Hello,
I have recently obtained an old Mercury 1150 inline six to run on the 1964 or so duckbill tunnel hull race boat that I grew up with as a kid. At the time my father only had a 50hp tiller motor on it, but it was rated for the 100hp tower of power. I am going to restore it and run the 115hp tower of power that I have found on it in order to let it have some glory days after restoration of the hull.
The trick is that this boat has a 15" transom, and I have no desire to run a jack plate or modify the hull, rather I want to run it as designed with the short shaft version of the engine.
Through eBay I have been locating various parts to start the conversion. One question I have not answered myself yet is about the lower unit. Can I keep the original lower unit off my long shaft engine and just change the shaft itself to the shorter one? I know I need the midsection, shift rod, water tube, and exhaust tube.
Another question I have is that because this is a true tunnel hull, and the boat will only ride on the edges of the sponsons and cavitation plate, do I need to find a gear case with the water pick up in the bullet? Or is the water pickup low enough under the plate to not be an issue. I don't have the motor in my posession yet to study, it will ship from a friend next week.
The last question is about propellers. Where is a good source for propellers for this type of hull/engine combination and what is the largest diameter that will fit on a 1150?
My father mentioned that this hull with the 100hp on it back in the day was able to hit the high 60's to low 70's fairly consistently. I have no intention to race it, but have nothing against blowing the carbon out of the engine on a calm, no wind day at the large lake near our place when the restoration is complete.
Any sources, tips, advice, and/or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
One more detail, this engine has the shock absorbers on the mount, can the later power trim mount be swapped in place without to much headache? I would like to convert to the power trim to be able to adjust on the fly as needed for wind/water and turning needs.
I have recently obtained an old Mercury 1150 inline six to run on the 1964 or so duckbill tunnel hull race boat that I grew up with as a kid. At the time my father only had a 50hp tiller motor on it, but it was rated for the 100hp tower of power. I am going to restore it and run the 115hp tower of power that I have found on it in order to let it have some glory days after restoration of the hull.
The trick is that this boat has a 15" transom, and I have no desire to run a jack plate or modify the hull, rather I want to run it as designed with the short shaft version of the engine.
Through eBay I have been locating various parts to start the conversion. One question I have not answered myself yet is about the lower unit. Can I keep the original lower unit off my long shaft engine and just change the shaft itself to the shorter one? I know I need the midsection, shift rod, water tube, and exhaust tube.
Another question I have is that because this is a true tunnel hull, and the boat will only ride on the edges of the sponsons and cavitation plate, do I need to find a gear case with the water pick up in the bullet? Or is the water pickup low enough under the plate to not be an issue. I don't have the motor in my posession yet to study, it will ship from a friend next week.
The last question is about propellers. Where is a good source for propellers for this type of hull/engine combination and what is the largest diameter that will fit on a 1150?
My father mentioned that this hull with the 100hp on it back in the day was able to hit the high 60's to low 70's fairly consistently. I have no intention to race it, but have nothing against blowing the carbon out of the engine on a calm, no wind day at the large lake near our place when the restoration is complete.
Any sources, tips, advice, and/or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
One more detail, this engine has the shock absorbers on the mount, can the later power trim mount be swapped in place without to much headache? I would like to convert to the power trim to be able to adjust on the fly as needed for wind/water and turning needs.
