Arneson Surface Drive
It took the vision and determination of acknowledged mechanical innovator and offshore racing enthusiast Howard Arneson to perfect the performance and reliability of surface-piercing propulsion.
Arneson personally piloted his unlimited boat to numerous wins as well as the 1987 Offshore World Championship. Along the way, his surface piercing propulsion system quickly became the dominating force in offshore racing. Twin Disc made Arneson Surface Drives available for non-racing applications - pleasure craft, commercial vessels as well as military applications. Today, Arneson Surface Drives are renowned as the fastest, most efficient, fuel-friendly propulsion systems on the planet.
A WINNING HERITAGE
Superior Physics
With conventional systems, a fully submerged propeller at high revolution dumps or churns the water across the blades, thereby long bite and sacrificing propulsion. The propeller of an Arneson Surface Drive expels the air/vacuum in the surface portion of the revolution, thereby leaving clean water for the propellers to bite into at the submerged portion of the revolution and enhancing propulsion.
Trimmable Propeller Shaft
With the ability to adjust propeller submergence while underway, you can align the engine power curve to the hull's planing power curve. Converting more power to thrust while the boat is operating within its rated power curve makes for better performance and fuel efficiency.
NO OTHER MARINE PROPULSION SYSTEM IS SO ADAPTABLE TO SUCH A WIDE RANGE OF ENGINE SIZES AND TYPES, THERE'S AN ARNESONMODEL DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY TO FIT VIRTUALLY EVERY POWERPLANT OPTION, ACCOMMODATING TORQUE OUTPUTS EXCEEDING UP TO 30,000 LB-FT.
Lower Drag
Since there's no conventional underwater shaft, strut, and rudder, Arneson Surface Drives reduce underwater drag by as much as gos. The only surfaces to contact the water besides the hull are the propeller blades and protective skeg. Less drag results in higher overall speed, quicker acceleration, and a better payload to power ratio. The clean hull requires less draft so it allows greater access to shallow water harbors and prime cruising grounds.
More Speed from Less Horsepower
Reduced drag and more efficient thrust gain more propulsion from less horsepower. You can reduce engine costs by spec'ing a smaller powerplant and still get the acceleration and top-end performance you need. Because there's so less drag, Arneson Surface Drives can help improve fuel economy up to 15%.
RUNNING CIRCLES AROUND THE COMPETITION
Vector Thrust Steering
Conventional propulsion systems deflect prop thrust off an external rudder creating indirect, slower, and less precise turning dynamics. An Arneson Surface Drive horizontally articulates the propeller shaft in the desired direction to provide direct stern thrust to turn the bow of the boat. Since the propeller is located further aft behind the hull, turning thrust and leverage are optimized. At any speed, Arneson Surface Drives turn tighter, faster, and with greater control than conventional propulsion systems.
Proven Reliability
Arneson Surface Drives are designed and manufactured for maximum duty applications and to last the life of your vessel. High-quality corrosion-resistant materials matched to exacting tolerances are used in all Arneson Surface Drive units. All models are available in manganese bronze for maximum corrosion resistance and strength. Aluminum models are available using a marine-grade aluminum alloy.
Simple by Design
For all their sophisticated performance, Arneson Surface Drives feature a less mechanically complex design than other propulsion systems. Some models have fewer than 20 moving parts. Since there's a more efficient relationship between parts, there's less to go wrong. Low maintenance and lower repair costs are inherent to the design and manufacture.
Easy Accessibility
Propellers are more easily accessible because they're not buried deep under the hull, yet they are still protected by the craft's swim step or cockpit overhang. This allows for convenient propeller installation, removal, and inspections from a variety of locations, including the swim step dock or in shallow water.
Rolla Propellers
The Rolla name has been synonymous with the highest efficiency, highest quality propellers in the world since 1963. Rolla surface-piercing propellers provide the optimum solution to any performance and application requirement. In combination with an Arneson Surface Drive system, the result is the ultimate in marine propulsion.
ARNESON FITS YOUR FUTURE
Endless Possibilities
Arneson Surface Drives provide marine designers, boat builders, and boat owners a new freedom of design innovation and flexibility. Compared to installations of competitive propulsion systems, Arneson systems allow greater flexibility of engine placement. This allows maximization of space throughout the vessel and is well suited for modern aft engine room yachts.
Installation Flexibility
Arneson Units are easily bolted to the transom of the vessel. There are no complicated intake ducts to construct or shafts requiring critical alignment as with thru-hull water jets. And there are no conventional under-hull limitations such as shaft angle, blade top de draft, etc. to restrict selection of the maximum diameter propeller.
Worry-Free Conversion
Arneson Surface Drives can bring superior power, better overall performance, and improved operating efficiencies to a broad array of boats - pleasure craft, commercial vessels, and military applications. To make sure that your particular installation is appropriate and cost-effective, Arneson system application professionals will thoroughly analyze your boat's design and intended operation. This allows the proper choice of drive, propeller size, and installation procedure. More importantly, it ensures that your Arneson Surface Drive lives up to your expectations.
Precision Performance Automatically
New Twin Disc MasterTrim
This Arneson system option automatically adjusts the trim position of the Arneson Surface Drives and the boat's trim tabs for maximum efficiency and effective performance for your boat under various and changing operating conditions.
MasterTrim uses a combination of user-defined positions and sophisticated optimization routines. It senses each operating mode of the boat and places the drives and tabs in the correct position for that mode.
These positions are then fine-tuned automatically to optimize efficiency and performance. This leaves the operator free to focus on the safe navigation of the craft. At any time, the operator can take full control of the drive and tab positions to manually position them.
