mesquito_creek
Member
Have a marina mate who's sundancer could not get on plane... The marina mechanic put new props on it to fix the issue. Said the old one's were fatigued or what not... Never heard of that before except in racing boats etc...
Anyone ever heard of Props wearing out?
- Thread starter mesquito_creek
- Start date
CliffA
Well-Known Member
- Dec 29, 2009
- 4,712
- Boat Info
- 2001 Sea Ray 340DA
Name: 'Happy Place'
4.5kW West. Generator
Purchased Nov. 2014
Fresh Water Use
- Engines
- Twin Merc. 6.2L (MPI)
640 hp (Total)
Raw Water Cooled
V-Drive Transmissions
did new props fix the problem?........props do flex with use but I personally have never heard of a prop 'wearing out' which I take to mean it had flexed so much over time it was permanently distorted to the point the prop performance was affected........even then I would think the prop could be 'tuned' and brought back into specs without needing to be replaced.....
could be a common occurrence but I have not heard of it....
cliff
Last edited:
mesquito_creek
Member
The way I understand it is "Yes", a new set of props fixed the problem and the boat was back on plane. Stainless Steel props were "worn" out on a Twin 5.0L 1997 290DA... Who knows at the end of the day all the factors in marina talk, maybe it was loaded just on the edge or the power/weight ratio for the motors or a prop was damaged and repaired several times etc... I was just wondering if it was common issue or maintenance item?
- Oct 6, 2006
- 12,155
- Boat Info
- 1996 450DA
- Engines
- 3116 Caterpillars
Wear out a stainless prop? Maybe the hub, but the prop itself..........my B.S. detector is beeping.
I have heard of bronze inboard props wearing thin to the point that the blades flex, but this is after 20+ years, thousands of hours, multiple bottom jobs and several trips to the prop shop to get trued.....but never a stainless prop on an I/O.
I have heard of bronze inboard props wearing thin to the point that the blades flex, but this is after 20+ years, thousands of hours, multiple bottom jobs and several trips to the prop shop to get trued.....but never a stainless prop on an I/O.
Alpha drives? I'm thinking that since you heard this second-hand, it's the hub that was worn. That's not uncommon as it's a pressed in piece of rubber. HOWEVER, in '97, those props would have had the newer style hub (no rubber). Instead, they use a plastic insert. This doesn't wear out the same way that a rubber one does. They typically fail all-or-nothing. So, if he had props on there that were different than OEM - yes, it makes sense. If not, no, it doesn't make sense.
- Apr 26, 2009
- 5,823
- Boat Info
- '97 330 Sundancer, Raymarine C80 suite with radar, Mercury 310 Hypalon w/8hp Yammie 2stk
- Engines
- 2X 454 carbs w/ vDrives
Let me guess, he told you he would dispose of your old ones for you too.
gtfireftr
Member
- Oct 9, 2014
- 292
- Boat Info
- 1997 Sea Ray Sundancer 290
- Engines
- Twin 4.3 liter w/Alpha Drives
I would be willing to bet the pitch was different!!!!
My 98 290 with T5.7/Alphas and stainless 3 blades wore out the plastic style hub. It was OK at low RPM and if I babied it slowly to get on plane, as soon as we hit a wave the hub would spin and sound like something banging around in the engine room.
When I replaced them I could see the worn leading edge on the old hubs. My guess is that's what happened to your buddy.
When I replaced them I could see the worn leading edge on the old hubs. My guess is that's what happened to your buddy.
Yes, that's about right. It's pretty obvious with those because of the noise.
Of course the first time we heard the noise we were coming back from Canada and were in the middle of lake ontario in 1-3's. I carry two spare hubs, but I sure didn't want to change them in 600' of water. Gotta love Murphy.
BillK2632
Well-Known Member
I'll take your worn out props off your hands for free. Never in 30+ years of boating have I heard of a worn out propeller -- maybe one damaged beyond repair. Either we are not hearing the whole story or the mechanic is selling a load. Hope your friend got is old props back - they are fine or will be after they are tuned.
Good move. I try to avoid that guy whenever possible! If you would of dropped the prop you'd have been worse off than you were to begin with.
Molson
Active Member
If I manage to boat enough to wear out my props I'll proudly mount them on my wall.
