The ratio of the drive is strictly a performance issue, it won't hurt a thing to run the drive you have as long as you run a large diameter, and at least 27 pitch, the Solas is a light weight prop and not hard on the gears. I thin if you get on the prop forum and ask Tom the price of a Solas prop that size you would get a pretty good deal, I'll recomend it.
Here's the ratio difference ... a 1.50 ratio means that the prop shaft speed of 1000 rpm requires the engine to be turning 1500rpm. The 1.94 ratio requires 1940rpm for the same 1000rpm prop speed, thats not hard to make up that much rpm difference with our boats because of the depth of the drive, the only thing you will have to change is the little trim tab will have to be removed and a smooth plate insalled there instead of the tab.
Just change out the gimball bearing before you go any further .. it's Good insurance. Usually, you can install the new bearing yourself. but occasaionally it's benificial just to take it to a shop and let them do it for you, and it's not expensive since you already have the drive removed.
I ran a 1.84 ratio drive on my Scimitar for almost a year, I put a 15 1/8 diameter X 27 pitch Solas prop on it and it ran like a scalded dog, 63 mph @ 5000 rpm and it came out of the hole great. I wanted to go to a Bravo 1 but after considering the cost and the weight I went back with an Alpha One Gen II and had the 1.47 gears installed.
The windshield is really an issue with these boats, they were made for the boats and there is not an automoyive windshield to replace one with. Frankie made one for George's boat that was just fine, he try'd forming one off my windshield but it left distortions in it, and he finally just cut one to size and I screwed it down with brass mated flat head screw assy's, the trick about that is not to use a windshield seal, but about a i/4 inch bead of arcrylic caulk, so the windshield won't show a distortion where the screws are.
he told me the block craked, the manifol have been welded, so I guess it's true. I got an OK deal, I paid him a bit more to convince hem to sell.
it had 2 major problem, 1 the widsheild is plexi glass and it's all yellow second someone had just stolen the outdrive. I have bought an outdrive since Alpha 1 from e-bay, it was on a V8 boat so the guy told me it was a 1.5, as you would guess with my luck when it got here it was a 1.94.
I think i may be able to use it for a bit if I match the proper prop, i did not pay to much and it seems very clean and the gear look new. he promissed that he did not know and that it worked well on his boat.
any idea if I can use it at all? i dont need to go 60mph but would like to use it for a while an once i know what my game plan will be, maybe i will upgrade to bravo or??
243 hours on a boat that old is pretty rare in itself but ocasionally we see a boat even older than ours that have much less than that. The boat that has such low hours generally reflects that in it's condition, my question would be Why did it need a new motor if the boat has so low hours, but, in your part of the country a freeze broke motor is pretty common if the owner is not aware of a proper winterization method.
I don't remember what the hour meter on my boat read when I got it, but it seems like it was really low, but Obviously my boat had been used up, and the motor had been replaced just prior to me buying it, the seller said the motor only had 20 hours on it, and yea right, you think I believed him ? Supricingly, when I pulled the motor to replace the transom, and washed the motor, there was a brand new factory long block, but who ever installed it didn't use new intake and valve cover gaskets, just globbed on the red silicone gasket stuff and it leaked oil everywhere.
I put the new motor in by boat the middle of March this year, and to date it has 70 hours on it.
Thank alot for the info, I will do it slowly, i will take a picture of my stanf beofre putting the boat on it to see what you think..
also I would like to share my little story, not sure if this is the right form but here it is. I definalty share all your passion...
Thanks for the Welcome , I am glad to finally find a place that loves these boats as much as I do. I only bought this boat because I am a Car collector and it looked like a car.
I saw a picture on the internet 6 years ago when surfing the net in the office, when I got home that day, I told my wife, one day I will have this boat. (It was on the glastron site, the blue one actually it looks purple in the add)
Anyway long story short, I told this to my best friend the day after and I also thought it was cool.
2 days later, my best friend comes to my house and he said I found your boat!! I said youre kidding, he said no it's 5 minutes from here, and I just drove by it. That same day I knocked on the guy's door, he absolutely did not want to sell, Cash talks!, 4 hours later I was dragging the boat home....
it's been 6 years now and I will start working on it soon. It only has 243 hours and the guy said the engine had 50h but I have heard that before.
Everything is there, just need elbow grease and maybe a new floor. I hope I will be able to call upon you guys to help me through this...
One little trick I learned about getting the boats off the trailers, well maybe Two little tricks ... Ok, Three
Slide the boat so far back on the trailer that it's about to fall off before you begin the endevor
Place the boat where you want it to be, then let the tongue jack all the way down, raising up the stern, place the stands under the corners of the hull with some 2X4's about 2ft long to spread out the load, then raise the tongue jack back up all the way being careful to see the trailer move's forward just a bit so the stands under the rear of the boat don't tilt backwards.
put some more stands and spreaders under the chine's just behind the fenders of the trailer, let the trailer tongue back down and see if there is enough weight there to support the boat and free the trailer, if not, you may be able to free the boat from the trailer then by using a bottle jack and a spreader block about a foot long under the keel while you slide the trailer a bit more forward, move the stands forward a little more until the boat is supported well. I have used a 3" X 6" X 1/4 piece of flat iron on top of the bottle jack before placing the one foot 2X4 spreader block. I have a 2X4 piece of oak I use here that don't need the piece of iron to support the spreader block, it's tough and won't crack like a pine 2X4 will.
Above All ... BE CAREFUL and double check everytiing Twice.
I done it that way and it was really pretty easy, just got to be careful !
I had the motor and drive off my boat when I done it and that is why you see my stand frame so far forward, but if you plan on doing the job with the motor still in the boat, the stands will not have to be so far forward. Ton can put a pice of tape on each side of the hull, about the middle of the trailer fenders, as a refference point to place the stands.
After the boat is free and clear from the trailer, then you should supporet the hull about the middle for sure where the stringers are so it won't distort the hull by just hanging from the chines.
These hulls are not very tough, pretty thin actually, and if they are not properly supported on stands or blocks for an extended period of time, they will warp.
-- Edited by OleRed on Saturday 24th of October 2009 11:51:39 PM
My 1981 Scimitar is going in garage to restore after sitting in my back yard under covers since I bought it 6 years ago.
Could anyone tell me the best way to remove a boat from its trailer, my garage is 26 feet deep so I want to remove it from the trailer so I can close the garage door.
I made a V metal rack for the back of the boat and will weld dollies to it so I can role the boat around. I dont have anything to tie the boat to so I could pull the trailer from under.
Not much empty space under the trailer to use floor jack but will need to find a way and pull a little bit at a time.
Cant use the selling trust as the garage is finished and no beams can be used.
Thanks all, I am very happy to see a form for my favorite boat.