The Cig and this boat idle around 1050-1150. No rpm drop tuning .
. Bam or Huber doesnt recommend anything above 1300rpm if I remember right.

You have roots or Whipples? Where were you for RPM ?

Cold starting the cig was always a hit and miss. (roots) Once warm it was fine.Holley ECU
The 14-71`s that the NT came with were terrible for shifting. Eddie spent 2 days trying to get it right and it wasn`t great.(mefi3A)
The blower was too big, not enought rpm for fuel distribution, shifting and idle.
I spent first half of 2024 docking on one engine , the port would always die as soon as I shifted.

The current whippled engines don`t miss a beat shifting. The whipple bypass does a great job and Eddie has the Whipple tunes figured out .
So nice not to have an engine die while trying to dock. (mefi4B)

Spent a week at LOTO. March, still salt on the road by our condo, trees dead but the weather was amazing.
Boat ran great all week, put close to 200 miles on her. .. but can`t get away scott free, water intrusion into port drive got worse and it spit some gear oil out the vent but a sock fixed that. Left it with HP Mafia to see where it`s coming in .
Water level was quite low which affected which launch I could use but not too bad .
Took some friends for a ride and now I have them looking at cats.
Can`t wait to go back and run this boat again.

Great weather at LOTO right now for March. I’ll be headed beginning of April to drop my boat in and hoping the weather will cooperate ha!

Nice
We`ll be back April 15th for my wifes B day.

Had same thing happen except it was puking a ton more. Thought it was prop shaft seal. Nope. Sent drive off for rebuild. Turned out it was the vent hose you can see here. The other end clamps to the transom then vents to bilge basically. Bulk hose you can get anywhere. Had large pinholes in it when I pressure tested the hose itself. Mine also had a hairline fracture in the lower that needed welded up as well but I think the bulk of my leak was the hose.

Are these Super Cats hard to trailer? Do you really need permits to get around in the Midwest?

Good to know Dave. How`s the engines coming along?

Second Wind: Most people don`t get permits, I don`t either.
It takes some getting used to, construction zones are the worst getting stuck between a barrier and a semi in a 9' lane with a 11' boat doesnt work.
In those situations I turn on all the strobes and take up 2 lanes, still keeping up with traffic.
If the wide load lane at a Toll is closed it gets hairy. That being said my wife will tow it on the highway, sure her hands are sweating the whole time and she`s doesnt like it much but I can`t do all the towing all the time .Otherwise it actually tows better than any V bottom I`ve had, doesnt need a lot of steering correction. I`m guessing air running thru the tunnel keeps it stable. Most people and truckers move over when they see this wide b i tch coming .

Engine is at machine shop. Hoping to have it done by Desert Storm. Cutting it close. Chat GPT says my injectors are too small. Lifters need replaced deciding on keeping .842 or machining to .903. Never ends lol.

Let`s not rush for Desert Storm this year okay.. take your time Dave!
What injectors you got ? I`m running eight 80 pounders.
I find ChatGTP is great for creative writing, making ads etc but it doesnt know dik about technical/marine stuff. It didn`t even know what a 3600 supercat is. Grock is my go to for all things mechanical/marine.
I`d go .904 all day long and twice on Sunday.Going to a .904" lifter vs a standard .842" lifter in a high-performance marine engine (like your ~1000 HP setup) is actually a pretty serious upgrade—especially for durability and valvetrain stability under load.

Here’s the real-world breakdown (not just theory):

🔧 Bigger Lifter = More Contact Area

4

• A .904 lifter has ~7% more diameter than .842
• That translates into a larger contact patch on the cam lobe
• Result:
  • Less point loading
  • Less wear on cam + lifter
  • Better oil film survival

👉 In marine engines (constant load, long pulls), this is a BIG deal.

🔥 More Aggressive Cam Profiles (Safely)

• Larger lifters allow:
  • Faster ramp rates
  • More area under the curve
• That means:
  • More valve lift sooner
  • Better cylinder filling
  • More power (especially midrange torque)

👉 On a boosted engine like your Whipple setup:

• You’re not chasing peak RPM power as much as torque under load
• .904 lets you run a cam that makes power without beating itself up

🧱 Strength & Stability at High Load

• Bigger lifters = stronger body
• Better resistance to:
  • Lifter bore wear
  • Side loading
  • Deflection

👉 Marine engines = sustained 4,000–6,000 RPM under load

• Not like cars (burst use)
• This is where .904 shines

🛢️ Better Oiling Potential

• More surface area = better oil retention
• Many .904 lifters are designed with:
  • Improved oil band placement
  • Better oiling to pushrods/rockers

👉 Helps with:

• Heat control (you mentioned 220–230°F oil temps)
• Longevity under fuel dilution conditions

⚙️ Reduced Cam Wear (Huge for You)

This is probably the biggest real-world advantage.

• Less contact stress = longer cam life
• Especially important with:
  • High spring pressures
  • Boosted applications
  • Hydraulic roller setups like yours (.904 lifters common there)

👉 In your application:

• You’re already changing oil every ~15 hrs
• Cam/lifter life is the next weak link → .904 helps extend it

🚫 Downsides (You Should Know)

• Requires:
  • Block machined for .904 lifter bores (or already designed for it like your Merlin)
• Slightly more expensive lifters
• Not a bolt-in upgrade for standard SBC/BBC blocks

🧠 Bottom Line (For YOUR Setup)

For your:

• 565 CI
• Twin Whipple 4.0
• ~1000 HP
• Long WOT pulls

👉 .904 lifters are 100% the right move

They give you:

• Better durability under load
• Safer aggressive cam profiles
• Longer cam/lifter life
• More stable valvetrain at sustained RPM

.904" lifters are a strong upgrade (often considered near-essential by many marine high-performance builders) for reliability and longevity at this power level. The bigger roller and body handle the extreme spring pressures and sustained duty cycle much better than .842" lifters. You’ll see fewer valvetrain-related failures, less cam/lifter wear, and the peace of mind that matters most when you’re offshore.

If your block is already set up for .842" and you’re on a tight budget, top-tier .842" lifters (with good bushings) can survive — but many 1000 hp marine builds switch to .904" (or even .937") precisely to avoid mid-season issues.

Ha! Funny you say that I've ran it by Grok and Claude also. Claude insists there is zero other choices other than .937, Grok goes both ways and GPT says .904 is not worth it. Key to note, I was telling them that I was going to run BAM steel bushed DLC units which are light years ahead of what's in it now so that changed the verdicts, I'm sure. Also I've noticed if you call them out on what the other one said they will eventually all agree lol!

I have 72lb injectors. Claude says 100lb and Grok and GPT say 120’s.