The crew at Powerboat magazine has been working hard—I know because as the magazine’s editor at large I talk to them daily—to revamp their web site. Among the many strong features they’re adding such as Performance Report archives and celebrity blogs (OK, high-performance world celebrities—they didn’t have the budget for Peyton Manning or Justin Timberlake) are a propeller guide and an engine guide.
I know, because I wrote both of them.
The propeller guide covers the basics of propeller selection and overall setup. For top-flight information, I went to ace setup man John Tomlinson of TNT Custom Marine in North Miami. There’s a good reason Tomlinson has won multiple offshore racing world championships, and it’s not just his remarkable touch on the throttles. Tomlinson has been the setup man, meaning he chose the propellers, drive heights on gear ratios, on almost every race boat he throttled. He’s also set up more than a thousand high-performance pleasure boats. Setup men simply don’t come with better credentials.
More of a resource—who builds what and where—than a how-to feature, the engine guide includes the top high-performance builders from around the country. Though the guide is broad and comprehensive, it is not all-inclusive. Undoubtedly, I’ve missed some noteworthy engine builders and I expect you (and them) to let me know so I can add them to the guide, which also includes drives.
The new Powerboatmag.com site should go live next week. I’ll let you know the moment it does.