All about Props

[MotherNature]

^{Get The Net/ by Mike Cork/ August 15, 2011}

I learned a lot about Mercury Propellers, in just a short time. Just got back from the FLW Cup in Hot Springs Arkansas, where I got to spend some time with Scott Reichow. Scott has been with Mercury for over 23 years filling many different roles. Today he wears many hats inside Mercury Marine at the Mercury Racing Propeller Department. As the head of Mercury Racing Propellers, he knows a thing or two about Propellers.

Scott was a joy to talk with as he kept conversations at a technical level that was easy to understand. I first approached Scott about why the Mercury Fury prop was so effective at running my Legend Boat. The Mercury Trophy propeller is great, and the Tempest propeller is excellent, but when I put the Fury propeller on, my boat lights up.

Scott described the differences in how the Fury prop performs compared to the other props. Where cup and blade shape are a little bit different and how the Fury prop runs a little deeper in the water. A quick disclaimer, he did say that many boats run better with the Fury Prop, but there are some boats that like the Trophy or Tempest better. With the Fury prop a little bit deeper in the water, it is taking advantage of all the water has to offer, in the way of lift and thrust. Motor height and how deep a Fury prop runs still has a lot to do with your boat and load it carries. When I say that it likes to run deeper in the water, were talking a very small amount.

Scott recommended I check out his blog on Mercuryracing.com. That night I spent some time cruising through his blog. Wow, Scott has a lot of information in the entries of this blog! This is not a blog that you'll just swing through; this is one you're going to want to read. Keep in mind that Scott deals with all things propellers, so when you look though his blog you'll see posts about racing, bass boats, cigarette boats and so on. However, he is in the middle of a series of entries describing the propeller and how it works. Scott's current entries start with introduction, then to terminology and through what blade cup and rake mean and do. Scott said, "I'm not sure how many entries will be in the series, but we want to get as much information on it as possible, so look for more in the near future."

Even if, you know all there is to know about props, and I know some of you reading this are exceptionally proficient with props, there is some excellent information in Scott's blog. I know I'll be spending quite a bit of time reading his entries!

Get the Net it's a Hawg

Mike Cork

Fast and Dependable Reel Cleaning
www.CorksReelService.com