paxfish

Ain't that the truth! I inspected over the winter and found no issues. In April we stepped the mast and found a small hole afterward which I patched. Over the next month, I patched two more new holes, praying I could nurse it through the season. But UV is insidious. It attacks everyday....

Terrapin's forward tramp failed about 10 days ago. Nearly catastrophic since I went through to my waist! While underway, in good wind. ON AUTOPILOT! Tragedy narrowly averted! I built a new one out of vinyl coated poly mesh w shelterite edges. Borders are 1/2" schedule 40 PVC conduit (UV rated). I'm no seamstress, so the stitching lines suggest perhaps I was drinking heavily while cussing at my POS sewing machine. Tie lines are 3mm Dyneema. except along the hull where the fabric bolt rope is bolted to the hulls. The result seems to be up to the task. All thread is PTFE.

Ironically, the cavitation plate could CAUSE cavitation it the tip of the prop is too close! I agree it should be properly known as an anti-ventilation plate.

Wow! - Who drives a boat UNDER a heeling cat?

Thanks for your comments everybody. My intention with the original question was to figure out if a higher pitched prop would be proper, given that I have to replace the prop anyway. The general consensus is NO!

It is possible. I'll know more once I get a few more hours on the boat! Thanks again for that link. You've really compiled some interesting information there! Have you had any rot in the core at all? I found and replaced one wet strip thus far. No telling how long it had been wet - probably since the boat was built 12 years ago. But the western red cedar was not rotten at all.

Heh heh - Forgive me. Since I value the input of this board, I do make a respectful effort to convert Imperial to metric with you guys. However I neglected to this time. Tennant's specs are 1230 empty to 1767 kilos (heavy load.) Current prop is 11 3/4" by 9" pitch. I don't know if those units apply down there when it comes to props, so that is 29.8cm by 22.9cm pitch. Basically it is first gear....

Thanks for the comments, Freedom - Yeah - that is a Blue Seas switchbox and it is rated for exposure. I opened it up, hosed down all the contacts with Corrosion X and resealed it. Hopefully it continues to hold up well. That box is for the nav lights. I have a separate system with it's own battery, solar panel and controller to power the GPS and autopilot.

Thanks for the responses, Gents! Very Helpful. Especially yours, BNG! P. S. Has anyone seen my down under translator lying about?

Guys, I have a chip in my prop blade, and I'm thinking of getting a higher pitch on it's replacement. For those of you running a GBE or similar, what pitch are you running on your 9.9hp? My rig is 2800 to 3800 pounds GBE variant with a 9.9 Yamaha four stroke "high thrust" and a 11 3/4" by 9" pitch prop. Top speed is about 7 knots with a clean bottom. Thanks!