Prop change to surf??

[Lweaver]

I’ve got a 2004 205v that I bought at the end of last season. We tried to surf it a couple times but only had about 400lbs of ballast then lake season was over. Over the winter, I’ve acquired a wake shaper and 2600lbs of ballast. Will the factory prop get the job done for this summer?

[Tsumi]

Not sure what was on the 2006, but an OJ 14.75x15.5 worked well for us as an all around prop. I think we were running about 800 lbs in each rear locker, 300 in the ski locker and 300 in the IBS.

[Lweaver]

Edited to 2004… not 2006!

[lakedrum03]

I have the same boat and the Acme 2061 is my prop of choice. A lot of folks really like the 1285 as well and if you are really loaded down then the 1285 is your best bet.

[Lweaver]

Will it just take longer to accelerate with the factory prop and all the weight?

[88 PS190]

Will it just take longer to accelerate with the factory prop and all the weight?

To a limit yes but also no - unless your boat is going up onto plane more weight will take longer to accelerate and will not go as fast and will use more fuel, and will go fewer RPM.

I use bicycles to explain it because in a lot of ways a boat is like a bicycle climbing up a hill. So whats the difference between going in a high gear vs going in a low gear? Certainly easier to get moving in a low gear (less pitch on a prop) but then eventually you're out of RPM that you can spin so you are limited. With a steep one maybe you can get it moving and it takes a bit to get going and then if you have it to where you can barely spin the cranks your cadance will drop and eventually you bog down hard and cannot go any faster.

All combinations of hull and ballast and prop and engine will have essentially have a curve but there's no such thing as a free lunch.

The only place where this analogy fails is that in a boat if you dump ballast and the boat gets on plane the act of planing drastically reduces horsepower and lets the boat rev up. But that's a double edged sword that prop that got you moving and up on plane will now over-rev limiting your top end. So ideally you select a prop that can move your ballasted boat well enough and meets your needs for unballasted cruising.

If there were to ever be a good inboard outboard that could hold speed low and get on plane and go fast that would be ideal. She doesn't exist.

Either Moomba or Tige or.... Aztec? One of those brands had a 2 speed transmission for their boats back in the 90s. Never really caught on.

[Lweaver]

Interesting. Thanks for the info! We went out yesterday with about 2300lb of ballast and had no issues getting up to speed. Only 3 of us in the boat though. Typically will be 6-8

[blackhawk]

You will want a different prop with 2300 lbs of ballast and 8 people. I second the ACME 2061.