Thread:

Making a Monster

In July, I am scheduled to drop a TPI motor package in a standard lay up Howard 28 Bullet. This boat is a beautiful all red 2006 Bullet that was owned by the world famous "Dr Margarita". It is now owned by a very nice guy in new Mexico that likes to go fast. With that being said, I have been working on A 572 CUBIC INCH 5.0 WHIPPLE efi engine that should do the trick just fine. We will be running the Max Machine Worx billet lower unit that works so well on my 28 Bullet and I will be using some of the same set up techniques on this "wooden" 28 Bullet that I used on my own boat. The key here is not top speed at sea level(although I hope to run this 28 Bullet 120+ on camara at Havasu), the key is that the customer wants a triple digit boat at a very high altitude in New Mexico. Any way, here are some pics of the motor to get the thread started, and hopefully some pics of the boat will come up. I have none of the boat yet.

Commentary:

I had the pleasure of seeing the various motors at TPI yesterday. I will say without hesitation the photos really do not display the beauty of these handmade motors.

I have not had the privilege of driving a boat with one of these powerplants (yet) but the engine displacement [572 Cubic inches] is a great foundation for making monster power.

The fact is you need monster power at high altitude and a pretty damn big air scoop on the hatch---high altitude robs horsepower like an Enron executive---you don't know where it went but it was there to begin with .

The last photo is a W305AX next to a W200AX and there is a big difference---no huge difference. This is probably in the cards for me in the near future just waiting on a few duckets to arrive.

Keep the photos coming I want to see it in the boat.

Very truly yours,

KAP

Originally Posted by DEMOMAN

Thats the thing, I guess it looks kind of like a "Monster" but it will not drive like it. The throttle is so smooth that it transfers the power through the drive at a nice even transition. I personally believe that the way these motors deliver power is a big factor in keeping an XR based drive around. Also the fuel economy is unreal compared to an 800-900 hp motor with a different induction system.










<------ Graduate of TPI Tech. Institute

Check out the "demonman"! You crack me up, dude. Now that you have graduated from 200ax school, maybe you would like to Master the W305.

Hey Kap, thanks for coming up to my teeny/tiny little garage where I do my work, it was nice to see you,,,,,,,,,btw, I saw the way you were looking at those 5.0 liters, maybe there is one in your near future?

That thing is gonna run well I am actually really looking forward to the necessary tuning in Havasu and New Mexico to maximize performance at both locations.

You build some beautiful engines Gary....I could trade you a set of 1471's for a couple 5 liters....you could use them as anchors or something.

Originally Posted by TPI

That thing is gonna run well I am actually really looking forward to the necessary tuning in Havasu and New Mexico to maximize performance at both locations.

Were on the same page for sure testing is going to be fun, im like a kid waiting for christmas but in this case my christmas will be in July

Originally Posted by 40FlatDeck

You build some beautiful engines Gary....I could trade you a set of 1471's for a couple 5 liters....you could use them as anchors or something.

Thanks,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, Hey there is nothing wrong with 1471's, but I personally have never had so much latitude with any kind of a screw supercharger like the Whipple, and this 5.0 liter is no exception. They are worth every penny IMO.

Well, its July, and although the local brushfires have kept me busy with the fire department, I am off duty today and I have started on this project. I took delivery of this gorgeous 28 Bullet today and I am eager to drop this motor in and go run it. I have set the bar at 120 mph with this boat(minimum). Its a standard wood/fiberglass vinal ester lay up with a standard X-dimesion. We will be moving the weight around a bit and adding what I call my TPI 948 R engine with the Max Machine Billet drive(which is a 1" short). The customer provided a nice 572ci Merlin Shortblock, dissassembled and pretty much ready to go..................I took it from there. This thing is gonna haul the mail!

Here is the foundation we are starting with:

Very cool Gary keep us posted along the way. I love looking at all of your projects. Maybe some day I can have a TPI motor in my Heat.

Originally Posted by TPI

Here is the foundation we are starting with:

Hey that boats looks familiar, you were busy while we were driving home yesterday. Thanks for everything up to this point looking forward to the rest of this cool project.

I I remember correctly that boat had a nice EFi motor in it before. Was this the motor you used? Can't wait to hear how it runs with the new power.