Damn acceleration issue still...

[h2osk8er00]

Seems that my acceleration issue just can't be found yet. My usual boat mechanic is awesome (over 50 yrs experience) but lacks computer technology to diagnose anything that may be wrong with the boat. I know the boat has a ton more power but I just have no idea where to look. Recently I have replaced all the spark plug wires.. new oil.. new fuel filter.. my boat guy even came out with me to check the timing and for a miss fire and he said everything was perfect on it in that aspect. So now that I have spent money for him to come out and tell me that nothing is wrong, I am back to square one… So I need to either take my boat into an official Mercruiser dealer to get it diagnosed(raped).. or find someone who can do more than my 80 year old mechanic that has worked on Mercruisers since before Jesus’ birth.. I have read threads about the fuel injectors but I ran cleaner in hopes of rulling this out... Lucas brand I believe...Still havent depleted the whole tank of gas yet but about halfway there. I know very little when it comes to this sort of thing though. Let me know if you or anyone can help, please. I want to get her running right this summer. I’m located in Dunkirk, MD (Southern Maryland) if anyone is in the local area and is looking for work...otherwise, your words of wisdom will be just as valuable (I will even send you a check in the mail if we can figure it out).

[h2osk8er00]

Just got a call from a guy on Craigslist that offered some advice. He thought the proble to be the Prop... he said the only other thing to do would be a compression test but that is I was have problems getting people out of the water... but it wasnt an issue once up to speed... that the prop was wrong. Right now I have a 4 stage SS prop.. I just had the pitch redone last year which ran me like 250 bucks.. any other people have ideas? I'm stuck at work and can't boat this weekend so I hope you're all having fun...

[bobbysky]

depending if you have gear reduction on your v-drive or not, you probably have the wrong prop. If your v-drive is blue then it's gear reduced if black it's not. The stock prop on gear reduced is a 13.5x16 and on a non it's a 13x13. If you pitch it down it will give you a better hole shot but a loss of top end, and burn more fuel. Hope this helps

[h2osk8er00]

Thanks.. still lost though

depending if you have gear reduction on your v-drive or not, you probably have the wrong prop. If your v-drive is blue then it's gear reduced if black it's not. The stock prop on gear reduced is a 13.5x16 and on a non it's a 13x13. If you pitch it down it will give you a better hole shot but a loss of top end, and burn more fuel. Hope this helps

What is the "hole shot" thing? How soon I can plane out??? Also, I usually have about 1000-1200lbs on board with me on the water.. (5-8 people plus gear).. so should I get 3 blades? I might wanna throw some sacs in there eventually, too... Thanks!

[h2osk8er00]

So I looked at the prop yesterday and I think I already forgot what it said... lol, but I think it read something like 18 x 16.5 (or the other way around)... I think the 4 numbers were 5211... does that sound right? looking at allthe different threads out there on props I think mine is way off from what everyone else is running.. Anyone have any ideas yet or am I just going to blog myself.. haha..

[TeamAllen]

When I was purchasing a new prop from ACME Propellers, They had me test my boat unloaded WOT. Read about it in their FAQ and give them a call tomorrow. They are very helpful.

http://www.acmemarine.com/faq.php

[h2osk8er00]

When I was purchasing a new prop from ACME Propellers, They had me test my boat unloaded WOT. Read about it in their FAQ and give them a call tomorrow. They are very helpful.

http://www.acmemarine.com/faq.php

Will do and thanks for the reply.. I planned on doing that but it is always helpful when someone else had the exact same thing wrong with there boat...that's why I threw out my prop size simply for the fact of trying to see if anyone else runs the prop with no issues.. but from all the stuff I have read about Acme props.. they make a world of difference..anyway, I'm launching her tonight after work or tomorrow then calling them ASAP!

Thanks bro

[ajholt7]

Also remember a SS prop is not a good idea on an inboard. It will not give if you hit something and will likely do more damage.

[h2osk8er00]

Also remember a SS prop is not a good idea on an inboard. It will not give if you hit something and will likely do more damage.

Thanks, I saw that some where in a blog too. I guess you'd rather the prop go first... makes sense to me.

[bigdaddy_houseboater]

It sounds like you have a prop issue, as your pitch is HUGE. The slightest adjustment from stock makes a big difference in performance, especially on the stock motors. Look up which prop came stock, and go back to it. If you know someone with a stock prop... try it, borrow it.. rent it. Whatever. It's a 5 minute change.
Good luck.

[h2osk8er00]

It sounds like you have a prop issue, as your pitch is HUGE. The slightest adjustment from stock makes a big difference in performance, especially on the stock motors. Look up which prop came stock, and go back to it. If you know someone with a stock prop... try it, borrow it.. rent it. Whatever. It's a 5 minute change.
Good luck.

Thanks bro... not sure what prop came stock.. trying to look it up but unsucessful so far.. going to give Acme a call tomorrow... got my figures all down now... was only running 4200 RPMs at WOT... and the hole shot is not great.. prop is a 14.5 x 18... sounds really far off from all the posts I have seen.. I hope to see a tremendous difference... Thanks for the post!

[laserfish]

The original prop on the boat was a Cutter SS prop 14x18.5. Basically a ski prop. Remember, back in 2000 wakeboarding was new and surfing and ballast were unheard of. Tige was cutting edge back then and they were still working out the bugs. Think of how far they have come in 10 years!! I have an Acme 13.5x16 and it jumps out of the hole. If you weight it down a bunch you might have to move down a little more, I have never run ballast. Still have my SS prop, want to buy another??

[h2osk8er00]

The original prop on the boat was a Cutter SS prop 14x18.5. Basically a ski prop. Remember, back in 2000 wakeboarding was new and surfing and ballast were unheard of. Tige was cutting edge back then and they were still working out the bugs. Think of how far they have come in 10 years!! I have an Acme 13.5x16 and it jumps out of the hole. If you weight it down a bunch you might have to move down a little more, I have never run ballast. Still have my SS prop, want to buy another??

HA... yeah I got all my info yesterday and found out that prop is garbage... Called Bill today at ACME and am getting the Acme 1847- 14 diameter x 14.5 pitch... 4 blade.. Almost 600 bucks! You can't put a price on your hole shot... My WOT had me going about 39MPH at 4200-4300 RPMs... My girl needs something to get her moving.. that year of boat and the design is a tank... She weighs almost 4k lbs unloaded! With all the beer and cargo I have I dont think I'll need any ballast sacks.. just more beer...

[bigdaddy_houseboater]

Glad you got it figured out. I hope it works out. Let us know how it goes.

[laserfish]

That prop will really snap your head back, especially unloaded. Should jump out of the water. Keep us posted on how it works for you. Be sure and save your old one as a weekend saver.