Speed Loss From Speedo Pitot?
#1
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Speed Loss From Speedo Pitot?
I plan to do a with and without comparison later when the water is warm enough for swimming but right now I'd like real world experience if anyone has experienced top speed loss from dragging a mechanical speedo pitot like this one on my boat. My average top speed is around 83 mph on gps.
Last edited by thirdchildhood; 04-20-2015 at 05:26 AM.
#5
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I want to keep the stock analog speedo and it only reads about 2 mph high on the top end. Looks more impressive to passengers too . If that pitot is scrubbing a couple mph though I will install a gps speedo in the dash. I've heard that a pitot can rob up to 5 mph. Has anyone seen that? I can't do the back to back runs until the water warms up.
Last edited by thirdchildhood; 04-20-2015 at 05:25 AM.
#8
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that pitot is less area than a barnacle. pushing a hull thru water at speed is a whole crap load of drag. that's why 100 hp for 10 mph increase is optimistic. you will never measure a diff from something that small. but you will pick up 5 mph just by believing what that pitot has to say.
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OK, I have heard people claim to have seen a measurable loss from a pitot. Try to hold your finger in the water at 80+ mph! One person claims to have lost 4 mph which didn't seem possible to me. That's why I was looking for other input here. Here is a pic of my dash and the original speedo I'd like to keep working and a pic of my best recorded top speed.
#10
that pitot is less area than a barnacle. pushing a hull thru water at speed is a whole crap load of drag. that's why 100 hp for 10 mph increase is optimistic. you will never measure a diff from something that small. but you will pick up 5 mph just by believing what that pitot has to say.