[Fastech]

Hi everyone,

I finally picked up my "new" 1995 Talari Z210 the other day and brought her home. We went out on the lake yesterday and had a fantastic time! Everything is great on the boat. However, being a lifelong speed demon, I would like to know if I could prop her for a little more at the top without killing my take-off.

Like I said, it is a 95 Z210 Talari with the 5.7L and Alpha One outdrive. It is equipped with a 14x19 3-blade prop. Yesterday, on Lake Chickamauga, with me (250lb), my girlfriend (170, but she's HOT, I swear! LOL), a full tank of fuel and nothing else, we were max'ing out at 41-4200 RPM and low 40's mph indicated. From what I have read, I expected her to pull a little faster. Is this normal speed? Would a change in pitch or going to a 4-blade help any?

Also, does anyone make a thru-hull exhaust conversion for this boat? I just love the sound....

Thanks for the help!
Brian

[indykoch]

Brian,

Congrats on the "new" boat (and "hot" GF)!!! Personally, I think something isn't quite right here. The 5.7 should be able to spin that 19 pitch prop higher than 41-4200 RPM.

Are you trimming the outdrive to the highest setting (without cavitating)? Does it seem to run smooth (no missing, smoke, or other signs of problems)? How many hours are on it?

In regards to the Thru-hull, it's extremely costly ($1200+ without labor) and difficult to find for these boats. Corsa made them, and I have the shop drawings for my particular boat from them, but they charge a LOT for them!!

[bpfirrman]

Your recommended RPM range is 4200-4600 so if you are not able to hit your range with a 19p prop then something else may be wrong. I would check for any other noises that sound out of the ordinary, I know we had another member that had this same issue and it was determined that his gimble bearing was bad. Hopefully someone will chime in with other possible causes for decreased RPM.

[Fastech]

Ryan,

Thanks for the quick reply! I played with the trim (of the OUTDRIVE...) to find the sweet spot, but that was about as high as it climbed. It seems to run very well, no untoward noises, starts easily and runs smoothly. It has an anti-cav plate (which the previous owner referred to as a "dolphin plate", if that means anything) above the prop. Total hours showing are only 295. Boat is clean enough for that to seem realistic.

In the words of Ricky Bobby, "I wanna go fast, Mama, I wanna go FAST!!!" Well, at least as fast as a small-block is gonna take me!

Thanks!
Brian

[dieselwiezil]

I UNDERSTAND your grief!! I have not pulled my outdrive but the noise I THOUGHT I heard wasnt the Gimble. Im going to run it for a couple more hours listening closely, but I really dont think theres a problem with it. I did freshly grease the bearing with marine grease which I had used regular grease before.
.

An update for me: Went out last weekend Top speed is 44mph and 3850-3950 RPMS. Trim indicator is half way or a little higher than half. This data is collected JUST before Cavitation begins. I guess im going to do a tuneup. It is QUITE possible all my stuff is OEM from the factory, and being 8 yrs old, it needs to be changed. It has 97 hours now. Another thing I am thinking about is that if the throttle cable may be stretched? I have seen them do it on construction equipment, so Im going to check that out too.

I cannot find my thread I had a couple weeks ago, and Im not tryin to hi-jack this one.

[Fastech]

Bpfirrman : Sorry I overlooked your reply yesterday when I was responding to Ryan.

DieselWiezel: No problem with the hijack, it's all educational for me!

So, ok, what is the Gimble Bearing and how do I tell if it could be bad? This isn't one of those "haze the new guy" things, is it? Most of my mechanical experience has been with cars; I am well versed in things such as muffler bearings, blinker fluid and head gasket issues on Mazda Rotary engines. And you have no idea how hard it is to find metric air for european car tires...

Another friend with some hot rod experience suggested also checking to make sure the throttle linkage is opening the butterfly on the carb all the way. I will check that out hopefully later today.

Thanks again, guys!
Brian

[indykoch]

The gimbal bearing is the main bearing holding the driveshaft at the transom. When it wears, it usually makes a knocking or rattling noise. It can rob performance since the drive shaft is moving all around or just the friction created while spinning. If left too long, it can cause serious problems.

Between the bearing, possible throttle cable stretch, or a number of other issues, I think you should be seeing better performance. But it's hard to say without knowing all the variables.

Your number of hours makes me think a gimbal bearing or throttle cable/adjustment is possibly the culprit. I definitely don't think it's just a "tired" engine. You may want to try removing that hydrofoil and see what happens. I hate those things! Smart Tabs are a MUCH better solution. I think we need to see what else is wrong before trying those though. Like I said, a 5.7 on a 21 foot boat turning a 19 pitch prop should see at least high 40's and at least 4400 RPM's.

For reference, I'm running a 300 hp 350 Magnum in my Z212 Shabah with a 21 pitch prop. It has that dang bottom paint and I believe a stretched throttle cable slowing me down, yet I'm getting 57 MPH at about 4400 RPM's. I think the prop diameter is too much at 14.25 or 14.5" which may be why I can't get more RPM's out of her, but that's another thread.

[z275st]

Fastech,
Your problem is definitely other than your prop! I owned a 95 210 Talari for eight years with the same power and prop you have. It would go 54-55 MPH by speedometer with a half tank of gas and me (180-lb). It ran 50-52 loaded, not bad for a 3000lb boat. Make sure your tack is right and do a run with a GPS to check out the speedometer. I have found the GPS is usually about 2-3mph less than the speedometer. I also used a hydrofoil because the Talari is slow to plane when loaded without a foil or tabs. Once you get it sorted out you will be very happy with the performance of the Talari 210.

[Fastech]

Thanks for the replies guys, this is turning out to be a great forum! I did not get to go by and check out the throttle issue today, but it does seem plausible. I did not hear any unusual knocking noises, but I will pay more attention next time. When would I hear them? At speed?

Boat had recently been serviced, so I am assuming it's not just basic tune-up stuff. Perhaps advancing the timing might give some power?

The Mariah sales brochure from that year seems to indicate 48-54mph for my combination, so I definately feel like I am off somewhere. I will pull the GPS from my truck and give it a try this weekend and see what she runs!

Thanks again guys!
Brian

[indykoch]

My gimbal bearing "rattled" mostly at idle. I would have never known anything was wrong since the boat was new to me. After they changed it, I couldn't believe how quiet it was!!

If you don't think it's making odd noises, I'd check things like the fuel filter, injector cleaner, throttle/carb adjustments, etc.

Let us know how it goes this weekend.