boat pulls left at high speed?

[walleye 4 me]

I have a 2000 1954 Bayliner with a 3.0 L Mercruser. Boat pulls hard to the left at higher speeds. I have tryed adjusting the thing above the prop but it doesn't seem to make a difference. Any suggestions?

[broken_line]

adjust the trim tabs, move the heavier people and cargo to the right side.. is the gas tank on the left side??

[walleye 4 me]

Boat doesn't have trim tabs, does not matter where the people and cargo are, gas tank is in the center. And when I say pulls left, I meean if you are doing over 20 mpg and let go of the wheel you quickly go in a circle.

[marine_man]

You need to adjust the torque tab on the back of the motor - right above the propeller. Turn it the direction it wants to pull. You may have to explore a little bit.

marine_man

[broken_line]

so you dont have to fight to keep it straight?? its just when you let go of the wheeel?

[walleye 4 me]

Yes you kind of have to fight to keep it straight. There is constant pressure on the steering wheel. If you let go even for a second you turn left violently. I did turn the torque tab thing and I could not tell a difference.

[311Hemi]

Did you move the trim tab to the correct side (left)?

Is the trim tab worn down?

[marine_man]

I presume you're trimming the motor up when you're on plane, which would reduce steering torque as well?

marine_man

[walleye 4 me]

311, are you talking about the round thing above the prop? I tried turning it both ways and leaving it straight. Did not seem to make a difference. Marine man, yes I trim the motor up when on plane. I can't feel a difference in steering when I trim up.

[marine_man]

So, to make sure I'm fully understanding everything here...

The boat pulls hard to the left when on plane. After you take off, you trim the motor up until the boat starts to porpoise, then back down just enough so it stops porpoising. You're still feeling torque.

And, you've adjusted the torque tab that looks like this above the prop:

marine_man

[walleye 4 me]

Correct, I have had it straight, turned left and turned right. Boat still pulls hard left.

[marine_man]

One option would be to put a torque tab on the trailing edge of the skeg that would reduce your steering pull to the left.

This type of product is most commonly used on high performance boats where very little of the hull is in contact with the water, but it may be required in your application.

It looks like this:

And can be pop-rivited (most common) or welded to your skeg.

marine_man

[walleye 4 me]

I hope I don't have to go that route. My 2000 Bayliner is not exactly a high performance boat. Next time I get it on the water I will try adjusting the torque tab again but I may have to try something else.

[311Hemi]

Just make sure the trim tab is turned to the side/direction that the boat is wanting to turn in. If the boat is wanting to turn towards the starboard side, the trim tab should be moved to the starboard side.

[leech~~]

When sitting in the boat with the motor off and the wheel straight, do you feel any play in it one way or the other when moving it back and forth lightly? You may have a bad steering cable or out of adjustment one way?