1981 Cigarette Bacardi race champion boat- Coors Silver Bullet 39
03-21-2009, 07:53 AM
#21
Registered
Sorry Marco incorrect: The 40` Cig for Diamond Don was a bare hull 40` that Kiekhaefer had laying around the barn in Fondulac for several years the original gelcoat was the colors of the Diamond Don boat. I did the first test and set-up work with the boat, which I stated in other posts?? This boat had the prototype Kiekhaefer drives on it, predesesor to the # 6 we know today. The upper housing was fixed straight and the lower unit steered, wish there was some documentation for them, I`m sure there is maybe Nigel could get some pix????
anyway: when the boat was first put in the water Dick Schwartz tryed to drive it with the new drive system and it was out of control. I was with Bonomi at the time and was on my way home from Europe when Mr. K. called and asked if I would test the boat for him, I did and encountered the same thing, boat was uncontrollable, the more I tested I finally figured out that the steering helm ratio was wrong, it was two turns lock to lock so any input in the wheel exaggerated the steering at the drive almost double. We changed the helm and slowed the steering and the boat could now be driven wide open hands off the wheel. This is what many racers today don`t understand that it was guys like me who had to figure all those things out, things that were new and experimental, guess that`s why we were called test drivers, we had to relate what was going on to the engineers then it was up to them to come up with the solution. As for the Sunoco boat, not sure where it ended up, also FYI Mark Donahue rode in the boat as well, and I think Barry Cordingly, who was Don`s test Driver.
anyway: when the boat was first put in the water Dick Schwartz tryed to drive it with the new drive system and it was out of control. I was with Bonomi at the time and was on my way home from Europe when Mr. K. called and asked if I would test the boat for him, I did and encountered the same thing, boat was uncontrollable, the more I tested I finally figured out that the steering helm ratio was wrong, it was two turns lock to lock so any input in the wheel exaggerated the steering at the drive almost double. We changed the helm and slowed the steering and the boat could now be driven wide open hands off the wheel. This is what many racers today don`t understand that it was guys like me who had to figure all those things out, things that were new and experimental, guess that`s why we were called test drivers, we had to relate what was going on to the engineers then it was up to them to come up with the solution. As for the Sunoco boat, not sure where it ended up, also FYI Mark Donahue rode in the boat as well, and I think Barry Cordingly, who was Don`s test Driver.
The #3 and the writing Aeromarine III makes to think about Magoon, but the surgeon had a 40' white-red-blue with the #US -1.
From the colors of the boat could be the next Sunoco DX-CAM 2 of Penske, but also the next boat of Don Smith(Diamond Don)....
Last edited by Black Tornado; 03-21-2009 at 08:57 AM.
03-21-2009, 11:05 AM
#22
Registered
Ciggy 40
I hope you havn`t been doing a `photoshop` Marco,to give us 2 Aeromarines III`s (a 36ft and a 40ft).
A few quotes from the files.
Really Ridiculous - Carl Kiekhaefer`s recently disposed of Cigarette 40.
US 1 (Red/White/Blue) - A new boat for Magoon
Sunoco DX - A new Aronow 40 footer. (surely this must be CAM 2 eventually)
Chuck all that into the equation until told otherwise.
A few quotes from the files.
Really Ridiculous - Carl Kiekhaefer`s recently disposed of Cigarette 40.
US 1 (Red/White/Blue) - A new boat for Magoon
Sunoco DX - A new Aronow 40 footer. (surely this must be CAM 2 eventually)
Chuck all that into the equation until told otherwise.
03-21-2009, 04:31 PM
#23
Registered
Any use of "photoshop" or of other programs of photo corrections, Graham.
The original pic in better quality is found in the page 102 of the book of Michael Aronow even if this last accredits the boat of 36.'
However the sides of the Sunoco DX would be very more dark in a photo in bw. Then... Really Ridicolous.
The original pic in better quality is found in the page 102 of the book of Michael Aronow even if this last accredits the boat of 36.'
However the sides of the Sunoco DX would be very more dark in a photo in bw. Then... Really Ridicolous.
Last edited by Black Tornado; 03-21-2009 at 04:40 PM.
03-22-2009, 08:13 AM
#25
Registered
More pics
Nige,the Sunoco DX pic is scanned from a slide I did not take,and was as blurred as hell.I tried to put some sharpness back in but you can only do so much.For this reason I have never gone public with it.It just happens to be one of the few colour I have of the boat.Other ones are off the internet of which along with others are just stacked up,a lot of which you have probably seen.There are many more to go on Boatmad,mainly of CIII boats which have not been repeated on there.I have loads more slides and unscanned pics from books,mags but the subject matter is the same as what is already on the site.This is a lifetimes work even for us gents of leisure.My bibles (6 X100mm thick) of all the different boats,probably 4,000 + is still being added to and now reaches25GB of memory.So 3 weeks flog on it wouldn`t even scrape the surface.What I`m waiting for is a U.S. devotee to do a similar job for us,but no sign yet other than Charlies site ,and no update for yonks,and then there is that daft watermark problem,so we are on our own by the looks of things.Black Tornado has been sent out to the wilderness to bring back for us some juicy pics,but he can`t keep his kids of the computer in order to make progress.
03-23-2009, 08:35 AM
#26
Registered
Aeromarine Iii
I had missed that pic Marco on P102 in `King of Thunderboat Row`.
Good job I`ve got the book ,for I see Amazon books want over £700 for it now.
Now that as someone once said is `Really Ridiculous`.
Good job I`ve got the book ,for I see Amazon books want over £700 for it now.
Now that as someone once said is `Really Ridiculous`.
03-23-2009, 09:15 AM
#27
Registered
I have directly tried with Michael Aronow asking to put it in press again but he answered me that the publisher was not intended to do it.
I have found that photo on an auction in eBay that as usual now it is launching in orbit with endless destination.
Yes everything this is 'Really Ridiculous'.
Last edited by Black Tornado; 03-23-2009 at 09:23 AM.
03-23-2009, 09:37 AM
#28
Platinum Member
Platinum Member
Was it of this 40' with unusual position of the wheel the 40' laying around the barn in Fondulac that you reported Richie?
The #3 and the writing Aeromarine III makes to think about Magoon, but the surgeon had a 40' white-red-blue with the #US -1.
From the colors of the boat could be the next Sunoco DX-CAM 2 of Penske, but also the next boat of Don Smith(Diamond Don)....
The #3 and the writing Aeromarine III makes to think about Magoon, but the surgeon had a 40' white-red-blue with the #US -1.
From the colors of the boat could be the next Sunoco DX-CAM 2 of Penske, but also the next boat of Don Smith(Diamond Don)....
03-23-2009, 04:01 PM
#29
Registered
Thanks again Richie. When I have seen that 40' with the steering wheel so positioned I have immediately thought about what you had told in the post #21.
To think that steering wheels so positioned in the sixties they were enough frequent...
To think that steering wheels so positioned in the sixties they were enough frequent...
Last edited by Black Tornado; 03-23-2009 at 04:03 PM.
03-26-2009, 09:00 AM
#30
Registered
