dbhammer

Prop blade busted of this past weekend and was just wondering before i put back on what was there if i buy something else this time. Any one have any thoughts on what works the best, fastest on a 36' Gladiator with staggered Merc 525's with XR's and sportmasters. Currently running 4 bladed bravo's 34 pitch.

pm203

I ran some 34 four blades and did not like the way the boat got on plane.They were good for top end though. I am now running 30 six bladed Herings and while top end suffers slightly (90 MPH, fresh water), the overall performance of these props are outstanding. I know of another 525 staggered Glad running 5 bladed Herings that actually went 95 MPH.

dbhammer

yeah, the 4 bladed 34's are not great for getting on plane, sucks a lot of air. your top end is about the same as mine with your props. 91 in frsh water. How much those 6 bladed herrings cost? Any idea what kind of pitch the 5 bladed herrings were? Thanks

jawbreakerkid

I'm running Bravo 4 blades that have been worked over pretty hard. Once you get the hang of getting on plane, they aren't that bad. I would like to try some a pair of Herings though for comparisons.

dbhammer

The guys at Cigarette are trying to get me to go with the new 5 bladed maximus that merc is making in 32 pitch. I doubt anyone out there has any opinion on those yet???

pm203

I spent hours talking to Mercury and they suggested using their 5 blades. I have the part #s at work.( I will post them tommorrow.) I was going to try them, but decided to stick with the Herings. The Herings cost approx $4K, but they are real smooth and well balanced. Also, with the six blades, you can stay on plane at a much lower RPM, which is good where I boat, because there are times when you must maintain a slower speed for a period of time....You have to remember that Phil reccomends the six blades, and that he has sold and serviced more Gladiators than anyone else.

dbhammer

Yes, i talked to Phil yesterday actualy. He said don't go with the maximus it will kill top end and the herring 6 blade is very efficient. But if i am running 91 now i am concerned how much i will drop on top end if i use the herring. gaining 5-7mph through the mid range speeds does sound pretty appealing though. extra 2k for the set too... not sure what to do.

berns29scarab

drop tsunamiracing a PM...he's done some extensive testing not only with props but also with drive heights, spacers etc...

berns29scarab

another one to get in touch with is TRES MARTIN or Brett @ BBLADES...just have your x dimension prior to phone call for proper selection. Tsunamiracing is running side by side massaged 575's mated to XR's and ITS's

pm203

If you want to try the 5 blade Mercs, here are the reccomended part #s .

L-48-889970L64
R-48-889971L64