Is this normal for Mercury props?

[ChuckS]

I also posted this in the props forum.

Finally got a Tempest Plus I ordered a few months ago. Brand new in the box.


Installed it this evening, and after looking at it, a few things bug me.


First is the number and size of the weights to balance the prop. The Mercury site says they may balance them with small weights. These seems like to pretty big weights to me.


Second thing that bugs me is it looks like the metal is pitted on the inside by two of the blades. From what I can see, there is also some rust forming.


This is my first Mercury, and just becoming familiar with the props. Is this their normally quality? Is the thing even safe to run? I would think those two pitted spots are failure points. I checked my Fury 4, and it has zero flaws.


I appreciate any feedback. Thanks in advance

Prop 1.jpgProp 2.jpgProp 3.jpg

[getfished]

Wow ! That's a new one to me. I've never seen a prop with balancing weights inside. Maybe that's ok, I don't know. If you keep it send it Mark Croxton and let him evaluate it. The pitted areas don't seem so good either, but again I'm not an expert.

[adchunts]

I have never seen weights like that in/on a prop. Weird…

[high 2]

I wouldn’t want it. Ive never seen a prop with weights.

[ChuckS]

I did find this. So maybe it’s a new standard.

http://www.mercurymarine.com/en/us/d...ve-perfection/

Just seems like an awful lot of weight. The pitting and rust worry me more. Seems like a casting defect.

[Rick H]

My Tempest Plus doesn't have weights.

[mactlman]

i have 2 tempest 24p no weights??

[Dixie-Raven]

I wouldn't want that prop and would return if possible.

[1Holeshot]

It appears that the propshaft is off center perhaps due to a bad hub.

[Coach185]

My tempest plus has no weights. But something is just not right. From a balance perspective you would never put balance weights 180 degrees from one another like shown. And how the heck are they even attached?

[bassfisher444]

Never seen anything like that.

[Dixie-Raven]

Appears to be the new norm. Stuck on with adhesive tape.

[Transom]

So instead of fitting it and balancing it properly they now throw a band aid on it. And like typical some paid shill is trying to spin it as the next greatest positive thing.

[richardZ7]

well i have used the same mercury prop for 9 years fish a couple of times a week so it gets used now imagine this a couple of pieces of double sided tape holding a couple of pieces of lead inside the exhaust system spinning at 6000 rpm under water
Would you buy into this for a long term investment and what are mercury thinking

[lpugh]

I doubt those weights will ever move. If you want, remove them though it would be unwise. Mercury has decided to start precision balancing this series of props and I believe it is the best way to do so. The alternative is to remove metal from the blades which is undesirable. Done with weights the blades can maintain their shape and progression equally. You will have a more efficient prop I believe with the weight system
I will bet that this starts a new trend in high performance props, Keep in mind identical blade profiles are just as important to the overall balance as static balance is
We need every blade to displace the exact same amount of water and provide the exact same thrust
Would hope My prop guy understand this well when servicing one for me when I get one
I would gladly trade my Gilbert prepped 26 for one of these in a 25 as Think they will perform a little better after he reprofiles it for my boat
The 26 I have is my backup and just a little to stiff more me, Is a very fast prop butt a little lacking on the bottom end

[John Jackson]

My tempest plus has no weights. But something is just not right. From a balance perspective you would never put balance weights 180 degrees from one another like shown. And how the heck are they even attached?

+1 Adding weights roughly 180* apart is not balancing, it's hiding something.
In the past decade most of the world has changed over to CCC (cheap chinese crap), and their steel, in any form never met any standard. They are full of inclusions and voids. So most of the world dropped the standards so they could use chinese cheap steel. I think the the linked article is just weasel wording for the customer to think something bad is actually good. I wouldn't accept that prop myself. And I suspect the increased breakage of Bravos is because of the cheap steel. The older thinner Bravo's are tougher.

[E-rude_Dude]

Wow
Mercury’s reputation for the best props just collapsed 😳
That’s the cheap out way to balance a prop. I would by a used one and have it professionally gone over before I ran that thing. What happens to your LU if it throws a weight?

[Crappie Bob]

2 opposing weights doesn't make any sense to me. If you weighed the 2 and took the difference and put it where the heavier weight was, seems like a more logical plan. IF I was going to put a stick on weight in a prop. Next thing I guess they will be welding washers in there

[wareagle24]

I've ran ALOT of Mercury props in the last 40 years of boating and I have never seen or heard of putting weights on a prop. Something that just don't seem right is having 2 weights opposite of each other. You'll never see that on a vehicle's tire.

[Riccochet]

No way I would accept that.

I've my props balanced by Croxton. Never seen anything like that.