CHOPPER 2 PROPELLER ON YAMAHA FULL
CHOPPER 2 PROPELLER ON YAMAHA FREE

This is where expert advice comes in handy. The perfect propeller needs to match the boat power, weight, and hull type. In this regard, propping for top speed may produce unsatisfactory acceleration-the boat will take longer to get on plane. In a high gear you’ll need to mash the pedals to start moving but you’ll eventually reach a faster top speed. Adding propeller pitch will decrease wide-open throttle (WOT) engine speed, while subtracting pitch will increase WOT RPM.Ĭhanging propeller pitch is like changing gears up or down on a bicycle-in a low gear you can ride away quickly but soon your legs will be spinning and you won’t go very fast.

If your WOT RPM is too high or too low, you’ll want to try a prop with more or less pitch. An outboard may have a WOT range of 5200-6000 RPM, for example, while a sterndrive engine has a WOT range of 5000-5400 RPM. Ideally engine RPM should be near the top of the WOT operating range, which you can find in your owner’s manual. Those blades will also not flex under load like those of an aluminum prop, and so will maintain consistent performance. Because stainless steel is stronger than aluminum, the blades on a stainless prop can be thinner, which reduces drag in the water. If you are running an aluminum prop, changing to even a basic stainless steel prop will usually improve top speed. If boat speed goes down, bump the trim back down just a little until the prop “hooks up” again and your speed is restored.Ĭhanging propellers may make a big difference in boat performance (learn more in Boat Propellers: Repairs and Replacements), but propping is a complicated science and a high-performance prop is a significant investment-$600 to $800 and more-so you want to get it right, which means seeking some expert advice from a boat dealer or propeller shop.Sometimes you can’t hear the prop slip, however, which is why the GPS is helpful.

If you hear a slight change in pitch in the sound coming from behind the boat, the prop could be starting to slip, and your speed may drop by 1 or 2 MPH.

CHOPPER 2 PROPELLER ON YAMAHA FULL

Run the boat up to full throttle and then very gradually add trim, just bumping the trim button with your thumb, and watch the boat speed.This is easy to see with a GPS speedometer or any device with a GPS-generated speed display. Engine RPM might keep climbing, but speed will start to go down. But if you just trim to the limit you could be over-trimming, and actually losing top speed.Īs you trim out the drive, the prop gets closer to the surface of the water and will eventually ventilate, or become contaminated with air, and loose its grip on the water. Trimming out the sterndrive or outboard lifts the bow, reduces the wetted surface of the hull and thus drag, and increases speed. The old racer’s motto when in doubt trim it out is true up to a point.

Try to place heavier items you do want to keep on board, like a spare propeller, in an aft storage compartment so they are not weighting down the bow.įinally, on those days you want to run as fast as possible, drain the fresh water and holding tanks if your boat is so equipped, and head out with less than a full tank of fuel.

It may also be more responsive to trim, which can further reduce drag.

A lighter boat will accelerate more quickly and run with reduced drag because the hull rides a little higher in the water.

The spare cooler, the extra fishing rods, the old bottles of sunscreen, the extra towels-each item may not weigh much but together it all adds up. We’ve seen boat owners jettison 250 pounds of “stuff” they didn’t really need on board.

Start at the bow and work your way back, clearing out every storage compartment, and then put back only the essentials.

CHOPPER 2 PROPELLER ON YAMAHA FREE

Reducing weight is like finding free horsepower, and many boat owners are surprised how much weight they can leave on the dock. Now, let's dive into the details of each of these techniques.

Chopper 2 propeller on yamaha