Hot Multi's - Pictures

[MN4V]

willabee,
Do you know what Merc motors were used in the SJJ an FJJ classes?
Mark Nelson

[T2x]

willabee,
Do you know what Merc motors were used in the SJJ an FJJ classes?
Mark Nelson

The JJ(both F and S) class rules allowed twin engines up to 99.9 cu.in..stock.
The class started with twin 800's in the early 60's and progressed through the 1250 BP's and Evinrude/Johnson GT 115's in the late 60's. Up unyil 1965 the class could have been called "II" since no stock engines existed above 89.9 cu in and I class was limited to 80-89.9 cu. in.The rules also mandated a stock shifting lower unit or DR engine. The last generation of engines, the BP's and GT's were the factories' attempts to stretch the rules to the max. However, the tunnel hulls and their utilization of SSM's and full race powerheads ended the "glory days" of JJ.

T2x

[MN4V]

Do any of you remember Greg Horn from I think Washington state? He ran SJJ class.
So the 1250 BP had FNR shifting?
Mark

[willabee]

Do any of you remember Greg Horn from I think Washington state? He ran SJJ class.
So the 1250 BP had FNR shifting? .....Mark

Both the 1250 & 1000 BP's had FNR.....but when it came to actually shifting them, it was like the commercial says "performed by professionals only, don't try this at home" ........ I don't recall Mr. Horn.

[MN4V]

During this time period did SJJ have power trim?
Mark

[Mark75H]

Do any of you remember Greg Horn from I think Washington state? He ran SJJ class.
So the 1250 BP had FNR shifting? Mark

The BP lower unit has its own thread here on SNF

[2us70]

At the time I got out of OPC (end of 1976) power trim was only recently legal in Sport classes. The JJ boats had just about gone extinct by then so I expect few if any ever had trim on them.

[willabee]

During this time period did SJJ have power trim?
Mark

Boy, you guys have managed to find another void in my memory banks. I remember FJJ, the last boat we played with for that class at Merc Racing was a Switzer V with a pair of 1250 BP's for Broadway Joe Habay, which did not have power trim. But SJJ.....who, what ran in that class? The twin tunnels ran in "T" and they had power trim.

Powerboat, 1969 says in OPC (then named Outboard Pleasure Craft), there were four divisions.....Family (F), Sports (S), Unlimited (U), and Unrestricted (R,S,T,X) craft.....
Family was boats sold at dealerships, production models with production engines.....a certain weight and no airtraps.
Sports was a production type boat, but you could move the drivers position, cut out weight, and use planing plates. No weight limit and production engines only.
Unlimited was a Sports class type boat but with engines that used a racing lower unit. Twins had a UU prefix to their number.
Unrestricted allowed just about anything with boat and engine except that engines had to be of US manufacture and run on gas and oil.

I'm looking at the results of the Nationals in Miami that year.....the list includes 16 classes with no SJJ or FJJ among them. They did run Sports J and Jock Hornor won, Family J was won by Joe Burgess (Sherlock finished 4th) and Jim Hunt had a 2nd and a 1st to beat out Bobby Soles who had a 1st and a 3rd to capture the U class win .....they also ran UU and T.

[T2x]

. But SJJ.....who, what ran in that class? The twin tunnels ran in "T" and they had power trim.

Willabee: The "SJJ" boats were anything with a custom deck or hull...and shifting lower units. So a one of a kind Souter, or a PowerCat Bubble cat(custom deck-stock hull) would have been considered an "S" boat. Very few SJJ boats actually ran back than, since for basically the same money you could add SSM's and run considerably faster.

T2x

[MN4V]

Was the power trim the one that mounted at the bottom shock mount and bolted to the transom?
Mark

[T2x]

Was the power trim the one that mounted at the bottom shock mount and bolted to the transom?
Mark

I recall it mounting to the engine on both ends.

[willabee]

I recall it mounting to the engine on both ends.

There was only one available back then, the fat cylinders that mounted as described, from motor mounts to transom.....a reliable, but slow system. Seems some used that system as a single clyinder mounted to a "can" that went through the transom. It really helped the drivers when the quick, small cylinder system was developed.

SJJ.....I remember the Souters or Souter Sheeds (Sheads ?) as I believe they were properly called. I think it was a design by Don Sheed from England, a needle nose, very sharp V used in Offshore back in the day. We had a twin that we tried to use as a safety boat..... I think it was tougher to drive that than it was the tunnels that the safety boat was supposed to be looking after .

I remember going to a party at Don Aronow's home in Coral Gables (?) before a Miami to Nassau race. Of course, the home was just beautiful.....huge, with a great pool in the rear that led to either the intercoastal or the bay (too long ago to remember exactly), let's just say it fronted a big body of salt water. As I wandered around inside this palace, I came to a dining area that had a table full of treats. You could grab some type of exotic fruit, fancy little finger sandwiches or just go for the candy that was in the big glass bowl.....a colorful assortment, but I'm pretty darned sure they weren't M&M's .

Just looked at the time, gotta go.....might continue this

[T2x]

Souter..designed by Don Shead.

[willabee]

Souter..designed by Don Shead.

That picture of Snapper is exactly how they ran..... they spent as much time rolling from side to side as they did going forward .

[willabee]

Gene said he has found some good stuff in his "picture closet" and wanted to share some of it .

The shots below are of the twin Molinari that Renato sent over for the 1969 Outboard World Championships in Havasu. I recall that the boat arrived late in Oshkosh and, other than steering, had to be completely rigged. I changed the departure schedule for some of the guys and a few of us stayed back to get this boat ready. Renato and his brother Georgio worked right along side of us until it was done. I also remember that it was about 6" over the eight foot limit for towing. When I found out about all of the BS you have to go through to tow a "wide-load" and how slow you have to drive, I just said we'll have to take the chance of getting caught. If we didn't, I don't think there was enough time to get it to Havasu legally.

I was installing the fuel tank and Renato hollered at me to stop. He took the fasteners that I was about to use to secure the tank to the aluminum angle in the boat and acted as if they were so heavy he couldn't lift them. He also pointed at the angle and moved his thumb and index finger back and forth to say it was too thick. He didn't speak, just shook his head "no" as he grunted trying to lift the fasteners. I looked at Georgio and he just shrugged his shoulders and smiled. I, of course, proceeded to find lighter fasteners and installed thinner angle..... my first lesson from Renato being complete . I don't know if we saved much more than a pound on that fuel tank installation, but Renato was happy.

The first shot shows Renato in the boat doing some last minute thing before testing. It also shows that he was running BP gearcases which makes me think that that boat must have been pretty wild.....the BP cases usually made the twins much more forgiving. The second one shows that maybe the boat should have been rigged just a little heavier . The third is the boat after repair and new paint, waiting for the start of the 1970 Parker 9 Hour, with Bill Sirois driving. I don't recall what happened to the boat in that race, but I think it got damaged again. That's Dave Beier in the white pants/blue jacket talking to Bill. It looks like his 1970 Havasu winning Molinari is just behind his #998.....Billy Don Pruett ran it that year with some experimental powerheads.

To be continued......