Ilmor 725/Indy build from the beginning

[ILMORdude]

Im gonna try and upload the dyno video files. Sorry it took so long!

[C_Spray]

My "few touchup jobs" kept me at the shop until 11:00 PM last night, but:

Tonight we run!

Those of you with astute memories will note that we got the boat completely re-rigged and the engine installed quicker than ILMORDude could edit a dyno video.....

[Bobcat]

Ouch !

[ILMORdude]

Since I couldnt post it on the other forum where you blasted me, ill post your new driver suit pic on SOS!!!

[C_Spray]

@*% SHA - ZZZZAAAAM!!

%#@ Ka - POOWWWW!! *($#*

$%@Wham - O!! @$%!

%@&# Zang!!! &#*


Freakin' rocketship.

If you roll into the throttle hard at 60, the numbers roll up so fast on the GPS that your eyes can't register anything until around 88. Even then, they're just a blur.

We've still got air in the hydraulics, both steering and trim. It was passing through 5400 rpm when it started hopping and we shut it down. The GPS tell-tale now reads....




100.

Screwed up with the GoPro, so we only have this still of the start of the run instead of video. The roostertail was.... "significant".

I am a VERY HAPPY CAMPER.

[C_Spray]

All set for Smith Mountain Lake - SEE YOU THERE!

[TIKI]

Awesome project. Thanks for documenting it for us.

[C_Spray]

We had a problem-free weekend at Smith Mountain Lake. A very-well run and super-friendly poker run. This thing just ran like a train all day, and used very little gas. Impressive.

[C_Spray]

We never got rid of the 100 mph hop, but we had no other props to test. The 2" and 1" spacers are not the way to go; they just kill speed.

The boat ran like a freight train all weekend:

NO PROBLEMS AT ALL - FAULTLESS!!!

Heartfelt thanks go to the folks who really made this happen:

1.R'Addiction, for his unwavering friendship, great help and (most importantly) moral support and motivation. There's no way this would have happened without you, John.
2.Ilmor High Performance, for an awesome package and amazing customer support. When I called them at 8:00 PM on Sunday night, they answered. They also called me back at 7:00 AM on Monday morning to give me the rest of the answers to my questions. Never, ever doubt this company's motivation.
3.GlassDave Sikorski, for stepping up to the bat on a tricky project. (And even working the weekend...)
4.Old School, for loaning me some expensive props, no questions asked.
5.Bobby Moore, for the incredible amount of knowledge and advice he is willing to share.
6.Brownie, for being like Bobby, but even funnier.
7.The online supporters who kept me going.
8.MobilMercMan, for a quiet word in my ear that saved me a LOT of trouble.
9.JRapp, for pitching in every time he came by and for being a huge help at (and documenting) the first test.

[C_Spray]

I came up with another prop to test, courtesy of Bobby Moore. It's a 15.5 x 29 five-blade versus the 16.5 x 29 four-blade I've been running. It should have 3 degrees more rake as well. I hate to change more than one thing at a time when testing (in this case, it's four things...), but this is all that's available right now. I'm going to try it with the 1" spacer, since it's still installed, then try it a zero propshaft height. It may or may not be better, but it's bound to be different!

[C_Spray]

Humph. Didn't like that prop at all. Too much pitch for the engine to rev up, and not enough diameter to hold on once things started to pick up. In the 80's both with and without a 1" spacer.

....On the other hand, the engine looks great now that we peeled the protective plastic sofa covers off of it. (Just for you, Craig....)

[C_Spray]

We'll be at the Northern Chesapeake Poker Run this weekend if anyone would like to check out the engine or drive. The run starts from Tome's Landing Marina in Port Deposit MD with a lunch stop at the River Watch on Middle River. It's a nice run for those who might be interested...

[03darkshadow]

when are you going to be out there, i'd love to check it out. i think we'll be out on the water friday at around noonish till whenever.

[C_Spray]

The prop arrived from Hering - amazing workmanship. We expect to be down at Tome's Landing around 2 or 3 this afternoon and do some testing.

Ilmor is sending me some brochures to pass out to those who might be interested in the package or one of their engines.

Hope to see you there!

[Andrew]

The prop arrived from Hering - amazing workmanship. We expect to be down at Tome's Landing around 2 or 3 this afternoon and do some testing.

Looks like another work of art. What are the specs on the new prop?

[NASCAT]

The prop arrived from Hering - amazing workmanship. We expect to be down at Tome's Landing around 2 or 3 this afternoon and do some testing.

Ilmor is sending me some brochures to pass out to those who might be interested in the package or one of their engines.

Hope to see you there!

What is the advantage of the counter rotating drive? Same rotation as the engine??

[C_Spray]

Andrew, the prop is 16.5" diameter, 29" pitch, 18 degrees rake. This was the original estimated spec that I worked out with Hering, and it seemed to work well on the Bay, although it was so choppy over the weekend that I was unable to tell whether or not that additional rake provides the bow lift and stability that we are looking for. I'll probably re-test it back-to-back with the four-blade 14 degree prop at our local lake in the next week or so.

NASCAT, I went with left-hand rotation, as the consensus from a number of people was that single-engine boats tend to run "a bit" better that way, although no one has any idea why that might be true. Frankly, I can't see as to why it would matter, unless it has to do with better handling in left-hand turns, which most race courses are...

Anyway -We had a blast at the Northern Chesapeake Poker Run on Saturday, and ran the boat moderately hard with no problems (other than heat in the cockpit in the No-Wake zones...). The Bay was pretty choppy, bordering on rough, and I mis-throttled the boat badly on a couple of occasions without any drive problems.

[NASCAT]

Even though you are still fine tuning sounds like you are getting good relaible use out of your do it yourself complete repower / rerig project & that is impressive.

Thanks Again for Sharing!

[C_Spray]

Reliable is exactly the word.

After two Poker runs, I've had ZERO problems or issues with the engine and drivetrain. I'm as impressed as ever with Ilmor's work. I even put their new logo on the boat... We ran the new Hering at last weekend's Northern Chesapeake Poker Run, and it seems to be better, but the water was so much rougher than the local lake, it's hard to tell. We're going out on Blue Marsh Lake tonight and do a back-to-back test the Hering versus the original 4-blade.