Waterline, Draft

Take the back seat out. Dig in the foam at the back corners or go under the dash in the center and stick something in the foam and see it it's wet down there. Full tank of gas, back shouldn't sit more than about 3 1/2" below water.

Ziggster wrote: I see lots of comments about how high/low boats are sitting in the water in pics along with comments about wet foam, wet stringers, etc. How far up should the waterline be in general? I would think graphics are a good reference point for this. Also I was thinking that the mfg.s spec for draft could be marked on the hull by measuring up from the ground to the lowest point when on a trailer or lift and add that to the draft..

It's called a "Plimsoll line". The Plimsoll line is a reference mark located on a ship's hull that indicates the maximum depth to which the vessel may be safely immersed when loaded. This depth varies with a ship's dimensions, type of cargo, time of year, and the water densities encountered in port and at sea.





JQ

I think Tim's method would be the only true way to find out. Weighing one would only work if every boat weighed the exact same as the one the factory weighed. What if he weighs his and its say 30 pounds over? Is it wet or was more glass and resin used?

My Mustang 17 has the same sluggish symptoms at lower speeds also. Knowing that I was going to replace the stringers when I bought it, I started checking the foam in several areas. Foam looked good for the most part. Then I dug deeper. Against the hull it was saturated for at least an inch. Directly under the floor and several inches deeper it showed very little indications that there was a problem. Point being, dig all the way to the hull before making a judgement. Bet I have pulled out 400 pounds of saturated foam and waterlogged rotten stringers. Wished I would have weighed the boat for a before and after weight.