Spitfire X7

[Ted-LA]

I've run the 17" pitch SpitFire X7 on my RT178/Merc 75 4s a few times now. The most significant improvement over the 18" Mercury Vengeance is steering torque. Other than that, there's not much difference. Possibly slightly better holeshot but without actually measuring it, I can't say for sure. The boat has a bit less tendency to porpoise. I'm sure moving some of the load to the rear of the boat would help but Ranger didn't provide much storage back there. The front compartment is full of tackle including a ton of soft plastic. The X7 seems to have lost a small bit of RPM and maybe a half MPH. I have added more tackle and gear than I started with (including a big honkin' side scan transducer) and the top speed still breaks 40 MPH with either prop. RPM is right at 5,000 on the analog tach.

Overall, I'd say the SpitFire X7 is a nice prop but the Vengeance appears to be a pretty good one also. I'll leave the X7 on the boat and keep the Vengeance as a spare.

[krr6581]

jml My X7 is a 19P.

[jml]

Thanks, torn between x7 and laser 2. Leaning towards x7, 19 pitch.

[Deerchaser]

Thanks, torn between x7 and laser 2. Leaning towards x7, 19 pitch.

Good choice.

[krr6581]

jml Make sure you order from Jacos Marine. They sell the X7 at $385 and if I'm not mistaken the shipping is free. It's the lowest price that I know of.

[jml]

I will, thanks.

[Deerchaser]

Update with corrected rpm. True rpm is 5310, dash tach off 200 rpm. 2 guys loaded, 8 gals of fuel, 39.5 mph 5310 rpm light chop, 80 degrees. 4.33% slip! Rpm via vesselview mobile, speed off the simrad gps.

[starfox101]

Been following this Thread from the start. Fist time post. SpitFire X7 17P ordered today. 2014 Crestliner Vt17 Pro, Merc/75 4S

[PECo]

I don't have a tin boat, but I run a Mercury 115 Pro XS four-stroke with a fully-plugged 19-inch pitch Spitfire X7 prop. When I first got the prop, my boat ran over 50 miles per hour. I've since added a port-side console and fishing seat to the boat, so it's a little bit slower, now. Here's a screen shot of my VesselView Mobile from a recent trip, fully-loaded with 450 pounds of fishermen and half a tank of fuel:


Here's a prop slip calculation using that data:

[gatorglenn]

Looks to be right on the money