In 1957 Kiekhaefer Marine (which became Mercury) proved the reliability and trustworthiness of "modern" outboards by running not one, but TWO wood family speedboats around the world nonstop. Ok, it was actually done lapping "Lake X", their test lake in N. FL, but the distance was correct. They made a movie of it and it's on Youtube. It's a fun wast of a half hour, just for all the vintage cars and boats in the shots. The boat-to-boat refueling and driver changes could have been planned (but not executed) by Top Gear.
https://youtu.be/ZUrhOwIet-A
In reply to ultraclyde :
Wierd it won't embed properly. Neat video regardless!
alethi
New Reader
8/19/19 6:10 p.m.
I'm sure this video anchoraged a lot of people to buy boats. I guess, since the test was successful, that no saboateurs were involved. Those motors have some ferry impressive endurance!
Jeffrey Nadrich
Hey, you did that on porpoise!
You copy the link for the video, not the embed link, the thing with the plus sign next to the image thing, between the image embed and smiley face thing
Mercury has come a long way since then.
This is a 450 horsepower supercharged V8 outboard.
Related old boat video...their effort to set a world speed record seems quaint by today's standards:
Floating Doc said:
Mercury has come a long way since then.
This is a 450 horsepower supercharged V8 outboard.
I bet the prop on those is worth more than my entire boat and motor.
In reply to Toyman01 :
You ain't just whistling dixie. Every time I see a boat running the now-standard duals or trips on the back, I can't help but think the duals are more than my entire boat and tow rig combo, and the trip setup is more than my house.
But, man, those supercharged V8s sound so cool running in multiples. Not that I would want to listen to it on a 4 hour run off shore though.
Edit: quick research shows the 450R STARTS at $53,000 each
Or you could drop back to 2 of the 400hp version on your new pontoon boat. Good for over 65mph, seems like a bargain at north of $200,000.
D2W
HalfDork
8/20/19 5:14 p.m.
ultraclyde said:
Or you could drop back to 2 of the 400hp version on your new pontoon boat. Good for over 65mph, seems like a bargain at north of $200,000.
I realize that is a fairly big pontoon boat, but 800 HP is only good for 65MPH? Unless it hits 65 in 2 seconds something doesn't add up.
D2W said:
ultraclyde said:
Or you could drop back to 2 of the 400hp version on your new pontoon boat. Good for over 65mph, seems like a bargain at north of $200,000.
I realize that is a fairly big pontoon boat, but 800 HP is only good for 65MPH? Unless it hits 65 in 2 seconds something doesn't add up.
Pontoon boats are the least clever water vehicle in existence. They're basically a dock with a motor with massive drag. They offend me. They're starting to take over our lake, and I really want to put hydrofoils on one. If ferries can do it...
Pontoon boat is a party barge. You can cruise along and not worry about spilling your beer. They are not about going fast.
Keith Tanner said:
Pontoon boats are the least clever water vehicle in existence.
Have you tried stand-up paddleboarding?
Murders your ankles, takes a lot of skill just to keep your ass out of the water, and good luck going upwind...
Yeah, they kind of offend me. But I will say that with the prevalence of wakeboard boats around here, they are the only ones who look comfortable hanging out on the lake. 24' of length smoothes out a lot of wake. I've considered trading my 15' trihull for one, but I just cant bring myself to go all in on a floating patio.
Oh, and btw, the speed record for a pontoon is just over 100mph. Not sure what or how many outboard the took.
GameboyRMH said:
Keith Tanner said:
Pontoon boats are the least clever water vehicle in existence.
Have you tried stand-up paddleboarding?
Murders your ankles, takes a lot of skill just to keep your ass out of the water, and good luck going upwind...
I’ve spent years paddling a canoe solo and windsurfing. SUP is not a challenge :)
I get the appeal of pontoons. Back in the day, motorboats were about speed and waterskiing was about cutting hard turns on a slalom ski. My grandfather wouldn’t buy a boat until he could see it plane. Now it’s about tubing and floating around drinking. More importantly, as people get older, it’s a lot easier to get on and off a barge. They’re the minivan of boats. Our cottage is on an island so boats are not optional. I know why my mom’s family members are succumbing. I’m the only one left who enjoys the way that a speedboat moves over the water.
But they’re so inefficient, laboring along. A couple of foils between the two bulls could make quite a difference. Heck, you can fly a kayak. It has to be possible. I’ll bet that speed record pontoon boat didn’t do it with a lot of float in the water.
D2W
HalfDork
8/21/19 3:14 p.m.
I don't want one, but I don't mind the pontoons. Around here the scourge of the water is wake surfing boats. The monsters they are making now can roll a 5 foot wake. it makes cruising on the river a huge pain, and they are destroying the docks and bare shorelines. They are currently in a big fight trying to outlaw them on the river.
java230
UltraDork
8/21/19 3:20 p.m.
It's a shame that wakeboarding boats are seen as such a menace because they look like a helluva lotta fun! But then a quick bit of Googling says they cost clean into the 6-digits, so, not relevant to me...
D2W
HalfDork
8/21/19 4:41 p.m.
It is a lot of fun, and I would like to be the last one to big brother anyone, but they are causing a lot of damage that I have seen first hand. It wasn't too bad when people were using ski boats with some ballast, but now the mfg are making boats so damn big that they are becoming destructive. Some lakes around me have already put restrictions on them.
The marine police did a large patrol on the river a couple of weeks ago just to enforce the laws on the books now. They wrote 80 tickets in one day.
Yeah, they're an order of magnitude more annoying than a standard ski boat. When you're in a 15' boat with 18" of freeboard, a 4" tall breaking wave rolling toward you is...uh...problematic. I've taken green water over the bow from the damn things.
D2W
HalfDork
8/22/19 6:00 p.m.
I was laying in a lounger on a fixed dock 18" above the water's surface last summer. Wake surf boat went by wave rolled over the top of the dock, damn near washed me off. I've used this dock for the last four years, I doubt it will make another without major repair. If you have a boat tied up without a lift it literally gets beat to death.
