After four different props, we ended up with a 19-inch Revolution 4 bladed propeller which is very popular for Scorpions. By the time we "launched" the engine had done 6.5 hours running - 2.5 hours in the race engine factory. This means that we are virtually through the official running in process where the engine automatically gives itself a double oil dose. It still probably needs 20 hours in order to get to its full potential.
Scorpion had the boat ready to go and after a talk through the basic systems, we went on a trip out into the Solent with Ben from Scorpion - Ben manages the fit out and has also benefited from a week at Mercury's US facility. No problems at all, but given the Solent was "boiling" and the rain was heavy it wasn't a great time to do a serious evaluation of the boat.
What we did learn is that our glass screen dashboard will take a little learning and the Mercury "System View" with its 200-page manual looks very clear but we were struggling to find the page with the relevant information - like engine revs for example! We now know how to do this and have discovered that it can provide us with many things that we didn't know we needed, including an engine running history showing time at different rev levels!
One thing that struck Paul and me was how much this boat is an improvement on our previous Scorpion. Of course the boat in the water is very similar, albeit a metre longer. But every locker, every fitting seemed better - a great example of continuous improvement of what was already a first class Rib.
After the official hand-over, we took the boat down the Solent to Cowes, using the lee of the island to provide shelter from the gusts which we couldn't measure but which were forecast as up to Force 9.
A few things came to light: the trim tab controls are the other way round which makes them counter intuitive for me. The sexy "Zero Effort" engine controls feel good but the throttle control couldn't be left because it cuts back when you hit a wave. Maybe you need to keep your hand on the throttle! You also need to be careful that you don't change gear with the throttle open which of course you can't do with a single lever control.
Yet the boat didn't give us one anxious moment in quite extreme Solent conditions and the Ullman seats - which I'd selected without trying - appeared to be very good. You don't need to brace yourself for the hard landings. We have now drawn the position of our feet and will fit footstraps to ensure that we don't fall off sideways as well and always have a firm footing.
A lot to think about and a lot of manuals to read. We went home happy after Day One and look forward to tomorrow's run when we will put some more hours on the engine.
Links:
Scorpion
Mercury Racing
Round Britain Powerboat Race
Rib Racers
Gavin 29.3.08
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