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So I bought a 16.5 foot boat this spring and it has a prop on it that I think is to big. It says 12x22 on it, anyways my rpms are at aprox. 4500 on Jordanelle and only 3500 on the berry, I am thinking i need to get a smaller prop? My moter is a 50 Hp mercury ELPTO, which has a max rpm of 5500 so I think I should be runing around 5250 rpms. Anybody have any info? thanks I mostly fish mid eleveation lakes like the nelle so that is what I would like the best performance to be, I realize i will lose performance at the berry.
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I've changed props before for the same reason,. You can call Marine Prop, a prop shop in Clearfield and ask them about your prop and what would be a good one for your boat. The owner can tell you what size prop to use over the phone if he isn't too busy. He also sells new and used props. His number is 801-825-1352
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I have learned a couple of small things about props - it's the pitch that's important. My original prop was a 22 degree pitched prop and getting up on plane was slow - I was told to go to a 16 degree pitch prop and now I pop up on plane much faster and have greatly improved my performance on the water.
There are several prop places in the yellow pages - I think I used A-Rock Prop's near 33 & Main in SLC. Great guys - now I have a spare prop (22 degree) and my primary prop (16 degree).
Hope this helps..
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I have 3 props, one for the Berry, one for mid elevation and one for Powell.
Just the way it is out here.
3500 rpm max is way to low, you need a different prop for sure.
Try a 18 or 16 pitch prop.
Try, Jacks Prop & welding too.
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I agree with Lundman and Troll about changing the prop pitch for better performance. You are also right about hitting the sweet spot for your motor. The sweet spot for my old 85 hp Johnson is about 5200 rpm, same as yours. I had to go from a 17p to a 14p. The benefits are better hole shot, less time to get on plane, and longer engine life. Try Heringer's or SS Marine in Orem.
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Glad to hear he could help you out. He really knows what he is talking about when it comes to props. Good luck this weekend, hope your boat runs better for you.
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Go to the Mercury website and check out their "Prop Selector" too. I found it to be really accurate in identifying the size of prop needed and the performance you can expect. Good luck. Mr. J.
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] The owner of marine prop was a huge help, he knows his stuff, I would have ordered one from him but I found one at ss marine. I wanted to have it for this weekend.