It definetely robs alot of speed. Or at least thats the feedback I have received both from my own experiences, and that of others. IMCO will know best, and you guys should call them. Please keep me posted on anything you guys come up with.

defyn,

Can you elaborate a bit more on what your finding were on the xr drive gears. I am having xr put behind my 500 efi's with the plan to whipple them next year after my warentee. Please explain for me what info you gathered.

Thanks

MPH 120 , I will be using TOTAL MARINE AND PERFORMANCE, in Slidell LA 1-985-649-9888 WHAT A GREAT PLACE, EDDIE AND STEVE ARE THE OWNERS THAT I HAVE SPOKEN WITH AND DO ALL THEIR OWN WORK. They sell both IMCO and Bmax drives and everything that you have explained to me they feel the Imco is a better choice in my application, Robbies also with his PowerPlay. They themselves have a boat with 750hp over 200hr on just the single motor and std Imco, not the sc, the weight is around 7000 pounds and they hammer the **** out of this drive and cant blow it up, the speed loss I feel is going to be more than 7 or 8 hp loss, the bottom end is the same, and the price is better, but no warranty sucks, and I still have to check out the deal with the gears. I will also today try to do some investigating.:cool:

Jassman,

I have heard of these guys, but have never used them. I do know their boat, that SOB runs. Everyone says their work is great, and reasonable. What is their price on the SC, and what do they think about the two? Where is robbie from?

Mph120, Funny that you asked, he just called me 2 minutes ago to see how my trip in Pompono was and which drive I wanted, I told him the sc with polished lower and 1 1/4 , he is getting back to me on a price. I allready today got a great price from Mike (goodfella) from Dollar Offshore, I will get back to you.:D

I did call Imco today, talked with Rick, who was very knowledgable, they do use the xr gears, but that is not the problem, its the slop around the gears that have to be contained, which they have resolved, along with quite a few other issues that they have handled. I personally feel its not as durable as a bmax which is better suited for the heavy Black Thunders, Nortechs, or boats of such, and Im not willing to scrub off any speed like 5-8mph. (see previous posts) The bottom effeciecy of this THUNDER with some common driver sense and 85% ratio as good as the bmax, I feel that this combo also being less expensive is the way I am going. Finally done with this shtuff.:D

JJ,

Is that slop in the gears an inherent problem in a stock xr application?:confused: :confused:

its common, all these other drive guys, Imco, bmax, Teague, have found ways to improve an allready good drive (xr) and just make it better through testing and reserch. They all have their claims to having the best, some better on the lowers, and some on the 5" upper gear set, one sucks up to much hp but is very reliable. To me its been a pain in the ass, this is suppose to be enjoyable, your damn if you do or dont. I am going with the Imco Extreme SC polished, with 1 1/4 the big one (like my wife says) enough screwing around. The bmax is better, but more money, drags and sucks valuable hp, different gears, and is really for the guys that have heavy applications like Nortech, Black Thunder, Sonics, where weight is an issue. We dont have that problem, we have the most effecient bottom anyways, we have hammered the boat for 80 hrs with twinn 500efis and still cant blow the std bravos up, thats got to tell you something, Im done, CAPECH!!!!!:D

Si, mi amigo:p :D :D

The upgrade is only a mere 2500. per drive including tax and shipping, give or take a few bucks, the best Ive gotten so far.

Jassman,

Sorry it has taken a couple of days to get back with you, I flew down to PowerPlay and spent the day there yesterday. I understand your choice for the SC in your aplication, I,m sure it will work for you. I am going down the B-Max path, I feel with the 675's and the dry weight of the boat I don't think the XR gear set in the IMCO's would work. Rick is right about he "slop around the gears" and this comes about with the heat and the support structure. BUT, I believe IMCO is in denial about the quality of the XR gears, they will do much better with the struture in the IMCO. One other point when talking head-to-head comparisons, you cannot do it because the gear ratio do not match up XR are either 1.36 or 1.5 vs the B-Max 1.43, so I ask anyone how can you say "Head-to-head" the B-Max looses 3-5 MPH! Bottom line it is the lesser of a bunch of evils!! Can't wait to get the boats together at the Tick-Faw!! Let me know how things are going!
Blue Skies, Robbie:)

No problem, I ordered mine today, goodfellow gave me a great price, but the guys at total marine down here in Slidell, LA where Im servicing my boat was 100 more per drive but will change my oil on my KE motors, supercharger, drives, and tighten or service anything needed. Also put 4 coats of clear on the polished drive, and most important he gave me a sheet that if the drive broke to keep me happy they would fix it at cost, the sc drives are in 3 pieces not 2, easier servicability. He bets it wont break, and I ve going down tomorrow to get it in writing, they have been straight with from the get go, never have had any problems. Good luck to you and hopefully will see you at the tic fa or royal purple run.:D

Glad to see you made a decesion on the drives, sounds like a good one to me.:)

Jassman,

Great choice on the drives. I can't believe that those guys would offer all that just to keep you happy. You better take that deal. You can bet I'll be sending them all my work this year. ****, I can't even get my mechanic to wash the damned finger prints off when he works on it. Robbie, the gear ratios are very similiar, and can easily be compensated for by prop changes. I've tried all of this. No matter what combination, the IMCO was always much faster.

MPH120,
I keep going back to the weight + torque, I don't think that the IMCO will hold up to my application. Dean is offering a one year warranty with the B-Max and I am willing to give up a couple of MPH for my reliablity. My only hope is that it is on the low side 1-2 MPH vs 3-5 MPH, keeping my fingers crossed.

Jassman,
I talked with Goodfellow while at PowerPlay, He always has great info, I enjoy working with him, "Thanks Mike". I have heard from freinds that Total Marine has a awesome service I feel you made the right choice. I'm jealous, you have someone to service the motors for you, all I've got is my garage & me!!! I built a garage for the boat and it has looked empty for way to long. I have a April 13th delivery date, we have a event the following weekend. Powerplay has a lot of work to do between now and then, but Dan has given me his word it will be done. My 38' is not going to be able to with you so you need to take it easy on me!!! Looking forward to seeing it at the Tic-Faw!

Robbie

Over the Years, Dan's Word Has Not Meant Much More Than Hot Air, He Is Know For Saying Anything To Buy Time. But For Your Sake, Good Luck!

Robbie, a good friend of mine told me once, boating is to be fun and relaxing, its inmaterial the type of boat and power you own, the bottom line is we all make choices, and our choices are made by ourselves. All I can say is that I feel I made the right desicion, Pat and Steve, as well as all the guys and gals in their professional shop have made my life more relaxing, building a boat can be fun, they have taken care of me like I take care of my customers in building a home, it has been an awesome experience, and the previous 2 Thunders I have been on have been flawless. The only problem I see is possibly my inexperience in handling such an awesome machine that you might have to ride along with Sandy and I and give us a hand at the TicFA run May 4,. So bring your stuff and your welcome aboard my boat, I look forward in meeting you. Now I need to get some info on that run. Talk to ya later.:D

Very well said JJ. It is all about going out there and having a good time. It really does make a HUGE difference in the boat building/purchasing aspect, it is what I call the Active Thunder experience. :D :cool:

Jassman,

I don't know if you misunderstood me or not, when I was speaking of 10,000 lbs. I was talking about my hull, not the 37' AT. I know you will have a weight advantage over the 38' PP. I hope that no where in my this thread have I ever said anything bad about anyone choice of boat and if I did I'm sorry! I totally agree with you it is all about having fun, I know in the end that I will be out relaxing and having fun! Right now I am just burnt out waiting for it to be done! I do see light at the end of the tunnel and that is supplying me with energy! I am looking forward to Tic-Faw, we can compare storys. Look forward to seeing your BABY!!!!

OopSeaDazey,

I understand where you are coming from!!!! I love what he does with boats, I just compare getting a PowerPlay to going through a breach birth. "Hurts like HELL but when the baby out, you forget about the birth" I know when PP is done the boat it will be what my wife and I visualized.

MPH120

You asked where I'm from, I live in the Louisville KY area. We boat on the Ohio river, Lake Cumberland, and mostly Dale Hollow when we are here. The first weekend in July should have the Unlimited Hydro's racing in Madison IN. (on the Ohio river), we will be there to watch Steve David race! We've done the 1000's Island poker run, and every year we do the Key West poker run with the world races. We like to travel around to see other boaters home waters, makes it fun, how about yourself?

Robbie

Robbie,

It is all good. I did not see anywhere where you ever said anything negative about any boat. :D :D

DEFY'N GRAVITY, From Louisville huh. We live in Peoria IL but do most of our boating on Lake Cumberland. Have you run in the Kentucky Lake or Cumberland Poker Runs ? If your planning on running this year, it would be great to meet up with you. As I mentioned in an earlier thread, we were torn which boat to buy, the PP or the AT. It would be great to see the finished product and meet up with some OSO posters:D

I probably won't be able to keep up with those 625 KE's with my whimpy 500's, but it would be great to see that bad boy in the water.

ROBBIE, WHAT I WAS TRYING TO SAY IS, TAKE A DEAP BREATH, RELAX, ENJOY LIFE, AND DO WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO WHEN YOU HAVE TO DO IT. MY EXPERIENCE HAS BEEN GREAT, AND I HOPE YOURS WILL IMPROVE, WE WISH YOU NO BAD LUCK, BUT BY CHANCE IF YOU DO NOT GET YOUR BOAT IN TIME, DONT FRET IT, YOU CAN RIDE WITH US AND STILL ENJOY THE TICFA RUN.:)

NOW BET YOUR SWEET ASS, IF YOUR BOAT IS FINISHED, LETS HAVE SOME FUN, AND RUN EM BABY!!!! GOOD LUCK:p :D :p :p :D :p TALK TO YOU LATER MY FRIEND.

h20,

whimpy 500efi's, you will see mid to high 80's I would not count yourself out just yet my friend....:p :D :D

H20 THAT IS THE MOST COST EFFECT WAY TO GO, IT IS STILL FAST, AND YOU WILL SEE AN HONEST 86 ALLDAY LONG, ONLY US STUPID ASSES LIKE ME, WHO ARE NEVER SATISFIED WITH ANY SPEED HAVE TO HAVE MORE, AND IF I HAD MORE MONEY RIGHT NOW I WOULD BE PUTTING EVEN A LARGER K.E. MOTOR IN. YOU BET COME WINTER A CHILLER AND SOME PULLEY CHANGES ONCE MY WARR. IS OVER. tHEN I WILL HAVE 860HP AND 910 TORQUE. YOU COULD WHIPPLE THOSE 500S FOR 6500 PER SIDE INSTALLED AND GET A RELIABLE 760HP, AND DUSTINS SET UP ALSO LOOKS AWESOME, ALL BLUE TO MATCH, IVE GOT THE ARTICLES SOMEPLACE IF YOU NEED THEM, JUST GIVE ME YOUR FAX. ANYTHING I CAN DO FOR ANY OF YOU GUYS LET ME KNOW, IVE GOT AT LEAST 12 YEARS OF MAGS STORED IN THE GARAGE OF ALL BOATING STUFF. I JUST LOVE THIS SPORT, NOTHING MAKES ME HAPPIER, (YES I LUV MY WIFE TOO) ITS AN ADDRENILIAN RUSH FOR ME!!!:D

Shane tell me about those herring props. I have merc bravo 1 lab finished 30's for mine.

What makes HERING so much better over some of the other lab finished props, say like, HILL, SPINELLI. Just curious.

Goodfella also reported that this company in southern Folroda Jimmie and something he has seen up to a 3 mph gain out of a labbed bravo. The tread was on the general board I think under the topic of lab finished props. I like the herring props and I have heard great things about them, but where I boat I bend, chip etc at least two props a year. SOme of our channels are extremely shallow and I would hate to bust my 3600 props. I think I am going to go the lab route from york or try this guy in fla.:D :D

kEEP ME POSTED:D