Powerglide in minicruiser

[Boatski]

I have a 1974 21' Howard minicruiser with Velvet drive 1:1. I am considering installing a Powerglide trans. Will I gain any improvment out of the hole or am I just wasting time and money. Has anyone done this swap with good results? I'm only running a 396 cu. in. chevy that is mildly built 400/450 H.P. Thanks for any help........

[e-ticket]

Boatski
I have a Powerglide trans that came out of my '74 Howard that I would be willing to sell.

[Thunderbutt]

Boatski
I have a 20 foot Spectra and the best thing I did was intall a three speed trany. Mine happens to be a turbo 400. Going through a no wake zone the r.p.m's are up and the wake is down, nobody screaming slow down. Also you can put in taller gears in the v- drive. Using 2nd gear it jumps out like a flatbottom. (not quite)

[greg shoemaker]

The turbo 400 is the way to go because the split on a powerglide is to wide between 1st and 2nd gear. The turbo 400 1.45 to 1 in second and I believe the split on the powerglide is 1.75 to1 between 1st and 2nd.Greg

[Boatski]

Thanks e-ticket, Thunderbutt and Greg for your input. It seems like a 3 speed trans is the way to go, and I just happen to have a turbo 400 sitting in my garage that is collecting dust. Thanks again......Boatski....

[spectras only]

Boatski.look it the topic "fast cruisers" on this forum,you'll see a howard next to a 66 vette.That howard had a 400 in it,never a problem.Approx speed was 70-72MPH with a 3 blade ,used primarely for skiing.

[Stab-n-Steer]

Boatski,
There is a good article on installing a turbo in a boat on Arizona Don's site. It is in the pay to use section - the Virtual V-Drive Club (only $10/year). Click below to get there.
http://vvdc.v-driveboat.com/
S&S

[VD CRUISER]

Boatski,
I have a turbo 400 in my 83 21' howard with a blown 547 ci chevy. It works great especially for manuvering around docks and marinas, and when you need to go really slow. Even reverse is better because of the lower gearing. However I don't have any luck using it for a holeshot, even with 48% gears in the V-drive, and using 2nd gear, it just blows the prop away, 2 or 3 blade. I have a buddy with a blown 20' Howard that took out a Velvet Drive and put in a Powerglide with a torque converter, looking for a better leave, but it didn't seem to help much.
Anyone out there get a good holeshot using this setup, and what type/size prop do you use?

[wideopen545]

hey ive got a new direct lock converter made by hughs its for a power glide 225.00
its replaces the torque converter thanks tim 540.427.2090

[Boatski]

Thanks again everyone for your input. I should be a little more specific in what I'm looking for. I would like my boat to plane out sooner, right now with just my wife and me in the boat it planes out almost instantly. When I have passengers especialy in the rear on each side of the engine compartment the boat seems to take forever to get on plane. I do not like the feeling of not seeing whats in front of me. About 7 years ago my sister was run over by a boat because the driver could not see her in the water due to his boat not planing out. I do not want this to happen to me. When I take off I have the plate down. I did own a v-drive flattie with a velvet drive and when I took off there was no bow rise, I guess that is what I'm looking for. I am wondering if by installing a 3 speed trans if that would let the engine rev up and get the bow down sooner. Is this just common for cruisers or can it be fixed.......Thanks for any input........