aluminium props

what is the life expectancy of an aluminium prop if used in salt water, and kept on a bearth, and are they any good?

Id say 75%-85% of the props used in florida are probably aluminum. Most boats, inboard/outboards and outboards, come with an aluminum prop and since it does an ok job most boat owners dont change from it. That being said i just switched to my spare aluminum and if it stays on i'll let you know how it does in 500 hours

thanks for that, i am using an outboard, it currently has a steel 21 on there, but i need to change to a smaller prop, so for trial and error reasons aswell, i want to keep the costs down

I have an outboard as well and wakeboard in the salt water (Hawaii). I also have the yamaha motor, 115 2 stroke (as i see in your profile). I switched to a propulse polymer 4 blade prop with adjustable pitch settings. It was recommended to me by a fellow wakeboarder here in the islands. It is fantastic on my boat and really helps with the hole shot/torque. It's very stable and cost is about 140. It also has replaceable blades. I've used it for over 100 hours and never had a problem. The company claims that their polymer is stiffer than aluminum. I don't know about that, but it's a great prop!

I nearly bought one of those props whilst i was in australia this summer, but the guy in the boat shop recommeded that i didnt as for wakeboarding the prop is not strong enough and will flex, anyway i am in the middle of updating the boat with a tower, looks a bit different now

Jay,was that your idea? It looks pretty simple, ingenious, and cheap for alot of shade. Seems you could have used shorter straight sections that mount way up on the tower though??

that is a good idea... how are you going to pull a boarder and have the shade at the same time? it is kind of in the way of the tow point isnt it?

holy crap that bimini is huge.

Ah all angles have been taken into consideration, so the rear bimini is angled down to allow for the line, and if its not, i can close the rear, and juts leave the front down to shade the driver, I work in kuwait, and its bloody hot here, so shade is paramount, for a good day out on the wet stuff