Weight distribution is extremely important to boat safety as well as performance. Weight can affect a boat’s running angle, attitude, performance and ride. For the best top speed with a moderate to fast planning boat, passenger loading in most cases should be evenly distributed. Each boater should seek out what weight locations best suit his or her needs. Always remember that weight distribution is not strictly confined to fore and aft locations, but also applies to lateral weight distribution.
Altitude has a very noticeable effect on the wide open throttle (WOT) power of an engine. Since air gets thinner as altitude increases, the engine begins to starve for air (oxygen) and horsepower is lost. If the boat has been set up at a lower altitude and then moved to a much higher altitude, there will be a noticeable reduction in power.
Summer conditions of high temperature, low barometric pressure, and high humidity all combine to reduce engine power as much as 15%. This, in turn, is reflected in decreased boat speeds of (in some cases) 3 -5 miles per hour. Nothing will regain this speed for the boater except the coming of cool, dry weather.
Stainless steel is just as its name implies – it “stains” less than normal carbon steel. Only the highest quality stainless steel available is used on Spartan boats. Rust can occur under numerous circumstances, including polluted water and galvanic corrosion. The rust can be removed with rubbing compounds. A scotch-brite pad is OK, but do not use steel wool.
Nearly all recreational boat manufacturers place their operator’s position on the right-hand side and use right-hand rotation propellers to compensate for the boat roll resulting from propeller torque.
The trim angle of a boats drive has a distinct effect on the planing angle of the boat, which significantly alters top speed and handling. The engine should be trimmed in at the factory for best start-up acceleration and shortest time to plane. If trimmed “in” (under) too far, the bow drops and the boat runs too wet. In this condition, top speed drops, fuel economy decreases, and the boat may over-steer in one direction or the other (otherwise known as “bow-steering”). If trimmed “out” too far, the may lose its hold on the water. In conventional extruded chine hull designs, the boat may start to “walk” from right to left to right, etc. (“chine walking”), and getting on plane may be difficult or labored. Porpoising may also occur.
A tachometer (“tach”) measures engine RPM’s. An engine is designed to run at certain RPM limits. Without a tachometer, the operator has little opportunity to know if the engine is at a dangerously high or low RPM level. Any deviation from the established RPM levels other than those associated with climatic conditions, elevation, or gross load changes, is an indication of a possible performance problem.
Fouling is a kind of unwanted build-up (usually animal/vegetable derived) occurring on the boat’s bottom. Fouling creates additional drag, which reduces boat performance. In fresh water, fouling results from dirt, vegetable matter, algae or slime, chemicals, minerals and other pollutants. In salt water, barnacles, moss and other marine growth often produce a dramatic build-up of material rather quickly. So it’s important to keep the hull as clean as possible in all water conditions to maximize boat performance. Severe cases of bottom fouling can prevent planing by adding too much drag.
The leading cause of corrosion damage is galvanic corrosion (the electrochemical interaction between different metals). It is most hazardous where drive units are immersed in salt water, brackish water and many inland waters with high conductivity caused by pollution. The corrosion reaction occurs when electrons flow between dissimilar metals connected or grounded through water. In the process, one of the two metals is eaten away. The damaging corrosion can be eliminated by providing sacrificial metal-zinc which will preferentially corrode to protect the drive unit. Sacrificial anodes are installed at the factory by the engine manufacturers that Spartan uses. Additional transom mount zinc anodes are available for optimum protection, if deemed necessary. The anode’s main purpose is for corrosion protection. By their very nature, they deteriorate very rapidly and must be constantly inspected and regularly replaced if you are an avid salt water boater.
The use of marine grade aluminum, zinc anodes, and freshwater cooling in combination with respected name brand components gives Spartan boats as much salt water protection the industry can offer.
All boats are constructed with 5086 H116 and 5052 H32 corrosive resistant marine grade alloy.
Although mile per hour numbers are usually how boats are judged, Spartan has taken the time and energy to convert the savings by using our Exclusive Reverse Chine Hull vs. the typical extruded chine aluminum hull into actual dollar savings at the gas pump.
Aluminium has long been recognized as the premier boat building material. It is rust-free, almost undegradable and with a regular pure water cleaning, alloy boats are lifetime boats compared with boats made out of wood or fiberglass which require permanent care.
Fibreglass is inexpensive comparative to aluminium and construction of fibreglass boats does not necessarily require a highly skilled craftsman to build as they are built from moulds. Fibreglass material is simply saturated with epoxies either sprayed or laid within the mould and left to dry. Higher quality fibreglass boats simply use more fibreglass to strengthen it. But moulds for fiber glass boats are fixed, which means building a new mould is expensive and requires larger manufacturing volume to amortise the cost of the mould.
As a boat material, aluminium excels in every important category. Weight: An all-welded aluminium boat weighs about 1/2 to 2/3 of the weight of a well “laid-up” fibreglass boat. Performance: Less weight means greater performance, better fuel efficiency and easier trailering. Durability: You can do things with a quality aluminium boat that you would never dream of doing with a fibreglass boat: dock it against your favourite ledge, repeatedly beach it hard on shore, plunk your anchor into the cockpit. Unlike brittle fibreglass, aluminium can take repeated abuse given the forgiving and yielding nature of this metal. Bang it, bounce or bump it onto rocks, quay’s, beaches and even other boats and your aluminium boat will withstand it. Safety: The two most dangerous hazards in boating are sinking and fire. Aluminiun comparative to the use of fiberglass or wood, is less at risk from sinking and fire hazards. Comfort: A naval architect once said the hardest thing to design into a boat is usable deck space, Our hulls are only 3/16“ thick allowing us to easily exceed fibreglass boats when it comes to usable space inside the boat. Fibreglass boats commonly lose up to 6“ or more of deck space over the entire length of the boat due to their thick sides. Repairability: In the unlikely event you have found a way to pierce or tear the hull of an aluminium boat, it is easily repaired by welding. Value for money & resale: Unlike fiberglass boats which depreciate quickly over years, aluminium corrosion-free boats hold their resale value. Environment friendly : Aluminum boats don’t harm the environment they are recyclable.
With aluminium being a lot lighter than traditional materials, you need less than half the horsepower needed to equal the performance of a traditionally built boat of equal size, this has two benefits, firstly you consume less fuel, and secondly, your engine over time will save up on maintenance cost due to less usage from reduced weight.
To have an electrolysis problem certain conditions must be present. You must have two different metals in contact with the water. All of our boats are made out of a single metal, so they don’t have this problem.
The only metals in contact with the water are the aluminium’s of the engine and the boat. Since the aluminium of the engine is “softer”, this is the metal that would be consumed by electrolysis. The sacrificial anodes supplied with your engine will protect it, but should be watched and replaced as needed.
Additionally, we place a large sacrificial zinc anode on the boat’s transom as a secondary protection: it is not costly and can be easily replaced every year when corroded.
The voltage difference between the two metals will affect the rate of corrosion. For example a stainless steel prop, which is a relatively noble metal, will cause more corrosion of a set of zincs than a bronze prop. Corrosion will increase the saltier the water is. Increasing temperature will also increase the conductivity of water and the resulting corrosion. The corrosion rate doubles with every 10 degrees Celsius (18 degrees Fahrenheit) increase in temperature. Pollution can also increase corrosion. For example, many freshwater lakes have been contaminated by acid rain, which increases the conductivity of the water and therefore corrosion rates.
Braked: The maximum weight you are legally able to tow braked is 3500kg GVW on a 50mm ball hitch and over-run brakes. Unbraked: The maximum weight you are legally able to tow unbraked is 750kg Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW). All vehicles have different towing capacities, check your cars specification on what is the maximum weight it can tow. Single or Double Axle: The largest single axle trailer generally is 1800-1900kg GVW. There are inherent benefits with twin axle trailers, including better weight distribution and safer towing in the event of a blow-out. Bunks Bunks offer the best support for a boat as it spreads the load on the hull, but generally requires the boat to be floated on & off. Rollers Rollers contact the hull fully and make launching and recovery much easier.
