Stainless v Alloy Props

[squidboy]

Hello fellow raiders.

I have been asking a few boat places whether it is worthwhile going to a stainless prop over my current alloy one. I run a 60HP Yamaha 4-stroke if it addss further info. At the boat show I havw learnt various things like:

1.are you towing skiers

2. why pay double the price

3. saves fuel.

I am only a fisho so I would like to hear it from people who have tried the difference on their boats with both types of props. I would be keen for efficiency and speed. What I was also told is that the alloy ones break well, whilst the stainless ones can cause gear box problems. Other dealers say it is a myth because the stainless ones come with a rubber washer that lets the motor spin.

I have no idea, so looking for some advice from people who have tried them or even had the bad experience of hitting something in the water.

Cheers

Squidboy

[fishon]

I got a solas stainless steel prop

i kept in getting bad prop torque like my boat would always tilt to one side pretty badly

no matter how i adjusted the tilt or whether or not i had hydrofoils on

but as soon as i changed it the boat was perfect

im not sure the old alloy prop was hit by something but looked brand new

and i think i got a couple of more knots out of the motor to

seems to use the same amount of fuel

but looks very nice

not sure if thats a good thing or a bad thing

Theres alot of theives around lookin for an easy steel

so i put a stainless lock nut on it

[squidboy]

Definitly sounds like you may have had a warped prop their initially. The boat is pretty secure where it is stored, but I know exactly what you mean by the theives. I know someone that go their downrigger stolen off his boat whilst he went to get the trailer. Unbelievable some people out there. Thanks for th advice.

[stevefish]

the stock prop you get with the motor is cheap and a compromise for the many applications a motor is likely to be used on.

with a stainless prop it WILL be more efficient because it will be made to tighter tolerances, and the blades will be thinner. further gains can be made selecting the right prop for your rig and its use.

the prop is like the gear your boat is running in, a light boat that gets up and out of the water can have top gear, fast not so much torque where a deep vee that pushes water or a boat that tows things might want second or third gear.

if you are going to buy one talk to the dealers or prop makers and try a couple out before you buy.

that said you can buy a lot of fuel for the price of a prop, how long will it take to break even at about 10% efficiency improvement.

[helliconia]

Considering my Yammie 60 4 stroke runs all day on about 12-15 litres with a standard prop, it would be a long time paying itself off.