"Rebuild" a prop?

The local boat yard is replacing my cutlass bearing and has told me that the folding prop has a lot of play in it. They are saying that play may have contibuted to the demise of the bearing and that I should consider having them send the prop back to the manufacturer for a rebuild to prevent a similar occurance with the new bearing. I've never heard of doing such a thing and would like to hear about anyone who has had this done and what the cost might be. Thanks.

Gary

I have a prop right now back to the manufacturer for refurbishing. The guy probably speaks the truth. Cost depends on type of prop [geared, not geared] does it need re balancing, or work to the blades, etc. I'd expect $200 to $300, but they will quote you a price when you send it to them and before they start work. I don't think your yard is trying to take you over the hurdles as they have nothing to gain. You would sent the prop out yourself

If your folding prop is a Martec they are very reasonable to work with. They are very thorough - I had mine refurbished two years ago.

Prop Maintenance

Folding props do take a beating.....just listen to the blades snap open.....and many years ago Walt Beck at Martek told me that if I did not hear the blades I could possibly have only one open, and that increasing the throttle could be real damage.....the only downside to a folder....

I have had Martek Folding props on all of my boats since 1971......they all went in for service every five years if I kept the boat that long.....my last boat I had for 26 years....and the prop was serviced every five and was perfect when I sold the boat......

The price was quite reasonable......I sold the boat in 06, and the prop was done in 01....at that time if memory serves me correctly it was about $200.00 including shipping.....give or take.....I would guess it to be a bit higher now (so what else is new)...

If it is a Martek call Gary Beck.....he will give you a ballpark, and then confirm what it needs when received.....

Hope this helps you a bit....

Mort Fligelman
Acapella 1987 E35-3
Boca Raton, FL

Folding Prop Refurb..

Gary,

Just got my 2 blade folder back from a Martec refurb. They had to do some weld buildup on the blade stops to bring the blade opening back into design spec. They also redrilled a larger pivot pin hole, cleaned and balanced (looks like new) and included necessary monel cotter pins to reinstall. Total cost (including shipping was $222.61). I'm really looking forward to see how the prop now performs.. I was critical of the 2 blade folder in the past, but now see that it was not setup per design specs. Earlier post are correct.. periodic refurb of this design is needed.

I'm now wondering whether to coat it with anything prior to going back in. I used Trilux Prop and Drive paint in the past but not sure if theres anything better (than frequent use) to keep it clean.

B.T.W.... I have a 16x14x1 RH MKIII prop. The Martec group out in Long Beach were really good to work with.

Good luck,
Joe

1987 35-111
Tenacious

Prop refurb update

As a follow up to my original posting here... I finally got the boat back in the water after having the prop refurbished, the cutlass bearing replaced, the strut tightened up, and the shaft realigned. None of these items alone seemed like a large problem but I can tell you the boat has significantly more power at the same RPMs and a lot less vibration than it had before this work was done - and everything looks brand new.