In the red

OK Vette, I'll let you know when I run the labbed Bravo's. It probably won't be until March. I'm also going to try spinning them in. I always take GPS readings at all RPM levels. I was told the Hydro Quad 4 is a little faster than the Bravo prop. I'm sure it depends on the boat.

mcscarab3

I have a 01 28zx and the boat had 22p powertech ofs4's it ran 63mph@4800 i changed to 23p mirages, at it ran 66mph on the rev limiter, I just bought a set of 25p mirages to try this spring. Unless you don't mind going slow I wouldn't waste the money... Of course if you want to waste the money I would sell you the powertech props... lol

In the red

Vette, I got the 28ZX in the water for the first spring run and wanted to get back to you on the labbed Bravo 26's. The ones I borrowed were heavily labbed and the diameter was down to 15" even. I was pleasantly surprised that my 350 mag mpi's were able to spin these to 5000 with two people and 3/4 tank of old fuel from over the winter. Top end speed and rpms were nearly identical to my stock 25 mirage pluses at 5000/68.5. It took a little while to get to 5000 but it did get there. Out of the hole was incredible with no blowout or slipping with no tabs. The boat will stay on plane at 2300 where the mirages require over 3100 rpms. To answer your question on cruise, speed at 3500 rpms is 49 mph versus 44 with the mirages. As you said the boat handles way better with the 4-blades also. I like these a lot and if I can tweak 200 more rpms out of them with some fine tuning I think they will get me over the 70 mark and be way better than the mirage pluses. Keep in mind that I have the 1.65 drives also. I tried spinning them in and I it was actually a little slower, not what I expected.

bulletbob

Enjoyed the ride Jim. The Bravos hooked up really well out of the hull and the boat ran like it was on rails. Talk more to Lee Jim. One thing that boy knows is how to set up a boat. He had an immaculate Donzi 22 that I'm sure he tested props on.

VetteLT193

Thanks for the info!

It's hard to get a direct comparison but I think you are running nearly the same as me for cruise but definitely have a higher top end. I'm getting 65MPH @ 4800.

For me the trim is a lot more adjustable and the boat responds better to drive trim. Planing, etc. are all awesome.

I was off of the labbing kick because I was told my cruise would be killed... now I am thinking it is a good idea again.

In the red

I was able to borrow a set of stock 26 Hydromotive Q 4's this weekend. 2 people 1/2 tank fuel. Here are the results:

2600 rpm plane (blow out with heavy sticks but planed easilly)
3500 rpm 43.4 mph (bravos 49)
4000 rpm 53 mph (bravos 53)
4500 rpm 61.5 mph (bravos 60)
5000 rpm 69.3 mph (bravos 68.5)

As you can see above 4000 is where these start to shine. The faster you go the better they hooked up. Cruise was on par with the Mirage + and not nearly as good as the bravo. These would be good Poker run props for me and if they were labbed I would definately be over the 70 mark. But I stlill think the labbed Bravo 26's are the way to go for every day with the great cruise and fuel economy!!

VetteLT193

I think part of the props waking up is he hull. the hull seems to wake up over 45 MPH... like it lets go of the water.

The Hydros you tried were stock Q 4's? not the Q 4 plus or Q 4 - X?

Just want to be sure in case some come up for sale used

In the red

Yes they are stock Q4's. A buddy of mine has them on his Fountain and let me try them. I actually ended up settling on a set of 26 Bravos I picked up on Boat Freaks that were labbed from merc with their standard mercury lab. They are turning about 5200 at WOT and are giving me my best top end and out of the hole performance. (70.2 mph and no blow out out of the hole) I did have to compromise on the cruise speed however with these. It is about the same as the Hydros but not as good as the earlier Bravo 26's I tried.