Prop Torque

[ddixon1000]

Hey guys! New boat owner here who needs advice. I have a 1995 Bayliner Capri LS 1700 with a 1995 Force 120hp outboard. I recently took the boat out on the river and knocked off half a fin on the alluminum prop. Apparently it is a good idea to check river levels before boating so you don't hit gravel bars lol. Anyway, the boat still worked fine but two hours later when I took it out of the water I noticed the broke fin. I ordered a Michigan Wheel Company Vortex 13 x 19 (same size as previous prop) with hub kit. My question is what amount of torque do I apply to the prop nut. I've heard overtightening may cause the prop not to spin. I don't have owners manuals so I can't consult them. Also do I need to apply grease to the spline shaft? Thanks for the advice!

Dan

 

[steelespike]

Re: Prop Torque

I can't really address the torque except that you would have to apply an awful lot to cause problems.You can get a feel for it when you loosen the nut.
Some motors have a washer with lock tabs be sure you release the tab.
Do put grease on the shaft I don't know the type but as one of our posters says "any grease is better than no grease".

 

[bowman316]

Re: Prop Torque

use lithium grease for everything.

You can not put a lot of tourge on, beause you have to hold the prop from spinning with one hand, and too much tourque will hurt your hand. just get it finger tight, and try to go the the closest hole after that. The hole you put the cotter pin thru. you may have to tighten it with a wrench a little, and the back off the the closest hole.

 

[timdan94]

Re: Prop Torque

According to my seloc manual it says 55 ft lbs

 

[boat1010]

Re: Prop Torque

Smiling... Like Bowman says, when you are holding it with your hand it is hard to get it too tight. Then either loosen it or tighten it to get the tabs or cotter key to fit and your done. And I would have thought you would have felt the blade of your prop breaking off and some vibration afterwords. If you run them like that very long you might get into some bearing problems.

 

[Frank Acampora]

Re: Prop Torque

In my opinion, 55 foot pounds is way too tight, especially if you have the locking tab type.

I never really checked until this question came up a while ago. I became so curious that I went out and checked all my engines. Result: I tighten my prop nuts (non locking tab kind with Nylock inserts) to an average of 8 foot pounds.

Without a torque wrench, this works out to be about 1/2 "grunt"