Hobie Mirage Drive Glide Technology

[Rambo]

What's your 2cent on this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWZKEbaR68w

5 bearings added
This will improve momentum and take the tension off the knees from what I see.

Redesign Fins? or Just color added?
I did some photo shop image overlay and it does appear to have a slight increase in the angle to the fins.

[flemdogg]

From what I understand those are ST fins, which will be standard on all 2015 hobie mirage kayaks. The turbo fins are even larger than ST fins. More propulsion with slightly more effort.

[ful-rac]

bearings + sand = FAIL

[wiredantz]

no doubt that many of you guys will put it through the test of time to see if this new upgraded* drives prove more efficient.

[oneyedeer]

bearings + sand = FAIL

Probably have to replace them at least once a season
Think I will open up my mirage drive tuning business!

[crazywakeboarder]

bearings + sand = FAIL

They should be sealed bearings

[blitzburgh]

They should be sealed bearings

Agreed. Hobie has a pretty solid track record of R&D so my guess is they beat these things up good before production.

[crazywakeboarder]

I wonder if theyre actually better or if its a marketing move. I feel all the resistance is in the stroke (action of pushing the water and creating forward motion) and not in the drive itself. If you take a drive and move it back and forth in the air, theyre very smooth so I dont see how bearings are going to cut down on resistance

I hope a dealer will have the new and old drive rigged in the stand side by side to showcase the difference if any

[Bert Vega]

I just hope they make them a little stronger. The part I last broke seemed to be very poor casting.

[straightrod]

^ Those are my thought also. Can't see just yet, how the resistance of the water will be changed.

[Iceman]

so I dont see how bearings are going to cut down on resistanceCurrently a greased "bushing" VS a rolling ball surface + less resistance and less wear.


Not sealed bearings, they are nylon similar to furling for sails

[FlyFishinYakr]

I plan on keeping on hand a bulk pack of WD-40 :) from Costco for cleaning after a thorough washdown then a good shot of Corrosion-X to complete the daily service. :D
Maybe a little overkill, however that's how I learned to service anything with ball bearings (from all my reels to especially all the rollers on my bait/trolling rods!) that's why I've never had a :linesnap: seize/failure or had to replace any of them! :D
FFY

[boxturtle]

doesn't wd 40 eat plastic

[bosshoss]

doesn't wd 40 eat plastic



??????????? I'm sure someone can chime in on this one.....

Like Bill Nye the science guy.........lol

[MissileTM]

The little red straw taped to the side of the can is plastic right? :D

[Rambo]

The only thing I can think of that help break the resistance is with their bearing added it help make the propulsion a bit smooth with less force exerted on your legs so the more you push the faster the fin propel? Versus right now ita brute force, Becausethe fins out of water is smooth but in water has resistance so if they also redesign to cut through water more with each stroke, I can see the efficiency in how the combination of the the bearing and fins comes into play. But I can't wait to compare the v2 and the glide side by side.

[momo fish]

Not metal ball bearings but some space grade plastic bearings that won't rust. That solves that issue. Every gray part has this new plastic bearings which result in 10% improvement.

Thinking about it more with a new drive and new seat the price increase is not so bad. Plus new improved paddle!

[FlyFishinYakr]

doesn't wd 40 eat plastic

WD-40 is probably not good for plastic if you let it sit.
However I was referring to rinsing the drive with water then any pivot points/moving parts with WD-40 and finally cleaning/coating same said moving parts with Corrosion-X (Like the bearings, cable & chain!).
If I don't plan on fishing salt again for a while, I'll learn to "tear down" the drive like my reels and do a "storage service".
Sorry, my bad for not expressing myself in a more clear and concise manner.
FFY