Stainless props?

I've always used the brass/nibral type props that i think are pretty much standard for wake boats these days.

Does anyone have any experience using stainless?
Any worries about corking your trannies or vdrives if you hit something?
Any other issues - balancing or weight, or anything else?

Cheers

My thought is that if you run up on something then you could bend a shaft instead of nicking a prop blade.

The most current technologies in inboard props are all in the CNC NiBrAl ones. For a sterndrive it's different. That's a big reason to stay away from SS.
On my I/O the SS prop was a big improvement over the Aluminum. The higher weight acted as a flywheel and made the engine feel smoother. The thinner blades gave me more efficiency and would not be damaged by a branch or bark on the water.
I have not used a SS prop on my inboard.

Originally Posted by Bumpass1

My thought is that if you run up on something then you could bend a shaft instead of nicking a prop blade.

exactly

I can tell you from experience hitting a submerged log with a SS prop, new driveshaft was needed, the prop did not give and the driveshaft took all the damage.

that may not happen everytime but I firmly believe if I had been running something other than SS I would have just been looking at a new prop or prop rebuild.

I'm a firm believer in SS props. They hold up to those nicks on the bottom of the lake at the boat launch. I also hit a 3" diameter log and cut it in two without dammage.

I fear totaling the trany or v drive more than the shaft,but it does suck when you get just a tiny bend at the tip of the nibral prop and it vibrates and costs $140.00 to have it repaired.I'm thinking about finding a SS,I don't have to worry about hitting rocks or bottom at my home ride spot,but there is sometimes a lot of smaller wood debris that the nibral can't stand up to and a SS would chop right through.

Who makes a SS prop for a wakeboat now?

I ran my boat in a sandy bottom river for years. I preferred the SS prop. The NIBRAL woudl bend fairly easy. My thought was if you hit somethig hard enough to bend driveshaft, strut, ect...it's not going ot matter what kind of prop youre running. My Nibral would bend half the time hitting bottom ( soft sand ) at trolling speed. Like someone mentioned...hitiing a small stick/log with a NIBRAL...prop is gonna be damaged....not with the SS.

My 2001 Sunsetter runs much smoother, faster and with better hole shot than with the original stainless wheel. One theory was the lack of flex gave the stainless more efficiency. To me the difference with the ACME nibral cnc machined prop is night and day. The new prop all but eliminated cavitation on turns and on starts...absolutely amazing. I hold the stainless as a spare.

Stainless props are too hard. I would much rather repair a prop than the drive line. If your hitting that much stuff you should be checking your drive shaft alignment on a regular basis and your charts for the skinny water. Additionally, there are reports of old stainless props throwing a blade. I believe this may limited to one of Malibu's vendors.

Do your homework.

I know someone with an nIbral prop that thru a blade this summer