anyone ever build a 41 apache with diesels and arnesons?
 

i would like another offshore boat, but in colombia there are no dynos or support for big blower motors, so i was wondering if any one set up a big cig or apache with hi po diesels... and if so how it worked in big water, thx , rm

There was a 47 apache that Ben built for the miami-ny race that had diesels and arnesons. It was not the 47 foot molds that are the traditional 47's. it was a magnum mold.

That was actually the 45' x 12. There was also a "Cigarette" built from the same mold which is where it originated.

There was also a 65' Apache mold built. It was similar to Harry Schoal's Delta Conic design. The mold was sold at auction to the guys who bought Avance (Became Navigator). Peter Roca and I sold that mold to another builder from Europe in 1998. No idea where it is today.

Take a pair of Cummins 600hp C's and you'll be just fine. In the late 80's there was a knock-off of a Cigarette 38 at the worlds the boat was green & pink if I remember. It had the Merlins in it so they were problems to begin with but when it ran, it ran very well. You need to stop asking and start doing (just kidding), it worked many years ago it will work even better today!

i read an article a year or two back where guys were drag racing diesels and spinning much higher rpms with them. i know the truck guys are making huge tq numbers with the cummins engines. what does a cummins c weigh? thx, rm

Don't over think this, don't over complicate this, the truck guys can't do better than Cummins Marine just look at this https://marine.cummins.com/MarineECM...-09MAY2013.pdf buy them put a 2 speed behind it with Rik's drives and away you go!

By the way torque numbers mean nothing in a boat if you don't have the Hp it won't go anywhere - by the time you over drive the props you are at the same out put torque as the gas engine - 600hp @ 3,500rpms of prop speed is the same whether it is gas or diesel - it's just math - don't overthink it!

who make the 2spd trans you are talking about? i was thinking i could get a pair of the cummins 5.9s out of dodge pick ups ,and do a few performance mods. i know the truck guys are spinning them 4500 rpms and making a ton of hp and tq with them...what would be required to covert them for a marine application?

btw big yellow cat has a 40" skater v hull with a pair of 5.9 qsm cummins in it and arnesons. it will run in the 80s, i don't know if he has done any performance mods to them to get that speed.

diesel or outboards are the only thing to run here in colombia. gas is 5 bucks a gallon diesel is 4, and that's not on the water but at a gas station. add a buck or so if you have to buy it on the water....

there are several nice apache 41s for 70s and 80s on oso. i might be able to find one a lot cheaper, if it is just the hull less power and drives on a trailer, or i can buy one and strip it in the states and sell the eng and drives prior to shipping it down. i would rigging it here in colombia... thx, rm

My Brother has a 5500rpm Duramax built by Merchant Automotive in his truck, His connecting rods cost 10K. it has an Aroura 5000 Turbo, I'd love to see one of those in a boat. where most diesels starts to flop his keeps pulling :)

You could also buy a pair of the new 6.7 common rail Cummins they are 550HP from the factory, and like you say some simple mods you should have reliable 4000 rpm 700+ hp engines. To the best of my knowledge the 5.9's in the 40' Skater V-hull are stock.

ZF makes the transmissions

I'll just say one thing and that's it about this, you start with hopped up this and that you'll have junk - no better than a gas engine, take all the Cummins Dodge & Duramax performance stuff and all your high rpm, big horse power numbers from P/U trucks that make it for a few seconds put them in your boat and you'll wish you had gas engines with blowers on them instead!

If you can afford it get the big Cummins 8.3's or the 6.7's 550hp are nice engines as well as pstorti mentioned. The bigger 8.3's will last forever, better low rpm power but yes a little heavier. If you don't have money for new then don't waste what money you do have on R&D.