Does anyone know how the Mercury Demo Prop program works?

[Mark Hofman]

Just curious. I'd like to find out which would run better - a Tempest Plus 23 pitch or a Tempest Plus 24 pitch propeller - before I go spending inordinate amounts of money for a piece of metal.

 

[Michael Snow]

MO, I have a 23p tempest plus that has a few dings and would need to be reworked. However, you're more than welcome to "borrow" it. I'd ask that you pay shipping both ways (probably about $25 total). If you want to buy the prop, $150 in current condition (needing to be touched up/reworked).

 

[Mark Hofman]

Mike:



Thanks for the offer. Actually, I'll be in Dallas at the end of the month and could arrange to pick the prop up, but...



There's a part of me that THINKS a 24" pitch would be the cat's meow on my rig and I want to be able to run both a 23" pitch and a 24" pitch before I spend any money. That's why I was asking about the Demo Prop program. The props are painted blue so that you look like an idiot with one on, but you don't have to pay money until you have a prop that meets your performance criteria.



What I don't know is whether you have to give them your current prop as collateral and how many days you can have the demo prop on loan.

 

[Bruce Yeaton]

Mo, send Bob an email, he'll steer you in the right direction. You may also want to ask about a jack plate as well

If they find me a deal on an XR6, that's the setup Bob recommended to me already!!

 

[Mark Hofman]

I'm really reluctant to put a jack plate on the TV-18 because of the whole transom-failure issue. I've taken photos of the inside of the bilge area and the transom braces aren't that big. Throwing the weight of that outboard astern another 6 inches, to me, is asking for trouble. That's just my opinion. The other issue is how low the stern sits in the water with the 150 on the back. I'm afraid that moving it even farther back will just swamp the rear end.



I'm really happy with the performance I get out of the 14x23 Black Max aluminum (which I'm going to keep because of some of the shallow lakes I run on), but because the hole shot is so awesome (even with 3 people in the boat) I think I can up the pitch to 24 to break the 60 mph barrier. I also want a second prop so that I'll have a spare along with me.



But y'know...if I ever have to replace the carpet on the rear deck and have to take up the rear deck, I've got a plan in mind to strengthen the transom braces. If that happens, a jack plate becomes a VERY attractive option, but it will also require placing some counter-weight up toward the bow.

 

[Jim B]

mo

id bet the 23 tempest would be just the ticket on your boat. the tempest has bigger blades and more cup and rake then the black max so you should see more speed at any given rpm. I run a 23 tempest on my 882 and it goes over 60.