Gears and Gearcases - Assorted

[sam]

Racing lower units started in J in 1968 with the Merc 60J and its tiny Quicksilver lower unit.

[BP125V]

yep

Right Sam, I was talking about J as it came to be with the OMC.

[sam]

I was talking to Darrell. 1968 is when J changed to a racing lower unit class ... wasn't that a long time before the OMC?

I agree with Darrell. Ron Hill and some others are championing the same idea ... guess what, they are right, the boats run about the same speed and the motors cost less. It's all about racing lower unit snobbery. Like having the right emblem on your shirt or the right jeans label on your butt.

[nbass]

Bill:

I mean the stock gearcase in J class. ASX works just like it is. The goal would be take any motor, within the 15 cubic inch class, two stroke, four stroke, Evinrude/Johnson/Merc/Yamaha etc, clamp it on and run it. The prop shaft runs about 3" below the bottom, just enough for one watering hole to grab water on the side. This also acts as an anchor in rougher water.....

They come out of the hole like a rocket, meaning no planing issues, they do not cause the turning issues some suggest they would, and, they are just as fast as a gagged down 15HP motor running a racing gearcase with the pick a prop from the bag wheels.

Simple, easy, cheap, just like the way it began......

That is exactly how I started racing in the late 50s. Once hooked in the sport I and others like me moved on to more speed and more suffocated equipment. I believe like you that this is the only long term hope for the sport. We used to have what we called “A” and “B” standard that amounted to stock engines and fishing lower units. We had many hours of great fun. I used to race against Ricky Montoya’s dad in “B” standard runabout. I wish someone like Ed would get the idea and promote it.
Thanks,
Neil Bass

[B1PRORACER]

Stock lower units....

I started in J with a KF5 Mercury, that was almost 50 years ago! We had a class once that was a stock fishing lower unit class.... it was the 36R class. It wasn't very popular and it eventually died out because no-one chose to race that class.... and those were the "good old days" when everyone you knew was racing!
How much money is a stock fishing lower unit for an OMC 15 and for a new Mercury 15?

[sam]

The way I hear it, 36R was a regionally popular class like 25. Some places had it, some didn't and the death blow to 36 was the 35ss motor.

[bh/]

Csr

C Service, runabout and hydro, was[and still is] a very popular racing class, using a stock lower unit

[G Stillwill]

The J Division has grown in leaps and bounds why in the world would anyone try and fix something that isnt broke. Oh and a new Merc 15 stock fishing gear foot lists for 1,665.81 and usually that is the first thing that goes bad on a fishing motor. I bought many a 6,8, 9.9 and 15 Mercs with no gear feet.

[53-W]

All that I am saying that to race J you buy a new merc 15. Take fishing unit off, then remove a $1000.00 more out of your pocket to get a racing lower unit and then go race J class.

To get new poeple in to racing removing $1000.00 from getiing into J class is something that needs to looked at.

That that saved $1000.00 could go for a omc A engine for dad, then you don't have to change gear cases, restrictor plate and other stuff.



$1000.00 gets a lot of kevlar and helmets also.

53w

[B1PRORACER]

When you buy a Mercury engine from APBA, they save you that $1000 because it doesn't have a gearfoot. Maybe if this concept was tried in the beginning of the "J to A classes" it might have merit for the J class, but now the horse is out of the barn.....
The 36r class died because it was a bad idea. There was no racing appeal involved in the looks and performance of this class. Big tall engines on a DU size boat that could be beaten by an AU! They ran the Westbend engines and then the Mercury 402 engines. The 402 became the basic powerplant for the 35ss engine. The 35ss engines didn't kill 36r, it was the lack of interest that killed it.
One thing to remember-we are the consumers of all this racing equipment. If it isn't appealing to the racers, it isn't going to sell. Great looking boats, that perform well (with cool engines), used by the best racers, at an affordable price, will sell!

[swheeler]

All that I am saying that to race J you buy a new merc 15. Take fishing unit off, then remove a $1000.00 more out of your pocket to get a racing lower unit and then go race J class.

To get new poeple in to racing removing $1000.00 from getiing into J class is something that needs to looked at.

That that saved $1000.00 could go for a omc A engine for dad, then you don't have to change gear cases, restrictor plate and other stuff.



$1000.00 gets a lot of kevlar and helmets also.

53w

The thing that you need to keep in mind is that you can not longer walk into a dealership and buy a new 15 hp 2 cycle outboard. The last year that those engines were marketed in the U.S. was 2005.
The Merc 15 2 cycles are still built in WI. for export. The engines that APBA sells today were run for the racing division, labeled for competition only and do not have a lower unit on them. That is why they have an EPA exemption. There is no fishing gearcase to remove.

[ram95]

The only way you can buy the Merc 15 is for racing use. Mercury removes the lower unit because the motor is not sold in the US of A as a 'fishing motor'. There is a decal on the engine which says "This engine is to be used solely for competition". Further, down in the fine print on the same decal it says: "This engine is excluded from 40CFR Part 91 Control of Emissions from marine SI engines per section 91.1003".

From this, it should be quite obvious that a heck of a lot of effort went into getting this little lightweight, 2 stroke, engine allowed into the USA. Today All engines up thru 40hp are mandated by emission rules to be rather weighty 4 strokes. Additionally, Mercury Marine deserves our thanks for pulling the lower units and making this concession thru Wheeler Marine. APBA and the J committee and many others deserve a lot of credit for getting the rules written and technical details published. Also overlooked are the folks who still build the racing gearfoot (Ron Selewach). At $1100 bucks, they aren't bathing in cash. And, just how many units (motors and foots) do you think were sold last year? Let's face it, the profit from all the sales probably wouldn't cover my fuel oil bill this winter. And almost overlooked is the guy who made the props... I seriously doubt your 'std' props are as close as the pile of J props Dewald has made.

I'm sorry but I have to chuckle over what I see are overy-simplistic solutions to adding a new class which is 'affordable' because it will use off-the-shelf stuff.... like "a standard propeller"... huh?? Yours might be standard but, I'm going to send mine out to Pitchometer in Oakland CA and have them err ahh RECONDITION it... and I'm going to take my 4-stroke anchor and send the crank out to be indexed, balanced to spec, journals clearanced to spec; camshaft degree'd and indexed.... let's see.... oh yeah, we'll lap in the oil pump gears; Ohhh of course.... we'll pull the thermostat just to be like everyone else. Are we saving money yet? Only if my rig now runs faster than yours!

And for the bumper car boats all off of the same mold....... you got to be kidding. You're telling me they are all the same? Huh? Hows come you seem to be faster than me? I better take a look at my bottom (the boat!!)... yup... sure enough... I see a little waviness on the left sponson and back by the transom.... get out the sander.

This has been a great thread.

Alex

[thepiranhabros]

What, what, WHAT?!?

Put the tiller handle on too and I'll buy you a beer.

Be very wary of this offer! Bill will not only NOT buy you a beer, but he will then also proceed to steel Diet Cokes out of your cooler!

Muahahahahaha!

[Jim McKean]

YOMATO LITE 14:15 for MODIFIED "C"

Hello Racers;

We have just added YOMATO LITE 14:15, designed for MOD "C", and other engines under 110hp. With an order this weekend, we can deliver in time for Jesup, GA.
YOMATO LITE Gear Ratios now available: 14:15, 12:15, 11:15
YOMATO LITE Ratios coming in late April/May: 11:16 and 11:17

$1465 all ratios

Contact: Jim McKean........."captainjimmckean@yahoo.com"

: Dudley Malone...."centralmarineco@yahoo.com"

[Tim Weber]

Jim,

I am fairly certain this would not be legal for cmod under a Yamato powerhead.

If I read it right, the mod tech manual states that Yamato 102 & 302 gear feet are the only legal units allowedl but can be modified.

Tim