Thunderstruck hits 90 mph
 

Long haul but finally hit 90 on the gps. Upgraded carb 500 hps and went 86-87. Nose cones put me up 3 mph or so. :drink: :p

quite strong

You didn't ask what props :eek:

30" lab finished Bravo I's turning out.

Which boat is this? Can we get a pic?

Cool.it must since i'm in LA,wait it didn't blow up did it?:D

Attached is a pic and no it didn't break, no it wasn't dropped off a bridge and no it wasn't a hopped up tow truck with the gps on.

good look'n ride have never seen that one. I was wondering if it was the one that has Thunder Struck in big blue letters that used to be here in Syracuse thats why I asked for the pic. Hows it ride at 90? Very cool

Ride was fine. I think the cones settled it down a bit. I didn't feel like I needed to "drive" the boat at speed. Ran straight and true. Temp was 92 slick calm in Lake Charles.

Hey Cosmic I don't think he's use too our banter yet :evilb: What do you think :drink: :D

HUH? Gezz I was just ask'n:rolleyes:

What were the HP500's upgrade too?? 565 or 572's ???

That is real strong for a 32, very good!!

LMAO! :D

Maybe I should try labbed 30 B1's on the 33?

Thanks for the kind words. The motors are 500HP short blocks, 502 ci, with AFR aluminum heads, custom cams, Edelbrock Vic Jr intakes, 1" spacers, 950 cfm racing Holleys, 9.6:1 compression, stock gil exhausts (dry) and Crane
HI-6M ignitions. This work was done in early 2005. I had to install closed loop cooling after some corrosion issues on the heads after the first year which put me out of commission for a while along with the hurricane.

Took two sessions on the dyno but finally got 595 hp at 5500 rpm, no accessories, with the dyno supplied collector style exhausts so they are lower hp than 595 in the boat.

The boat woke up with the modified motors, acceleration is unbelievable and I picked up 5-6 mph but my slip was really high, 15-16% at 5550 rpm (86 mph).

After trying props, Throttle Up recommended 1" drive spacers which I tried but did not lower the slip.

Finally I installed some Teague LWP nose cones three weeks ago. Slip went to 9.5% (5450 rpm, 90 mph). Cruising speed went up 2 mph now I am running 60 mph at 3600 rpm.

Overall a fun project, I learned a lot but very expensive.

Nose cone process:

Sand, Seal and Paint:

BTW thanks to Matt and Julie of ThrottleUp for talking through a lot of the prop slip issues!! They are a class act.

That is fly'n in a 32. Great job you gotta be happy with that:D

Did you end up leaving the drive spacers in or did you remove them. We are doing a 32' A T with some motors that made around the same power that you did so any info we can get will be great.

Yeah good question. The spacers did help the cruise speed so I left them on when I first added the nose cones. But, I took the spacers out last week on a hunch and that gained me 2 mph or so to hit 90. I have a notched transom with fairly high drive heights which is why I got into the spacer thing with Throttleup in the first place. Not all 32's have the notch so you may need to pick nose cones carefully. There are other threads with nose cone info and also Teague Marine is a good resource. I also have LWP Bravos. Teague recommended a "Leading Edge" nose cone based on the LWP and the drive height vs. a hydromotive cone with the side water pickup. The Leading Edge cone has a tube that replaces the water pickup as the LWP holes are covered by the nose cone. You drill a hole in the front of the existing case using the cone as a jig and then epoxy the cone on while being careful not to plug the new tube with the epoxy that squished into the LWP slots like I did. :rolleyes:

thanks cosmic yeah I'm fired up. As you can tell I am a charter member with only a few posts. I don't post much but had to tell this on the AT forum. I have tried stuff like this with other brand boats but have not gotten the response from the hull like the AT. Starting with a great running hull made the gains possible. :D

Tom,
Congrats on the numbers! You have come a long way since that first dyno pull! Great example of analyzing data and making it work for you!

Regards,

Bob

Bob, thanks buddy. You started me off in the right direction with the heads and cam. I'd still be flailing w/o your help. Thanks again.

hmmm, i wonder if nose cones would do anything for me my 2000 32 thunder has stock 500 hps with 1" spacers under worked carbs ,and msd boxes and i run 84 to 86 on gps with 30 pitch b1s at 5500 rpms.:rolleyes:

congrats on 90mph that is sweet with out a stepped hull.:D

Hey Tom, I experienced the same thing (ride attitude) when I added my nose cones/-2" shorties. I would say 90mph with what you have is hallin' the mail!

I'm impressed---especially with the GIL manifold exhaust system, 92* air temps and flat water! You'll go even faster in a 1-2 foot chop---and lower air temps too!

Congrats---HAVE FUN!

Mark/KAAMA

thanks mark. I have watched your posts and gained a lot of info from your insight.

With that power you might want to try a set of 32 props and go even faster i would think you could pick up a few more.:D

Yeah Rick I will be on the lookout for some 32's to try. Interesting thought.

Hi my name is Aaron and I run in S.W. FL with the fort myers offshore group I wanted to say hello. I have a 2000 32 Thunder with twin 650's (supercharged running 4.5 lbs of boost) I am running lab finished 34 pitch props and she has seen 103 mph on gps I will have to upgrade my membership so I can post some pictures.

In addition to pics please let us know your setup, type blowers, drives etc. Sounds like a great ride.

:evilb: Nose cones and 3 blades..could be the trick!!::D :D

Time to upgrade!!!! Welcome:cool:

check with throttle up i think they have a try em before you buy em program.

Great running 32 Thunder :)

I know the original owner of that boat quite well!:D

Jim, is that you?? Good to hear from you after all these years!!

Tom

Great Stuff Thunderstruck! Thanks for posting your information.

I'm about to find out where I'm at as well... spent most of our Michigan Fall/Winter/Spring totally rerigging my 97 32' AT. I'm going to be running around 700 hp NA 540's. My hull doesn't have a notch.

As of now, I have no nose cones on my Bravo XZ's. I'm planning to test Hydromotives QIV 32's and Bravo I 32's at the same time. It sounds like P5 Hydromotives may also work well. My primary concern is a safe ride first. Second, I want the boat running well-balanced in Lake Michigan. Last year I was running 28p Bravo I's on Merc Mag MPI 502's - the boat seemed to have too much bow lift.

I should be ready for the water in a few weeks, most of the boat is retrofitted/upgraded for the engines, I just need to get the last of my parts in after being backordered :(

Tibb you need to talk to Mark AKA Kaama. He put large NA motors in his thunder with no notch (I think). He is a great guy and a good source of info for your particular setup, props, etc.

Tom

Tibb it looks like you and Kaama are from the same part of the country!!

Yes, it's me. A friend sent me a link to your picture. I'm glad you are still enjoying the boat.

I've never gotten back into them. I've gotten big into Corvettes and (back) into motorcycles. I still live near Clear Lake. If you get over this way, look me up. It's not likely I'll check this forum much, but you can get in touch with me by e-mailing me at [email protected] get the picture.

Hope all is well.
Jim

Indeed!!! Mark and I actually live about 20 minutes away from eachother... great guy, and certainly has lots of great info for me to gain from for sure.

I do appreciate you guys posting your findings, certainly has the potential for saving me and several others time and headaches... Thanks again!