Stainless VS Brass

[Motox811]

I am getting a new prop for my boat (model year 2001 SNCB with Pro Boss and 1.23:1) and I found a great deal on a stainless OJ 13x16 (basicaly the original prop for the boat) but am wondering the drawbacks to a each metal type. Any thoughts?

[Mamigacz]

Stainless is a very hard metal. It doesn't deform as easily and brass. If you hit a rock, the softer metal props will absorb more of the shock, which will put less stress on the drive shaft. With that being said, the prop will get more damage than a stainless would, but the drive shaft might be salvagable.

[s_kelley2000]

I agree with what was said above. Unless you really know your lake and have very little chance of hitting anything or floating debris like logs I would advise you to stay away form stainless props. If you hit something with a stainless prop you are much more likely to do transmission or shaft damage than you would if you hit something with a brass prop. The brass prop will take the brunt of the damage instead of transferring up the drive shaft.

[Quinner]

Is the core/hub of that prop Brass? If not then the prop would no longer be the weak point in the chain if you do have a hard hit. If you typically navigate clean deep water free of hazards I would not be concerned about that issue.

It would be interesting to hear some real test results on Stainless vs Brass.

[swc5150]

I had an inadvertent head to head test of nibral versus stainless last year. My stainless was fine, but I bought a nibral from Quinner's buddy, as my home was on a river with occasional floating debris. The boat performed identical. One odd thing, both my friend and I had stainless props our boats, and they both whistled when coming off plane. I popped the nibral on and the whistle stopped. Given the choice, I'd go nibral, but just for peace of mind.

[TX-Foilhead]

My first boat had a complete set of stainless underwater gear and I loved it. At the time they were building docks like crazy and we always had the old waterlogged 2x4 floating that prop tore them apart. I went end to end down a 10 foot one with no damage at all to the prop. The Acme I have now is a much better prop, but it take very little to bend it. If I could get one in stainless I wouldn't hesitate although I know most don't feel that way and won't go there.

[rheron]

Dont do it... put a three blade stainess on an older mailibu (looked great on the boat), ran smooth as glass until I struck a submerged tree stump in the 5 mph zone. Got a thud, then when trying to come up to speed, vibrations from ****! Throttled back and then idled to the ramp.

Boat out of the water and the prop was perfect! Only problem is that the impact:
- bent the drive shaft
- bent the strut
- put the engine out of alignment
- caused a leak in the trans (old velvet drives are usually bullet proof)

Long story short, 2 months, new parts, rebuilt trans and $1400 poorer, I was back on the water with a nibral prop. Believe it or not, the place I bought the stainless prop took it back in exchange for a nibral !

Bottom line: its not a matter of "if" but a matter of "when" you hit something floating or submerged. Over the course of 15 years, I've bent up nibral props a handful of times (each time repaired for $70 - $120). For a ski/wakeboard/pleasure boat, stainless just doesnt make sense... but yeah, they do look cool!

[TRBenj]

I do not like the way the stainless OJ's run on our boats. Stick with a Nibral prop (theyre not brass, theyre Nickel/Brass/Aluminum), and preferably a new Acme. They perform worlds better than the stock hand finished props.

[Motox811]

Thank you everyone. Picked up a new Acme 422 nibral. I had my original OJ fixed and ill keep that one as my spare.