DriveGuardian
#11
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Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 9,969
Likes: 6,461
From: Chicago
Since that seems directed at me I can answer that, myself and Mike are from the same state certainly not from the same town and we see each couple time a year, usually at a poker run.
I met him 2 years ago and we were just shooting the $hit about his boat and his drives came up. He told me what he developed and I didn`t understand it at first but the more he talked and the more I learned the more exited I became. This soft spoken gentleman talked about this great invention (IMOP) like it was no big deal.
Personally I`ve been exited about it ever since. I know what Mike went thru to build and develop it and I know to what extend he went to to test it but yes you are correct there needs to be some more impartial voices out here .. I`m just a big cheerleader, I think it`s genius
Can`t speak for Saris but from what I know he does not break drives but at the end of the season (or earlier)they are pretty much done and before they explode they replace the gears. This year the gears looked good enough to run for another year.
I met him 2 years ago and we were just shooting the $hit about his boat and his drives came up. He told me what he developed and I didn`t understand it at first but the more he talked and the more I learned the more exited I became. This soft spoken gentleman talked about this great invention (IMOP) like it was no big deal.
Personally I`ve been exited about it ever since. I know what Mike went thru to build and develop it and I know to what extend he went to to test it but yes you are correct there needs to be some more impartial voices out here .. I`m just a big cheerleader, I think it`s genius

Can`t speak for Saris but from what I know he does not break drives but at the end of the season (or earlier)they are pretty much done and before they explode they replace the gears. This year the gears looked good enough to run for another year.
#12
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Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 3,613
Likes: 375
From: Traverse City MI
Very exciting product!
Great for rough water and/or high X dimensions where there are quick torque spikes that a human can not react fast enough.
Not going to make an overpowered drive last longer besides the benefits listed above.
Great for rough water and/or high X dimensions where there are quick torque spikes that a human can not react fast enough.
Not going to make an overpowered drive last longer besides the benefits listed above.
#16
I suppose it's unknown how well it will hold up and how reliable or even effective it will be, but IMO it sounds very promising in theory.
For those that are running too much power through their POS bravo and don't want to spend the $ to replace the drive with something better matched to their engine or boating style, this product seems like it would likely extend the life of the drive. In fact in 'should' extend the life of just about all drives (if set properly) assuming the props are aired occasionally. The question in my mind becomes how willing will people be to drop a $2500/$4000 each (plus pulling engines, installation, etc) on what many would consider an insurance policy. For the guy with 750hp in front of a bravo, he might be better off addressing the root cause by replacing the junk B1/XR with something like a SCX upper. If they aren't willing to spend the money on a better drive, will they spend thousands on a product that might only add a few hours to the longevity of their drive? IDK.
As much as I love the idea of this product, I've never had a problem with breaking any of my sixes so for me to pay $8k in parts alone to do twins in each boat (not to mention pulling the engines), it becomes a tough pill to swallow. If I've had a couple of costly failures already with the proper drive(s) in place, I would absolutely pull the trigger on these as they 'should' do what they are designed to do... Minimize the shock to the drive when the props re-enter the water. But for those that are running bigger power through the wrong drive, I suspect their money might be better spent on replacing the drive with something beefier.
For those that are running too much power through their POS bravo and don't want to spend the $ to replace the drive with something better matched to their engine or boating style, this product seems like it would likely extend the life of the drive. In fact in 'should' extend the life of just about all drives (if set properly) assuming the props are aired occasionally. The question in my mind becomes how willing will people be to drop a $2500/$4000 each (plus pulling engines, installation, etc) on what many would consider an insurance policy. For the guy with 750hp in front of a bravo, he might be better off addressing the root cause by replacing the junk B1/XR with something like a SCX upper. If they aren't willing to spend the money on a better drive, will they spend thousands on a product that might only add a few hours to the longevity of their drive? IDK.
As much as I love the idea of this product, I've never had a problem with breaking any of my sixes so for me to pay $8k in parts alone to do twins in each boat (not to mention pulling the engines), it becomes a tough pill to swallow. If I've had a couple of costly failures already with the proper drive(s) in place, I would absolutely pull the trigger on these as they 'should' do what they are designed to do... Minimize the shock to the drive when the props re-enter the water. But for those that are running bigger power through the wrong drive, I suspect their money might be better spent on replacing the drive with something beefier.
Last edited by SS930; 12-21-2014 at 09:06 AM. Reason: Edited pricing, looks like the SSM version went up $600 in the last month!
#17
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Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 1,261
Likes: 2
From: Great Sacandaga Lake, NY
#19
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Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 174
Likes: 15
From: Cary, IL
Mike
#20
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Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 3,598
Likes: 1,168
From: taxachusetts
stock coupler failure was on the 26' race boat of nopper marine.and I know all about the drives,,we used to build them for him and they rarely failed,that was on motors that used to let his boat run up to 97mph.as for that 950 and 1100tq,,when did he dyno that engine?



