26 zx prop suggestions

[shirtman]

Ok, prop guru's what kind of prop for a 1999 26zx with a 502 mag? I currently have a 24p bravo that I am not happy with as it seems the boat never "lossens up" when trimmed out. It also seems to give a very wet ride when the Bay gets choppy. I was thinking maybe a fusion 4? I would like to stay away from labbed proppellers if possible. This website rocks!

[mrfixxall]

Ok, prop guru's what kind of prop for a 1999 26zx with a 502 mag? I currently have a 24p bravo that I am not happy with as it seems the boat never "lossens up" when trimmed out. It also seems to give a very wet ride when the Bay gets choppy. I was thinking maybe a fusion 4? I would like to stay away from labbed proppellers if possible. This website rocks!

If you want a loose boat you may want to consider a 3 blade propeller..

Or have your prop labbed,my guy may be abel to he.p you.

dahpropellers.com ask for john..262-534-4440

[The Hedgehog]

I actually have a labbed 26" Bravo I with some additional cup for bow lift for sale. It is left over from my 27ZX. It was labbed by Throttle-up and they did not thin the blades agressively. I will let it go for way under cost.

A 3 blade will be looser and faster but may not be happy in turns depending on your X-dimension.

The boat has a pretty wet ride unless you can get enough speed to get on top. What speeds are you trying to get it to loosen up?

[CJmike]

I'll trade you a set of injectors for that prop.:bonk:


No seriously.

[shirtman]

I believe my drive is set-up rather high, so if I run a 3-blade it may have to be a large diameter prop.
Hedge I may not have the motor to turn that 26 pitch :frown:, but I would like to see a consistent 66-67 mph. Am I two opitomistic?

[The Hedgehog]

I'll trade you a set of injectors for that prop.:bonk:


No seriously.

Heck, I will raise you an exhaust horn!

That prop had a nice cruise on that boat. I think that I spun it to around 5,200 or so. It took some loose water to get to around 15% slip.

After some of fun you have had I would practically give you that prop.

[The Hedgehog]

I believe my drive is set-up rather high, so if I run a 3-blade it may have to be a large diameter prop.
Hedge I may not have the motor to turn that 26 pitch :frown:, but I would like to see a consistent 66-67 mph. Am I two opitomistic?

You should be able to hit 65-66 on a consistent basis. I think that the best prop for your combo has been figured by someone on the site. I will search around.

I have had the hull with both a little less horsepower and a lot more horsepower than your setup.

You are not quite at the speed where the hull really releases. It seems to have 3 stages with my combo. It is slow to around 53 and it starts to loosen up between there and 60. Slip drops dramatically during that 7 mph transition. Mine likes to cruise at 60 for efficiency. It runs pretty flat from 60 to 75. On a nice choppy lake the ride is good. You would probably getting wet in bigger water. It hits another level at 75. That is a transitional level until it climbs up. At 78-80 you can start pulling the bow up and going for it. Understand it with a steep prop without as much cup. You may be able to dial that back some with a smaller prop.

[BigGrizzly]

I was in the bilge all yesterday fixing stuff. First there is the tab too low on the 1999, yes all of them. Unless you have more power a prop bigger then 25 is not going to work as for labbing in your case is a waste. A Fusion is a good choice but may or may not be right. Remember the bravo runs short and the Fusion rungs long in other words a 24 fusion is a 25 of any other prop and it likes high prop elevations.

[The Hedgehog]

I was in the bilge all yesterday fixing stuff. First there is the tab too low on the 1999, yes all of them. Unless you have more power a prop bigger then 25 is not going to work as for labbing in your case is a waste. A Fusion is a good choice but may or may not be right. Remember the bravo runs short and the Fusion rungs long in other words a 24 fusion is a 25 of any other prop and it likes high prop elevations.

Yep, my tabs came off yesterday!

[shirtman]

I looked at my tabs last year as it felt as if they were dragging, but they seem to be above horizontal when all the way up. Do you think I should modify them anway? Grizz do you have any experience with the Fusion 4 on this hull? Doesn't Merc have a bow lifting 4 blade (revolution 4) that may work for this application or is the diameter to small? Am I correct in thinking that I need to stick to a larger diameter wheel to avoid blowout when turning?:confused:

[BigGrizzly]

Actually do the tabs regardless. Yes I have some experience with and the Fusion mite work, as will a turbo or TXP. as for the Revolution 4 I think it is one of the best props Merc makes. The original design originally came from the old Mach propeller company. When you say large are you talking 143/4 or bigger. A 15 could and will probably be too big unles the boad progression is correct. It is the design that cause blow out not just the diameter. The Fusion is hard to blow out period.

[shirtman]

The revoulotion 4 does not have a diffuser ring do you think I will have problems getting on plane? How does the pitch run on these?

[BigGrizzly]

The Rev 4 doesn't need a defuser ring because the hub is longer.

[Splash]

I have a 2001 26ZX with a 502. It came with a 3 Blade Mirage prop and I hated it since it blew out all the time when taking corners and I'm not talking about sharp turns. I went with a Bravo 24P and had it Labbed, I was having problems with not getting the RPM's so I had it labbed which gave me about 300 rpms. I later found out I had a fuel injector not working so once I replaced that my RPM's came up where they should be but I had already labbed the prop. The best I have seen is around 68mph with a Bravo 24P labbed by throttle Up, I typically get around 65mph. I was told by some other members that a 26P labbed is where you want to be, it would probably get my RPM's down a little since I'm around 5300 RPM's at WOT with the same speed. I believe the 4 blade actually gave me more lift and as far as getting wet, I'm not sure if the prop will help you out that much, when I get wet its typically pretty rough. You learn to duck :)

Good luck, Jim