A ride in the new EPOXY Fountain
 

Sunday after the Sarasota Run I loaded the boat and planned on laying by the pool to get some more rays, drinks, and check out the chicks.

As I entered the "Boathouse" (marina bar) I was approached by one of the lovely girls who put on this fine event (I won't mention her name).

She asked what I was doing, so I told her. She said they were taking out the boats and wanted to know if I wanted to come? I obviously accepted, bought a drink for both of us, and headed out!

and I just happened to have my camera.

If you didn't know:

The 2 Poker Runs America boats are 42 Fountains.
Both are powered with Merc 900sc's and 6's.

One is the original "race" hull.
The other is the new epoxy hull.

MAN was there a difference.

Here is the original boat.

The epoxy boat

Seating in the Epoxy boat. Perfect for Poker Running. Yes, the rear seats are electric.

Okay, I'll bite. What's the difference?

I rode in the original boat first. I have ridden in these 42's countless times and knew what to expect. 105-109mph, nice.

Here is the original hull running.

another

From the side.

Next, it was my turn in the Epoxy layup.

Let me just say, holy chit.

The boat shot up to 106 and acheived a top speed of 122mph. :eek: :eek:

The nose rode much higher and the throttle response was extremely impressive.

From shotgun.

her tail.

Her feet.

Here is the Epoxy boat on the trailer.

other side with driver

Needless to say I was speechless after the ride. The new layup makes a considerable difference in ride, handling, and of course, speed.

Nice job Fountain. :cool:

I'm impressed with your speed 93 on mild power. Must be the TS.

The T/S makes ALL the difference on the Cigarettes. I wanted to run comfortably in the 90's with reliable power. I am extremely happy with the boat. :cool:

Yeah Yeah their nice. Now lets see the chick pics!:D

Holy cow ! 13-17 mph :eek: :confused: :eek: :cool: :cool:

WOW !
 

Brandon, whats the weight difference, other than substantial ?

Cool boats. Thanks for the pictures.:cool:

OK, call me a fuddy duddy, who is the guy in the back seat and where is his life jacket:eek:

That must have been one hell of a ride if you are congratulating Fountain:eek: :D :D I'm sure glad you were having fun while we were miserable in the truck.;)

Re: WOW !
 

I am embarrased to say that I forgot to ask. :rolleyes:

They said that during the run they could feel the wind pushing the boat in the turns.

I am still blown away that it ran so much different than its predecessor, which runs real good.

....LOOKS LIKE REGGIE "EMERIL" FOUNTAIN KICKED IT UP A NOTCH?

Epoxy: This is the high-performance resin, with a matching price tag. Epoxy resins have had a reputation for being hard to work, since early epoxies were thick, but many modern epoxies are quite liquid. Epoxy will adhere better than any other resin to a wide range of materials, which makes it ideal for attaching cores, stringers, or other items. In 10 yrs all offshores I'll bet will be epoxy at least in critical areas...



"BAM!"

"We'll add a little pinch of cin-in-in-muh-mum"

"Kickin' it up to notches unknown Baby!"

"Get to know your bird"

"Ya, Ya Rhoda"

"Happy, Happy, Happy"

"We're gonna kick it up a notch!"

"We aren't building rocket ships here!"

"Who made these rules?"

"Now would be a good time for you to go get some of those frozen oreos out of the freezer!"

"It's food of love baby!"

"...and about 88 cloves of garlic"

"It's ok ma'm, I do this for a living"

"Welcome to the quiet show!"

"They've got lunatics across the street. We've got Food!"

"I won't even go there..."

"They didn't tell you that these were the dangerous seats!"

"Show Me The Food!!"

"Hey Houston! Come down here!"

"Hilda, are you in there?"

"I think I just lost an eyebrow!"

"Make some friends!"

"I don't know where you buy your flour, but mine doesn't come seasoned!"

"I'm thinking of doing this for a living"



as for me...if all works out ...this will be it...the dealer I am working with informed me that Race Farings are an option that will not increase price..maybe he is absorbing it..but he said if you call the factory they will tell you the same...coool...HP500's...working on 220k del.

next decision...well not an outboard..but HP 500 or 525's..

...38' Lightening ...525's....230k....88mph...thinking it over..


...the epoxy Poker Run Boat is a constant of around 300...it IS basically the same as a Cat....lighter/stronger..

...nothing can really compare....my ,material managers looked it up and found that it costs about 4x to use this epoxy vs. the best vinyl esters...

...we figure that based on usage figures over the last 10 yrs it should be 2x in 5 yrs if usage continues to grow...not just in the marine industry but the auto and truck industries as well as many components are made of "plastic"

...I will calm down again....I just get really excited at innovation and new technology! I just think Reggie is heading in the usual right direction...and we win too!

LPGA .... buy your damn boat and STFU :rolleyes:

i have a few offers in ...we will see where they go

The epoxy layup is approximately 500 pounds lighter. Not real sure about the price as I asked Fountain the same question last November. If I recall from memory correctly, I believe the epoxy layup will cost you an additional 35K or so.

I ran with these two boats last fall on the Pamlico River and I was impressed. The epoxy yellow boat is extremely quick, it does have a higher x-dimension over the older PRA yellow boat.

What impressed me was the top end speed with 900 SC's. The boat ran a legit 122. My 42 Fountain equipped with 1200 Cobras was a little faster on the top end but the epoxy boat was quicker than mine.

The epoxy yellow boat with the higher x-dimension did not have a cabin if memory serves me correctly and I do remember the epoxy boat running higher in the water.

It would be real interesting to lay up one of the new 42 Fountain Poker Run boats with epoxy and equip it with some big power and see how it runs against the OL boats.

Fountaindriver

:eek: :eek: :D :D

FeverMike;

I would think that would be a safe bet as the powers to be at Fountain and a certain customer/dealer are already in the planning stages. However, the engine choice will not be big Sterlings. It looks like the 1075 Mercury package with dry sump number 6's could be the ticket.

Fountaindriver

Well, I never said I would buy one :D :D. It was cool to compare the two though.

It was a fun ride! :cool:

Unfortunately, it was a little chilly that evening. Not much to photograph with sweatshirts and jackets on. :mad: They were lookin good though ;) :cool:

Fever Mike

I think that is the idea; outrun and outperform them with less power.

Fountaindriver

Is the power the same in both boats ??

If the epoxy boat did not have a cabin and with the epoxy It would be more than 500 pounds .


Impressive speeds . There is a lot of other boat manufactures falling behind:eek:

Very nice!! Very nice pics also

that is great that Reggie is stepping up. But he is far from the first, Skater has used epoxy for sometime now and OL is using post cured laminates

and the Dragon :cool:

I believe the 500 pound weight savings was the epoxy layup as opposed to the conventional layup.

Fountaindriver

Does the boat have gelcoat?

It is my understanding that gelcoat will not stick to a post cured boat. To reap the true benefits of an epoxy boat, it must be post cured.