Less than 8 weeks til splash down
 

I have always tried to be ready to launch the first weekend of May.

With my winter house project finished, it is time to focus on getting the Superboat ready.:)

I bought all kinds of goodies to make the engine push her a bit faster so that were I'm starting.
Here is a before shot. Got it in the basement yesterday.

Anyone else want to share an upgrade or two?

Dave, Adding that full hydraulic steering?
JMK, Will we see a swim platform bolted up?
ZZ, What you got in the works for that 540?
Sean, Tell us one of your secrets...

Anyone take delivery on a new Superboat?

Pat,
Waiting on my new 24. JC says shortly. New trailer is ready. Looks like you're gonna crack 70 ? Gotta give you credit, my days of tearing into motors are over (except when I have to). :eek:

Hey Pat,

I'm not sure about the steering yet. I'm a bit financially challenged right now. The tax man burned me this year. On a positive note, I should be splashing by the end of March. I think this week should be about it for sub freezing temps.

Dave

Superbash,
Good Luck with that new ride of yours. Hope to meet up with you at some point this summer.
Yes, 70mph is the goal. I have acquired all the goodies to build the engine to 400-410HP @ 5000rpm. Problem is, I've been told by two engine builders that the MPI will only flow enough for 375HP @ 4600rpm. If I don't hit 70 the MPI will come off and a carb will go on.;)

Dave,
Taxes are on my to do list as well, but I should not have any surprises.
I am jealous of the fact you are ready to roll in a few weeks... :)

hey patrick,did you buy your gil offshore mount from op?how much was the mount without labor?looks like a great upgrade while my motor is out. i hope you guys dont mind me hopping on your forum,i run a 24 condor (same hull as superboat and pantera) but i have never seen another one anywhere :confused: anyway i enjoy reading your stories and upgrades,thanks,bob.

Hey Condor 24,
I bought the Gil mount from an OSO member. Gil no longer makes a mount like this.
I do have a copy that I bought from CP performance.
The CP Performance mount was too wide and was going to need machining so when I came across the Gil, I bought it.
If you like, I'll sell it to you for $100 including angles, or you can buy from CP yourself.

Hey Condor,

There's a dealer in Maryland that sells Condors. I have not seen any in my local waters. Do you have a 7' beam?

Dave M.

hey patrick,that sounds pretty good,my boat is in east haddam,let me measure my stringers and get back to you. i used to be at hayes haven marina in chester,ct, i saw your old pantera ,but i dont think i've seen your superboat yet. i spend most of my time on the river at hamburg cove,my boat was white with purple and green stripes and had a big scoop on the hatch. it is a 7 ft beam model with bolsters,no steps in the hull, but it does have a small pad. These are custom built in miami by AMG marine. its going in for custom paintwork soon,and i'm raising the x dimension 3 inches,it was way to deep.i'm running an hp500 carb clone,thru a bravo with a 26 labbed bravo 1,but i was'nt even coming close to 85 like you guys predict with my power,last year 69 on gps. i hope fixing the x will bring better results, the only other thing that worries me now is if i got a 415 hp/502, instead of the 502/502 i paid for!I'm really considering having this motor dynoed while it is out,do you know of anyone local? i dont know if there is any other way to tell the differance.

Hey CONDOR24,
I have seen you around...;) Nice Ride!
Do you hang with a couple with a big Formula?
Would you like me to measure my X before you go changing yours? My boat ran 85mph for the previous owner with a 500+HP/509cube...:D
As for your engine:
What year is it? Does it have a high rise single plane intake? A 500 has higher compression and a larger cam than a 502mag. Glen at GCR in Clinton will Dyno it if you like. $500 though...

Hey Pat, who and where is GCR in Clinton??? Doesn't ring any bells.:confused:

Gen's Shop is right behind the Clinton Napa on Rt 1. Small 2 man band...
He builds mainly short track sbc, but did a set of 540s for Ocean Performance last year.
I had him rework a set of heads for me...
:)

hey guys, pat my engine is 2 seasons old now,it was a brand new gen 6 502/502 that i bought thru affordable marine in portland,i know jim down there thru a friend. the engine came from liberty marine in mass. it is a full marine motor with crane cam169611 (576-598 lift)and all the springs,roller rockers ,etc are crane. it has an aluminum "zues" hi rise single plane intake with the bronze water passages,and a custom nickerson performance holley carb. exhaust is thru lightning headers. pat, i measured my x against your pantera,and mine was 2 inches deeper. from an older forum i posted ,the pantera guys said my propshaft should be no more than 4-4 1/2 inches below my hull,mine is 7 1/2! this boat originally came from the factory with a 350/alpha set up in 1990,so i don't think it was set up to be a rocket ship. i've really got my hopes set high on this x dimension change. it is a rocket out of the hole and midrange,but top end it feels like its being held back,wot is 48-4900,raisng the x should give me 2-300 rpm easy,which should put me 52- 5300 rpms. i also just bought the thunderbolt 4 module for an hp500 carb,i was running my old 350 one:p , hopefully all the little things will ad up,i know i've got the makings of a fast boat,its just getting the set up down perfect.

Condor24,
Sounds to me like you have done your homework.:eureka:
Your boat may have had an Alpha SS drive, I think they were shorter... My Superboat X and Pantera X were about the same.
Your engine has the HP500 cam and headers so you should be making lots of power.
If I can help with anything, let me know.:)
Post a few shots if you've got them.
As far as I'm concerned, your welcome here on the Superboat Forum... ;)

i appreciate the response:D pat i will be in touch with you soon on that motor mount,i've got to raise the motor anyway so i might as well upgrade . i 'd love to check out your boat when the weather warms up,sorry i dont have any pics to post,my boat will look completely different this season anyway,talk to you soon,bob

Pat,
I didn't know the name of Glen's shop was GCR. Glen seems like a good guy. I have a 67 396 Camaro that I was having a problem with, I went to his ship to pay him to do a quick job for me. He did it on the spot and refused to take any $ from me. I've sent him tons of business since. I'm going to need that 396 rebuilt soon, he'll get the short block.

BTW, I was looking at the river this morning... it's pretty damn high. Can't wait to get on the water!!!

Bob,
Come on over anytime; I'm exit 5 off rt. 9 so 30min at most.
SS930,
Glen was recommended to me by a marine mechanic friend and a car racing friend. Does seem quite knowledgeable for a young guy.
The river is a swelling, snow up north is melting, spring is 10 days away...:)

Pat,
I'm curious, do you know if the X the same on the regular Superboat hulls as on the stepped hulls?
Thanx- Sd

Hi Sean,
What's Up?
Supercharger and full hydraulic this year?
I don't know about the X dim. on the two hulls?
Anyone know?

X DIMENSION. MY 30 HAS THE PROP SHAFT 2 INCHES BELOW THE BOTTOM .AND THE BOTTOM IS A TRIPLE STEP.THE NEW X WILL BE EVEN WITH THE BOTTOM IF I MOUNT IT RIGHT.LETS SEE IF IT WORKS.;)

hey pat ,i measured the distance between my stringers,looks to be approx.30 inches, how wide is that engine mount you have? i talked to a local race car engine builder and he is going to come over and measure my cam lift and tell me what i have. i have a bad gut feeling this isn't the hp 500 set up i ordered ,but a 415hp 502,guess i'll know soon:rolleyes: it would explain why my topend results aren't adding up,talk to you soon,bob

Hi Pat, I havent decided what I'm going to do as for horsepower yet, but I'm definitely upgrading to dual mayfair with the full hyd helm. Probably throw a 4 blade on too. Hows your motor coming?

Hey ZZ,
What you got up your sleeve? Sure your going to have enough bow lift raising your X?

Condor24,
The mount is 25-3/4" wide so if you use 3" angles it should work. The angles I have are 2" or 2-1/2" so $80 for just the mount. No rush Bob, it can sit around.

Hey Sean,
Full hydraulic is a great upgrade!
As for my engine; I have it torn down and hope to have it back together in a couple of weeks.

Hey Condor24,
I was thinking about your possible engine issue (502mag vs. HP500).
If you pull a valve cover and see standard Gen V/Gen VI non adjustable rockers and shoulder bolts, you don't have the Crane cam.
To convert a 502 mag. to use the Crane cam requires new everything. Lifters, Push rods, Valve Springs, and an adjustable set of Rockers & Studs... Including the cam, that is some $1200 in parts. Also, I believe that an HP500 uses Crane gold roller rockers.
I hope you have the Crane stuff.:confused:

Hey ZZ,
Got your PM, can't tell if you got mine...
Sounds like you have quite a project in the works.;)

Despite a slight dusting of snow last night, I think I should be splashing within a week. This weekend doesn't look that great but I am off Wed. & Thurs. of next week. They're calling for 67 on thurs. :D

hey pat,i pulled a valve cover and there are silver aluminum roller rockers (adj) with stud guides stamped hi perf. on them, was a good sign i guess:confused: there is definately a roller cam in here, now the question remains which one? hopefully i'll get that answered soon. thanks for the suggestion. bob

Go Ahead Dave, Rub it in :p
My engine is in pieces and my boat has like 6" of snow on it.:eek:

Hey Bob, The fact that you have an adjustable valve train is a vary good sign.:)
I doubt someone would go through the effort if the cam was not changed. :eureka:

Hey Condor,get a flashlight and look in the holes where the pushrods go,the big ones in almost the center,look down in the valley and if you see flat pieces of steel going across lifter to lifter,you got a roller!! Unless if there is something i dont know about,which is possible!! Oh yeah,ZZ will have plenty of bow lift,he's putting weight in the back!!! Tripps

YES TRIPPS THERE IS GOOD WEIGHT AND BAD WEIGHT .THE GOOD WEIGHT GOES IN THE BACK AND IF I DONT GET OUT OF THE OFFICE MORE AND EXERCISE THE BAD WEIGHT WILL BE IN THE FRONT. :o

Well my engine is stripped down to the short-block.

Hopefully I will remember where everything goes.
New cam and heads are on this weeks list...:)

Taking it apart is the hard part,putting it together is the easy task :D :D :D Tripps

Hey tripps,
It is certainly more fun to bolt things back together.:)
I am getting quite the education, being that this is only my second big block project. First with a roller cam, first with fuel injection...:)
tripps, are you working with ZZ on his project?

Pat,only mentally! ZZ's a quite capable ,creative mechanic,but if he ever needs anything,he's got it! Some times it's easier to do it yourself,thisway you only have yourself to blame for errors,and there is no time pressure to get it done when you are thinking about what to do,but on the otherhand,2 thoughts are better than one. I like to do things myself,but sometimes you need muscle to lift powerheads off the workbench or out of a car. And since i turned into a outboard mechanic,i'm still learning about them,but i still love BBC's Tripps

Hey tripps,
I am learning to love Big blocks too, but the $$ compared to a small block buildup.....:rolleyes:
I have built a number of small blocks, and sometimes think I maybe should have gone with a sbc when I bought my Superboat without power.
Too late now...
I just better be able to out run JMK with his small block powered 2001 24' Superboat.
Oh, did that sound like a challange? :D

Hey Pat,if he beats you i have 150 horsepower in the form of a blue bottle and a flat metal plate with some lines and selonids,it scares somebody with a white 30,i used it on my 24 tunnel. I would flip the switch at 6000 goin 90 and instantly go 1000 rpm more and maybe 10 mph faster!!! Intrested??? :eek: :eek: :eek: Tripps

100 in a 24' tunnel? tripps, you are one sick individual.:crazy:
No thanks, I'm with ZZ on this one... ;)

Getting closer...:D
Worked on my engine the last two nights.
New cam is in. New heads are on. Valve-train all assembled and adjusted...:cool:

Close doesn't count! :D

I'm locked and loaded! Talk to ya later, after my first splash

:D

She fired right up after her short nap! :D