Erat

iTrader: (5)

I bought my boat for 8k, with 2 props(all wood, 1970's era hull) About 3-4k into the engine at this point. Then another 2 or 3k into the safety equipment and miscellaneous. I still don't have an air system which is typically 4-5k for the complete package.

The red boat that Cassie is kneeling on next to me in the picture was sold to Geoff and his dad Dennis for 35k, they have about 12k into their engine and are using borrowed props. It is the most expensive (non HRL league) 5l boat sold so far that i know of. The Penzoil sponsored boat is for sale right now for 30k too.
They offered to sell the complete package to me for 20k and my boat.

A GP boat can cost upwards of 100k without engine 200k with. A cheap all composite complete Y boat(1 liter) can be had for less than 10k. Inboard boats are typically more expensive and don't have very many races. If you were getting into boat racing and weren't passionate about inboard, i would certainly suggest outboard. The pros outweigh the cons.

PirateBarHooker

I'm a wooden yacht restorer and finisher so I'm pleased to find this thread. My little 2016 24 foot home built Robert Tucker T24.

Took my uncle nearly 30 years to build "The Hasty Nose" only for the poor bugger to die a week after it went in the water for the first time having never sailed it. I'd never actually sailed before I took her on as I preferred motor boats, I'm not sure I've got the sailing bug yet but I do love her so either way...

Deep keel with bilge keels added so she can sit in the mud, 2 berth, all wood construction and sheethed, no inboard engine, just a 6hp outboard soon to be replaced by a restored long shaft British seagull.

Erat

iTrader: (5)

So I just did this last night. Red boat is mine now. The all carbon fiber boat (national champ 3 years in a row)(with an unlimited driver) i posted in the other thread was bought by the previous owner of the red boat.

ryansmoneypit

iTrader: (6)

what is that strange thing sticking up in the front, from the left (sponson?) ?

Erat

iTrader: (5)

From the driver's seat you can't see the angle of the wing. It just allows you to see that.

TurboTim

iTrader: (9)

Nice. What other thread? I remember seeing that but can't find it.

sixshooter

iTrader: (12)

What are you doing with your old boat?

Erat

iTrader: (5)

It was part of the deal with the new boat. Geoff is going to let his girlfriend Cassie campaign it.

Tim, in the random pics thread. I'll post here too.




You sit in the cockpit like an F1 driver. Flat and laid way back.

Erat

iTrader: (5)

Racing is decent.

Erat

iTrader: (5)

Had to make some repairs. Back out again next weekend for nationals.

I'll try and get some better interior footage next race.

Gee Emm

So tell me about that FW! Is it active, I can't tell if that is just vibration/flexing, or it actually adjusts while under way? Is that a mass balance on the LHS? It also looks to have a convex upper surface, I'd have expected concave just like the RWs on our cars - nobody I have seen runs symmetrical airfoils.

Looks like a rough ride, you should get Emilio to run you up some special Xidas .. oh wait ...

Erat

iTrader: (5)

Front wing is just designed just like a wing on an airplane. It's convex because we want lift, not downforce. But it can be adjusted to send more air under the boat. It can also be used to keep the boat sucked to the water in windy or rough conditions. It is active. It was mainly for safety and better control. But now some builders are making them so they need them.

There a few different ways these operate.
Mine is controllable but "fixed", it is controlled by a right thumb button on the steering wheel. It's "fixed" in a sense that i basically set it and forget it, maybe give a few clicks up when in the turns. Then click back down when heading down the cute. It's vibrating and moving so much because it's rough. The is a gap of about 3/4" between the wing and the bullnose of the cockpit (right in front of the camera) and the wing actually makes contact with it. That's how much flex there is. The active stability on these modern action cameras really mask how rough it actually is.

A lot of them these days are operated actively by your left foot. The air traveling over them(and big springs) will default them to a position that sends air over the boat and you use your left foot to put pressure on the wing and direct air under the air trap.

Some boats are faster without them. That boat in my first picture A66 is supposed to have a wing, it's faster without it. Just like my old white boat. These are designed like a giant wing, faster air moving over the decks and the giant air trap underneath(ground effect on steroids) makes these things be able to do 100+mph with 250hp.

Gee Emm

Now I'm confused! LIFT!?! and these things are known to flip backwards ... ... I seriously need a tute on the design principles behind them, got any references you can link me to?

Thanks!!

Erat

iTrader: (5)

That's actually the most frustrating part of doing this.

There is no technical information. There is no online community forums where information is shared. All knowledge is ancient wisdom passed down by word of mouth. Those who have something that is winning and really good is kept secret. Not that there is any money in hiding it, unless you're a boat builder and want to provide hulls for the somewhat wealthy who can afford a new one. When you want to do something or make a change it's all trial and error and it's not like you can just go to open track rental and test. You need a crane and a somewhat private body of water and probably a chase boat. For example I called the builder of my boat yesterday for technical information, that's basically what you have to do. Network with a ton of people. Make friends and do what other successful people are doing.

But at the end of the day, the only way to win is to do 2 things. Be reliable and be a good driver. State of the art equipment is almost last. Remember I won high points with a wooden boat built in the 70s and an engine assembled in my garage with a HF torque wrench.

Gee Emm

I am surprised at that, but then again I was surprised at the level of information exchange I found here. Thanks for filling me in!

I just scrolled up this thread, I thought I had been monitoring it for new posts but found a lot I hadn't read. Interested to see the Racepak dash, I understand using that for engine vitals and logging, what other functions/data would be your priority while racing? Yaw? AoA? Airspeed/water speed? I assume there is no gearchange to worry about?

Erat

iTrader: (5)

Let me start by saying that i would NEVER buy a racepack and i do not endorse its use. It sucks and it's what the boat came with. There are so many better options and being a member of this site for so long has spoiled me of that fact.

I use it for speed (GPS). Volts (we don't run an alternator). Oil pressure and water temperature (with the dash warning lights) and RPM (which doesn't work, obvious by the shift lights going crazy). Oil pressure sometimes doesn't work too. Thankfully i have an analog gauge on the dash for that.
Datalogging is nice to have, but i don't have wideband O2 sensors, so it's somewhat pointless. I mean this is basically highway robbery. It can logs everything including GPS so that's nice. But it's not nearly as nice as MS datalogging. Even the innovate PL-1 i had on my old boat was better.

stratosteve

iTrader: (1)

The wife and I are considering getting a boat. Leaning toward a Yamaha jet boat. We currently have a jet ski but thinking boat for more room. My buddy is looking to get one also.

We found a 240 HO locally but it has almost 400 hours. It has the 1.8s that I understand are fairly robust. Thoughts on the hours? Boat appears well kept.

Gee Emm

I'm not a Racepak fan either, wasn't sorry to see it go, the learning curve was a bit steep for me. Yeah, you need to smart about what/how you hook stuff up or it will cost big time. Most of mine went into the ECU, but for reasons of limited inputs I put some though their A/D box. But wait, you still use a carb, or are you running an ECU now? If ECU, use that as as much as you can, including datalogging and data analysis, and the dash for display only. Otherwise, you face a difficult choice, basically how bad is it and how badly do want to throw it out and spend money on something else? In your shoes I'd find someone else with a boat using it, and pump them for tips/advice. If it's an orphan, make it someone else's orphan.

Erat

iTrader: (5)

It's all about maintenance and how well it was winterized. Did it ever see salt water. What kind of life did it live, stored on trailer, on shore station, floated in water, pulled tubes with kids its entire life, was it beached constantly and the gel coat worn off at the front? ECT. Hours are somewhat irrelevant. I don't know the service life of these jet boats nowadays. They do have more wear components than a typical V drive or straight shaft boat.
I personally wouldn't recommend a jet boat. But i would recommend it over an IO drive or outboard for a family with kids.

That 240 HO has an awesome stern setup. I love the two tier design with massively wide swim platform. That's where you're going to spend your time.

stratosteve

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the input. We are gonna pass on it. Too many things not shown in the ad. Selective camera positioning etc. Loved the layout. Back to the search.