Speed secret FOUND! Bottom ventilation does NOT work!
 

For those of you who are looking for that mile per hour or two, I can attest to the FACT that bottom ventilation DOES NOT WORK! This Saturday while enjoying a GORGEOUS day on Lake Champlain with GLH, T2x and lots of others, my buddy that was running with me suggested we may squeak a few more MPH out of the Skater if we could ventilate teh bottom. I said, ya know what? Alot of guys and gals on OSO were talking about it as well, maybe there is something to it. So we poked an approximate 4 inch by 4 inch hole in the bottom and then delaminated about an 18 by 24 inch section from the keel to the chine. The craziest thing happened....we went SLOWER!!!!!!:eek: :crazy: WTF?:confused: When we opened the hatch we had a sponson full of high quality H2O!:hothead: So today it is time to find a talented glass individual because this ain't no West system do it yourself job.:rolleyes:

Wow! Great info Shane. Thanks for doing the testing for us.
Whoda thunk it?


Hope you get it fixed soon.

Thanks guys. We must have hit something but NEVER felt a thing until we lost some serious MPH! Hot Boat suggested maybe a mooring bouy with those hooks in the top or T2x thought maybe we inadvertantly hit a large bird. We made every effort to avoid the birds that were out on Saturday. They were EVERYWHERE! I have never seen more waterfowl in my life! We slowed and turned frequently, but ya never know. I guess it makes sense. Look at what a bird can do to an airplane.:mad:

Hey no problem! If you ever need ANYTHING tested just let us know. We are here to help! Why sacrifice your boat when you can try it on mine?!:D :D

Damn dude that SUCKS!!!! Hope you find a glass guy. If not out in your area I know a BUNCH of great ones in mine and they can probably get on it quick for ya. If you are real pressed for time I could hook up with you out on Rt90 on the Mass Pike and pull it the rest of the way for ya to Gloucester were these guys are.

Jon

Shane holler at me also I have some options for you as well.

Dude that blows and here I thought you were being all serious and sh**. :D:D Must still be half asleep!!!!

Audio whats up bro????

Thanks guys. A few people out here recommended this guy right nearby and he can look at it tonight and get on it quickly. I will keep you guys posted. Thanks again.

When the wind picks up on this pond there are a lot less birds, Mind you the cats make themselves scarce also! what with the 5' to 6' chop!

You guys did run those thing fast. Another cat got fed bird. Airpacker said; "We're running 85MPH T2x on one side Shane on the other, I see those seagulls and hey can't move wouldn't be safe then ""TUMP"" catfood...

Hope you get it fixed soon, sorry about the "Lake Champlain mods" :D:D:D

Really? You think a bird coulda done that?

Do you think if I match the starboard side to teh port it will equal out and THEN go faster?:p

I really don't know. But look at what they do to the front of an airplane! Sure can make a HUGE mess of a metal plane. I guess ANYTHING is possible. I hope it wasn't a bird though. Just cuz I love animals.

Re: Speed secret FOUND! Bottom ventilation does NOT work!
 

I think that you were experiencing a balance problem. In order for a ventilated bottom to work properly, you have to do BOTH SIDES! Now get buisy and let us know how it turns out.:D

Re: Re: Speed secret FOUND! Bottom ventilation does NOT work!
 

Roger,

THANKS! We had thought about that but just were not sure. Your vision and insight has made this "repair" much easier and FAR LESS expensive!:p

Shane I think for you to keep a good sence of humor
on the situation is Great ! also glad you nor anyone else
was hurt. Good luck with the repair. Jo

Thanks so much Joe.

Did your guy have a look at it, Pepsi Man?

GLH,

see my other thread:mad: :mad: :mad:

shane you had the right idea with the venalation but you did not finish the job. see what you gotta do is not only poke a 4" hole in the bottom of the sponson, you also need to poke a 2 1/2 " hole in the back of the boat ,this procedure is commenly employed in seadoo's and jetski's, so you can see you were on the right track but you did not put the hole in the back of the boat too!

Sorry to hear about that Shane. I feel your pain. :(
The trick to get your speed back is to air the boat out enough so that it doesn't drag that portion of the bottom in the water...and keep the bilge pumps running...;) :D :D :D

You had me at the title. Really sorry to hear about the damage.

Shane, Sorry I haven't been on since the weekend to remind you of that guys name. Keith Deluke from Deluke Marine in Scotia. Let me know if you need anything else.

Sharkey
That picture hurts!

Wow, thats strange! From the pick it just looks like the worst delam I've ever seen. Ouch, sorry to see that man. Are you sure there wasn't just a crack there before and it just finally came apart?

Chuck,

The boat is at Keith's right now. I expect to speak with him tomorrow on a final price. Does not look good at all. He ground out the damage only to find that the bottom had been repaired and filled with a bondo like material and we found all the balsa core to be saturated and rotten and even full of mold. He had a moisture meter, pretty cool tool, it measures moisture through the hull. He needs to take out 6 feet in length and from the chine to the keel. I hope it will be done for the 1000 Islands.

Mad hatter,

The picture above is not my boat. That is one of Sharkey's old race boats.

Shane

Shane, Glad you got in touch with Keith. The job will be perfect and done when he says it will be done. He made an entire bottom for a jet ski for me that I bought at the auction. Never knew it was damaged. See ya in the Bay