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Thread: Tranny q's

  1. #1
    Icarus prospector
    I should know better, but I picked up a '75 Hallett 21' V drive cruiser.
    I say I should know better having had a couple of Eliminators, one a 21' Twin step V drive and the other a jet, but I never got to finishing the twin step before the kids started coming and then the jet went to pay the divorce buzzards, so this time, it's gonna get done right and paid for.
    I'm intending to turn it into a reliable 70 mph cruiser, nothing crazy. What I've got is this- a 455 Olds that will turn over, hooked to a Velvet Drive box and a Casale C500. I'm not going to try to reinvent the wheel so I'm going to yank the Olds and put a 454 that's worth an honest and documented 600HP in it's place. I have all the necessary mounts, etc. (Anybody need a total, complete Hardin 455 let me know. $500.00)
    My question(s) are currently regarding the tranny. I understand that to get the 600 out of the motor, I'm going to need a trans. My question is do I go with a T400 or a Powerglide? Or is the Velvet Drive going to be up to it and/or would the engine never develop the revs to reach it's power band? Again, I'm not looking to reinvent the wheel, so if you have a similar situation and it's working, let me know. Also if you can clue me in to where I can get the parts and pieces, great! Rex, Eddie, etc. Also, the plates are going to go for a set that actually work, so I'm in the need for the actuator, blocks, etc. Those of you that have done this or are lucky enough to have had it done, I implore your feedback!
    This is going to be a total yank of the old stuff, including electricals and interior. I'll be adding to the interior bow framing and then cutting the deck to make it a bowrider and losing the mini seats next to the dog house for a full hatch. These days, there's no butts small enough for those seats and the full hatch will get more use.
    Thanks in advace and I'll put up some photos as time goes.

  2. #2
    bubbletop409
    I owned a 77 Howard 21 DC for years and loved that boat, last time I saw it, it was still looking good and running strong. My set up was a hyd cam 454 with good oval heads and a Holley / torquer manifold. Turbo-400 trans with a manual valve body, and a 10 degree Casale split case, with 22 gears, pushed by a Tom Black steel 12 X 15 three blade. In my opinion the Powerglide would be my tranny of choice if I were to do another. They are lighter, smaller, much simpler, and require less power to turn than a T-400. The low gear in a T-400 is useless, boat would move so slow, the steering was comprimised. Second is good for idleing in a 5 mph zone, and also if you have a boat load, and a monster on a single, you can pull him out and then click it into high. Park is also useful, as in an emergency you could safely get a skier out of the water, should you have an issue where stopping the engine was not possible, such as a low battery or faulty alternator. If you go with either a Glide or 400, be sure to get a shifter that has a reverse lock out safety feature.
    Crane sells some nice hyd roller BBC marine cams, that along with the usual BBC mods would give you the power your looking for, along with good idle and skiing manners.

  3. #3
    VD CRUISER
    The boat looks good in those picures. If the velvet drive is a 72C model it should be just fine for 600 hp. A friend of mine had one in a Schiada with a blown 540 and had no problems with it. The lower gears in a turbo 400 are mainly useful for docking and cruising in no wake zones. IF the V-drive doesn't have big overdrive you should be able to take off ok with the velvet drive.

  4. #4
    79 Howard
    It looks to me like you have a casale split case not a c-500, that's good for your combination set-up might want to check to angle hopefully it is 10 degree rather than 12, I think you will want a adjustable cavitation plate rather than a fixed if you are going to run 70 mph. and I believe you have velvet drive now for your tranny, t 400 is always better but velvet drive will work

  5. #5
    ol guy
    Just a little info!! I have 21ft Eliminator with a low H/P 454. Turbo 400 and a Casale t-500 v-drive with 22% gears and a precision 3-blade and GPS at 72 mph. For what it's worth I am beyond happy with the perfomance with the combo I have now,and that V-dive sure looks like a Casale to me. You will know when you hit the water the Velvet drive"s are not to hard to pick out in a crowd. (they are alittle loud ). On the bright side they have been around for more than a few years and do the Energizer bunny thing and just keep ticking and ticking and!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Also KOOL looking old school boat. Mark

  6. #6
    ol guy
    Please do the old guys a favor and don't try to make it look like a new boat. There are alot of guys out here that like the original look, mine still has the original seats and gel-coat and I'll keep it that way thank you. Mark

  7. #7
    HighVoltage 329
    "I'll be adding to the interior bow framing and then cutting the deck to make it a bowrider"
    I think it would be a mastake to cut the bow out of that nice Hallett. Looks like the way it's set up gives you plenty of seating. The velvet drive should work fine for 600hp and I don't feel the work to change to adjustable plates would be worth it. Take it to the water, I bet it works well.

  8. #8
    Icarus prospector
    Thanks for the replies.
    Yes, it's a C500 Casale, and I'll know soon enough what the gearing is, as it leaks the 90 wt by the end of a three day weekend. Anyone have a go-to outfit for a no BS, quality rebuild?
    My question of sticking with the Velvet Drive (it is a 72C) vs the T400 revolves mainly around my ignorance and seeing what is working for others and wanting to let the motor do what it's supposed to do. The motor I'm putting in ran fine at low speeds and in the no wake zone in the flat that it was in prior to it being pulled. It's just a well put together 060 over four bolt, steel internals, 10.5:1 roller with Brodix heads/intake and a single 850, motor. I put it together to essentially just be the family runner, as the time I spent dicking with turbos and a 871 probably added to the ex's disgust.
    I hear you on your set up and also on cutting the thing up. I'm really torn about modernizing the bow as I'm an ol school guy to the core, but the kids are at the point where they're packing along their friends and the milf likes nothing more than to stretch out and tan, so going to a full hatch means losing the two rear seats- no loss, and going to a bench that will put the knees against the front seatbacks... you all know the story. For all intents and purposes, the deck decision will happen after the bulk of the rebuild is done. I freely admit that booking along sighting over that deck is a smooth feeling.
    I should note that I'm in Santa Rosa and though CP is down the road, does anyone know of a local guy that knows what's going on with the rigging end of this? Having done it solo on the Eliminator, I know that having someone on the ball will keep the current relationship possibly in better shape.

  9. #9
    boatpoor
    Sure its not a splitcase, I've never seen a C500 mounted on a plate before. N ice boat thou.

  10. #10
    Icarus prospector
    The case has 500 cast into it, but know that the coffee is hitting me, I remember the C500 in the Eliminator was mounted with arms that extended to the stringers. Now that I've made an uninformed ass of myself, I better head over to the storage lot and really dig into this thing.
    And thanks for the complement, though truth be told, it's a 20 foot boat, as in from 20 feet away it's a looker. The photos don't show the dings in the molded rails, the gouges in the bottom and the overall beat down of the interior. And I don't even want to describe the rat's ass under the dash... Best thing I've done so far is to go at the jumble with a big pair of dykes.

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