Opinion of Prop

[Joe Suits]

I just purchased a 2003,Lund Mr.Pike 18' with a Mercury XR6 150 motor. I am considering putting a Hustler Aluminum prop, 14.1/4 X 21 pitch. I would appreciate any comments on the prop and size I'm considering.

Thank You!!

[Guest]

Go with a stainless steel.

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[kwkfsh]

Ask the dealer! If he sells 50 a year and has to prop every one of them he will know better than anyone here will. If you don't trust his opinion you should'nt be buying a boat from him in the first place!

[Guest]

If you do talk to your dealer, ask the serivce department, most salespersons i have talked to don't know anything mechcanical about boats.

------------------
MILLE LACS AREA GUIDE SERVICE
651-271-5459 http://fishingminnesota.com/millelacsguide/
click here

[knoppers]

joe, go SST. they have much better performance than a aluminum will ever do. the aluminum props actually will flex under stressing conditions, as a SST prop will not. just be more carefull with a SST prop, as they can be damaged or stolen. I have a 4 blade SST prop that works great for both fishin' and for pulling up skiers. the SST prop gives better trim out, and less cavitation, and much better controll.

[mrmillelacs]

just my opinion, but i prefer an aluminum prop because at least once every 2 years i will go a little too shallow and hit a few rocks. Stainless has no give to it, aluminum does. And if your prop is spinning fast enough damage could occur to the lower unit that perhaps would not if you had an aluminum prop. I do concede that withan aluminum prop you give up a modicum of top end speed.

[kwkfsh]

Joe, Your best bet is to talk to the dealer and have himm recommend a prop. Make it clear that if it does not perform correctly you will need to exchange it for a different pitch. As far as stainless vs. alum goes, stainless is about 10 times as durable as alum. All props for current OBs now have breakaway hub in them to protect the propshaft and lower unit. Going to a stainless without changing dia or pitch will not give you any noticeable change in performance. A 4 blade prop has some performance advantages on some hull & eng. combos, but is not better in every instance. On some boats a 4 blade prop can even reduce performance. A 4 blade works very well on jackplates to give you more blade surface in the water when the eng. is raised up. But at the same time a four blade has much more prop torque which may be a pain to deal with unless you have nofeedback or hydraulic steering. As far as flex goes alum will flex more but on engs. under 100 hp it is almost nonexistent. Some flex is a small advantage in a prop. As the blades flex they flatten to a lower pitch which gives you a better hole shot, although I don't think you would ever notice the difference without sophisticated measuring devices. Alum is cheaper and less durable, stainless more expensive and much tougher. A hit that would require a rebuild on an alum prop can often be fixed with some love taps with a hammer and a file on a stainless prop. D-man may have run into some people who were less than knowledgable, but day in and day out your best source of info on your particular rig is at the dealership!