Initially, I too was surprised at the lack of trained techs in my area but once I realized you can use Mercury techs that have been to Mercury Diesel school, more options opened up. Seaboard Marine delivers Guaranteed Better Than Factory Performance, Parts, Design, and Engineering for Cummins and other Marine Diesel applications. The biggest fear boaters have is not about running out in the open water. JavaScript seems to be disabled in your browser. Then with the joystick, it directs the transmissions to pivot or swivel. If you lose oil or get water in the lower unit, an alarm will sound before the problem becomes catastrophic, Fessenden said of Cummins drives. He gives even higher praise to the Clean Wake exhaust feature. Long term cost of ownership based on 5- 10+ years of use, cruising long distances at economical wine & cheese hull speeds, ease of service (or just getting service or support) any time/any place. But downward-pointing conventional shafts lift sterns, negating, or even reversing, that fuel-economy advantage at slower speeds (0.92 nmg shafts @ 15.9 kts. They said it was so easy a child could do it, and sure enough, it wasnt long before a lad barely out of kindergarten deftly maneuvered a 40-footer into a slip all by himself. I am considering buying a Meridian 441 flybridge motor yacht, which is 47 LOA and 31,000lbs. Using a ZF transmission, it could mate any marine engine (Yanmar and Caterpillar have been popular partners) to its pods. They dont cavitate and they dont ventilate. One drive had a. Richard estimated an average annual cost of about $2,500 for scheduled maintenance on twin pod drives. That gives customers a stronger comfort level than an offshore service hotline.. Zeus service includes changing 0w30 SAE transmission oil, hydraulic steering oil and filters inside the hull as well as 90-weight gear oil outside the hull. Because they operate independently, pod-drives can be controlled via joystick for superb maneuverability. Warranty concerns may shorten the list of service providers. First, hull efficiency was enhanced, because the props were always aligned with the direction of motion in the boat. Savings on a long haul might disappear when slowing to navigate a tricky channel or speeding up to avoid a storm. FREE shipping on orders of $100.00 and above. Petzold uses Propspeed, or some other antifouling paint formulated for underwater metals. As we have seen many times with sailfish, I am certain one of the marlin swam along with us between the teaser and the boat, looking at the wheels and not at the bait we had moved into position to switch him over to. More interior room? The Zeus system propellers are on the back of the pods, as opposed to the Volvo IPS, which are on the front. Superior to bow thrusters, which can drain your battery and leave you stranded - Zeus Joystick Piloting for Pods is integrated with the pod drives, without relying on battery power. Looking at other online sources, people seem to be in Love or Hate camps.what are the facts please? Plus factors and quiet fuel efficient. Full details on our program can be found here. Finger pointing is worse in any situation when it is out of warranty, then you are left on a deserted island. Being new to power boating, I selected this configuration for ease of docking and it has been fabulous. (And when the struts rip out, they can take parts of the hull with them, something that probably wont happen with pods.) Theyre the cleanest-burning motors Ive experienced. Although pod housings are built of corrosion-resistant bronze rather than the aluminum alloy used for stern drives, its still critical to maintain the anodes. Much more service options down there. Inboards are virtually maintenance-free, while pods require lots of servicing. This takes the stress out of dealing with any warranty concerns, if your unit is covered by our Hassle-Free Warranty and has an issue, do not hesitate to contact our customer sales team. are zeus pods still being manufactured - ede.pe Im all about new technology. Oh, and if youre a do-it-yourselfer, youll discover that a lot of pod maintenance requires specialized tools and training. These versatile drive systems are not as popular as once thought. Interestingly, the most notable early prop-forward applications were in ice-breaking ships launched in 1990 an interesting defense to the argument that forward-facing props were too vulnerable to debris. Stephen Smith is the southwest sales representative for Caterpillar. Around here most mercury dealers wont take it on. Naval architects have also gotten better at maximizing the efficiencies of pods at all speeds. ArcPods were made to be reliable and convenient, allowing you to pre-pack up to 0.3 grams of dry herb in each capsule using the Xtruder. The other companies give you a metal lid aluminum or steel, so you would only replace it to your liking when the taste gets yucky. There are many reasons why everyones not on the pod bandwagon. If water is suspected inside any pod, get a mechanic aboard right away or risk internal damage. What if you do hit something? he says. Petzold pulls the props annually to grease the shafts, and to remove any fishing line or other foreign matter on the shaft or wedged into the seal. Its important to maintain good antifouling. Pods have water intakes, exhausts and other places that are inviting to marine critters, and keeping them out is important. And joystick piloting? Boat will operate 75% of the time in displacement/9kt mode, if that is relevant. Zeus ArcPods - The 3rd Generation of Vaporizers is Here! I simulated backing through a slalom course in reverse, moving faster than any angler could ever gain line. A very hard grounding is also likely to cost less with pods, since theyre meant to shear off and then go right back onto the boat with just a thorough service and new bolts. Richard Thiel, in February 2014. Bottom Line. Drive Pirates A Bonnier LLC Company. Once hes inspected everything and put it all back together, Petzold paints the pod. Fashioned out of high quality aluminum, the Zeus ArcPods are designed to hold up to 0.3 grams of dry herb and work perfectly with the Zeus Xtruder which directly connects to, fills up, and automatically ejects the pod once the optimal amount of dry herb has been loaded. Its fun. Most pods require service after a short break-in period at 25 hours or so. They tasked ZF Marine to bring them a transmission that would mate with their Zeus pod, electronic controls and joystick steering. Oh boy, the lids. To start with, Zeus and IPS boats have to be hauled after their first 25 engine-hours. Ignore it and you can forget about that edge in fuel efficiency over inboards. The pod-drive boats were clearly more maneuverable and accelerated more quickly than strut, shaft and -prop-drive inboards. The noise and smell from a diesel goes away with pods, said Bentley Collins, Sabres vice president of marketing and sales, and with joystick control, you dont have to worry about crashing into the dock.. I was surprised by how light and long lasting these were. But how do you compare boats? Make sure theyre specifically trained, or at least have several years of experience, Siebert said. Simply pop in a pod and enjoy your herbs. With IPS Ill run out to the Corner and fish the tide for wahoo, then head over to Gingerbread and get some yelloweye before heading home. Everyone fears the unknown, especially boaters, many of whom still consider pod drives something alien. While Buckley gets an impressive 50 mph with his pods, quad outboards would likely get another 5 to 10 mph. Lets have a look. Outboards are, in my opinion, the most interesting. All diesels need TLC, but pod systems need a bit more. For more information and/or quote, please complete the contact form below. The problem vs. Volvo is that the Zeus Cummins combinations are limited by Cummins engine sizes and that limits them on larger boats. Theres no free lunch, so there must be a hidden cost that no ones factored in.. Zeus propeller shafts use a double-lip seal. How much of the additional initial cost will you get back at trade-in time? The IPS-drives fit well in our boats, and our owners love their maneuverability, Pared says, and he has customers who can back up his word. is ryan bingham related to ken curtis. Indeed, were approaching if you have to ask territory here, and although a magazine writer like myself has about as much chance of buying a pod-driven anything as he does scoring a date with Sofia Vergara, I still think the benefits of pods far outweigh the extra initial and maintenance costs. Using a fresh arcpod lid enables you to visibly see which one of your pods is used and which ones have been depleted. Fifty dollars per prop should do it. Yes, you need to be concerned about steering and propulsion fluids (lower unit) but you are not dealing with shaft irregularities, cutlass bearing maintenance, and thruster maintenance. The pods synthetic oil is dark, making it hard to see the telltale oil discoloration of a slipping transmission, but it will likely have a burnt smell. So the fact that pod systems are loaded with electronics actually makes them less prone to failureand unfortunately an unfathomable mystery to most mechanics. That smooths out some of the minor gear asperities and grinding marks, improving the life of the gears. After break-in, pods are serviced every 250 hours or 12 months, whichever occurs first. However, the 48 Fly is offered with the engine you mention or with the IPS 700. Todd Anderson recently ran a 50 Viking powered by ZF 4000 pods. Will Pod-Drives Overtake Conventional Shafts and Struts? With no compromise on taste or experience, as well as Zeus' guarantee that all liquids are mixed, tested and approved in the UK, the new disposable pod will carry users from A-Z of their vaping journey knowing that the premium flavour will not fade, fault or fail on the road to being smoke free. On the other hand, touching bottom only hard enough to bend the propellers will likely cost more on pods, because they have two props to repair on each drive. You need go no farther than your marina to hear a list of suspects. are zeus pods still being manufactured. The company didnt invent them, but it made pod a household word among boaters. Zeus Disposable Pods | Zeus Juice UK Use Volvo or Cummins zincs too, which arent zinc at all. I want to comment on how well Mercury backs their products. Changes will take effect once you reload the page. Each pod turns independently of the other, giving remarkable maneuverability. Check the condition of the seals by inspecting the drained oil for water; the best way is to have the oil analyzed, said Petzold. The first pod-drive was invented in 1955 and went by the generic name azimuth thruster. They were either diesel- or electric-powered, and some were large enough for a man to walk around inside the machinery housing. (Have they also reduced the docking-related divorce rate among powerboating couples? Plan on replacing the anodes at least annually, using the correct alloy: Most pods use aluminum anodes, not zinc. These are often second- or third-told tales with a questionable provenance and few verifiable facts. Volvo uses only one oil, while Cummins uses three different ones in Zeus drives. While the maintenance schedule varies somewhat among pod builders, its essentially the same. Pod drives have been widely available only since 2007, yet they have the market awhirl. are zeus pods still being manufactured. Unless I lived/boated in the same area where existed the Mecca of Zeus Service Centers (wherever that may be) I would steer clear (no pun intended) . IPS followed with its own, and ZF ponied one up too. Review Images (jpg, jpeg, png) Max 3MB file size allowed. Volvo uses SAE 75w140 oil for both the transmission and lower unit. Thats a hard question to answer, due to the past 15 months, Meissner says, referring to the economic recession. But now that both Volvo Inboard Propulsion System and Cummins MerCruiser Zeus drives have been spinning beneath boats for more than five years, its time to assess the cost of ownership of pods versus conventional shafts. Pods have more parts, both mechanical and electronic, and conventional wisdom says that means more problems. There is definitely more maintenance with pods, said John Siebert. Then realized it was a conversation which I figured was private so I reposted here. One benefit of pod drives is joystick maneuverability. Featuring a patented design that provides the simplest solution for vaping on the go with your Zeus 3rd generation vaporizer. Youre going to ruin more with a straight shaft than with IPS.. On Zeus drives, check the steering oil reservoir dipstick, and check the clear reservoir for lower-unit gear oil for any signs of water seeping into the drive.