2006 heat prop slip?
 

Newbie here. I have a 2006 heat, bravo 1 1.5, stock bravo 26p, 496 HO. I just picked up this boat a few weeks ago and I’m not sure I’m getting the speed I should. I’m seeing 55mph on gps, getting 4900rpm. I don’t see my speed go up at all from 4200+ even with some trim. Previous owner added a big stereo, I have 4 batteries, 4 amps, 3 subs. I’m wondering if this impacted the performance significantly or I’m just not proped right. Any help is appreciated!

-Ed

I have an 03 Heat with a 500EFI, I am currently running a 26p prop and am getting 71-73 on GPS consistently, occasionally hitting 74 (perfect conditions). Seeing others with 496's I would think you should be around mid-60's, maybe a little more. I definitely think the added batteries, amps and subs maybe affecting your speed depending on the weight and placement. When I bought mine it had a large sub under the rear seat and 2 extra amps. when I removed them I gained 2 mph. I know it sounds a little off but if you have tabs try putting them down a few degrees. I increase my speed by going down on the tabs about 2-3 degrees. The heats tend to be a little ass heavy and depending on your X dimension it may help. I've tried a lot of things, different props, a 1 inch spacer and moving things around inside the boat. The spacer didn't work for mine, made it slower. The biggest difference I found was shedding the weight of the sub and the extra amps.

Yea, mid 60s is what I've been reading as well, so mid 50's seems pretty far off. Unfortunately I don't have tabs. I have 2 subs under the rear seat, the cockpit cargo compartment has 4 batteries. The cabin has 4 amps on the walls above the seats. My guess is I have ~350-400 pounds of sound in the boat. Which isn't that significant considering full fuel tanks are 600 pounds, which I usually keep full. I guess I'll have to run them down and see how it performs.

My thoughts are if my "normal" ride weight is higher is a 5 blade, or a 24p prop more ideal?

My thoughts, and believe me i"m no expert, is that the 350-400 pounds added is significant. I usually run between half and 3/4 tanks of fuel. I don't like filling them because most launch ramps I go to are steep and if I put too much fuel in it comes out the vents as I launch. The sub box I had was just at 100 pounds and the 2 added amps were mounted in the engine compartment just above the batteries. All the weight was low and towards the rear of the boat, that coupled with the butt heavy design slowed it down. I kid you not, I gained 2 mph taking it out. The other reason I took them out was the power it required to run them, I could drain new optimas (I only have 2 batteries) in a couple hours when partying. I've never tried a 5 blade but others have suggested the P5 from Hydromotive. You could call them and tell them what you have and see what they suggest. The other thing is check your X dimension, There are a couple old threads on how to do it. I'd tell you but I probably wouldn't explain it right and get you messed up. I think there has to something going on with weight distribution or X dimension or a combination because 4900-5000 rpm is about where you should be (I think) for a 496, but 55 seems awfully slow to me. When I'm going for speed I am running my trim up to 4-4.5 on the gauge. Have you been playing with your trim?

Yea, I'm thinking a 5 blade may be right for the added weight as well.

I did another trial run yesterday, 1/2 tanks of gas. I hit 56mph WOT with about 1/2 trim. Any more trim lost me about 1mph.

A 5 blade may be the ticket. There is a guy on here, Steve Zuckerman who is a Heat guru, I just went back and looked at some private messages I had with him about my Heat. He was talking about getting props with extra lift built into them like the P5X series and Hydromotive used to build a Quad 4X blades also. My brother has had great luck with Mercury Racing labbed props, and a few people talk about Brett at BBlades knowing a thing or 2 about Nordics. A buddy of mine had a Rage with a 496 and he worked with the folks at Cutting Edge to get a prop that worked for him. I think I would check your X dimension just so you know and try some props. Again there are threads to tell you how to do it, Zuckerman suggested setting your X at about 18 to 18.5 inches.

My '04 Heat open bow with the stock 496HO would do 60 on GPS with a bravo 24P at 5000RPM. With a Max 5 23P it did 62.5MPH at 5000RPM. (All testing at 1,500') I have a 1" drive spacer to put my X at 4.5" below the keel. I know on my boat that 100lbs = about 1MPH. The max 5 was a better prop all around for that situation.

Now I've got a 650HP+ engine and I'm in the process of testing props again. Currently running a Cutting Edge 15" 5 blade 28P (Max 5/P5X style), and I've got a 28P and 30P Hill Signature (Bravo copy) to try out next.

Drop your X by 1 inch. make sure your boat is dry and not hiding water in the hull with wet wood.