diy surface drive?

Good to "hear" from you, Frosty. I note that they are all flat bottomed so they can slide like an air boat, that the steering arc is quite small (limited by the spray shields i guess) and that passengers sit on the floor - not in seats - for a low C of G. I would guess that they don't do more than about 45 Kts. Bet its a thrilling ride when empty. In Europe and North America we seem more obsessed with extreme air entrapment hulls and insane horsepower. This makes for unstable rides, noise (there is something about the throb of a 1000 HP) and nervous insurance agents. We are already fixated with what HP the manufacturer recommends and the insurance gurus follow in locked step. Eg: my 10 Ft row boat is overpowered by 50% @ 15HP and yet a 12Ft PWC is OK with 300 HP. Despite the refinements that the Far East has produced on the surface drive, I believe it will always remain on the fringes of consumer boating. I have to admit that it was with sadness that I removed my SD. I am currently adding an out drive to get the bow lift that I desperately need. Albert Hickman was the genius who created surface drives and the air entrapment hull and if we were serious about economy, good speed, shallow draft and tremendous payload, we would be still building his designs.

 

You made me go look at the photo again, I can confirm that the flat wooden plank things across the boat with soft cushions are seats!!

Flat bottoms ? difficult to see from top of the bridge.

Small steering arc,---yeah but inherent long tails are but fun. Remember they are not an Arneson

I wasnt passing them off as modern state of the art, i thought you might be more amused at the throttle or gear lever and open turbo exhaust.

 

When I suggested flat bottom I meant only a couple of degrees of deadrise.
I suspect that the "seats" are more of a cushion on the floor.
The engine would hit the gunnels, limiting the arc. That's a good thing to prevent broaching.
Speaking of broaching, it is spring and I will have to get my 1978 9.9 Johnson out of storage. It is currently safely stored in 15 Ft of Ottawa river where I tossed it when my rowboat broached last fall. First one in 65 years... It was a freebee - not my 15.

I wonder what they will do when computer engines are all that's available? It certainly complicates my life. Not much in the way of cheap aftermarket CPUs that ignore the absence of catalytic converters.
Lastly, I wonder if the gondoliers of Venice ever considered trading their paddles for something asian..

 

You think a CPU will stop a Thai or any East ingenuity. They already cheat oxygen sensors with a resistor and re map anything they want, you think they buy soft ware.

These boats are tourist boats, if you click on the pic it gets big enough to see detail and then you can click on the plus sign to blow up even more.

Basically the reason for the pics is not to show state of the art engineering but to show the simple ways problems are solved with remarkable reliability.

But then the East is not incapacitated by ridiculous health and safety.

 

Bravo Frosty, we westerners have exported our worship of technology for it's own sake to the rest of the world. Gleefully abandoning perfectly viable processes and techniques in the name of change.

In only a little more than 3/4 of a century I have personally witnessed more change than the whole of mankind previously. My father could make the same claim! in the space of 2 lifetimes we have reached the point where we can unbalance nature.

 

Frosty, Is this the same engineering used in the calculation of loading they use on the ferries in Indonesia? Lotsa bodies floating in the ocean. I also note that there doesn't appear to be any PFDs, bailers or paddles on board these boats. Maybe you don't need them if there are hungry Crocks...
I must admit that I have much admiration in in these Thai vessels in their elegant simplicity.
Harry, if you want to know how far we have really progressed, turn off the electricity and oil and see how long our civilization is sustained. There are some people who think that our CO2 emissions affect the climate. As they are all exhaling CO2, they could all help save the world by holding their breath...
Fair winds & following seas...

 

Oh I like technology-- as long as I have the choice.

I need a new car. I cant buy one any more that is not loaded with black boxes and as a professional mechanic I would be wasting my lime lifting the bonnet if it were to stop on the highway.

However--after reading a magazine at the book shop the other day I was amazed at the stuff you can piggy back onto CPU or injector control, even replacement performance injectors and pumps for common rail injection. Seemingly being able to tinker as much as we always could

I think It may not be as bad as I think and it is as much I that has lagged behind as much as technology has moved forward.

 

In engineering it is all about compromises, the question is, Who made the compromises and are they the ones you want. I rather have simplicity, easy of fixing, reliability and performance over, so called cleanliness, easy use, additional cost, and sophistication.

In other words on my boats, I rather have 2 strokes not 4 strokes, non-turbo diesel over turbo. shafts over pods, hydraulic over electric... Kiss wins

As for a car, something easy to work on, with plenty of room under the hood. LOL, that leaves only trucks and jeeps. Maybe a old Mustang or muscle car with plenty of carbon emissions.

And all you guys worried about humans destroying the earth. When I was a kid, the earth had less than 4 billion people, China had 800k people, and the city I live in had 300k. Today, 7 billion, China 1.5 billion, and the city I live 3 million.
All in 40 years, but don't worry Nature has it own version of population control, and the World will survive .

Human stupidity will lead to our own destruction, the oceans and land will clean themselves, and archaeologist will wonder about these relics and wonder what we possibly did with all this junk. lol...

 

I think that for the most part "modern technology" is only an enhancement on old, basic good designs. For example there was a 12 cylinder W design water cooled OHC engine displacing 24L and putting out 450 HP @ 1950 RPM. It was powering aircraft in 1917. Check out the Napier Lion. John Cobb broke some impressive records with this engine in a car.
Then there is Albert Hickman and his Sea Sleds. Oh we've got Molinari tunnels and Arneson but they didn't invent them. Enhanced? Maybe. Somebody launched a biplane off a 65 Ft Sea sled that was going over 70 MPH years before Lindberg's flight. Betcha today's over the top graphics loaded offshores can't do that.
My wife's shiny deck boat has a computer controlled 4 stroke. My engines are all carburetted and there is a 1928 make-break McCormick about to be rebuilt in the garage.

 

My point is that from an owning point of view, I would rather have a Biplane than a Jet. Easier to fix, fly, and the speed is just find for me. If it is light enough you may not even need a license. Sure there are compromises....

 

Boy you guys are real stick in the mud. You need technology if you dont want your car stolen or if you need to run on better or different fuels. I dont mind a 6 speed auto tranny iether with electric boxes to smooooth out those changes to sequential.

This is good stuff but its the black boxes that stop you from driving if you havnt been serviced or your pads are down and I hate those door locks that lock when you reach 20 MPH bloody dangerous if you ask me.

I like to own technology but not technology own me.

 

Things are more complicated in that the microchips and modules that are more than likely unrepairable, but how many people in the day could take apart a carb.without losing parts,getting it back together correctly,and setting it back up right?
Or set the timing?

There is a thing called on board diagnostics,and will tell you where the problem is.
Personally,I like it all...from hit and miss engines to the newest BMW 3.0 litre- 380 hp and 550 lb ft diesel engine.

 

I dont get the point --you cant dismiss technology because you cant fix it.

Stripping carb to bare carb body and or set ign timing is not a difficult job

If you cant even strip a carb or set ign timing then dont do it --The world cant go back to steam engines.

 

What happened to the DIY surface drive discussion?

 

An intelligent consumer has to know what they are buying or they will pay.
Example, Mazda makes good cars, but they require special tools, computer diagnostic beyond the norm for repairs. I won't buy them, same for BMW.