Right Boat Prop for Me

[@bostondan77]

I went from a 3 blade Solas to a 4 blade solas on my Parker 2320- game changer- so much better performance and fuel economy at low and mid speeds which where I almost always run, rare that I ride WOT.

[@jb243wp]

Spot on 👍

[@deere3321]

I put a 4 blade on my Yamaha F70. Speed wasn't important to me. I wanted to be able to get up on plane quickly with the boat fully loaded. Also, in sharp turns there is no cavitation.

[@ratdude747]

My boat (1976 Starcraft Montego 16, Mercruiser 888 302 V8) originally came with a 14.5" 3-bladed 21 pitch aluminum prop (which I still have, but not in good shape). While the top speed was good (approaching/reaching 60mph I'm told!), it was slow to get on plane, so the previous owners swapped it to a 13.75" 4-bladed 18 pich comprop (composite). Which ran well (but less speed), but is no longer in production, so I swapped again to a 14" 4-bladed 18 pitch Piranha prop (the ones with replaceable blades, also composite)... similar performance to the comprop although the different geometry required moving to a "high-performance" offset trim tab anode to clear. Max speed 41mph, at 4100RPM (factory spec is WOT 3800-4200). Around here, the water is rarely calm enough that going any faster in it is enjoyable/safe, so seems to be a good fit.

[@alt9874]

Hi Sean, can the prop effect the steering? Our bowrider (Larson SEI 19, with Merc 135 Optimax outboard) is sometimes very difficult to steer but when I play with the trim it will dramatically improve the steering. Someone told us the prop may be at fault? Is this possible?

[@almaxie342]

Great video. When buying a new boat what are documentation fees and prep fees? Sound like I’m about to get ripped off.

[@tomahawksteak6672]

He totally missed the main thing on selecting a prop. RPMs of your engine. You want a prop that will let your engine run in the wide open throttle range set by the manufacturer. Like alot of Mercury's they run 5500 to 6000 wot . Test different props and choose one that will allow your engine to run wot in the rpm range the manufacturer has set for your engine.

[@muc4149]

RPMs is covered in his pitch video.