Stainless prop on a 25hp 4 stroke

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chrispbrown27

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I finally gave up on my 72 johnson 25 and bought a 2002 Yamaha 25 hp 4 stroke (F25ESHA) yesterday. I broke my own rules of not buying without a compression test or hearing it run, but based on the condition I was willing to take a chance. While reading up on maintenance requirements (this is the first 4 stroke I have never owned a 4 stroke or even known anyone that has owned one so it's all new to me) I got to thinking about buying a back up prop since I have wrecked a prop or two on the water and wished I had a back up. Back in the mid 90's my Grandpa bought a brand new 30 horse Evinrude and considered buying a stainless prop, but was told that stainless is too heavy for a motor under 50 horse. Is this even remotely true? I commonly hunt and fish areas that are fairly stumpy, so would it be a good idea to use a stainless prop? I certainly like the price of aluminum props and the repairability of aluminum, but if a stainless would take hits on wood better without breaking itself or tearing up anything in the motor I wouldn't mind spending the extra money.
I also have a few questions about 4 strokes.
Is it really necessary to use an oil like Yamalube or is it perfectly fine to use any good oil? I know that on cars/trucks beyond a certain age they recommend sticking to dino oil and not going to synthetic because of smaller molecules that might slip through old seals that the dino oil doesn't, so is this true with outboards? Once the weather warms up a bit I am planning on draining and refilling the lower unit lube, change the impeller, new spark plugs, and lube things up. Anything else you can suggest that I do?

Chris
 
4 stroke motor, just lubricate the internals well. I would use a good 10w40 myself and I would not shy away from synthetic.
I use synthetic as my gear lube too.

Don't know about the stainless prop. Although I have always wondered about using my stainless prop (I have SS and Alu prop). If a stainless prop is much stronger, than the forces of hitting something in the water is transferred to the drive train more. Rather see a prop damaged than my lower unit.

Tim
 
That is what I am thinking about the stainless prop...if it won't give what does if you hit something solid? I have noticed that a lot of the prop makers brag about rubber bushings that are supposed to allow it to slip if it hits something solid, but I would assume that this would also happen as the prop and rubber ages.

Chris
 
A lot of people around here use SS props on 20-25hp motors. Mostly duck hunters it seems, but I still use one and I quit duck hunting several years ago. IMO if you run over rocky bottoms or are prone to encountering underwater rocks frequently, you might not want to go with SS. But for us, it's all mud and logs/sticks. I've hit logs/sticks of all different sizes and at all speeds from 0 to 25. I've hit logs so hard that the motor bounced and locked in the up position. Panic set in as soon as I realized I was now headed at the bank of this narrow channel at full speed and I had no steering with the motor in the up position. :shock: Maybe it's just luck, but to date, I've never damaged a SS prop and I've never broken a motor hitting things.
 
Kentucky and Barkley both have their share of rocky outcrops throughout both, but mostly near the shore and I never run full throttle too awfully close. I have busted my share of aluminum props on stumps and it would be nice to be able to hit one and not have to worry about losing a blade.

Chris
 
Well some of it depends on what kind of boater you are....

Do you tend to run wide open everywhere and not think about your water conditions? Like most younger duck hunters in Arkansas....they run over everything and a lot of times at full speed because they're racing to the good spots. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufrBwyy6nxg

Or do you cautiously operate your boat?

I'm more cautious. I've had the same turbo 11" SS prop on my Yamaha F25 for, gosh, 3 years now? Not a single ding or dent anywhere, but again, I'm cautious. I don't run the shallow rocky rivers wide open. I'm usually idling or if I have to plane, I'm just running slowly...fast enough to stay on plane but not too fast. I don't duck hunt (gave that up). Local lake is FULL of cypress stumps and submerged timber; and that stuff won't hurt a stainless prop too badly. It'll bend and/or break aluminum props though.

They all have rubber hubs, which are there to dampen any shock loads. This takes the shock load off of the gears in the foot and makes shifting into gear a little less harsh. Dampen doesn't mean it's a slip clutch, though. It can/will spin inside the prop if subjected to enough shock loading but usually if you get to that point on an F25, the prop shaft bends as well. It uses the same prop shaft as the 2 stroke twin carb 25 Yamaha; however the 2 stroke version uses a real light crankshaft and flywheel and thus doesn't have near the inertia that the 4 stroke does (remember the 4 stroke has a big heavy counter balancer slug and a heavy flywheel). Yes keep a spare prop on board if possible, that and a plier for the cotter key, and a 7/8 or 22mm wrench (or a crescent, though they usually get rusted and when you need to adjust it, it's stuck--murphy's law applies). I use a cut off 7/8. The nut isn't that tight-25 lb ft is the specified torque, IIRC. And a sawed off wrench fits in the tackle bag nicely. There is also a plastic prop tool available that floats if you drop it, which is nice. I was out fishing an area with a friend once, he hit a submerged rock and broke a blade off....ok we'll change it. Dropped the spare prop while attempting to change it in about 15 feet of water, and obviously they don't float. Thank goodness for a good trolling motor-and battery.
 
I grew up using my Grandpa's boat and there was no way I was going to go home and tell him I had tore up anything. Once me and a couple buddies were going jug fishing. While using the drag net to catch shad the hook on the drag net snapped and the net sunk to the bottom. My buddies had a good laugh and I jumped in after it.....no way in hell was I going to tell Grandpa I had lost his drag net! After searching for 30 minutes and hearing my buddies tell me over and over that I should just give up I stepped right in the middle of it.......so no, I am not one to go full throttle in an area that I am not familiar with or that I know hazards are present in. Having said that, I have busted a few aluminum props running jugs. Always in stump beds when backing up chasing a jug or backing off of the bank. So, I think a stainless prop would be a good investment. Thanks to everyone for the help.
 
chrispbrown27 said:
I grew up using my Grandpa's boat and there was no way I was going to go home and tell him I had tore up anything. Once me and a couple buddies were going jug fishing. While using the drag net to catch shad the hook on the drag net snapped and the net sunk to the bottom. My buddies had a good laugh and I jumped in after it.....no way in hell was I going to tell Grandpa I had lost his drag net! After searching for 30 minutes and hearing my buddies tell me over and over that I should just give up I stepped right in the middle of it.......so no, I am not one to go full throttle in an area that I am not familiar with or that I know hazards are present in. Having said that, I have busted a few aluminum props running jugs. Always in stump beds when backing up chasing a jug or backing off of the bank. So, I think a stainless prop would be a good investment. Thanks to everyone for the help.
Click to expand...

Your story made me think of one of my own. - Went fishing with a buddy who I just met for the first time when I was 15-16 years old and he accidentally kicks an old rod/reel into the lake that meant a lot to him. Without hesitation he dives head first into the water after it. Mind you this is the first time I've met the guy and seeing his dedication made me laugh so hard. He grabbed the rod before it hit the bottom and made his way back up and continued to fish as if nothing happened.
 
turbotodd said:
Well some of it depends on what kind of boater you are....

Do you tend to run wide open everywhere and not think about your water conditions? Like most younger duck hunters in Arkansas....they run over everything and a lot of times at full speed because they're racing to the good spots. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufrBwyy6nxg

Or do you cautiously operate your boat?
Click to expand...
Well we weren't quite that wild (video link) even when I was younger and still duck hunting but we did get rough with them at times. Normally, any time we were in areas that had a higher than avg chance of having underwater obstructions than normal, we'd proceed with caution until we had been through that area a few times. But once we knew where the hidden logs and stumps were located for the most part, all bets were off on how fast anyone might come ripping through that area. We've been known to run full throttle from log to log, only backing off the throttle as we approached a known submerged log, then right back on full throttle the second we're clear of it. But I don't recall any of us ever going full throttle any time we knew or had high expectations of hitting something. So not as reckless as the video you linked. LoL
 
turbotodd said:
Well some of it depends on what kind of boater you are....

Do you tend to run wide open everywhere and not think about your water conditions? Like most younger duck hunters in Arkansas....they run over everything and a lot of times at full speed because they're racing to the good spots. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufrBwyy6nxg

Or do you cautiously operate your boat?

I'm more cautious. I've had the same turbo 11" SS prop on my Yamaha F25 for, gosh, 3 years now? Not a single ding or dent anywhere, but again, I'm cautious. I don't run the shallow rocky rivers wide open. I'm usually idling or if I have to plane, I'm just running slowly...fast enough to stay on plane but not too fast. I don't duck hunt (gave that up). Local lake is FULL of cypress stumps and submerged timber; and that stuff won't hurt a stainless prop too badly. It'll bend and/or break aluminum props though.

They all have rubber hubs, which are there to dampen any shock loads. This takes the shock load off of the gears in the foot and makes shifting into gear a little less harsh. Dampen doesn't mean it's a slip clutch, though. It can/will spin inside the prop if subjected to enough shock loading but usually if you get to that point on an F25, the prop shaft bends as well. It uses the same prop shaft as the 2 stroke twin carb 25 Yamaha; however the 2 stroke version uses a real light crankshaft and flywheel and thus doesn't have near the inertia that the 4 stroke does (remember the 4 stroke has a big heavy counter balancer slug and a heavy flywheel). Yes keep a spare prop on board if possible, that and a plier for the cotter key, and a 7/8 or 22mm wrench (or a crescent, though they usually get rusted and when you need to adjust it, it's stuck--murphy's law applies). I use a cut off 7/8. The nut isn't that tight-25 lb ft is the specified torque, IIRC. And a sawed off wrench fits in the tackle bag nicely. There is also a plastic prop tool available that floats if you drop it, which is nice. I was out fishing an area with a friend once, he hit a submerged rock and broke a blade off....ok we'll change it. Dropped the spare prop while attempting to change it in about 15 feet of water, and obviously they don't float. Thank goodness for a good trolling motor-and battery.
Click to expand...



WOW! i would never run a boat that hard in the dark. i thought about putting one on my 20hp. but got to thinking the one time i hit something with my aluminum prop it was wrecked and my propshaft bent. so the stronger SS prop i thought might even do more damage to the lower unit plus they are hard to bend back in shape if you do not have an back up prop.
 

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