Ship Shape TV
 

Guys-

I saw an episode of Ship Shape where John is putting a new Mercury (I think) on his SeaBird center console. He needed a 25" shaft for the bracket, but put on a 30" as he believed the higher level of the engine would make for a better ride and help to keep sensitive electronics just that much further away from the ocean spray.

Did anyone else se this episode and what do you think??? Sounded like it might be a good idea and the boat looked slick with the engine raised a few inches.

-Hooper [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

I caught half of that one but my son wanted to watch Tarzan [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img] . I heard him say he wanted the engine higher to keep it more out of the water but I didn't hear the bracket was setup for a 25. If it was setup for a 25 and he put a 30" shaft on it, it's just gonna drag a lot more with more below the water line. It's not going to make a whack of difference to keeping the motor dry unless the bracket is mounted 5 inches higher - in fact, probably be wetter back there

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

You can go to www.shipshapetv.org and ask them your question about mercury motor.

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

Ha Hooper
I saw that show and if I was a bracket guy that’s the way I would go (AFTER) I talked to the engineering department of the Armstrong Bracket Co. to find out about the differences in the buoyancy of the bracket being mounted 5” higher on the transom. That point was never brought up on the show and has always bothered me. If they aren’t compensating for that extra 5” higher mounting then the bracket will not be buoyant enough to compensate for the weight of the engine.
FellowShip

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

Fellow-Ship, that's exactly what I was thinking! [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] Use it the way it was designed or go custom!

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

I reread my post and I guess I wasn't very clear, I'm sorry! As I remember, the bracket was mounted as required on the boat without any modifications. The 30" shaft engine was mounted 5" higher on the bracket so that the lower unit rode at the correct depth.

That seems to make more sense! From the video shot upon complettion, the boat rode well despite the modification.

-Hooper

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

Hoop ...you going bracket ??

I agree with Fellowship.... I've talked to Stainless about this and naturally you can have it built how you want it .... and If not mistaken while talking with Don (Hermco) the Seamark bracket which is built for twins does give you the added height above the water line and tons of buoyancy (like 890? lbs) using this bracket allows you to mount a 30" single. Don’t forget on a bracket the motor gets mounted higher than it would on the transom anyway due to rate of rise of the water coming off the bottom and the setback of the bracket....

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

Hoop I missed your second post ....

look at my last sentence

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

I get ya Scott, I didn't realize that the Potter bracket was intended for twins. Makes sense tho!

-Hooper

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

Hoop ...He makes both ... a version for singles(25") and one for twins(30") ...the twin model is for a single 30" or twin 25" I personally like the 30" to get the motor up higher and to accommodate something like a big 4 stroke

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

Anyone just see this afternoon's SSTV? They pulled some sea drives off an older Pursuit and put on a twin Armstrong Bracket and a couple Rudes. Well, they kept going back to a small shot of them fishing on that Yellow Seabird. Did anyone see how far below deck that boat sat in the water? With a float chamber and a single + two fat guys, the water line looked 6 inches OVER the floor height

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

John

Last night they showed that episode here in Fl on Adelphia cable. I don't recall seeing the Yellow boat flashbacks [img]/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img]

The one aired showed removing the OMC Seadrive and mounting the Armstrong double wide bracket for a pair of 175hp rudes. Also it included Armstrong's CEO showing their brackets since 1984. What impressed me was their new option of the lights for night fishing and diving which were mounted in the flotation tub at $500 [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

John ...The deck of the bracket was under water by 6" ?? [img]/images/graemlins/shocked.gif[/img]
I think (not that it matters) they used a Stainless marine bracket on the Seabird...

Anyone know the buoyancy #'s on the other brackets .... Stainless, Armstrong??

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

Scott said....
What is the equation for the setback verses the height?

Is it raise the motor a 1/2 inch for every inch of setback?
So for a 30" set back the motor would be 15" higher??? I'm confused??? [img]/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img]

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

What is the equation for the setback verses the height?

Is it raise the motor a 1/2 inch for every inch of setback?
So for a 30" set back the motor would be 15" higher??? I'm confused??? [img]/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img]

[/QUOTE]
I think that for every 5" of set back you go up 1". You can get away with a little more height with the greater amount of V that you have.

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

½ inch for every inch setback ??? that’s a problem [img]/images/graemlins/shocked.gif[/img] …are you sure it wasn’t a foot?

What I've been told by a couple different builders (using Stainless brackets )was 3-5 inches to start …….1-2” rise for every foot of setback…..so to average it for a 30” set back …2.5 x 1.5 = 3 ¾ “ rise ( but I'm guessing the amount of rise changes with every hull out there) This is a ballpark ... then adjusted up/down once the boat is sea trialed

I also believe this is how you get the shallower running drafts ….. not the that bracket is physically lifting the stern of the boat out of the water ( remember chances are that the bracket buoyancy gets cancelled out when the engine gets mounted anyway and conversely canceling the effects of the engine/s weight)… but rather the engines draft is less due to the higher mounting position as opposed to where it would be when mounted on a notched transom.

I don’t know how this works with Seamark ….as we know the bottom of that bracket follows the same plane as the hull ….. Unlike the Armstrong (although I have seen the Armstrong shape change) or the Stainless that angle up towards the motor mount

I don’t know how that effects the flow of water aft of the transom when it meets the brackets floatation chamber ….. I thought in one of my conversations with Don that the bottom of the bracket is mounted 3-4 inches higher than the bottom of the SeaCraft 23 hull...I'm assuming the Seamark was designed around the 23 SeaCraft

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

The seamark is not completely flush with the botom of the hull - tough to see but it looks like a 4-5 inch step from the bottom of the hull to the bottom of the bracket http://www.hermco.net/images/ladderdoor.jpg

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

I think one key point of the Seamark vs. Armstrong debate is that the bottom of the Seamark bracket is parallel to the bottom of the boat rather than angling up as it moves aft. If floatation matters anyway.

Re: Ship Shape TV
 

The seamark floatation is 800 lbs. I don't think Armstrong can touch that. On my boat the hole shot was flat...the seamark was like a giant tab and you trim up the engines and the boat takes off [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Bill