Kicker/trolling motor prop

[Georgesalmon]

OK, so I have a 2012 9.9 Merc pro-kicker. I use it for trolling for salmon and walleyes. It runs between 1000 and 1800 RPM for usually about 8 hours to keep the boat speed from 1.0 to 3.5 mph. Now, the thing is everything is fine for trolling and I love it. At the end of the day I usually run the motor wide open while I'm putting stuff away (20 to 30 min) because I've heard about building up gas in the oil in a small 4 stroke from idling a lot. So finally here is my question. I can only get it up to about 3200 RPM wide open with the 4 blade low pitch (I think) prop that came with the motor. Am I hurting anything with this setup by not getting to full RPM? Hate to change anything because everything is perfect for the intended use, and why would I want an even lower pitch prop so the engine has to run faster and make more noise while trolling. Certainly I am not looking for any performance increase. Top speed with the kicker is about 7mph, displacement speed. I just want some confirmation that I'm not hurting the motor.

 

[steelespike]

Your prop size should be near the base of the blades or under the prop nut. I think a standard prop would be a 7 1/2 or 8"
There is a 4 blade 5" pitch available here at Iboats.

 

[Sea Rider]

Engine must work inside factory wot rpm range while moving your current load, running "wot" under actual circumstances is lugging the engine tremendously. As long you don't step into wot rpm territory, no issue.

By matching the right pitch engine will have better performance throughout the entire throttle range which is prefered for the engine health and long lasting.

Happy Boating