Edward R. Cozzi

I ran my SeaRay Pachanga in Lake Michigan from 1971 to 1979.
Then I brought it down here and I picked-up 2-3 MPH, but the boat aged 5 years in six months with the salt air and water attacking the cheap hardware they used back then.

GLH

A Panchega in salt water.... W0W Ed your quite the wild man... for a surveyor...

Croozin2

Don't know about open wheel Formula cars but in drag racing, when we had an event at an all concrete track (versus a concrete launch pad and the rest asphalt) you could pick up as much as a tenth and a mph or two on the big end. Oh, and all tracks are here near the Gulf Coast at or near sea level.

The specific gravity of salt water is slightly higher than the fresh water reference (1.028 vs. 1.0) therefore more buoyancy. It may not make that much difference on larger, heavier boats but in a light tunnel boat (1250 lb. STV) it definitely made a difference in all aspects (speed, handling etc).

jeff32

make sense! Thanks!

mopower

Aren't there locks on the St Lawrence Seaway to get up to the level of lake Michigan?????????

Bubbletop409

A boat sinks till it displaces it's own weight in water. Since salt water is heavier, the boat rides higher in the water in salt. Look at all the old drag boat records that were set at Oakland, and Long Beach Marine stadium, both salt water. There was a portal when you drove into the pit area at Oakland that stated " Thru this portal pass the fastest boats in the world". I once saw Larry Schwabeland driving the Sanger factory blown fuel hydro "Climax", go thru the lights at 205+, with a half a turn on the steering wheel, his arms were actually crossed, he needed that much correction to counteract the torque of the prop. Salt is faster. Sea level air is also a factor, better corrected altitude, more power to the prop.

Edward R. Cozzi

Yeah, I know! That's how I used to get all the chicks!

Dave M

I never noticed a speed difference. I've ran my boat for 100's of hours on both salt and fresh.

Boating is not a very controlled environment. I think there are too many variables when it comes to testing a boat's absolute top speed to come to any precise conclusions. Wind, current, wave height, barometer, passenger/Gear weight, fuel, temp..... Who can duplicate their boat's top recorded speed on every run?

375stinger

nto sure if soemoen already said this,,,but i beleive regular water has a density of one, (1 garm, per 1 cm cubed er sometinh like dat) sooz, tat means nething with a density more thn that sinks, and nethin less floats. so if satl water is more dense, that means wutever is in it wil be more floaty-ish....using my logic....i think

rush

Have you been imm dads bottle there Stinger?