I saw a post on prop brand from 2009 with no response but I'll try it. My question has to do with Quicksilver Diamond4 aluminum 4 blade vs. MW Vortex Aluminum 4 blade.
I have a 1987 Cobalt 17BR, 4.3L, V6, 175hp 2500 pounds dry weight, 340 hours, 31 gal tank.
I haven't had the boat in the water this year to check but the best I can recall, WOT is a little under 5000 RPMs. GPS said 34 mph at WOT with 2 people on board.
My current aluminum prop, quicksilver black diamond 48-832832A45 14 1/4R21, has 2 or 3 nicks per blade and the marina said I should get a new one.
My owners manual calls for a 13 3/4 x 21C, 48-78122A4 aluminum prop which is about the same as what I have.
Problem: I could use a little better hole shot for getting skiers up and I don't care much about top speed. I care more about gas consumption than top speed.
I thought I would go to a 20" pitch, 4 blade Quicksilver Diamond4, like the quicksilver QA2186X 14" x 20". The manual says I can go down by 1 or 2 degrees to 19" or 20" if I want a better hole shot so a 20" prop seems to fit my conditions and when switching to 4 blade, it's recommended to drop 1 degree anyway.
I have 2 questions. If I buy the quicksilver diamond4, do I need to buy a new hub since I already have a 3 blade mercury prop? Are the hubs the same?
What do I lose or gain with an MW prop? The iboats salesperson recommended the MW but the quicksilver is cheaper if I don't need a new hub. He said my alpha drive and the MW have 15 tooth splines and he did not know how many teeth the QA2186 prop has.
Since I'm a novice, I would tend to stick with OEM quicksilver especially since it would be cheaper if I don't need to buy a hub but since the salesperson recommended the MW, I thought I would ask the forum for advice.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.
(Also, should I be getting more speed than 34 mph? The Mercury on-line calculator says i should get 45 mph.)
I have a 1987 Cobalt 17BR, 4.3L, V6, 175hp 2500 pounds dry weight, 340 hours, 31 gal tank.
I haven't had the boat in the water this year to check but the best I can recall, WOT is a little under 5000 RPMs. GPS said 34 mph at WOT with 2 people on board.
My current aluminum prop, quicksilver black diamond 48-832832A45 14 1/4R21, has 2 or 3 nicks per blade and the marina said I should get a new one.
My owners manual calls for a 13 3/4 x 21C, 48-78122A4 aluminum prop which is about the same as what I have.
Problem: I could use a little better hole shot for getting skiers up and I don't care much about top speed. I care more about gas consumption than top speed.
I thought I would go to a 20" pitch, 4 blade Quicksilver Diamond4, like the quicksilver QA2186X 14" x 20". The manual says I can go down by 1 or 2 degrees to 19" or 20" if I want a better hole shot so a 20" prop seems to fit my conditions and when switching to 4 blade, it's recommended to drop 1 degree anyway.
I have 2 questions. If I buy the quicksilver diamond4, do I need to buy a new hub since I already have a 3 blade mercury prop? Are the hubs the same?
What do I lose or gain with an MW prop? The iboats salesperson recommended the MW but the quicksilver is cheaper if I don't need a new hub. He said my alpha drive and the MW have 15 tooth splines and he did not know how many teeth the QA2186 prop has.
Since I'm a novice, I would tend to stick with OEM quicksilver especially since it would be cheaper if I don't need to buy a hub but since the salesperson recommended the MW, I thought I would ask the forum for advice.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.
(Also, should I be getting more speed than 34 mph? The Mercury on-line calculator says i should get 45 mph.)
