Chris288

anybody ever test these props side by side for a comparison. ? what was the boat and what were your results. ?? Thanks Chris

WickedWon

Yup, just did on the 36' Concept with triple 300 Yamaha's, boat just didn't like the Hydro's, top speeds were similar but the acceleration and overall performance was not as good, they had trouble carrying the bow. I dealt with Throttle Up, great people who really do nice work and deliver on time....it's like a "real" business... they just don't get it.... we're talking props here..... we expect to be lied to regarding performance, delivery times ect.

BTW I ran new 26" Bravos and then had Throttle Up lab them afterwards just to confirm the baseline ( remember I'm a little sick ) the lab was worth 3+mph and a dramatic increase in acceleration over stock. Now the performance is very similar to a set of 26's I had labbed by Merc that I was replacing after some serious high speed dredging

Chris288

Thanks WW... have heard that box stock hyrdo's will run as well as labbed bravo's, just trying to get all the info I can before I make a decision.. I'm thinkinng of taking Matt up on his offer and demo a stock 26-27 hyrdo and then lab it from there if it works well, either that or send them a stock 28 B1 and have them lab that..

bglz42

I just switched to a 30p Bravo on my 26 Thoroughbred:

27 Hydro: A little faster, but harder to come on plane. Blew out a little on sharp turns. 46mph@3500rpm, 77mph@5100rpm (probably had a few rpm left)

30 Bravo: Much better holeshot, no blow out on turns. 50mph@3500rpm, 75mph@5000rpm, (probably still some left if I trim to the moon...)

JimG

rjcardinal

Boat '99 27 Fountain 502 Mag CMI Headers

Prop 1) stock Left Hand Hydro Quad IV 23" it came on the boat. The boat was difficult to plane with a load but otherwise ran good. Upper 60's top end and stable. Required a good deal of positive trim to break into the 60's.

Prop 2) stock Left Hand 24" Bravo One bought slightly used but never repaired or repitched. The boat planes much better. No more worries with 5 people in the boat. Awsome midrange. Consistantly 2-4 MPH faster for given RPM. Burns much less fuel and doesnt make the engine feel loaded down at cruise speeds. At about 60 MPH the boat develops a porpoise that continues until it tops out in the mid 60's. Top RPM for both props just under 5000.

I feel that the porpoise condition is scrubbing off speed but the added planing ability, midrange effecientcy, and fuel economy that the Bravo provides makes it the prop I keep on the boat.

Prop 3) Labbed by Mercury Racing Left Hand 26" Bravo One. Bought it over a year ago and still havent tried it. I havent had the boat out very much the last couple of years and when I do it is usually an event with guests onboard. Hardly the time to try a new prop. Especially one with more pitch.

Any ideas on how the Labbed 26" will perform on my stock boat?

Ron

WickedWon

I'd take him up on his offer, some boats respond to the Hydro's and all you'll be out is some shipping, Matt did the same thing for me and took them back when I wasn't happy, no problem.

Formula Outlaw

Depends entirely on the boat. The "Hydro's" are more of a stern lifting prop than the Bravos.

Chris288

Ron, I bought a 26 B1 labbed by merc. racing,, the rpms were there, but the speed wasn't. my stock 26 runs 4,950-5050 @ 70 or so depending on load and temp. The labbed 26 was banging the rev. limiter at around 5,200, so I was consistantly running around 200 rpm more but only about 1 mph faster.


I am hoping to try a demo hydro and see how it performs over my stock 26 B1, I am assuming I would need a 25 hyrdo ??

rjcardinal

With the numbers you stated there might be some improvement for me with the lab 26 if I can turn it. I figure 2" up in pitch will bring the rpms down around 400 rpm and then the labbing of the 26 should bring it back up. If so I will probably gain a few mph. If I can eliminate the porpoise and get back to the top speed of the Hydro with the more effecient Bravo midrange Ill be finished with prop testing!

When I bought a new Hydro in the late 90's they had a demo/exchange program that let you return and or exchange a prop and only pay shipping. Dont know if they still do the same now though.

Ron

Chris288

My labbed 28 ran the exact same rpm as my stock 26. so if your running a stock 24 you would be able to run a llabbed 26 at the same rpm, whether or not you will see any gains is the real ??