Rideplate

[waterboy1]

Besides my RXP i have a XLT 1200 that runs 68.2 GPS, a large part of speed ioncrease from the stock 58 was due to the ride plate. Its not unheard of to pick up 2 mph by angle moding the rideplate and removing skegs etc. Has any one done any work to there rideplates as far as angle mods, adding washers to the front etc. These make big differnces on the yamaha by racing the front out of the water to reduce friction.

[BDNJ]

Jerry has pioneered some fine-tuning techniques, all of which are described on this site. Gains of 1-2 mph can be had by sanding down the rideplate so it sits level with the intake grate, and filling in the rideplate holes to reduce friction. As far as washers go, not really sure. I'm sure Jerry will chime in when he gets a chance. It might be worth a try, but could be tricky since the ride plate also doubles as a heat exchanger.

[Green Hulk]

Shimming the rideplate on these skis is not as easy a task as on a GPR.
I know others have done it though, but im not sure of their results, if any.

I have been playing around with a rideplate extension that I welded onto the back of my rideplate. I initially started with a 2" extension and discovered it scrubbed too much speed. The hookup in chop was not to be believed though. I then cut it down to 1" and the ski still hooked up well and still no porpoising. I have since cut it down to 3/4" and bent it up slightly (it used to lay flat with the plane on the back of the rideplate)
Bending it up gave me the benefit of being able to get the nose up more on high speed runs. It still eliminates ALL porpoising, handling is improved as is hookup over chop. I'll snap a couple of pics a little later for you guys.

[Green Hulk]

Here are a couple of pics.

[waterboy1]

I havent had the plate off yet but on my Xlt i sent it off To island racing in New Jersey and they ground the mounting services so that when it is remounted, the back off the plate sits up closer to the hull and thus lifting the nose out of the water more.

[RXPSC05]

I'm gonna try the jb-weld trick on my ride plate and see how it runs. That might push me to 70mph all stock.

I hit 69.4 on the gps this morning. See Test Results post.

[Green Hulk]

I can almost guarantee you will gain over 1 mph from filling in the holes

[jack]

A couple of questions before I try this jb weld ride plate thing.

1) Do you fill in ALL the holes including the one in the front?

2) I ride in salt water most of the time. Once I sand, wont I take off some of the anodizing (I think it is anodized) on the ride plate? If so, how do I protect it once I sand?

3) What is the best place to buy the jb weld? I have some old stuff (from home depot) that came in two parts I used on my pinball machine but its been sitting around for about a year.

[Green Hulk]

Jack, the hole in the front? Are you talking about the bolt in the front on the grate? Don't fill in the grate bolt holes with JB Weld. Just use some silicone for those.

There are 6 bolt holes on the rideplate. JB weld can be purchased at Autozone, or any other auto parts store.

[jack]

Yep that is what I meant. Thanks. What about the anodizing?