Mercury Prop Selector

Tin Diesel

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Here's a twist on prop selection, and I'd be interested in the opinions here.

I took the original (and only) prop from my 2575 RL with a 5.0L I/O to Baumann's Propellers in Houston to have it checked (feeling a bit of vibration, and one blade seemed to be about 1/8th inch off from the other two). Baumann's is considered the best in Houston - I have clients that are towboat owner/operators on the Houston Ship Channel and they all use Baumann's.

Anyway, I digress.

I had decided I wanted to get a spare prop, since a bent prop could ruin an otherwise carefully planned weekend camping/boating trip.

I ran the Mercury Proper Selector and it didn't even mention the existing prop - a Mercury Mirage Plus 17P. Elsewhere on the Mercury site, it says this prop is for high-horsepower offshore boats.

The guy at Baumann's, who really seemed to know his stuff, said that the Mirage Plus is "one of their best props" and that it is perfect for stern loaded I/O tritoon because it provides a lot of lift. He said the Mercury Selector function wouldn't pick it because they don't list it for pontoons. He could sell me any second prop he wanted, but suggested I stick with the Mirage Plus.
 
Continuing to try to figure out which spare to get, I'm handicapped by my lack of experience in power boats. Our use will likely range from just the two of us to a boatload of kids and grandkids... hopefully with tubing and skiing in the near future as the grandkids get older.

Should my spare prop be identical, or an alternative for other service? I'm wondering if a 4-blade would be a good option for big loads and tubing?

The Mercury Prop Selector suggests the 17p Revolution 4 (stainless steel) It also suggests the 17p Spitfire (aluminum). The Spitfire is 1/4 the cost of the SS and would be a cheap way to try out 4-blade and have a spare second prop. But, I've read that aluminum props aren't best for high hp engines.

Any thoughts? Here's the Mercury Prop Selector screen:
Screenshot_20180404-073903.png
 
I have a stainless Enertia (thanks Todd!) on my 150 and an aluminum Black Max for my spare. They have virtually identical top end speeds. The Enertia doesn't blow out nearly as much though. But the main point is I don't see any speed difference, yet one costs 6x more. Everyone says aluminum is so much worse, but I'm not seeing it. Maybe the difference is noticeable on a 300...
 
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I have 260 hp....?
 
There was another member who tried an Enertia on an I/O and it didn't work. He ended up with the Mirage Plus. Big Kahuna has the same prop, and it works well with the I/O.
 
Here's a twist on prop selection, and I'd be interested in the opinions here.

I took the original (and only) prop from my 2575 RL with a 5.0L I/O to Baumann's Propellers in Houston to have it checked (feeling a bit of vibration, and one blade seemed to be about 1/8th inch off from the other two). Baumann's is considered the best in Houston - I have clients that are towboat owner/operators on the Houston Ship Channel and they all use Baumann's.

Anyway, I digress.

I had decided I wanted to get a spare prop, since a bent prop could ruin an otherwise carefully planned weekend camping/boating trip.

I ran the Mercury Proper Selector and it didn't even mention the existing prop - a Mercury Mirage Plus 17P. Elsewhere on the Mercury site, it says this prop is for high-horsepower offshore boats.

The guy at Baumann's, who really seemed to know his stuff, said that the Mirage Plus is "one of their best props" and that it is perfect for stern loaded I/O tritoon because it provides a lot of lift. He said the Mercury Selector function wouldn't pick it because they don't list it for pontoons. He could sell me any second prop he wanted, but suggested I stick with the Mirage Plus.
Tin ......I have the same exact prop that you do. It came as original equipment on our boat. Carl is right. It works well with our I/O. It has a great holeshot for pulling that skiier/wakeboarder out of the water and have had it up to 41/42 with my wife and I onboard and the Bimini up. We don't push it but the power is there if you need it. It's a 22 footer but it has that heavy I/O in it. Your boat is longer and heavier but you will like the way that prop performs. I also went to the Mercury prop selector and put in my parameters and the Mirage Plus never came up. Mercury told me the same thing Baumans told you. That it was one of their best performing and selling props. My suggestion to you is to get that stainless Mercury Mirage fixed and continue to use it as your main #1 prop. Heaven forbid if anything should happen to it but........ buy a relatively inexpensive (nothing's cheap anymore) 17P aluminum prop as your spare. We had an aluminum Michigan Wheel prop on our 1st boat as a spare and we never used it. But we had it in case. . . .
 
Thanks Daril, did you ever consider a 4-blade like the Revolution 4?

On a side note, I found out yesterday that Baumann's had a standing offer to repair for free any propeller damaged on a rescue boat during the Harvey flood. That's pretty cool, because we saw lots of things after the water went down that had been hit by props. Stone or brick mailboxes, guardrails, sunken cars, you name it.
 
Thanks everybody. I think I might go with the aluminum alloy Merc Revolution 4 as my spare. Its only $165'ish (vs. $565 for SS). The Mercury website says its rated to 250hp (vs my 260hp, which I probably don't get since the engine is 11 years old), and it will give me a taste of what 4-blade feels like.
 
Thanks everybody. I think I might go with the aluminum alloy Merc Revolution 4 as my spare. Its only $165'ish (vs. $565 for SS). The Mercury website says its rated to 250hp (vs my 260hp, which I probably don't get since the engine is 11 years old), and it will give me a taste of what 4-blade feels like.
You're welcome. Never considered any other prop. But I've always wondered how the holeshot or top end would be affected if I went to a 16 or 18P. Don't fool yourself your I/O even though 11 yrs. old is fully capable to do what you want it to do! Mine is 14 yrs. old but we've had it for 10.....
 
I'm going to reopen this thread and ask for some advice. We were out on Lake Conroe today and not for the first time I've wondered if I'm getting the right performance from my prop and engine. As noted above I have the Mercury Mirage Plus 17P on 5.0L Mercruiser 260 hp. The boat is a 2007 2575RL tritoon. WOT is supposed to be 4600 rpm.
At 2000 rpm today we ran at about 17-19 mph. But I really didn't get much more. As I increased throttle, eventually to full throttle, rpm never went over 2600. Speed hit the low to mid 20s. I was trimming the engine up and down but just wasn't getting much.
Load was just me and co-captain with full tank (60 gallons) of gas.
I don't have a dealer to go to for help.
 
Are the toons really dirty?
 
Good point... but they are clean. This boat lives on a trailer.
 
Tin you might have a spun prop. What Causes a Spun Prop? The rubber inner bushing inside an outboard propeller hub is designed to absorb the shock created by shifting. ... But, when RPM is increased, the engine revs with little or no boat acceleration because the prop begins to spin. A spun hub feels like a loss of power with excessive RPM. There are ways to diagnose it. Google..... spun prop.
 
Thanks. I'll check it per this YouTube video

However, my RPM does not go up - WOT is supposed to be 4600 rpm but I can't get it to go above 2600 rpm with the throttle all the way forward.

I want to get out on a calmer day and work more with trim... but I will also mark the hub before I go.
Thanks!
 
Tin you might have a spun prop. What Causes a Spun Prop? The rubber inner bushing inside an outboard propeller hub is designed to absorb the shock created by shifting. ... But, when RPM is increased, the engine revs with little or no boat acceleration because the prop begins to spin. A spun hub feels like a loss of power with excessive RPM. There are ways to diagnose it. Google..... spun prop.
So, a spun hub still allows the boat to move?
 
If it lets you limp back to the dock, not sure I need to keep a spare prop and hub and everything else you need to change it out on board...
 
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