Start to Finish: Building Our 50' Skater
08-31-2021 | 12:44 PM
#1858
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Joined: Mar 2021
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
Awesome build, good luck with it
We are finally in the home stretch of finishing our 50' Skater. It has been a long process to get this boat built the way we need it - to eventually attempt the around the world speed record - but we are nearing the end and should be on the water in a few months.
We thought you might like to see the build process so we will post photos from the very beginning until the boat is done. We plan on doing some testing at poker runs later this year before attempting any endurance records so keep an eye out for a silver and black 50' Skater rolling through a town near you!
We thought you might like to see the build process so we will post photos from the very beginning until the boat is done. We plan on doing some testing at poker runs later this year before attempting any endurance records so keep an eye out for a silver and black 50' Skater rolling through a town near you!
09-05-2021 | 02:28 PM
#1859
Registered
Joined: Jan 2021
Posts: 922
Likes: 429
From: Gothenburg, Sweden
Tyson,
Over the last few days, I have read every post in this thread.
You need to split this into two projects, each solving a different problem.
Project 1: break the round-the-world record for boats. That problem can be solved with proven tools and technologies, like a 50 ft Skater and Seatek diesels. Your endurance racing track record is also of use here. It is worth throwing a few million dollars at, assuming that you have a few million dollars to spare.
Project 2: radically improve the Diesel engine. That is a much harder problem to solve. Companies spend billions of dollars on it every year, and you are not very well-placed to do better. Start by getting a cheap boat. A used Fountain or Nor-Tech or something, for testing engines, so that you can keep your new Skater our of it. Just don’t piss Peter off by getting a you-know-what. Then take a PhD in combustion engine design at a good engineering school, with a deep specialization in diesel technology. Then start playing. There is a guy here in town who is doing something similar to what you are trying to do, but backed by a lot of knowledge about engines, since he works for the world’s top manufacturer of large Diesel engines. He has a Nor-Tech with diesels. It is not very fast, and at the rpms it takes, it is not very fuel efficient either, but he is having fun. Like is your case, things break. Among other things, he tried a turbine. When it exploded, all the shrapnel ended in in the hull, and none in his body. That’s the price of progress, but don’t let it keep you from doing what you originally set out to do: set the world record.
Over the last few days, I have read every post in this thread.
You need to split this into two projects, each solving a different problem.
Project 1: break the round-the-world record for boats. That problem can be solved with proven tools and technologies, like a 50 ft Skater and Seatek diesels. Your endurance racing track record is also of use here. It is worth throwing a few million dollars at, assuming that you have a few million dollars to spare.
Project 2: radically improve the Diesel engine. That is a much harder problem to solve. Companies spend billions of dollars on it every year, and you are not very well-placed to do better. Start by getting a cheap boat. A used Fountain or Nor-Tech or something, for testing engines, so that you can keep your new Skater our of it. Just don’t piss Peter off by getting a you-know-what. Then take a PhD in combustion engine design at a good engineering school, with a deep specialization in diesel technology. Then start playing. There is a guy here in town who is doing something similar to what you are trying to do, but backed by a lot of knowledge about engines, since he works for the world’s top manufacturer of large Diesel engines. He has a Nor-Tech with diesels. It is not very fast, and at the rpms it takes, it is not very fuel efficient either, but he is having fun. Like is your case, things break. Among other things, he tried a turbine. When it exploded, all the shrapnel ended in in the hull, and none in his body. That’s the price of progress, but don’t let it keep you from doing what you originally set out to do: set the world record.
Last edited by Markus; 09-05-2021 at 02:35 PM.
09-05-2021 | 04:35 PM
#1860
Registered
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 1,714
Likes: 875
From: Cedar Rapids Iowa, LOTO, Cape Coral Fl.
This goes to show how tough "projects" are to get over the finish line. Whether it is a big scale project by a guy that has the talent and resources to do absolutely anything, to the guy working on an old boat a few hours a week when he can find time and the money to buy supplies. Often times focus changes mid-stream that slows down or totally derails all of the great intentions. Kudos to all of those that have gone through the process, whether or not it has come to completion...............yet!
