Southwind Top Speed Issues (Is it the foam??)

David - How clean is your hull? It is alot of work, but buffing the hull & waxing will net you some speed. You will have to pull the trailer from under it. I did this last fall & the hull has stayed pretty clean still. Just a thought - this would be a time,not money, investment.

David,

    I had my Southwind up to 40 MPH, but it took 5300 RPM's on my Chevy 350. It has to be the foam, just like mine. I haven't been in the boat since I heard the sloshing of watr in my hull. I really don't want to pull my floor again but, I have to if I want a solid boat. Polish the hull and pull the floor this winter. We can trade notes and pics on the site so the guys can help us do it right!

Regarding checking for wet foam, see if you can pull the trailer/boat to a scale and get the weight. If they won't let you unhook and use the tongue jack stand, put it on the bathroom scale when you get home and add that to the truck scales weight. Add a estimate for the trailer which I would guess at about 750. Subtract the weight of the gas (45.9 lbs/cu, ft.) and the battery then compare that to the dry weight listed in the ref section.

I'd say in a SW 18 or 20 it's easy to have 500 to 600 extra lbs. with wet foam.

Hey guys....Thanks for the input. I will try to answer a few questions here.

1.) The hull is very clean. It nevers sits in the water overnight, and I buffed the bottom out last season.

2.) Prop Size: 13x12 vs. 13x13. Interesting. I assumed this boat came with a 13x13 from the factory, but, maybe it didn't. However, wouldn't a 13x12 give it a better hole shot than a 13x13??

3.) No swim platform, but, I use the exhaust outlets as my gauge. The water comes up halfway on them. I did take the front bench seat out this year, and that removed about 150 Lbs. of weight, so they sit a little lower than before I took it out. Replaced them with bucket seats on pedestals. Much better for driving with skiers, tubers, etc.

And....I am not sure if I really want to know about Eric's tool for taking those measurements

4.) I do want to get the boat out to a scale so I can weigh it. I think Pete has a good idea to determine if the boat is way over the ~2250 Lbs. the brochure says it should weigh.

5.) I am also thinking its kind of ironic that some people want to add hundreds of pounds of water to their new boats for a better wakeboard wake, and some of us want to eliminate the water in our old boats for top end speed. However, we are starting to get into wakeboarding......Hmmmmmm!!!

I guess I am looking at this as a challenge to see what I can get out of the old gal by using everything stock...ie...clean hull, std. prop, stock engine, etc. All signs are pointing to WET FOAM!! Maybe I better get over to Wal-Mart to stock up on swimming noodles before the end of the season

davidg wrote:    tubers

Here's the problem!!!!

I finally had a chance to take the boat to a large scale today at a metal scrapyard in Woodstock, IL. My Mercury Mountaineer, boat and trailer weighed 8500 Lbs. Unhooked the boat, and just weighed the Mountaineer. SUV only was 4900 Lbs.

8500 SUV/Boat/Trailer
-4900 SUV only
=3600 Lbs. Weight of boat and trailer

I have read on this site that a single axle trailer weighs around 750. With a quarter tank of gas, and other gear on the boat, I can round that extra weight to ~250 Lbs.

Boat/Trailer=3600
Minus Trailer, Fuel, Gear=1000
Approximate Boat Weight=2600 Lbs.

The Correct Craft brochure indicates the "approximate" weight of this boat is 2300 Lbs. So, I have an extra ~300 Lbs. over what it should weigh. I am guess that is water in the foam. Do these calculations make sense to you guys.

Now the big question....is it worthwhile cutting the floor out and replacing the foam with the goal being increasing top speed by 4-6 MPH? Assuming there is 300 Lbs. of water in the foam, I am not sure that would increase the speed that much. Thoughts?

Thanks!

Dave

Chris....That is a great idea. I take it the best way to do it is to drill a hole in the floor, and then find a device to auger out a sample of the foam through the hole. Do you know of a device that would do that?