Weaker part of Bravo, upper or lower?

[Donziweasel]

Which is the weakest part of a Bravo, the upper or lower? It seems that most members with failures grenade the upper.

[Air 22]

Informative..:wink:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuAcrDFvApA

[Last Real Texan]

Informative..:wink:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vuAcrDFvApA
yes but only for the outboard guys.....A bravo has a cone clutch in the upper...same concept but different stress behind high HP...Some say the weak link is the upper...The floor in the gears and the teeth on the gears is what goes first then it's the vertical shaft....boom! On the lower not much goes bad. I prefer to have the weakl link in the lower that is why I run the standard propshaft size...so if something goes I hope it is the propshaft ...so I lose a prop, big deal plus the shaft...a lot cheaper to fix...

Just my 2 cents

Tex

[show-n-go h2o]

the upper is where i have my problem.

[mjw930]

The uppers are the most problematic although there are a few props still bolted to their shafts sitting on the bottom of a lake we used to do some testing on about 10 years ago. I've seen some of the strangest stuff like the LH side of a counter rotating assembly blowing the top cap off @ 90 mph......

Just a note, if you build up the upper and put 700+ HP in front of 2 bravos on a heavy Sutphen you break prop shafts.......

If you're concerned give Galen a call @ Speedmasters. He has come up with a combination of parts from the XR and Imco that they can retrofit into the standard B1 case that has shown some good results. http://www.speedmasters-inc.com/