by moore1 | Apr 24, 2018 | News |
By Ben Mozart: Have you ever read online discussions on off-shore power boat racing? For the young and the young at heart, it seems to offer an irresistible future, an intoxicating new world they wish to be part of. For Kaase, the prospects of entering this new world came in 2015 when his engine shop was approached by the West Palm Beach-based Miss Geico power boat racing team. Though the team’s engines were fast they were not always reliable, so their crew chief, Gary Stray, then contesting his fifth season with Miss Geico in the premier class, flew to Kaase’s north Georgia location for discussions. His race boat team urgently needed an injection of top-flight talent. Stray (48), who’s in charge of Miss Geico’s entire engineering operations of which the engine package is a major part, knew his engines’ architecture would be a departure from Kaase’s normal fare. Geico’s power is derived from two 550cid V8 twin-turbocharged engines in each boat configured with double overhead cams, each generating 2,000hp and operating with fly-by-wire throttle control and boost control. So, he predicted a steep learning curve for any race engine shop that didn’t know boats. But Stray also knew of Kaase’s meticulous preparation and race engine history, including the numerous diverse power units that distinguished themselves so well in the national Engine Masters Challenge events. “We gave him all the data from the boat and other info we’d learned,” said Stray, “and he began attending the races with us to see how everything worked. We race Class 1 boats—which is an unlimited class, meaning you can race whatever you desire.... 
by moore1 | Apr 16, 2018 | News |
By Victor Moore: The inventor of modern drive plates for boats and dynamometers Steve McAllister died from liver failure at his home in Monroe, Georgia on Saturday, 7 April, 2018. At age 62 he had been in declining health since initially diagnosed with kidney troubles, then more accurately with stage-four prostate cancer in December 2015. Though without pain, his final weeks were disrupted by chemotherapy as the insidious disease invaded his bones. Like many of us, Steve McAllister might have expected his name to sink to oblivion, but as fate would have it he is one of the beloved engineers of our time. An enticing conversationalist and generous friend, it was friendship that structured his life and work, together with an inventiveness and engineering legacy that befits an ingenious career. Born in Glendale, Southern California and growing up in the Sacramento area of Northern California, he returned to Los Angeles after graduating to start his career with Mr. Gasket. Engaged in their Mallory division, his work included productive collaboration with Top Fuel racer Jeb Allen. After marrying in 1979, he joined Cyclone Headers, remaining in California before moving to Speed Distributors Warehouse in Chattanooga, TN in 1981. While there, he represented the firm in outside sales. This period was followed by thirteen-year tenure at Manley Performance as a southeast salesman. It was during this time his passions were stirred by the potential for designing and developing flywheels and drive plates for off-shore powerboats. As a result, he and his wife, Cindy, formed a side business, Innovation Engineering at their Georgia home premises. Says Harold Bettes of Power Technology Consultants:... 
by moore1 | Apr 13, 2018 | News, Racing Matters |
Relying on your own initiatives for growth. By Victor Moore: Writing lives or dies on read times. If you prepare a seven-minute article for your website or general consumption and the average read time reports 2mins 22secs, you lost your reader. You may think you prepared work of value but its value was zero. Time and money wasted–your straight-talk express with no wheels on it. When composing website materials, it’s probably better to omit mission statements and similar content, for few read them. Old-fashioned and usually disingenuous, these types of materials are not just confined to the written word, for videos that contain them are also annoying. One of the most agonizing was produced some years ago by Delta Airlines, whose CEO spoke interminably of his company’s mission and its endless admirable qualities. The captive listener was buckled to a seat with no mute button and no escape. I once observed a woman beating the seat-back monitor with both hands in exasperation. All commercial operations should be aware of the old adage: When a company boasts of its integrity, or a woman of her virtue, avoid the former and cultivate the latter. The better path to creating value is to compose compelling content. Years ago, I asked engine builder Jon Kaase about his topic for the AETC conference at that year’s PRI exhibition. “I’m hoping to tell my audience something they didn’t know before,” he replied. He was right, for in the art of engagement, enlightenment trumps all. And if you can pepper your content with credible testimonials or quotations from noteworthy sources, so much the better. This... 
by moore1 | Apr 9, 2018 | News, Racing Matters |
Here’s how to do it in... 
by moore1 | Apr 6, 2018 | News |
By: Ray T. Bohacz: As racers and enthusiasts, it is hard to not fall in love with a 900 lb-ft diesel pick-up truck; one that flattens the hills with the goose-neck trailer hitched on the back. But if you are contemplating the purchase of a new tow vehicle for your toys, you can start with car financing Ontario and also it may be wise to take a look at today’s gasoline engines. I think their performance will surprise you. Diesel disadvantages The two major obstacles are the upfront cost and the complexity of the emission control systems. Order a diesel in a pick-up truck and you just added around $8,600.00 to the price over its gasoline counterpart. Would that money be spent better elsewhere? In most instances I believe so. What you receive with a diesel is a huge amount of torque over a gasoline engine. Torque is what moves the load. We all “buy” horsepower but “drive” torque. The diesel combustion process allows the cylinder pressure to remain more constant than that of a spark ignited engine. In addition, all pick-up truck diesels are turbocharged. This fills the cylinders with more air, tricking the engine into thinking that it is larger than it really is. Between the combustion characteristics and the forced induction, the diesel is a real torque monster. However, modern gasoline engines have become more powerful and are superior in performance to the diesels used in pick-up trucks just a few years back. Let’s look at a comparison of then and now: 1988 Diesel 1998 Diesel 2018 Gas Ford 188 HP/345 TQ 215 HP/425 TQ 385... 
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