Is there any 'trick' to running a Bravo 1 with muffs and NOT burning up the impeller? After burning up two impellers on the driveway, I'm paranoid about running the muffs now. The best I can figure is that the water never makes it up the drive and all the way to the sea pump and it toasts the impeller as it runs dry for a bit. How do you guys do it? Prime through the tstat hoses?

I usually wrap a single piece of tuck tape around them to hold them tight to the drive and rev the motor a little when first starting it up to get the flow started. you shouldnt have much trouble unless there are pieces of the old impeller abstructing the flow inside the hose.

make sure you have a good quality hose that won't collapse.

2500 rpm's max..... A 3/4 " garden hose cannot adequately supply an 1"1/4 inch intake hose.... A little something called hydraulics enters the picture here....
With a questionable impellor, 2500 is way to high .
Use the dual feed ears or the factory one, but if you do not have enough static water pressure coming from your hose this could be the problem too. (bad water source/ municipality )
Some garden hoses are 5/8" i.d. and multiply that friction loss over a 50 or 100 ft hose and trouble is on it's way... Any wonder why this didn't happen in the water and on the hose ?

Have seen some impellor pieces in the oil cooler and trans coolers obstucting flow...