Lenco Trim Tab upgrade - Autoglide

[Submariner]

A month ago I upgraded to the Lenco Autoglide system. Our R27-OB came with Lenco electric tabs, single actuator.

Now that we've had the Autoglide working for a month and have put several hundred miles on it. It has exceeded my expectations. The boat pops on on plane faster and doesn't lean over to port in the process. The ride is more comfortable as the boat remains a lot more level. The Autoglide adjusts those tabs way better than I ever could. Changing sea states, or passengers moving around, it figures it out and adjusts accordingly. I just drive the boat.

I went with the Lenco Autoglide, single actuator, no GPS and no N2k network (the boat already has N2k and already has a GPS antenna connected to the N2k network). Installation was about 3-4 hours and was fairly easy/straight forward. Cost-wise, it was just under $1k.

Note: This is not a stabilization, paravanes, or a sea keeper equivalent. It's auto-pilot for your trim tabs to help keep the boat level in various sea states and as passengers move about. It also is to assist with getting up on plane quicker, and helps keep the bow down so you can see over it all the time.

We just published a Lenco Autoglide review video if you're interested in seeing how this works.

Channel Surfing - Installing the Lenco Autoglide on our Ranger Tug R27-OB
https://youtu.be/X31kHGXaLzQ

 

[Bruce Moore]

Nice job, and nice video. I couldn't help but notice the dolphins and patrol pin in the pilot house window. I made six patrols on SSBN658 M.G. Vallejo out of Pearl Harbor/Guam and Charleston/Holy Loch back in '69-'71. Only boating experience I had before getting our first Ranger - an R-25 classic.Being on the surface is much more enjoyable.

Cheers,

Bruce

 

[Submariner]

Nice job, and nice video. I couldn't help but notice the dolphins and patrol pin in the pilot house window. I made six patrols on SSBN658 M.G. Vallejo out of Pearl Harbor/Guam and Charleston/Holy Loch back in '69-'71. Only boating experience I had before getting our first Ranger - an R-25 classic.Being on the surface is much more enjoyable.

Cheers,

Bruce

Thank you Bruce!!

I actually was assigned to the USS Grant (SSBN 631), based out of Holy Loch, Scotland. But never saw the boat as 1 month after they sent me there, they moved me to the Tinosa.

USS Tinosa, SSN 606 (decommissioning crew) where I did one patrol (from New London, CT, down through the Panama Canal, came out on the West side, headed South to the equator (Shellback and Order of the Ditch) then North to San Diego, Equimalt Canada and lastly, Bremerton where she was decommissioned/recycled. Then I was stationed on the USS Georgia, SSBN 729, Blue crew, when she was based out of Bangor, WA. (I did 12 patrols of 4knots to nowhere, with the occasional port call in Hawaii or San Diego.)

The view outside the window(s) of our R27-OB is more appealing as there are no port holes on a submarine. 😀 Lol

 

[Automaticman865]

Boy all this sub talk brought back memories.
back in the early sixties got to tour the Sea Dog (SS-401) (AGSS-401),
then in later years the Atlantis in Hawaii and also the USS Albacore in New Hampshire.
Sorry to hear about the Indonesian submarine that sunk in Bali Sea.

Stuart

 

[Robvic]

Martin, did you consider the Mente Marine automatic trim tab controller?
http://www.mente-marine.com/acs-products/
I just stumbled on them. Seems like an easier installation.
Rob

 

[Wolfboy]

I wonder if I set mine up wrong. I took our bout out this weekend for the first time since I installed the autoglide and I still had a noticeable port list. It seemed as if it would overcorrect to starboard then go back to port and wobble back and forth like that for the whole ride. I was traveling pretty consistently at 4500 RPM and tracking a mostly straight line on autopilot. Is that normal?

 

[Submariner]

Martin, did you consider the Mente Marine automatic trim tab controller?
http://www.mente-marine.com/acs-products/
I just stumbled on them. Seems like an easier installation.
Rob

My boat came with Lenco electric trim tabs, so I went with Lenco's solution. I've never heard of Mente-Marine's solution. I quickly scanned through the installation manual, and it seems straight forward. Though the Lenco autoglide was plug and play (all the connectors were quick disconnects). I unplugged the Lenco tab switch and tabs, all were quick disconnects. The Mente-Marine looks like you might have to do some splicing/cutting of wires to fit into a terminal block of sorts.

I also did not see a Nema2k connection mentioned in the Mente Marine install guide. The Lenco Autoglide, because it's tied into the N2k network, it knows engine RPM and can predict when I'm about to launch to get up on plane. It proactively will deploy the tabs down and pushes that bow down. Hole-shot is definitely improved as a result of this.

I know where the wires are located for the trim tabs. I don't think installing Mente-marine's solution would be any easier or more difficult for that matter.

 

[Brian98133]

I just got my Lenco (Single Actuator, No GPS) Autoglide from Fisheries. I have yet to install it, but am super excited! Thank you, Martin, for your well thought-out and informative video!

I'm not having second-thoughts... but I have been having some thoughts about wear-and-tear on the actuators, since I imagine that the new system will be constantly adjusting the tabs. Probably more than I currently do (which I do quite a bit as I'm sitting at the helm... my right hand is always on the switches).

I would imagine that Lenco knows what they're doing, as this is made to be used with their trim tabs. But my OCD mind is always thinking about the fact that every motor has a finite number of cycles/RPM's/ect.. :roll: Would the constant use of the motor create a situation in which the actuators will last just 20 years instead of 30? Or will they only last a couple seasons instead of 10-20 seasons? Probably as of yet, unknown.

I know it's almost impossible to hear the actuators whilst underway, so those that have installed the Autoglide may not know this... but I wonder how constant the use of the motors will be?

Regardless, even if it will cause the actuators to have a shorter life-span... the fact that I'm not constantly fingering the tab switches will definitely make it worth it! 😀

 

[Submariner]

I wonder if I set mine up wrong. I took our bout out this weekend for the first time since I installed the autoglide and I still had a noticeable port list. It seemed as if it would overcorrect to starboard then go back to port and wobble back and forth like that for the whole ride. I was traveling pretty consistently at 4500 RPM and tracking a mostly straight line on autopilot. Is that normal?

I had to re-calibrate mine a couple of times to get the balance right. My first go-around I was like, 1 degree off to the port side. On flat water, the autoglide would kind of rock port to starboard like a baby in a crib, back and forth.

Mine's dialed in now.

 

[Wolfboy]

Thanks for letting me know Martin. That 'rocking like a crib' is what mine feels like now. I was disappointed with the performance the other day, but it sounds like it was set up error on my part.

 

[Submariner]

I just got my Lenco (Single Actuator, No GPS) Autoglide from Fisheries. I have yet to install it, but am super excited! Thank you, Martin, for your well thought-out and informative video!

I'm not having second-thoughts... but I have been having some thoughts about wear-and-tear on the actuators, since I imagine that the new system will be constantly adjusting the tabs. Probably more than I currently do (which I do quite a bit as I'm sitting at the helm... my right hand is always on the switches).

I would imagine that Lenco knows what they're doing, as this is made to be used with their trim tabs. But my OCD mind is always thinking about the fact that every motor has a finite number of cycles/RPM's/ect.. :roll: Would the constant use of the motor create a situation in which the actuators will last just 20 years instead of 30? Or will they only last a couple seasons instead of 10-20 seasons? Probably as of yet, unknown.

I know it's almost impossible to hear the actuators whilst underway, so those that have installed the Autoglide may not know this... but I wonder how constant the use of the motors will be?

Regardless, even if it will cause the actuators to have a shorter life-span... the fact that I'm not constantly fingering the tab switches will definitely make it worth it! 😀

Great question, and thanks for watching our YouTube channel!

The simplest answer I can give is, it's a boat. Expect things to break. When components aren't used enough, they degrade and break just as much from being used too much. Salt water is a harsh environment and the boat's in a constant state of vibration.

Your concerns are valid about the constant adjusting/movement of the trim tabs. I went back and looked through my logs. I currently have put 214 engine hours with 2,576 nm traveled with the Autoglide installed.

I rank the Lenco Autoglide amongst the top 3 best upgrades I've done to Channel Surfing.

 

[Maggie Anne]

Martin, I'm curious as to any benefit you've observed in beam seas. I noticed your video showed a clip in such a situation but I did not hear any narration as to whether you thought it was effective or not in controlling the rolling motion of the boat. The video seemed to indicate that there was some rolling still but not sure if you've compared the ride in those conditions with the system on vs off.

 

[Submariner]

Martin, I'm curious as to any benefit you've observed in beam seas. I noticed your video showed a clip in such a situation but I did not hear any narration as to whether you thought it was effective or not in controlling the rolling motion of the boat. The video seemed to indicate that there was some rolling still but not sure if you've compared the ride in those conditions with the system on vs off.

The Autoglide is NOT stabalization, paravanes, nor a sea keeper. It does help with rough seas though depending on the conditions in that it'll help keep the bow down so I can see over the front, and it'll help me stay on plane at slower speeds while in rougher seas.

But there's a limit. 3-4 footers I'm coming off plane and doing 5 knots. Unless you're on plane, the tabs don't really help.
But I've easily done 2 footers on the beam and found it was easier/faster to stay on plane and cruise through.