hogie roll

What is stopping y’all old curmudgeons from bringing out your old school v-bottoms?

tlark

I don't totally dis-agree with the above egg-beater/school bus analogy however we're not seeing that atleast not in total at LOTO. You still see a good # of preformance V-bottoms here still, The market up here is not the same as Miami and the economic demographic that is attracted to that school bus is limited, they exist but not a lot of peeps are gonna pop for $3/4 to 2 mil dollars CC's at LOTO and anything less than 35' is gonna get eaten up by the washboard water on most weekends IMO at LOTO. I came out of a V-bottom and into a CC b/c of its ergonomics. 15 years of Hockey took care of certain physical aspects that made the choice for me. Trends are just that with these outboards, however I don't know that we're going back sad to say as there seems to be a universal attempt with all the green non-sense at most corporate levels and frankly there are many that would rather see boats go away all together.

Hoodoo 2.0

Wildman_grafix

Ok that is funny I don't care who you are.

Cash Bar

Most of us with 450 sport cats would really disagree. And when new power comes out they will be bigger and faster.

Yes, when I'm at the lake I can hear the "big block boats" coming and I look. But I also see the OB cat guys carrying the torch for sport. And they (especially us) do it at 100+ all day, every day. NONE of those old school V bottoms, and very few BBC cats, can say that. The OB boats may not be for everyone, but they are prolonging any life this hobby/sport has left.

The aerial photo of Gilbert's from this run has 50ish boats at the docks, and NOT ONE boat has someone wrenching on a motor during lunch. That is an evolution we can all live with.

Matt Trulio

This is the most lucid comment I've read in a long time. What you forgot to add was how many 450R-powered boats are owned by former "big-block" catamaran and V-bottom owners like yourself.

But like you, I also get that change is hard to accept. Fortunately, while far less frequent there are still V-bottom and cat builds with stern-drive power—almost exclusively with QC4v power—happening such as this Outerlimits SV 50 (https://www.speedonthewater.com/new-...-test-session/) and Tyler Miller's Class 1 catamaran from Skater (https://www.speedonthewater.com/snea...-m-con-skater/)

I once caught a ride to a raft-up in a 46-foot catamaran with ludicrous stern-drive power. It took us less than 20 minutes to get there. Thanks to a dead port engine, it took us three hours to idle back to our starting point.

Yes, that can happen with outboards, too. But it happens a whole lot less these days.

techman

I just didn't get the OB thing either, but the more you look, the more you read, the more you experience, they really are a legitimately cool and effective way to push your boat through the water. V8 IO's will live on through legacy applications and enthusiasts just like old muscle cars. But modern propulsion is going in another direction. I don't know if we will ever get to a 1000HP outboard since packaging is getting to be a challenge....talking to you V12 600 Merc. But just how fast do you need your catamaran to go?

cheech

No argument and I like both.
But in regards to the wrenching on things.
I understand that with exotic power BBC powered older boats, maybe even some built by not so great engine builders.

As you do a lot of these events, do you see a lot of wrenching on current (like within 5ish yr old) boats with QC4V power?

Wildman_grafix

I think he was talking about the OB CC's. The number of OB cats out there now is stunning to say the least.

Because of insurance on cats there is just about no way I will be able to own one (love the setup on Mystics OB Cat), but I see VERY VERY few OB performance V's being built. The new DONZI sounds like it will be cool but when it comes to V hulls it seems the focus is huge CC's and how many motors can I clamp on the back.

I do wish more were being built but its where the market seems to be. As for people talking about sound, surprised the aftermarket hasn't cam up with something, I mean a 450R V-8 screaming at 7K has to sound bad a$$.

precisiondetails

my statement on this particular thread was directed at CCs not OBs