Reply With QuoteWHIP, WOW, BITZ TOLD ME THERE WAS ANOTHER 502 OUT THERE BUT I WASN'T SURE IF HE WAS JUST BLOWING SMOKE LIKE HE NORMALLY DOES. POST A PICTURE SO I CAN GET A LOOK. MY BOAT WILL BE AT RED BLUFF AND CHOWCHILLA IF THEY EVEN HAVE THOUGH'S.:sqeyes:
Bitz Took A Splash Off Of A Kurtis Bottom But Made The Mold Himself On The Upper Haft. The 502 Is A Lake Racing Version, Since Mine Was The 2nd Out Of The Mold I Made Mine A Single Seat Drag Boat To Race And Not To Screw Around Grudge Racing In Some Lake With A Bunch Of Drunks. Since His Shop Burnt Down There Problibly Wont Be Any Other 502 Hull, Just Mine And One Down In Cal. Somewhere Only.
Great to see that the other 502 hydro is out there racing. Would like to get together sometime and compare boat notes. Later, Ray
WHIP, WOW, BITZ TOLD ME THERE WAS ANOTHER 502 OUT THERE BUT I WASN'T SURE IF HE WAS JUST BLOWING SMOKE LIKE HE NORMALLY DOES. POST A PICTURE SO I CAN GET A LOOK. MY BOAT WILL BE AT RED BLUFF AND CHOWCHILLA IF THEY EVEN HAVE THOUGH'S.:sqeyes:
WHIP, WOW, BITZ TOLD ME THERE WAS ANOTHER 502 OUT THERE BUT I WASN'T SURE IF HE WAS JUST BLOWING SMOKE LIKE HE NORMALLY DOES. POST A PICTURE SO I CAN GET A LOOK. MY BOAT WILL BE AT RED BLUFF AND CHOWCHILLA IF THEY EVEN HAVE THOUGH'S.:sqeyes:
Here is a picture: Rick (Bitz) delivered this hull to my house around midnight on a ski boat trailer with 3 wheels and the hull riding backward. I was worried that he delivered a questionable hull but it has taken all the power i have given it. By the way Joe Shelfo told me that he was lined up next to you at one of the events.
HAVE YOU EVER RAN THAT MONSTER MOTOR IN ANY 1/4 MILE DRAG COMPITITION? I NOTICED THE DECALS ON THE SIDE. i'VE BEEN AROUND JOE FOR A COUPLE OF YEARS AND WAS IN THE SEMI'S AT PHEONIX BUT SLEPT AT THE LIGHT AND NEVER GOT TO RUN HIM IN THE FINALS. WHO ASSEMBLED YOUR BITZ FROM SCRATCH. SEND ME YOUR PRIVATE E-MAIL AND I'D LIKE TO SEE SOME PICTURES ON THE INSIDE AND I'LL SEND YOU SOME OF MINE. i TALKED TO RICK AT ONE OF OUR RACES DOWN ON THE COAST. I CAME OUT OF THE WATER AFTER A PASS AND THERE WAS RICK STANDING ON THE RAMP, THE FIRST WORDS OUT OF MOUTH WAS I THOUGHT YOU WERE DEAD, NOBODY WAS PISSED ENOUGH AT YOU TAKE YOU OUT. I'LL LOAD SOME PIC'S OF A COUPLE OF PASSES
my buddy has a drag shovel nose, steering is useless... lol... bad ass boat though... heres a few pics
Looking to by a Sanger Pickelfork Hydro,but have never had one before. Can some one tell me the differance between "Drag hydro " and 'Ski hydro"? Hull weight? Set up? One harder to drive than the other? Any info or history appreciated!!
I saw this a couple of weeks ago and though we'd shed some light on this subject for you.
We were a Sanger dealer from 1972 thru 1984 at which time bought the last Ski (a stage 3) and Drag LT (a stage 1) hulls ever made. Jack offered us the molds (before the molds were cut up) to carry on with at which time we declined.
So, to answer your question, both boats are identical in length (18.2) other then the Drag hull came in either a super light, light, medium or heavy layup and in either a narrow or wide cockpit. There was also a third hull referred to as the TOP FUEL boat Jack made (I sold many in stage 3 set-ups) which had a tunnel, long side runners and was not bent. When people refer to Sanger Hydro's as a "banana" boat they need to do their research. All Sanger Hydro's after 1974 were bent in the molds (not taken out and cut and bent out of the mold finished by hand as previous versions) which would help the boats in quicker planning, safer re-entry after hydroplaning and improved steering. There were also two different Drag Hydro molds which are commonly referred to as the "FIVE RIBs". The difference being in the fork length in the bow. From 1973 thru 1976 they had shallower entry and shorter pickle forks. The 1977 thru 1984 are the most common Five Rib Drag Hydro today. The Junior Hydro's are Conventional or Shovelnose hulls, which have exactly the same bottom in either a Ski or Drag deck and were not a bent hull.
To further answer your question, Ski Hydro's steer very similar to a Jet boat and are very safe at speeds over 120! I personally have run Ski Hydro's over 140 MPH. I had a customer I sold a Ski Hydro to that eventually ran somewhere around 160 MPH on the River. Drag Hydro's on the other hand do not steer like Jet boats but do steer well for what they were designed for. My Son and I are building a 1977 Drag Medium layup Sanger now for the River and I'm not worried about the steering at all.....
970 Daytona, I would highly recommend that you look into a Ski Hydro either in a Pickle fork or Conventional and keep in mind it will take a lot of HP and experienced boat set-up to get it to run 120 plus.
I would also like to add that this is an expensive and serious piece of equipment and should be respected as such.
If you have any questions you contact us directly. Drag boats are our business and our passion.
P.S. we have a 1984 Ski Hydro for sale with a blown 468.
Caught N the Act 225
thanks for the great post. too bad those molds were not purchased. i think they are priceless if still around. why is it sanger is one of the only hydro not re popped. i have a sanger hydro with the banana bottom. its a ski version. its currently in resto and when i bought it at a estate sale the numbers on the side are gone. i know its a later 77-84 because i have had other older models. is there a distinctive location or way to determain the year of my hull. as far as steering., i planned on useing the cable again. should i upgrade to something else or is that ok. 2 i have seen where a 3 blade cleaver is put on and a longer inboard rudder was on . looked cool but what is the combination i should use. i may repeat may run the boat in the ski class but its being built at a little use trailer queen like my last. im a sanger fanatic and thats all i will own i currently have 4 sangers and looking for more always. i hope you dont mind the questions as i could use your input.
i recently got a 74 sanger runner bottom. what v drive are they supposed to have 12 or 10?
rumor is molds were cut up but then i have also heard it was the seconds and thirds and the 1sts are in storage. please enlighten ifyou have info
I just bought this 2 weeks ago. i can not find any hull ID # was told it is a 76 and was a blown gas hydro
call Satan`s Toy, 1st owner was Buddy Gregory from so cal. I was told it was orange w/ graphics back in the day.I was told this is a very rare hull.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3181/...09379bddd1.jpg
Thank you... I appreciate your passion for these world class performance v-drive boats.
All of the "Hot Rod" V-drive molds were cut up at the time we picked up the last Hydro's. I can't tell you what was done with the Hydro, Flat or jet plugs nor the Alley Cat's or the stern drive Cruisers molds. We talk about this nearly very everyday. It definitely brings many memories from the 70's and 80's as we're putting our boat together. I believe the boat died with Jack, as it should have being that he was the creator of the three point and four point Hydro as we know it. You'll find that most of the boat builders today and even at that time were Sanger copies in regards to the bottom the decks were there only distinctive features. Referring to hull numbers; no, there isn't another way to identify the year specifically, but it sounds like you already know have a good idea. Were they ground off or just painted over? Where is the registration? The cable steering system is more than OK, hydraulic is fine to. Another piece of history for you, all Drag Hydro's also utilized cable steering up to 1976. On most of the Ski Hydro's we built, which were "short stage 2's", we would set them up with a three blade cleaver built by our good friend Tom Black from Precision Propellers before he passed. Email me directly what your motor combination, v-drive location, gears and propeller and I'll give a combination. Rudder length should always be approximately 3" below the tip of the prop.
Caught N the Act 225
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