Doomsday Prep...

[THE Cat Sass]

Question for the brain trust here. First a little background...I've been piloting what I consider fairly fast tunnel hulls for most of my life, my previous 3 Daytona's (26', 25' and 21') ran 90, 120 and 120 respectively and my current 28 speedster runs 128. In all of my years running cats I've only lost 1 drive, smoked the upper on the 25' around 90 mph and when it popped it coasted to a very mellow stop. Nothing spooky.

Here's my question...with twins, rolling along at a buck-thirty and a drive pops or a motor lets go - what happens (most of the time)? There has to be that split second before you can chop the sticks that the other motor is still singing which in my mind has to create some torque on the hull and at that speed would be no-bueno?

Anyone with experience...GO

 

[monkeyswrench]

Somebody yells, "Hold my beer!"

Sorry, I'm of no help. Nothing I own is fast enough to scare me when it scatters. Not that I'm fearless, just own slow junk

 

[SJP]

Have your kill switch and vest on.

 

[Mcob25rg]

Make sure it’s insured for real top speed - if you live, they won’t pay if you cheated on performance information

 

[H20 Toie]

Remember the Nashville catz boat? the eliminator boat coming toward him lost a drive (they suspect) made a hard turn right in front of him, he went thru the boat.

 

[n2otoofast4u]

There are lots of variables here.

I have a 25 Daytona with twin OB's (you've seen it up in the Columbia I am pretty sure). I have broke both sides

1- I was VERY new to the boat, I am North of 100, BANG........

2- I lost a lower at about 90 at Shasta last Memorial weekend... BANG.....

Both times it scared the F outta me, buzzers going off, boat slowing down. A real WTF moment. Boat never wiggled essentially. The difference was both times the props were free spinning and didn't add a HUGE amount of drag to one side. If I am going faster, who knows, but it never gave any odd sensation either time. That all to say, I am of the opinion if the prop stops spinning, its going to get real interesting, real quick.

As a side note, I see you have the Speedster listed for sale, what's next.

 

[Mototrig]

Remember the Nashville catz boat? the eliminator boat coming toward him lost a drive (they suspect) made a hard turn right in front of him, he went thru the boat.

That was Gordon Mineo, right? He lost a drive at 110ish and veered into NC.

 

[THE Cat Sass]

There are lots of variables here.

I have a 25 Daytona with twin OB's (you've seen it up in the Columbia I am pretty sure). I have broke both sides

1- I was VERY new to the boat, I am North of 100, BANG........

2- I lost a lower at about 90 at Shasta last Memorial weekend... BANG.....

Both times it scared the F outta me, buzzers going off, boat slowing down. A real WTF moment. Boat never wiggled essentially. The difference was both times the props were free spinning and didn't add a HUGE amount of drag to one side. If I am going faster, who knows, but it never gave any odd sensation either time. That all to say, I am of the opinion if the prop stops spinning, its going to get real interesting, real quick.

As a side note, I see you have the Speedster listed for sale, what's next.

Thanks for the response. I'm interested in building a 27 speedster with 450's - all carbon boat. I may also slap a S-3 on this boat and a set of Merc cleavers and see what happens. Too close to call at this point!

 

[monkeyswrench]

Not knowing squat about OB's, do they make a "whirl away" type setup for them? The drive in the water would cause drag, but not near as much as a stuck prop, like @n2otoofast4u was saying.

 

[MK1MOD0]

I broke a drive on a twin engined Advantage Sportcat at about 110. My passenger was wondering why we were stopping. I told him a drive broke. He would have never known. zero drama.

 

[RiverDave]

Question for the brain trust here. First a little background...I've been piloting what I consider fairly fast tunnel hulls for most of my life, my previous 3 Daytona's (26', 25' and 21') ran 90, 120 and 120 respectively and my current 28 speedster runs 128. In all of my years running cats I've only lost 1 drive, smoked the upper on the 25' around 90 mph and when it popped it coasted to a very mellow stop. Nothing spooky.

Here's my question...with twins, rolling along at a buck-thirty and a drive pops or a motor lets go - what happens (most of the time)? There has to be that split second before you can chop the sticks that the other motor is still singing which in my mind has to create some torque on the hull and at that speed would be no-bueno?

Anyone with experience...GO

nobody can really answer this question because it depends on the scenario / setup and other things.

Did you bow an upper? Or blow a gimbal and the drive drops down in the water? When you blow the drive is it gonna free wheel? Or could it lock up?


It could go straight or it might turn slightly or it might turn violently.

Upside is most the time they go straight.. When they break they freewheel and if you are quick on the throttles it just slows down.

Downside is sometimes they don’t. Suspected in HTM crash, Nashville cats and others

 

[pixrthis]

I drove a 25’ Motion for a friend, he throttled, and we lost a power head, the boat kept going straight and slowed down no problem. Another time we think we hit something floating but submerged and the lower unit was ripped off or at the very least fell off and the boat hooked hard and went up on its side to the point we thought we were getting wet but it end up upright.
Racing in quartering seas was interesting because of one prop leaving the water later than the other and waterever wind we were dealing with would drive the boat to whichever side stayed in the water longer requiring correction ever time you launched. We were only going mid to high 90’s so it doesn’t completely equate to a boat going 130 plus but I did feel the affect of the boat being propelled by one side a lot. With the exception of hooking which also happened when you launched and the boat tripped landing on its nose, it was a lot of fun to drive that boat.

 

[Duramax]

Question for the brain trust here. First a little background...I've been piloting what I consider fairly fast tunnel hulls for most of my life, my previous 3 Daytona's (26', 25' and 21') ran 90, 120 and 120 respectively and my current 28 speedster runs 128. In all of my years running cats I've only lost 1 drive, smoked the upper on the 25' around 90 mph and when it popped it coasted to a very mellow stop. Nothing spooky.

Here's my question...with twins, rolling along at a buck-thirty and a drive pops or a motor lets go - what happens (most of the time)? There has to be that split second before you can chop the sticks that the other motor is still singing which in my mind has to create some torque on the hull and at that speed would be no-bueno?

Anyone with experience...GO

I have been a co pilot when we locked up a side over 150. It slid side to side, then was fine. I lost the lower in my twin outboard Daytona about 90 and it was dead straight. Htm single at 104ish and fine.

I believe Gordon's boat was built with Arnesons, although I could be wrong. That I have no experience with.