rideplate in terms of inches.
Well, I have 3 different shims. I forgot the size, but without any of them, my rideplate is at 6 degrees up. Add them all I'm at 2 degrees I believe.. I will have to check it out again. I have my rideplate set at 4 degrees right now. As for in terms of inches, maybe all the way up, verses all the way down the travel is one inch. It will very on rideplate length though.
Originally posted by Taylorman
Is there a tool to measure degrees of the rideplate relative to the shoe?
Straight edge on the keel/shoe (as long as your shoe isn't back cut) and then measure the degrees up from the straight edge to the bottom of the rideplate.
HBjet