spectras only

What beats boats/human body up bad is bow acceleration. Running 3-4 footers at 60mph with bow trimmed up for speed,getting air and slammed down into the waves create thousands of pounds of pressure per foot on the forward section of the hull , 3-4 feet from stem to the cabin door bulkhead.Properly trimming the boat with drives and tabs to keep it level, cutting through waves rather than slamming down into it, saves boat and kidneys.Too much tab and submarining can happen or worse,bow steer from a side wave can spin the boat out ,pitching the occupants.
In this drawing , load distribution shown where it's greatest, between the bulkhead [ cabin entry] and 3-4' after the stem.If you pay attention ,spidercracks will show on the floor at the bulkhead/cabin entry first.
My buddy's 35 Fountain has them there too,lol.



Ps; best solution is to upgrade from a mid 30's boat to a 40+ footer.In a 42 Outerlimiits 3-4 footers won't be noticed by anyone onboard.Rollers usually have 40 spans and a 40+ boat can do crest to crest going at speed.

Keith Atlanta

If you do a Bahamas trip let me know. I may follow or at least ride along side you 1/2 way then turn back. I live about 400 yards from Boynton Inlet.

We can get a few people to do double takes with two 342's.

sprink58

In my 255 Formula I have to get on top...get it trimmed and keep a hand on the throttle. You start to get a feel for the sets and how your boat responds at different speeds. Head seas are the worst. I try to run at a tack to quarter port or starboard as opposed to straight on. Following seas let you run faster but can be tricky and deceptive...you can "pitch pole" or end over end before you even know it. If I know I am going out in rough stuff I strip out all but bare essentials. When I make a Bahamas run I tie everything down with nets. Hull strength and weight make a big difference...my 255 weighs over 6000# with fuel...it even has an additional 25 gallon ballast water tank in the nose. trust me...that extra 200 lbs in the nose make a big difference. In summary...I don't worry about what my old Liberator will handle...I worry about what I can handle.

As has been said...PFD's and a kill lanyard are a must. The most important addition I have made to mine is McLeod drop out bolsters...an absolute must for running offshore.

spectras only

Sprink58, those old 255 Formulas were one of the toughest back in the days.Friend had one with twin sbc's.I have the old Boating mag with a story on one,owned by some pilot who took off to the Caribbean Islands,entering into stormy weather.He had to drop his girlfriend off early who got beaten up in the journey.He ended up in a hurricane somewhere in Tortola or another neighbouring island..His boat was tossed 100' inland, both boat and him surviving the ordeal.They craned the boat back in the water to finish his trip.A true testament for Formula boats.

Sydwayz

iTrader: (1)

I wish the market would support us to still build the straight bottom 32 Active Thunder Offshore; with all the goodies like the one that Pier57 is redoing as I type. I've seen that hull embarrass a lot of bigger boats in sloppy water. As a matter of fact, THAT hull was the reason that Pat bought the company in the first place.

sprink58

Yes...the 255 is a tough old 'Bird. My boating buddy and I were out one day this past winter running out of Jupiter inlet headed South. Seas were 3~5 and we were hitting them head off the port quarter. I was able to comfortably able to run 30~35...sitting in our seats drinking a beer!!!. He is used to running 35' Contender's and a 32' Conch (a Contender on steroids). He looked over at me and said..."Now I know"

I have been trying to find a copy of that article for years. I remember reading it when it first came out. Any way I could get you to copy it for me?

From my memory he left Miami and headed to the Caribbean...island hopping...got caught in Hurricane David (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_David) in '79 and washed up on Cay Sal (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cay_Sal_Bank) after making the Windward Passage (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windward_Passage) between Guantanamo Cuba and Haiti ?

Thanks in advance

My e-mail is [email protected].

spectras only

sprink, I'm going to dig for the mag for you and scan the article.Give me some time though.I have hundreds of mags going back to the late 70's.The date of 1979 helps to narrow the search time!

sprink58

I appreciate that. I wish some of this stuff was available online...hell seems like you can find everything else in the world but it's next to impossible to find old boat tests from the '70's and '80's.

in any case...I think I saw that article we are speaking of re printed once in "Formula Action" which is Thunderbird Formula's publication.

Thanks again for you efforts.

sprink58

Brian,

Do you guys still have the molds? I remember hitching a ride on an Active Thunder 32 once from Pompano to Freeport/Lucaya and have a strong recollection of how solid it was....especially in big water.

Sydwayz

iTrader: (1)

Kind of...