ragtop409

I also am hard on my boat when using it in the salt water and my Bennets have held up well the single piston has faster reaction but the 2 piston is stronger so pick you poison. I also think the Martini replace ments is a wise choice if you can get a good deal on a partial or used Bennet system. Rag's

marinetrans

Bennetts are pretty good. My father has a 24ft Apollo w/ 502 Bravo3 and has only bent one so far. So I made a couple of stainless angle iron supports to renforce them. Have not bent since.

32storm

Bennett customer service is great, but when I had my Formula, I had a cylinder that went ,o-rings that needed to be replaced on leaking cylinders, and had to replaced cracked/leaking resevoir. Their electronic trim indicators are great for cruisers, but junk on an offshore boat. !eplaced multiple cylinder indicators, and CPU units, before their customer service indicated it was really never designed for speeds over 60MPH! They're great for sending parts at no cost, but very limited design when speed and use come into play. I went K-planes on the Hustler, and never looked back.... simply no comparisom.

Sydwayz

Bennett customer service.... TOP NOTCH. I have posted multiple threads about this in the past.

I upgraded mine to the ST-16s from ST-12s, and all I had to do was drill a few new holes. The only problem I have had with mine was a leaky pump, and I blew out a ferrel one time on the hoses inside the bilge, on a hard landing. It made a mess, but I put it back together on the water, and it still worked just fine. Make sure when you install them, to get the feeder hose lengths from the pump to the tabs equal lengths, or one will be faster than the other. Also, definately get offshore indicators; not the electronic ones.

Contact M.J. Thomas at Bennett. He will take care of ANYTHING you need. PERFECTION in customer care.

Playn

I use the dual ram Bennetts on my 27' and have never had any issues. As was said before..they are very slow though.

martiniboat

Have to agree guys, Bennett customer service is top notch! These rams can also take a beating! That's definitely one of the reasons I felt confident providing the boating community with an aftermarket upgrade using Bennett rams.

The Lenco rams are also something I've been investigating, they too are very beefy. Of course, I will be providing an aftermarket trim tab upgrade for all tabs, Insta-Trim, Trim Master and including the infamous K-plane. I've been working on that version with a fellow OSO member for awhile now. Coming soon...in a beautiful stainless finish, very trick! (actually, there are three versions I've been working on for the K-planes, variety is the spice of life!)

Brian Kamrath
Martiniboat Marine Design Inc.

migara422

Thank you guys for the help, i know that if i had the boat in the ocean i would probably go with the k-plane but i just dont see the extra 2 thousand when im gonna be on the lake 90% of the time , the extra money can go towards a supercharge maybe.

Martini, what kind of update are you making for the kPlane?

migara422

Sydwayz, why did you upgrade to the st 16? and when you did, what was the difference from the st 12 when boating?

MrCIG

I had dual ram bennets on my 302 Formula (heavy boat) They worked just fine. Good tab for the money

Sydwayz

My original 12s had a cosmetic blemish. I decided I wanted it fixed, and went to the 16s instead. They definately work more dramatically, as when they are down they have more tab in the water, and to me, are about the size of the 280 K-Planes. When I blew out the ferrel, it was with the ST-12s. NEVER a problem with the 16s.

The 12s and the 16s have the cylinder mounting plate in the exact same position, so an upgrade from 12-16 is very easy. (No moving the rams). The only thing I had to change was the tab mounting plate, as the 12s have one row of screws, and the 16s have a plate with two rows, however, the bottom row of screws line up with the original screw holes for the 12's plate. I think I had to drill 4 holes on each side. Laid them on their with 5200, and away I went the next weekend.

I think the 4 inch longer tabs were probably one of the best upgrades I did to the boat. I can plane easier now, and keep on plane at a slower speed. Keeps the drive up maybe an extra inch or two when you drop them down at idle speeds in shallow areas too. Since the cylinder mounting plate is in the same postition, I did not lose any travel either.... Top Notch.

I think the price difference is $100 or less.