well, after allot of poking around and speaking with people, im going to order the hydro.
im going to place my order some time this week for the prop they sugested. i will test it asap (5" of snow here today!!) but i will test it asap and then send it back for lab finish if it works out. i will be sure to post results and i hope they are good.

thanks to everyone here for the info and help

My ZT hated hydro's, blew everyone out I tried. I could never stay hooked up. I do I agree that hydro's work well with Convincor hulls.

Just food for thought.

which ZT did you have? what prop was on it and what did you put on for a hydro?

i definetly dont want to go threw issues. im just a little scared of bblades do to my buddy having an issue with them and 2 others i spoke to having issues with there props threw them.

ive heard allot of good stuff but the few bad things are issues i have not heard with hydro.
the biggest thing was on my buddys boat. we put the prop on and it was way out of balance and the boat lost mph. he called and it was going to be like 2-3 weeks to fix it. here in mass, thats half the season. and he was going to have to pay shipping on a prop that wasnt right.
im just afraid to run into that issue and i dont want to deal with it

1999 ZT 280 500 efi I tried 24, 26, 28 pitch hydros q 4's???? I can tell you thats Bretts the man and my prop he did for me was stop on, better in all aspects. Every highpro boater I know does all there labbing through him 10-20 guys with no issues. Do what you want but I really don't think a hydro is the right prop for the ZT hull. Maybe Reality Check will chime in he bought my old boat and has run it with both props stock and BBlades he will tell you. My Sunsation will have the props labbed by Brett. If hydro has a good exchange program give them a shot. If I remember correctly your boat is a straight bottom no notch correct? The 280 has a notched hull or a mini step.

no, it has the small step near the center, and it has the stern notch where the drain plug is.

maybe i will see what bblades has to say, like i said, i heard allot of good, but the few bads i heard was a pain to deal with.
but if he can get it spot on. great. i know he does that $25 or $50 try it out thing which i like that. maybe i will call him up before he gets to bussy and get going.

what gains did you see with the bblades over the hydro?

I see the ZT 240 is a straight hull then, wasn't sure about the 260. I lost huge with the hydro over stock 24 p bravo, had better luck with 3 blades. Get him as much info as you can and you WILL be happy with the results. I know he added alot of cup on my prop help to carry the bow and made the boat ride and handle way better.

well, if you have been there done that, im going to go with your info. i hope mine comes threw perfect as i dont want to have to deal with the crap.

i dont want a 3 blade tho, i love the way the 4 blade rides and gets the boat up on plane so fast no matter what i have on board. so if i can get 1 or 2 mph out of the 4 blade, i'll be happy.
thanks for taking your time with me. i will let everyone know the outcome.

Exactly as MM is saying! There is a huge difference from the stock 24p to the BBlades 26 lab. handling, gained speed and rides like a totally different boat! Thanks again for the boat MM. Counting the days until we launch again for the season. And if you guys go out early this year on the big pond let me know. I may just drop in!

No problem Butch, we might be doing the Chicago loop cruise in late April, pretty fun time.

Noyzee Reality has my old boat and he confirms what I have been saying, good luck with your search for speed and keep us informed.

Heres some pics of Reality's boat when I owed it.

nice looking mate!!!! i calld brett, had to leave him a mesage. i will speak with him when he calls back and see what he has to say. and fill everyone in with my test results