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Solid Grass Rakes

K

K-mac

Well-known member
I see a lot of good looking boats with thoose big solid rakes
how does that work on your areodynamics at high speed.
 
You can start to fly at about 65 to 70 mph. And just so you know it is way over rated ... the flying that is LOL if you launch remember to be very steady and do not suddenly get off the throttle ... a slight ... very slight turn of the bow while keeping the throttle open will break the lift and then you can start dealing with the results of your actions but hopefully you are still upright and sliding as opposed to vertically challenged or rolling. I have never seen or heard of anyone pulling off a full loop in a airboat so i would save that as the last resort kinda thing myself.

You will not see a full rake on a really fast drag boat.
 
K-mac, I blew over in a 3 point hydro a good many years ago because a good breeze came up that was right down the back straight of the course.

Cntry's tellin you right, and if you find yourself runnin into the wind, then you can take quite a few MPH off of those dead still air numbers where you thought you were at risk to begin with.
 
The big solid rakes we had on the seismic boats made even those big heavy workboats get squirrely in windy conditions. Had to be on your toes all the time.

I never ran one with a rake very hard speed wise, just too much to deal with when ya got hundreds of pounds of high explosive on board. I got used to a leisurly cruise and backing off in the wind real quick.

They are nice when entering deep water from the shore, and running deep grass they help keep from cutting off the grass with the bow and piling it in the boat. A careful driver really only needs a tubing grass rake, but they arent as cool looking as a solid one. Having said that, nearly all the Glades boats have solid rakes. They run it all the time so they must know something about it.

Scotty
 
I sense another poll question coming on. Solid or tube, which do you prefer? That one could never get as interesting as the AC vs. car motor debate could it? :argue:
 
Back when younger and braver (or maybe just dumber)
we used to jump the weier on the north end of lake
washington when there was two or three foot drop
in the water level, and even my little 125 seemed
like the torque would start to roll when the hull left
the water, I'll leave the flying up to somone else.
maybe i'm wiser mabey just more chicken.
 
I have been operating boats with solid grass rakes for the past 7 years and wouldn't have one without them. As far as areodynamics, I believe that with the proper weight to horsepower ratio, it will alow you to run a boat much faster and safer. We position the engine on the hull so that at the maximum hull speed, the boat actually has a tendency to nose.
 
I am not about to push my boat to the point of flying her. I know I'm an aerodynamicly challenged old bird. The greatest benefit to a solid rake, for me, is that it keeps much of the vegetation and critters out of the boat when I am running the trails less traveled. Let's not forget it also keeps water from coming over the bow when the boat drops off the hill and goes back into the water. I ran pipe rakes for years with expanded metal covering the pipe. It worked real well on everything except water, beans and yellow jackets.
 
I saw what I thought was the best designed grass rake yet and it was simple design. Look at the pictures from the last ride the black step hull from West Side Airboats (very nice boat) had a standard solid looking grass rack but the middle was a very rigged mesh or expanded aluminum. I personally can't run a grass rake because I enjoy going fast and have seen to many people die from running a grass rake. Every year you hear of at least one boat down south flipping. I have seen at least 5 boats flip myself and once they start you can't do anything it's over just do everything you can to miss the bow because it will kill you!
 
Most people are NOT trying to go 100+MPH though thunder.

A normal ride boat operated under normal conditions would never flip from having a grass rake.

Race boats, thats a totally different animal.

I have had both, I sell both but its about 100/1 on all new boats. Most customers get a solid Grass rake if they are getting one.

Most of our grass rakes are only 2ft. We build a 2-1/2 and 3 ft for tall cain in La and high grass in Fl.

The Solid Grass Rake Works as a splash Guard, grass rake, bumper, ect.
 
Thunder, just thinkin out loud again ......
Why couldn't you build an airfoil across the top of a solid rake, seperated a few inches to allow for airflow over both sides of it ? Kind of like the airfoils on the front of an Indy car. At lower speeds it wouldn't have any effect on the way a boat handled, but in wind or at higher speed it would start applyling a little down force.
 
Go to airboat4fun's gallery then click on page 6 then go to the last pic of the second row that is a great way to build a grass rake on a fast boat. If somebody would please post that pic on this thread.
 
100_1996a.jpg
 
Step hulls are really fun to drive. I know grass rakes are great but their just not my cup of tea I at least do 80plus a few times every trip out and you can't safely do that with a grass rake. As for the wing it's already been done a few times but I don't need a grass rake enough to run one. Also two people that I know flew their boats a few times playing with a front wing. I just don't think the rewards are worth the risk, cost and added mechanical components.
 
It's technology copied from the APBA boats. You step your hull up a few inches so the majority of the boat is ridding on a cushion of air instead of dragging the water. Because air has a lower drag coefficient then water this air pocket induces less drag and the boat becomes faster and generally safer because less positive air pressure builds up under the bow.
 
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