Bravo's seem to be fine up to around 500 Hp then poof. Anyone try the conversion? But the real question I have is why not use an Arneson to begin with on a Cig, Fountain, etc. if using 500+ HP ?

http://www.arneson-industries.com/br...conversion.htm

16,000 was the quoted price for a bravo conversion. Thats alot of bravo's....

I put 6000$ worth of aftermarket shafts,xr gears,billet top cap,xr u-joints,shaft,hd upper to lower coupler,hd chrome moly tower ,bearings etc in my stock bravo after breaking it the 1st time,broke x/r upper gears after 50 hrs,another 1500$ worth of gears and brgs to get it going again,Sheared off hi-performance vert shaft at 90 hrs,another 1800$ in parts (new shaft/brgs/lower gears/o-rings etc) and so I wouldn't miss 2-3 wks of our short michigan boating season i spent 10,000 on another new outdrive w/all the above upgrades. That adds up to 19,300$ in bravo repairs in 3 years,16000$$ for something reliable doesn't sound too unreasonable to me ANYMORE!! I wasn't aware of this conversion kit with transmision mounted outside the boat,I was under impression i would have to move engine forward & relocate my back seat (not really a option on a 27 ft boat). There is next time!

The guy in the rack next to me has put blowers on his 500efi's now making 700 HP and breaks a drive every other weekend. I think he said when he hits 3 major repairs the Arnesons would have been cheaper, plus all the down time. I would seriously consider Arnesons on my next boat in the event I put blowers on I am all set.

Recent powerboat article pegs it a $50K/pair. Do you know where the difference is?

The secret to keeping any drive alive is to keep it wet. If you start flying your boat get out your check book.

1. When you exit the water the engine over revs and if you do not throttle back before reentry the props hook back up hard and the drives absorb the torque as the r's reduce becasue of resistance.

2. Blowing drives is more common using 4-5 large blade props, that is prop sized that you do not achieve the mfg's specified RPM's when at WOT. This adds a lot more torque on the drive.

3. Bigger drives that will withstand that type of beating then place the load father up in he drive train system. The pressure plate which is actually designed to be the weakest link in the system and the cheapest to replace besides having to pull the engine.

Arnesons are great drives. I have a set on a cat. I also have a Cig with 600's and Bravos which I have twisted.

Just keep in kind, "You fly and they will die"!

This is the responce I got inquiring about the drive for a 25' Checkmate with 700 HP, I would think the PB article included the installation or could be a bigger unit, but who knows. I really like the idea of the Arnesons, but there are some trade offs as I am told, low speed docking is difficult. I would love to do the install but the R&D is too much for me right now.
Dave

Plus what your boat will lose in re-sale.


For 2 of those conversion $32,000, no trannies and not installed... you get 8 Bravo's complete that install in 15 minutes or 4 XR's with a spare set of gears without the casing.

And if PB says $50k for the conversion once installed with adding trannies and repositioning your engines, spend another 10k and you have 6's and then can run a locomotive in your bilge.

I think Trannies are included: Here's a picture of the Kit.

If you've ever driven an Arneson, you'll never go back to an outdrive.
Even in a single configuration, nothing will ever come close to the overall performance and handling, never mind the durability.

I was going to say that Geoo was the guy to talk to!

Tell us more about the before vs after handling, speed, planing, dial in, etc...