Ok here it is. Im running 18hp vanguard on a home made sd lower unit. I picked this thing up for $500 and it runs like a champ the only pitfall to it is the lower unit is made out of steel rather than aluminum so it is about 80 pounds heavier than a regular motor. It runs 18mph with just me in the boat 240lbs. Since I dont have much money tied up in the motor I was wandering would it be worth it to mod it out maybe just stage 1 and how much am I looking to spend and who can do it around central la or maybe lafayette. oh yeah im running it on a 1648 weldbuilt.

WHat is the gear ratio, prop pitch/size, and how many RPMs you spin at WOT in the water? How does the bottom of your boat look? ANy dents or hooks? Is it a flat bottom boat?

whoa slow down j/k lol... not sure of the gear size im running a 11x10 prop its a flat bottom boat with ridges but its pretty slick. I got mixed emotions about pods on a sd but I had the spare time and material so I built some and put them on and gained like 1mph. Thanks

the whole package will make or break how fast a rig runs. the reason I am askin these questions.

Im not real sure about the rpms the guy told I bought it from told me 4200 wot out of water and 3900 wot in water. Well the tiny tach I have says 2100 wot in water and some one told me that its probably counting two revolutions at a time and I would just have to change the settings on the tiny tach but I havent figured that out yet.

yeah I hear you the only thing im not sure about is the gear ratio. I really think I need to have someone just look at my rig because I have heard the placing the motor properly on the boat is a big key to getting it dialed in correctly but so far the only info I can get on that is the bottom of the gear box should be two inches above the bottom of the boat

Pull the belt housing off, put some sort of mark on the top (main) shaft, then turn the prop and see how many times the prop turns versus one full revolution of the main shaft. There will be a fraction involved.

Yeah I get that.. But im offshore right now and can't do that..