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  1. #1
    Member River Rocket's Avatar
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    Wake the Lake 2019 Mount Pleasant Texas

    Over Christmas break and New Years we had the opportunity to have 3 Allison XB21's on the water all running the 300R. It was an epic time. Tim Powell and Fastbass Marine had Ole Blue (2-seater) and the new 1.6 gear case to play with. Jay has a 2+2 and I have a Prosport. We had over 20 props to run and it grew every day as Josh (Steve's Custom Props) and Rex (local Bullet guru) brought more wheels over.

    The goal for this event was to burn a lot of gas and run a lot of wheels. More specific, we wanted to get Ole Blue dialed in and maybe into the century club loaded to the gills with fishing gear.

    Day 1
    Unfortunately, you can't control the weather. The day before we had beautiful weather. Day 1 we had nothing but rain. We fluctuated from a light mist to medium to heavy rain. However, we didn't have wind which meant the boats went on the water and testing was on.

    First up was Ole Blue. For those that haven't seen this boat its a true mystery why it hasn't sold. I'm not a huge solid blue boat fan (sorry), but I wanted this boat. For the record, I'm also not a yellow boat fan, but I own one. This blue is breath taking in person and photos awesome. I think it will be a timeless color.

    We tested a lot of wheels on Ole Blue on day 1 and it just didn't put up big numbers. The boat had the 1.6 case on it and we went from 28P to 32P and couldn't get it to get past the low 90's. Complicating testing was we had rain, a manual plate, and a bad boat launch for checking motor height. So the boat just ran at the height it was and we ran 8-10 different props on it. Tim did bring 2" spacer plates to increase setback from 9.5" to 11.5", but with the rain we didn't want to get the motor lift out and move the motor back at the ramp to test.

    Both Jay and I got the chance to run a bunch of different props that day. I believe my final count was 10, and I'm not sure how many Jay ran. We didn't data log Jay's boat so we just have top end numbers. Jay ran the 32 Max 5 just over 100mph. Now that his motor is broke in the prop ran a lot better. I'm still not a Max 5 guy, but I run lighter than Jay or Tim and can get away with different props. Jay really liked it this go around.

    The best numbers for day for me came on two drastically different props on my boat. The 32 P4 BC ran 104.7 for the best top end for me, which I thought was darn good considering the weather. The best hole shot 5-85 came from an absolute surprise wheel. I would have never know had I not been data logging all day. The prop felt horrible out of the hole. I won't mention times, as they were off because of the weather. The 5-85 winner was a 30 5 Blade Cleaver (Hill CNC Copy). It was an absolute beast when you look at the numbers. I simply can't explain it. It was by far the worst prop I have ever run on my boat and almost as bad as the 36 Bravo we ran on Tim's green boat at Clifton. The boat was hard over on its left side the entire run and the prop couldn't get my nose up. Yet, it killed the 5-85 that day and ran 93 at 5800 rpm. That is 1.21% slip. I literally couldn't stay in it past 93 as I felt it was going to send me around. After crunching numbers again that night I wanted at it the next test day.

    Day 1 in summary. WET!! Confusing numbers on the the 2-Seater, Solid numbers and an epic time running a ton of wheels on the 2+2 and Prosport.

    Day 2.
    Still wet, but clearing. We took day 2 off from most testing and ran Caddo Lake. For those that haven't been it is probably one of the most beautiful bodies of water in the country. The lake is surrounded by a cypress forest, and to get to it your run a narrow bayou river. The forecast called for wind so we headed out for a scenic boat ride and fishing. Befuddled by the previous day with the 2-seater we raised the motor up. We could come to no other reason why the boat wasn't getting up to speed. The motor had pushed other boats to 100 with a 1.75 case, so the 1.6 case with the right props should have run. We had kids with, and the river doesn't have many straight areas so it was really a scenic cruise. Tim had the 28 Promax on and really was just testing to make sure we didn't go too high. Everything looked good on motor height during short bursts. I think it is probably important for Tim that it's mentioned that he out fished both of us. Especially Jay!!

    Day 3.
    The wind cleared and brought with it wind and temps were in the low 40's. We showed up at the boat launch and decided really quick that we couldn't sit at the boat launch all day tweaking and tuning in these temps unprotected from the wind. We did have a mostly flat surface so we measured motor height and moved the motor up. After that we drove over to a more protected boat launch. With the wind we had all but decided the day would be dedicated to Ole Blue. We really wanted to do 9.5" vs. 11.5" testing. The goal was to first verify we were running good then make the switch.

    I guess I drew the short straw and was up first in Ole Blue. I started up the data logger, turned the camera on, zipped my Lifeline up, put the helmet on, attached the kill switch, and got behind the wheel. I made a few slow circles near the launch to warm the motor up and then put the boat at idle and pointed it down the lake for the first 5-85 pass. I mashed the gas, the boat laid over and took off and that is when the fun began. I think I got to about 60-70 and the nose dipped left and the ass of the boat slipped out. I had just experienced my first blowout. I stopped the boat, checked everything over and attempted it again. Same result, but I think I got the boat up over 85. Not wanting to give up I went for a short cruise then slowly brought the boat up to speed. In the same speed window the boat had a blowout again. The blowout was slight and you could drive through it, but at that point I called it. I assumed the motor was too high and needed to go down.

    I took the boat back and we adjusted the motor down. This time Jay took the wheel. He went out and pushed the boat and came back with the same issues, but was able to hit higher speeds (what can I say, he is a better driver). With more information in hand we lowered the motor some more.

    I don't recall how many more times we tried and the results never changed. In heavy acceleration the boat would blowout. It would also blowout when slow rolling into higher speeds. At this point we weren't sure what the issue was. We thought maybe it was the wind and water conditions. We were in a protected cove, but the wind was blowing the boat around a lot. We also had some weird current swirls from the main lake waves going into the cove. Maybe it was setback related or we thought as a long shot it could be the 1.6 case. Since we wanted to go to more setback the motor hoist was pulled out and the pit crew went to work. In short order we had the motor off, more setback added, motor height checked, and the boat back on the water.

    With more setback the issue persisted. So at this point we were down to water conditions and the gear case. We dropped my boat in the water and I made some passes to see if I had issues. My boat had no issues hitting 95/96 in the same area. That left us with the gear case.

    Only one thing left, we pulled the 1.6 case off of Tim's boat and put it on mine. You can see it coming. We put Tim's boat back in the water and instantly we were running fast and with no blowouts. At this point I will say I have over 400 hours in my boat testing acceleration with 3 different motors. With the R alone I have over 100 hours. I have never blown the R out and had only one blow out with the other motors and that is when my trim sender died and I over trimmed the motor at speed and didn't know I had an issue ( I don't count this one). I blew the 1.6 case out immediately and proceeded to do it on almost every other run. Again, the blowout was very predictable and it only did it in a narrow window. I hate saying it but you got used to it. We all did. On the plus side I did get some good runs with the 1.6 case. As a result I was able to compare the 1.6 case vs. the 1.75 case in a performance shootout. That will be a future Fastbass Marine TV video, so no results here.

    After getting the 1.75 case on Tim's boat we got some great data and the speeds jumped up a lot. The wind was getting strong, so we switched back to the other ramp to get into cleaner water. Tim finished the day out strong, but with the wind we didn't have enough room to really air the boat out. More testing would follow the next day.

    Day 4
    On Day 4 Jay had to work so it was the 2-Seater and the Prosport on the water. Day 4 was perfect conditions, we had a slight breeze to give us a ripple on the water and temps in the high 30's. Tim and I made a bunch of long runs that morning making for some killer video of both boats running side by side in the high 90's. Surprisingly the 1.6 case hadn't blown out yet on my boat. The wind started to pick up and since we were hovering around 98 we pulled Tim's boat and started raising the jack plate. His speeds crawled up to 99.4 for the day in the short stretch of water we ended up running on to stay out wind. I think its important to say this is a boat that not only has his fishing gear in it, but his partners as well. We determined from the start that we would not pull tackle out of this boat to make it run faster and we never did. That is impressive for a boat loaded with as much stuff as his is.

    We testing done on Tim's boat I finished of the testing with the 1.6 case. I got several more passes in. My goal was to hit 100 with the 1.6 case. I made two passes in the attempt, both had blowouts. On the second pass I hit 100 and called it. I didn't feel the need to run more. The 1.6 case didn't have anything left with that prop anyway. Tim and I went back to the house and swapped gear cases back and Tim took Ole Blue back home. Tim is sending the case to Mercury for evaluation, no noticeable issue could be found with the limited inspection tools we had.

    Day 8
    The next couple of days brought to much wind to prop test. On the second to last day of my trip the stars aligned and Jay and I got some water to run in. That morning we headed to the lake to let the motor breath a little. We didn't bother with testing anything else this day. This final day was all about top end. We have two props right now for this task until all of my 34's are done. We have my 32 P4 and we have a borrowed 32 P4. Hands down these are two bad to the bone wheels. Unfortunately, the R just punishes mine. The limiter is a major buzz kill with it. We call mine the slow one and the borrowed one the fast one. Jay started out with the fast one and I had the slow one. We made 4 side by side passes. All 4 were 100mph plus side by side. Life simply doesn't get any better than this. Two XB21's running side by side loaded to fish at 100 plus. I managed to get it all on video as well. Jay ran a best of 103.6 as noted in his other post. That is amazing for these boats. Great job Jay.

    After that I had to give the fast prop a try. My prop was stuck on the limiter at 102. We pulled the boats and swapped props. Now Jay was on the limiter and I had the fun wheel. My first pass was 104 something. The next 3 passes went 105. With a best of 105.3, but still what I would call as hard on the limiter based on the data logger graph and looking at the logged RPM. Still, that is my personal best with all my gear in the boat.

    I wanted to get some photos, so Jay got in my boat and ran it so I could get some shots. If you don't know this, it takes huge balls to hand Jay your keys because you run a very high risk of him coming back with your boat and posting a number that could take you months to beat. It sucks from personal experience.... LOL. So I told Jay "Just run it up, you don't have to go fast". Jay didn't miss a beat, after he figured out which lever was the jack plate and which was the trim he made a pass by me at 10?, than blazed down the lake getting the feel for my boat. He turned the boat around and stuck a 105 as he blasted by me. I had to go to the data logger later and see if he beat me. Not sure if he had or not I decided to go for broke and make a pass with no troller. I was hoping to put the troller in Jay's boat, but he didn't have any ballast to put in my boat to offset the weight loss, so I put the troller under my front deck. My main goal was just to get rid of the wind resistance not the weight. I was able to kind of make one pass, but as I was starting my approach something didn't feel right and I didn't trim it out. It turned out I ran out of gas, so testing was done and it was a long 2 hours before I would get a chance to check the data logger to see if Jay beat me. It turns out I got him but not by much. At this point I think it's probably safe to say that Jay is in a small group of people to have ever taken 2 different Allison XB21's past 100, and probably the only one to do it back to back. Now that is a pilot!

    Again, what an epic time. Thanks to Connie and Jay for letting us all use your home. Tim for all the wheels and parts. Chris for the test wheel that can't be stopped. Josh for all the pit crew support.

    I have 100's of gigs of video and photos. Photos take for ever to post so here is some video.

    Last edited by River Rocket; 01-12-2020 at 11:37 PM.
    Allison XB21 2+2
    Mercury 300R




  2. Member River Rocket's Avatar
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    #2
    Allison XB21 2+2
    Mercury 300R




  3. Member River Rocket's Avatar
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    #3
    Blowout
    Allison XB21 2+2
    Mercury 300R




  4. Member River Rocket's Avatar
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    #4
    Allison XB21 2+2
    Mercury 300R




  5. Member River Rocket's Avatar
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    #5
    Allison XB21 2+2
    Mercury 300R




  6. Member River Rocket's Avatar
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    #6
    Allison XB21 2+2
    Mercury 300R




  7. Member River Rocket's Avatar
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    #7
    Caddo
    Allison XB21 2+2
    Mercury 300R




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    #8
    Those are some spectacular numbers and footage as well. Thank you for continuing to post all of your updates. I enjoy the heck out of them.
    Chris Coupel
    Paulina, La.

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    #9

  10. Member white gambler's Avatar
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    #10
    Awesome write up!
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  11. Member fishnfireman's Avatar
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    #11

  12. Member fishnfireman's Avatar
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    #12
    Geoff-- Not sure where, but I saw a picture of the blow out ring on that 1.62 gear case.. Got me to thinking about mine as it has done what you describe.
    I first noticed the blowout ring was not centered while installing the full barreled Max 5. It would rub no mater how it was indexed.
    On close inspection, the ring is not centered and it sticks out past the housing on the port side. seems to me at some point that could change the water flow comming off the gearcase and affect the prop.

  13. Member River Rocket's Avatar
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    #13
    Thanks guys. I got a little long winded.....

    Mike, We really struggled with this case. When low it ran fine, but when we ran it at the same height as the 1.75 case it really started letting lose. And rough or mixed water really agitated it. Probably why on day 4 when Tim and I went out I didn't have a problem until I raised it up to my normal testing height of 1.625 from 1.5".

    When we looked at the blowout ring we found the same thing on all 3 lowers. It is not located in the same spot relative to the outer housing. You could see it by eye. On all 3 cases we saw the same as you. Port side sticking out maybe 0.03-0.06" and its flush on the starboard side at the center-line. It seemed to stick out the most on the very bottom by the skeg. Again, without any really good equipment to measure we could see all 3 cases were similar, but the 1.6 case differed on the starboard side of the blowout ring near the prop shaft center line. It was actually inside of the housing and not flush or outside. We don't know if that was the issue or not. It's hard to know when the ring isn't mounted uniformly. Tim checked a bunch more cases when he got back to the shop and they are all different.

    Again, we don't know if this is an issue or not. Mercury will have to let us know.
    Allison XB21 2+2
    Mercury 300R




  14. Member fishnfireman's Avatar
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    #14
    Very interesting..
    Mine only did it a couple of times and it was with the Jack plate full up at 1.5"..Since then I've not ran it that high.. (Don't need to get wet at my age and no one around.)
    Have no idea if it's related but something else to ponder.. I told you about pulling some pvs plugs out of the max 5 and it broke loose about 2000 rpm so hard it went to guardian.. That was with j-plate full up.. drop it down and it spins a lot less before grabbing..

  15. Member tritontr21's Avatar
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    #15
    We did have a blast even with the weather not always cooperating.
    Jay McDaniel
    2003 Allison XB21 BasSport Elite 2+2
    2019 Mercury Racing 300R

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    #16
    You guys passed one of my friends on Caddo while you were off plane in the river. I believe he asked you how fast your boat was....lol I bet you never get that question. He was in a Silver Red and Black Bass Cat Eyra. First thing he did was call me and tell me about the 300R's on the back. Should get mine this week. Supper videos and fast runs.
    Elwood....Bass Cat Strong

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  17. Member tritontr21's Avatar
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    #17
    I remember speaking to him. That's really cool that he called you. I think I only heard that question 5-6 times that day lol.
    Jay McDaniel
    2003 Allison XB21 BasSport Elite 2+2
    2019 Mercury Racing 300R

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    #18
    Thanks for the write up Geoff!

    We had a blast in Texas!
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  19. Member WVBullet's Avatar
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    #19
    Sounded like a fun trip! A lot of testing and some great vids!

    2008 BULLET 21XD 2007 Merc 300xs