skegs cut off
 

why on the old race boats were these cut off, would that affect the speed

Re: skegs cut off
 

I was the one who started running with no skegs. First race was with Magoon in Calif. Kiek. came up with the idea how to fool everyone into thinking we had skegs when the boat was on the trailer. We did a real fine cut at the bullet where the skeg is, then we put two small dowels to hold it together, a little glue and some black paint, the we drilled two small holes and put monofilament fish line and ran the line up the transom. Before the race we would take a special hammer we made with a long handle and knock the skegs off and bring them in the boat before the race, with no one watching. It was good for two to three miles per hour, You would not know the difference with or without, was all in the head. As the pictures came out of the boats flying people figured it out, as we were always faster than the rest, ( racers edge ) eventually Kiek. cast his own lowers with no skegs, and actually the bullets were bigger to accomodate bigger gear sets, I often wonder how they would work on today`s stuff surfacing?????????? No guts no glory!!!!!! 7XCHAMP

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That is very interesting 7X!! :cool:

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2-3 mph!!!........where's my Sawzall.....?

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my dad told me on his old bertram....aka swap shop it gained 2mph but i didnt believe him.............It is a honor to have you anwser one of my posts, always a great read thanks...........mike

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How much due you recomend removing 7x..........My old man told me that anything will help just stay 3-4 inches down from bullet tip centerline...............When i brought this up he went on and on how he saw the race boats duing it........"If they due it there has to be a reason, after all if it wasnt for them we as pleasure boaters would not know what to due" I cant get him going on the boat thing much anymore but when i due sit down and grab a cup of coffee you are going to be there a while................a little dusty been under the bench for a little while

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I wouldnt think it would turn very good.

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hey rob how are ya,,,,,,,this is something i am kicking around...Thius mag of mine has been a real test dummie for me, i plan on geting a 3a or going with a whole new setup next year so i dont mind hacking this one up...Any insight will help from you guys .................have a good new year

Re: skegs cut off
 

When we first did it we left approx. 1/2 to 3/4 inch below the bullet, then blended it with a grinder, the reason for leaving some meat is so the case doesn`t distort. Remember when we did this we were not running extreme high X-dimensions as todays boats do with surface type applications. Also remember I said it was all in the head as to feel etc. Turning, trimming, rough water running etc. all the same with and without, never realized a difference other than more speed, never ran the boat any different, it was actually easier on the drives, gimbles etc. because it didn`t load them as much. Towards the end of the Aeromarine days every drive manufactured by Kiek. was non skeg. Have fun. 7XCHAMP

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thanks a million, i feel guilty not paying for the things i have learned here....The boat is a old mag sport , still has the original drive height that it was raced with.......i was looking at the skeg and it has a slight tweak to it, like it had landed hard to one side and bent it, i thought this would be a quick fix.......2nd pic shows i am pretty deep in comparison to the bottom of the v.........i dont want to mess with it untill i have a better bigger drive, i am pushing the limitis of it as it is ...........thanks again7x

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Sweet Magnum: That skeg actually looks like some of the early skegs I tried before I took them off completely, remember we were always running twin engines, Suggestion on your boat. Take that ugly aft ring off and put the nice flat hatches back on. Even when Aronow ran the sinled 482`s and number three`s the boat never needed the ring. I was with Don one day when I ran the first 35` over at his factory, as we were standing around B.S.ing a 27` Magnum sport came up the canal, he looked at me and said that`s the best and most beautiful boat he ever built, and we all sat with him and agreed, enjoy your boat it`s beautiful. Short story I worked for Magnum fo awhile, I was going to revive the 27`s and build a new 39` F-class boat. I started the Magnum owners club, but all fell apart as I didn`t receive the financial support promised to continue, I would still love to do it, Great name. 7XCHAMP

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I agree Richie......it is the most beautiful boat he ever built and I'm very excited that he thought so too.

Here's mine....:)

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nocig i believe some time in the 80s APBA put a stop to skeg removel, as a referee for GLSCS i know we did not alow it for safety reasons, even today boats that use fixed drives an center rudders have to have them meet a minimal size. And as for pleasure boating i would defenitly leave it on, might save your prop on those rocks downriver.

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The 89 Scorpion I owend had no skegs on the drives, ran like a bat out of hell.

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who was you'r dad?

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I agree. Low profile, very little clutter on top and great proportions; Deck length at least 50% of overall length.