Dumb Guy Question #2

[Dr. Thunder]

OK, who can tell me what the relationship(s) is/are between boat weight, boat size and accelleration/top end speed. For example; if I have a minimum overall weight for "ASH" Hydro of 345lb (or whatever) and motor/driver weight is only 255lbs then boat weight (gas, prop etc.) needs to be at least 90lbs. If I can build a very lightweight composite boat under 90lbs do I sacrifice anything on the speed side by building the boat as big as possible (e.g. 6"-12" longer). In other words, all other safety factors aside, will a bigger boat be any safer than a smaller boat; will performance be compromised by the larger overall size of the boat when compared to other boats in the class that are much smaller?

[bill boyes]

There are no dump questions. Just dump people who do not ask questions.

[Dr. Thunder]

Thanks Bill. In reality it is all about being a "dump" question . Can you reduce the risk of a "dump" by having a boat that is built within the minimum weight values of a class that is less prone to flip simply by making it larger than normal without sacrificing speed. Smaller, faster, less stable versus larger, just as fast, and more stable.

[Andrew 4CE]

I would say there is a point at which size affects acceleration. THe longer the boat is the harder the boat is to lift up off the water, you have more surface area, more suction/stiction. Also the weight up front is cantilevered more so even if when static it weighs the same, from the point of balance it weighs more (hard to accelerate). Having a light boat allows you to put the weights in the boat where you want them. Allowing the dirver to fine tune (or really mess up) the handling.

[Andrew 4CE]

I would likely be a safer boat though. Except maybe in gusty conditons. The driver might not be able to react quick enough to stop a blow over.

[sam]

A bigger boat the same weight and speed ability would probably be more able to keep up and or catch up with smaller boats ahead of it due to being able to stay on the throttle more in chop in the turns ... more able to choose your line in turns with less regard for wakes and chop.

The inverse of this is seen in FE when smaller older alky boats are converted to run with newer bigger boats built for FE or D Mod. I went from a smaller lighter Butts 500 to a bigger Pugh 350. The little Butts was unmanagable in FE (probably mostly due to the FE motor weighing 2˝ times as much as the 500 König) and other boats wakes were really trouble. No such problem with the Pugh.

Andrew is probably right about a bigger A hydro in gusty wind, but you are allowed to change the tilt postion and move around in the boat ... ahead of time.