A question for the PROP SHOP PEOPLE...
 

I have read that the Bravo One 4-bladed props are more of a stern lifting prop. If this is true, is there anyway to reverse this so that I can get more bow lift? I have a 32' A/T with Stellings extension boxes.

Help! :confused:

Thanks,
Mark/KAAMA

mark,
whats your prop rotation?
turning the prop's "in"
will sometimes give added bow lift,
but it WILL result in poor
handling issues around the dock.
i alway thought the bravo 1 was
suppose to be a bow lifter?
cleaver, or pointed ear (intimidator style)
were stern lifters?
i have experienced, from going to 3 blades
to four blades of both types, the feeling of
more stern lift, or inabilty to carry the bow,
but saw photo's of the boat running later,
it was still carrying the nose, but the whole
boat appeared to be running higher, and faster :D
my .02
jt

Sure,, get 3 blade labbed Mirage Plusses !!!!! ( sorry :-) )

As far as manufacturers go, I thought the highest pitch that a Mirage Plus 3-bladed prop makes is a 29"------am I correct???

Kaama,
On my particular boat, which is single engine, I did notice a considerable amount of stern lift with a Bravo as compared to a Mirage or Mirage Plus. I did like some characteristics of the 4-blade but I stayed with the Mirage Plus.

Whiteknuckle:

What were the pro's & cons (on your boat) with the four blade ? What size did you try ?

Re: A question for the PROP SHOP PEOPLE...
 

Mark, compared to a Mirage Plus, the Bravo 1 is a little bit of a "stern-lifter." But compared to most other 4-blades out there, i.e. Hydromotive, the Bravo 1 carries the bow quite well. If you don't have hull steps and your x-dimension is fairly conservative, you could run 3-blade Mirage Plus's, but you'll probably want to go back to 4-blades. They tend to spoil you, even if you do lose a little speed. Oh, and yes, Mirage Plus's max out at 29P.

Kamma, I talked to Darin at Houston Prop about doing the same things to my prop just a couple days ago. Basically, he said that thinning the trailing edge will reduce stern lift and adding some "rake" and cupping in the right places will increase bow lift.

I think that Bravo 1's are about the least stern lifting/most bow lifting 4 blades you can get. I did see a prop similar to the B1 on Hydromotive's website--QuadIV-X that says it give added bow lift for conventional V bottom boats.

RumRunner,
The comparison I made was between a 25" Mirage Plus and a 26" labbed Bravo. I liked the way the Bravo came on plane, cruising at 3000RPM was actually a little faster than the Mirage and the Bravo seemed to bite better in a turn. However at High speeds with the Bravo I did get noticable stern lift, and the boat felt uncomfortable from what I was used to. I did not like the feeling. Joe at the Sunsation Factory, always recommends the Mirage for the Rocket/Aggressor.

RumRunner,
I had the same thing happen on my boat as Whitenuckle did. Only I had 23 Mirage + and a 24P Bravo. The mirage was slower out of the hole, but felt very stable and was faster, about 2mi.
The Bravo made the boat fell like is was skidding on ice, out of control. Now I have a whipple and am running 28 & 30 lab Bravo's, but if I could use a 3 blade I think it would go faster. It doesn't feel loose anymore though, with the bigger prop. I am actually faster with 1/2 - 3/4 full of fuel. My only guess is that
it distributes the weight to the back and I get more bow lift.

KAMMA, It looks like we need to talk to HOUSTONPROP or throttleup. Maybe they can give us some ideas!

Kaama,

I'd have to agre with ric232 regarding the bow/stern lifting properties of the props.

The biggest cause of a lack of bow lift with customers seems to be a high x dimension. By raising the x dimension the bow lifting tendeny of the outdrive is reduced.

There are some things that can be done to increase or reduce the bow lifting tendency of a propeller but none of them are drastic, they really just fine tune the prop to the boat.

The best thing to do is to try different props and find the one that works best for you. We have test props just for this type of situation.

Always feel free to call or e mail with any questions.

Matt
Throttle Up Propellers
877-842-6855
[email protected]

Guys, if you can turn a 29 Mirage Plus whether its with a 1.5 or 1.3 ratio, you are haulin'. Our testing consistently shows that a 1.5 ratio with 29's will run 90+ and with 1.3 ratio, well over 100 MPH. The prop is more like a 31 and takes a pretty serious HP/Weight ratio to turn it. If your boat likes 3 blade props, I urge you to seriously consider 27 and 29 Mirage Plus props. If your boat will get on plane reasonably with a 3 blade, the 27 will most times out run a 30 Bravo at top end, but as others have noted, mid range is short by as much as 5 mph. The Mirages don't seem to make up the difference until you get above 4700 rpms.

Rod