klaw

Had a buddy ask me how difficult this was I did not have an answer

Anyone here done it or know how difficult it would be

Klaw

MOBILEMERCMAN

Fill transom, recut to new X. Move motor, remount and align. Change trannie tail shaft or trannie complete?. Re drill tail piece holes.

What do you call difficult.

Chris Sunkin

Big job- basically a re-rig. The X dimension on TRS boats is almost always too deep for the prop advancements since they were discontinued- and the III is longer.

There's only one common-sense approach- the Konrad. It's power handling is 50 hp more than the III and 50 less than the IIIa, but you can use XR props on it. It's a tad shorter than the TRS so that cures the X issues. And it's a direct, no BS bolt-on.

MOBILEMERCMAN

HE has spoken...

That avatar kills me. lmao

Chris Sunkin

Being a deity is tough work. I'm getting bored with it. I'll be sending Reggie back to North Carolina soon. Just need to come up with something else that amuses me.

On the III's. I had a ridiculous deal on a set of like-new IIIa's for my Cig 35. But when I did the math, I passed. Way too much work, way too much expense. And absolutely not one area where the SSM had an advantage over the Konrad.

klaw

yes thats always the question

from what I gather the better way would be SSm5s since I think they were just 3s with a 2" shorter x dim.
That solves the reglassing of transom

I dont see it a a daunting task but with the Konrad options maybe a not so smart one.

Klaw

Chris Sunkin

He was just mistaken on the difference between the x on a 3 and a 5.

If you were to hold a #3 transom gasket up to a boat cut for a #2 gimbal, you'd see what a mess it would be, not withstanding the X dimension issue.

The Konrad PRS drive will bolt right up to a TRS (#2) gimbal, although the Konrad gimbal is far superior. The Konrad gimbal matches the #2 cutout perfectly. The only difference is if you use the stock #2 gimbal, you need to use the small-joint yoke

Viperfitness1

chris... what kind of project would it be to change my apache 41 from #3s to #6s or would there be a better option for me? running 900hp now and want to stop blowing drives...

Chris Sunkin

My Apache is torn down right now for that same reason- a #6 conversion. Mine ended up being a total re-rig. I couldn't stop taking off parts that weren't perfect and now I have a bare hull.

To do it right, you're going to have to cut out the transom from the inside and replace all the wood. Your X dimension will change so you'll need different tails for your exhaust. The steering is integral on the 6 so you'll lose the external rams- essentially an exterior re-do as well.

There is no better option- but be prepared for your boat to lose a few MPH. The 6 takes more juice to turn than the 3. You can get the wet one's converted to dry sump though and negate most of the loss.

The 41 is too heavy to live with the 3 drive. If you're over 750 on the 3 or 850 on the 3a, you're living on borrowed time. Under 850 in a 41 Apache is relatively uninspiring, unless it's one of the few ligter race hulls made.

Parts for the 3 aren't going to be any easier to find (or cheaper) in the coming years and you can buy 6's really right these days- sounds like a good winter project. If you need recommendations on people to do the conversion, let me know.

klaw

Ok

This not for me a buudy who has a old 357 formula popped one of his trs drive he has rebuilt it and found two spares he brought at a good price

But in conversation he asked me if ssm3 drives would be a tough conversion
I told him konrads were a better option
Not knowing the conversion answer I decided to post the question to be better informed

From the responses it seemed like you could just text transom except x dim was to low

I was under the impression a 5 was basicaaly a3that was 2 inces shorter which would have resolved x dim issue so no filling of transom

Klaw