Propeller Help

[zildjian]

hey guys,

I was out on the water tonight, and i was checking out this flat while in gear, and i ended up hitting the flat with my propeller and my motor turned off while in gear. so stupid of me.

after checking the propeller while the boat was on the trailer, i noticed only one blade on the prop was bent. what do you guys do in this situation? I'm not sure if there is any internal damage done. i ran it around for a while to make sure everything felt okay before putting her on the trailer.

should i get the motor serviced?

buy new prop or upgrade to a better prop?

not sure if the propeller is under my warranty or not.

this sucks!

-Zildjian

[Fishing Rhino]

Is your prop aluminum or stainless? Aluminum will bend more easily than stainless, and is less likely to bend the shaft or cause internal damage when it strikes an object.

A simple way to check the shaft is to take the prop off, put the motor in neutral and spin the shaft. It should turn smoothly. Then put something that will not move against the side of the end of the shaft, a pencil, screwdriver or whatever clamped to a stool or anything that is steady, and turn the prop. Rotate the shaft. If it shows a gap at one point in the rotation, and touches in another, the shaft is bent.

A dial indicator would be best to check for runout of the shaft, but if you don't have one, the above is the next best technique that I know of. If you have a friend or acquaintance who is a machinist, they should have a dial indicator and be able to test the shaft accurately for any bends.

[Al Wolbach]

Fishing Rhino has given good advice. If your RPM were low enough to shut down your engine on impact I do not think you damaged the shaft, but check it anyway. No warranty on props but you can ask, they may have a used one laying around and willing to give it to you or sell at a good price.

I suspect you have an aluminum prop and they can be repaired by a prop shop as can a stainless prop. If you don't know of a local prop shop your dealer can probably send it to one for you. Bear in mind it may cost a little more and may take longer to get it back. A new aluminum prop will cost around $100-150 around here and repair $50-75. I would look for a stainless prop on various flea markets or Ebay. Stainless props are much stronger and you may see a small performance gain since the blades do not flex as much as aluminum. You can probably find a used ss prop around $200. Just be sure to match the size and pitch. The prop shops in my area also sell used props so this may be another option for you.............Al