I certainly agree that the driver can make a big difference. Getting out of the throttle when catching some air makes a big difference.

Boat weight and size obviously makes a difference. I would guess both your new boat and Franks new boat weigh a lot more than his old café' (wet), despite whatever the factory specs might say.

Supercharged engines also make more torque and are more apt to damage drives for this reason. The general rule of thumb I've historically seen is 600+ hp and bravos start to have more frequent issues. Both of you have more power than this on tap now.

Also, the older gears in the Bravos seemed to hold up better. I dont know what has changed, but the newer ones dont seem to have the same track record. Something changed about 5 years ago. There's a fair amount of evidence on this in the drive section. It sounds like Frank's would have had the older gears based on the timeline above.

Regardless, Frank obviously had a good run with his old drives... and I think a lot of it has to do with all of the above.

Keep in mind we are all stepping up in size and power. All things being equal, I dont think a new set of bravos would fair as well under the same abuse with either of your new boats. Although I hope I'm wrong!


Look at it another way, would you be afraid of Bravos if you went through one or two this year, or were one of the guys that has already went through a few? I know I would be after blowing an Imco or two!


BTW, I'm not a complete Bravo hater, I would just prefer to avoid them if possible with my next step up.

Sadly, Merc seems to have a little history in this regard.

agreed!

My favorite line in this whole thread " we are all stepping up to bigger power" I know a purchase is only days away!

You know too much then!

Seriously, my point was a lot of us are moving up in a big way this season, kind of hard to compare the old setups/experiences with the new.

Time to saddle up and run with the big dogs....

Isn't that always what happens in the off-season?

Always bigger power, more boost, new setups.

Hope everyone has a great season this year trouble/problem free!

I agree with the "new Bravo" point Scot. They definately seem weaker, or the factory is just making more power!! I wouldnt put it past Mercury to put a "weak link" in their Bravo drives now-a-days. They definatley are not building much of a fan base these days. Anyways......at least we arent running outboards!! Jeff, you can pick at Studio54 all you want! I bought it because I couldnt afford 60K for yours

This post is exciting! Bigger, better, faster..........its the American way!

All I have to say is look at your avatar! That is a work of art and it sounds like a symphony, outboards are not for me(not bashing as I am a 2 stroke fan) INMO they belong on Bass Trackers not offshore boats. You can not compare the sound either or the torque. Now I want to see if I woke Sammy with this post.

Scot no interest in this boat???
http://www.offshoreonly.com/classifi...o38651-en.html