turbo jetboat

[buddy]

I have purchased a southwind minidaycruiser with a twin turbo 454 and berkeley jg jet. It has a place diverter, however the diverter doesnot move down far enough to make it easy to ski behind(plane at a low speed) and does not go up high enough to show off a cool rooster tail. Is there a way to increase the travel of the diverter? It seams like there is clearance to move down a little, and up a whole lot. One more question: Will saltwater have an adverse effect on the turbochargers? the previous owner said that saltwater would boil in the cooling lines, restrict water flow, and fry the turbo bearings. I'm not sure that I believe him though.(He claimed that this engine dyno'ed at 1300hp. The boat is fast, but such a number seems suite high.)Any info would be helpful.

[klattu]

I can help with water question...
Salt water has a higher boiling point than fresh water....he may be thinking that higher elevations (fresh water lakes vs sea level) have different boiling points.
And the 1300hp....that is possable for a blown BB...but dang...life would be short I think. Does it have an intercooler?

[dropkeel]

I hate to answer a question with a question but could you tell us more about you're engine?
To the divereter question, do you have a droop snoot on it? That could allow for not beeing able to bring the roost down enough.

[flipper]

sounds like your full of it on the bb

[buddy]

Thank you for the responses. To answer more about the engine, here are the things I know:
*Twin PFM Turbos
*Intercooler
*ported merlin heads
*Roller rockers
*Holley carb(no choke)
*Accel plug wires
*dual 4inch exaust(straight thru from turbos)
Other than that the only other thing I know is that it was built by a guy named mike Kuhl. It does not have any kind of thermostat and water temp remains under 120F under normal cruising. It has all braided stainless steel lines with those cool AN fittings. The exaust manifolds are water jacketed, and water is injected into the ehaust after the turbos.

[klattu]

You do have a 'Kick Ass' engine.
Going with those parts anyone that could bolt those together would be able to get 800hp...easy...I would not even brag to the number 1300, just let them see engine compartment, it will be impressive to anyone that knows what they are looking at.
The main problem with salt water..other than corrosion...is particals in it...they can clog passage ways, so you need very good filters...and I bet you already have them...so go show the guys at the beach what you can do.
Kuhl....you are sand baggin us right?You know what you have and are just braggin http://free.***boat.net/ubb/smile.gif

[spectras only]

Klattu, you probably right,Buddy's first name is Mike [Khool eh?]

[spectras only]

What ever happened with Mike Kuhl? Haven't seen his engines since the eighties.

[superdave013]

Mike is still around. He no longer builds engines but makes superchargers and a ton of other stuff. I know jet guys don't need it but he makes a very slick water pump that has the flange and bolt pattren of a fuel injector pump. You can take of the cover and bolt the injector pump right to the end of it. His shop is in Santa Anna, CA and his number is in the book.
The bummer about salt water in the PFM turbo set-up is the corrosion in the alum. water jackets.

[spectras only]

Hi Buddy, is your engine set up is a "California River Rat"?

[buddy]

Hi guys,
To start with maybe I should tell you that I am 22 years old, and don't know much about 1980's racing. I was in kindergarten during the mid eighties. Before I bought my boat, I had never heard of mike kuhl. I don't want to sound like I'm bragging; I really just wanted to know what the boat is capable of from more experienced boaters. I also wanted to know If I got ripped off from the guy I bought the boat from. (You tend to get feelings of uncertainty when the seller asks for close to ten thousand dollars, all in cash.)
As for the place diverter problem, I adjusted the rod end so that the diverter goes down farther, which really helps during skiing/wakeboarding. The only downside is that the nozzle doesn't go up as far anymore.
I have now taken the boat in saltwater 4 times, and haven't had a problem(other than harbour patrol officers!) When I get the boat home, I hook up the hose and flush the motor for about 30 minutes with the motor off. Then I Start the motor to blow out any remaining water in the exhaust(and also to piss off my neighbor). I rinse and wash the motor by hand, and spray the whole thing with wd40. I did notice one interesting thing, one of my an fittings is split slightly, and you can see little salt crystals running down the hose. Should I worry about replacing this fitting or wait until it becomes a problem? thanks

[superdave013]

I would replace that fitting right away. You can get som salt away stuff from the marina and should use it when you flush your motor. I have a lawn firtilizer deal that goes inline with the garden hose. I fill it with that salt away stuff when I flush the motor after a day in the salt. From not seeing your boat I would think that you got a pretty good deal for less than ten grand. Price a twin turbo set-up some time. They are not cheep! You could not build a good to go turbo motor with all new parts for ten grand.

[spectras only]

Hi Buddy, we beleive who you are ,just wanted to get the cat out of the bag.Mike Kuhl would have corrected me about the "california water rat"because that was the blower motor and you have the turbo motor.Now the numbers you telling us 1200HP? is probably the 1200 series designation.PFM made 3 styles:,700,1200,1600, .The 700 is single carb dual turbo,the 1200 dual carb with low risemanifolds with risers.the turbo is monted on the risers.the carbsgo between the turbos and feed the intercooler.The 1600 is for dual carb high rise exhaust manifolds.If you have around 6/7 pounds of boost you have 50%increase in HP.Sounds like you have a good deal there.I would checkany crack very carfully and change hoses right away if any doubt.You don't need to run your engine for half an our.5 minutes of running your engine hooked up to a watersupply all you need.Would make your neighbour happier too.Last, your power could be between 700-900HP,just guessing.Happy boating!