Search the Community

Hi, First time posting and I'm looking for a little propeller advice. So I have a year 2000 240 Explorer Sport in fantastic condition that I purchased in July 2013. I think i need new prop??. My engine is a Merc 5.7l with AlphaOne drive. ~300 hours on engine. Guessing 260-280 HP on that. Here's what I know.... My WOT is only 3680 rpm on smooth water trimmed well and the recommended range is 4400-4800 rpm and at my WOT I'm only getting 30-32 mph. Granted that is with a "loaded boat" so dry weight 4200 + fuel + gear + 2 people = ~5000#. I currently have a 3 blade aluminum prop with 19 pitch which is a little scratched (no dents) but not bad. Questions: 1) should I be getting more RPM's out of my boat? I'm 700 rpm below the low end of the range. 2) should I expect more speed ? or is 32mph under conditions above about as good as I can expect? 3) should I expect better performance from another prop? 4) If so, any recommendations on prop size/pitch/blades? Thanks in advance! Jay