Bravo 1 behind 750hp?
 

Just like the title says, will a Bravo one hold up? What some precautions to take so it does?

I'm no , take very easy coming on plane. , buy another , and make sure you have rev limiters :-)

What size boat what size motors and N/A or forced induction?

Rotflmao

I'm on season 2 and 150 hours behind 750+ hp on Nordic Heat. Be gentle-

it depends how ya drive,,,,,, Also buy some depends for when it does :D

ease into the throotle and keep your blades in the water. if your looking to mash the sticks and air the boat out behind 750 hp any bravo(x,xz,xr) will not live to long. driven with respect bravos will stay together

I once owned a boat that I had to be "GENTLE" with the drives. Never again. From now on, its either beefy drives, or simply stick with mild power. I see no point in building engines up, then having to drive the boat like a sissy. If you boat on a calm lake that pretty much allows a 23ft cat to zip along at 100mph, you'll be able to get away with more power, since you're props will likely never leave the water. If you run your boat, in the ocean, great lakes, or generally rough water that requires some throttling action, they wont last long. ESPECIALLY a stock bravo 1

You may want to look into this product.

http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/g...ear-later.html

You can do it easily with just a bolt and nut. May cost you $2.00-$4.00 if regular bolt or stainless.

Weld on throttle bracket so that bolt threads and nut face your carb or throttle body's linkage. Adjust so that your carb or throttle body's arm can only rotate about 60% open.

Or you can splurge and spend like $20.

http://performanceparts.com/performa...roso_65042.jpg

Holy chit that is hilarious!

Honestly 90% of my boating is on fairly calm water. Either the Mississippi River or mark twain lake. We go down to loto 2-3 times a year but avoid the busy days other then the shootout. Lakes just to rough for the gf. It's in a 29 fountain fever. Been running around 600hp for 2 years with no drive issues, but now I'm going to a 420 blower and dual carbs. The shop is going through the drive while they do the motor to help make it live, but just wondering how many people have made em live with this kind of power.

Its not a question of if anybody can make them last because they won't, it is a question of how long can you make them last before they give in.. Not trying to be a smart a$$ just how it is. The bravo is a good drive if used as designed. Ask me how I know! Trust me and the others who try to give you the info you need to make an educated decision. If you proceed with the motor build the drives may last for a while but you will need to budget for drive repairs. Good luck with your project! I think you unfortunately have contracted the dreaded boating Horsepower sickness most of us have been living with for some time now!

The way I see it (and will be living it) is I can buy three or more spare bravos at $2K each for way less than a 700hp rated drive (that might also break as well)
just my .02

Put over 100hrs. On a bravo xr behind 900 plus hp. Just rebuilt it after 3 years. It is on a 26 Ft Checkmate which is about a 4000lb boat. 90 percent of my boating is on river or lake

Where can I get one of these for the wife? 60% would be tolerable

And get a SeaTOW membership.

Like many have said, just use common sense and you will be fine. You can run it as fast as you want just don't hammer it getting on plane and roll into the throttle and keep the props wet and you'll be fine. I hear all the neg stuff, and you can break them if you try, but I ran 950hp through bravo 1's on a 42 fountain at 110mph for several yrs with minimal problems

The lake I boat on is similar to yours and I did not have drive problems until I got the boat running in the mid 90's and then it started to brake the gears in the uppers , my boat is a straight bottom 35 fountain

We have a winner.

Have a spare drive on hand ready to swap cause you will break during a beautiful streak of hot weather, or upgrade to a non bravo gear based drive.

My personal expierence, get on plane normal and drive fast, free the hull up a little, and enjoy the boat. Driving like a grandma and not enjoying the boat for what it is.....why even have the power.

Years back i use to run mine harder, then after some failures i started slowing down,getting older, but im not afraid to throttle it hard, I also have a spare lower and wished I had a spare upper. The way i look at it is if your going to boat more than 1 day I take the spare.like if your on vacation and using the boat multiable day, you may ruin that day but can be running back the next. the only other thing is if you have guest it puts a damper on there vacation too. so far ive haven't had much lower failures, the upper over the years has failed.Im running the bmaxs which is a bravo lower,it has the upper gears that are larger.but there alot more expensive to replace,

from what ive seen on the reg bravos. is the lower gear set brineals(sp) and the upper usually breaks a pinion tooth off.Thats what was happening to my old Scarab single 828hp at 5000lbs with imco parts



My buddy Jason has a hustler with 900+ and running bravos, he checks the magnets all the time, changes oil every few hours and is having good luck with them, not sure whos doing his though, but its aftermarket gears etc.

The truth is they will fail eventually if you use all your motor. I have a Velocity 280 with about 700hp and the drive lasted a couple of seasons before letting go. I have successfully removed all the teeth off my gears on the third season. A Sea Tow or Boat US membership should be mandatory because you will need it. My tow cost $625 to go 4 miles.

We've had similar power in the 253 for several years now and knock on wood its held up fine.

Like said, get on plane easy...keep the prop in the water...dont hammer the throttle when going wide open...run good oil and change it regularly.

Have a pair and spare ! You can send the drive out to strengthen the main shaft I was told. It cost around a grand. There is a member selling a xr drive right now for 5000. Sell your bravo and put money towards a xr.

The 420 blower is not Bravo friendly.. Too much torque down low. Better off with a Procharger to help the drive live. No matter what you build, it must be driven with respect to live. Bravos will break, it just depends on your maintenance schedule tolerance. Baja H20, 24', 1170hp Procharger, every 60-70hrs, all new gears and bearings. He was happy with that life cycle.

Dick

I take it very easy coming out of the hole. Only time I'm really on it is trying to get the top speed. I put about 30hrs a year on my boat usually, so I'm fine with going through the drive every other year.

I had the same boat year and all. I ran 720HP Procharged and 727 TQ after 7 broken Bravo's in 2 years I bought a B-Max and never broke again. I had 6 years on it when I got rid of the boat. Bullet Proof

If OSO is the boaters bible, baby baby baby baby and your good. If thats your plan then why not stick with a 525 or something smaller? if you want to use the power then best find something other than a bravo as nearly everyone says the same thing. Spend more money and get a spare as your are on borrowed time, baby it to death and basically pray. Dont know your boat but look for a surface drive if you want to use your 750 hp

That's right, you can baby on every launch and mind the throttles in the rough but it's inevitable it WILL break. Other factors determine lifespan as well including boat weight and slip percentage. 2013 season I lost an XR upper on port side. 2014 I lost a vertical shaft where it meets the lower destroying basically everything other than case on starboard. Yes I baby the hell out of it but even throttling slower than a slug I still eventually get to WOT on occasion which keeps the destruction countdown clicking. A part of going fast. Pay to play.

But also for what it's worth I had 4 seasons on last boat standard bravo 1 with Teague internals on 750hp motor and just talked to the guy I sold it too and everything is still good. I'd say that is a lucky drive and definitely NOT the standard. -E572

Mine lasted 3 hours behind a 525 in a 22' boat. The XR is a big improvement but still the weak link. I give it about an hour unless you are gonna drop in 750 hp and drive the boat like an old lady but how much sense would that make?

This is one of my biggest grips with boats. the only performance vehicle I have ever had that that has a drivetrain made of glass. Even with big expensive drives they still break and are just crazy money for what they are. The price a #6 is it should be bullet proof!!

I went thu a regular bravo in a month (600sc) and a built XZ in 12 hours the first 11 hours breaking it in and babying it. (25'boat)

A 29 Fountain Fever is a heavy boat for a single engine, a lot depends on what pitch prop you run,
a good friend of mine runs same boat w/525 EFI, it works hard to get on plane w/a 26 Pitch Bravo1 prop, he ran a 28 pitch couple months and it took 1/4 mile to plane at WOT., it finally destroyed his Bravo XR drive w/120 hours , he runs 75-76 on gps w/the 26 pitch, my point is you can't run more pitch prop or you won't ever get on plane no matter how much power you have,
Last year someone installed an Ilmor 625 in same boat, last I heard he was only running 77-78 on gps, I don't know if he was able to get more speed , haven't heard about it for a while .

On a lake or on the ocean?

When Im heavy on lake running I get double the life out of my XR.

UD

If yours only lasted 3hrs pushing a small boat like that with that hp your doing something way wrong. This boat has all ready been a 600hp boat for the past 3yrs and as far as I know original drive. It last all summer and I defiantly beat on it this summer. Shootout weekend at loto is rough. Ive talked to people and this is all over the place. One guy says I'll break it in 3hrs then there's other guys on here with close to 1000hp and been going three years.

TGM you are correct, it has a lot to do with the driver and how he takes care of his equipment, ,,a Bravo1 will take a lot of abuse,,,, just don't overload it with a real heavy single engine boat ,,,then add big power, ,, then run too much prop so it can't get on plane without taking a beating every time you start out.
My friend tried that with his 525 EFI w/28Pitch, and destroyed his ,XR ,drive in the 29 Fever, he wanted to run 80 mph, problem was he beat it to death getting on plane.

+1 I have heard many horror stories of guys that put on shorties lowers searching for the last mph only to beat there boat up trying to get on plane resulting in short lived bravos. To each there own I suppose.

The absolute #1 killer of drives is rough water.

how about a 256 blower?

Even worse. The smaller underdriven blowers make more torque down low than their larger siblings. They almost always make less HP up top though.