Express Stainless Steel Boat Propellers

High Performance Series
40 - 300 hp w/ a 4-1/4" & 4-3/4" gearcase

Express stainless steel propellers are the perfect propeller for bass, walleye, family fishing, offshore boats, run-a-bouts, and weekenders.

Express gives boats maximum speed and secure handling on tight turns at wide open throttle.

Do you use your boat for waterskiing, tubing, or putting extra people on board for a cruise around the lake or down the river? Purchase a 2 nd propeller at a lower pitch to help compensate for the added weight and drag. You will notice a big improvement in how your boat performs under those conditions.

Don't forget you can carry a spare Hustler aluminum propeller that will adapt to the same hub.

Aluminum vs. Stainless Steel

The decision between purchasing an aluminum or stainless steel propeller can be difficult. However if you fully understand the differences between them, your decision can be much easier.

The most common understanding of the difference is that stainless steel propellers perform better than aluminum propellers. This is only half true. Material (Stainless vs Aluminum) only accounts for approximately 10% of the actual performance of the propeller. The other 90% of performance is in the blade design.

Well designed aluminum propellers will out perform an average stainless steel propeller. So it's important to research a propeller's performance before your purchase. It is also important to try different pitches and brands to get your boat dialed in to the best possible propeller.
The advantage of a stainless steel propeller over aluminum is durability. Stainless props can withstand more of the damage caused by small rocks, sand, or other loose objects in the water.

However, the disadvantage to a stainless propeller is that there is ?minimal give" to the blades, so if you hit an object hard enough, there is a possibility of causing major damage to your lower unit is increased greatly. With aluminum props, the blades will most likely sacrifice themselves before any damage is caused to your lower unit.

If you run in deep or familiar waters, or in salt/brackish water, a stainless steel propeller can be a good choice. But it is important to always carry a spare propeller on board, and a spare aluminum is an inexpensive choice.

Hustler Propellers Increase Performance

Turning Point's Hustler High Performance Series aluminum propellers now feature the newly designed MasterGuard Hub System. Created specifically to give boats a higher top-end speed, better handling, a faster hole shot and more efficiency, Hustler propellers maximize overall performance. The aluminum propellers incorporate the same high performance designs found in stainless steel props to give boaters a less expensive way to gain stainless steel like performance.

The High Performance Series is designed for all engines ranging from 40 hp to 300 hp with 4-1/4" to 4-3/4" gearcases. The interchangeable hub allows boaters to save money on future prop purchases, since spare or different pitched propellers don't require another hub purchase.

Turning Point recommends that every boat have a spare propeller onboard to insure a day on the water isn't ruined by a broken prop or to allow for adjustments in different situations. Using a prop 2" in pitch less makes a big difference when more people are onboard or the boat is being used for watersports. The smaller pitch helps offset the added weight and drag on the motor and increases performance under these circumstances.

Why not run a damaged propeller?

Continuing to use a damaged propeller can cause damage to the gearcase and ultimately the power head of your motor. When a propeller has sustained damage, it will not spin true, thus creating excessive vibrations that will transfer all the way into your motor.

A damaged propeller will also not perform as well as a new propeller because the damaged parts of the blade can degrade hydrodynamic efficiency.

Choosing the right propeller

To some, choosing the right boat propeller can seem like a job for a marine service center. Anything that has to do with the backend of the boat can be a scary thing. Despite popular belief, choosing the correct propeller for a particular boat and motor is actually a fairly simple thing to do, once you understand what a propeller really is.

First think of propeller as a gear, whether it be on a car or even a bicycle. The lower the gear, faster hole shot, more power, but revolutions are much faster so at a point you can only turn that gear so fast until you over rev the engine (or you legs). Now think of your car stuck in only 5th or 6th gear, very slow out of the hole, little torque, but eventually it will catch up with itself so you can cruise to a good speed.

The same basic concept applies to propellers, except with a prop you are committed to only one “gear". So what to do now? Find the prop size that will give the best overall performance. Sound difficult? It's really not.

Your engine has a recommended wide open throttle rpm range. Let take an example of an18' boat with a 125 hp engine with a rpm range of 4500-5500. In most cases you purchase a boat with some sort of propeller on it. Let's say this motor has a 21 pitch prop on it and at wide open throttle under a normal boat load, the engine turns 4900 rpms. Well it's in the range so it's the correct prop, right? Well yes and no. For the health and longevity of the engine it's okay, but for overall performance, you want to run a propeller near the top of the range. Well how do you change the size to get that?

Remember this rule of thumb: For every 2" of propeller pitch, rpm's will change approximately 400 rpm's. As you drop in pitch, rpm's increase, and as you go up in pitch, rpm's decrease. So if we want to raise our rpm's we should choose a lower pitch prop. Following the rule, going down to a 19 pitch should raise our rpm's to about 5300. That would help the hole shot and also gain us some more speed.

As you follow the rule of thumb, remember that sometimes rules are meant to be broken. This is not an iron clad rule, sometimes varying 2" of pitch will only change rpm's by 200. Switching prop brands or manufacturer, it can sometimes throw off the rule too.

At this point the most important thing to understand is that less pitch means more rpm's, more pitch means less rpms. For your boat to perform at its peak, you need to run at the upper end of your engine's recommended rpm range. That's it. Once you're there and still want more speed, handling, lift, etc, that's when choosing the right propeller brand comes into play.

Here's a simple adjustment you can make to improvement performance under varying boatloads: If you normally run with one other person on board, use that boatload as your measurement when determining your wide open throttle rpm's. But if you sometimes load the boat with 2-5 more people or try pulling a water skier or tube, get another prop 2" of pitch lower than your normal prop. It will compensate for added weight and drag and make a huge improvement on performance in these circumstances. But remember to keep an eye on you rpm's when running a lower pitch for these circumstances.

Most props have the size marked somewhere on the prop, either on the barrel, on the blades, or in the front or back of the propeller. Use that pitch that you're currently running as your starting point. If it's already running correctly then that pitch is your pitch.

MasterGuard Hub System

Turning Point Propellers Inc. has improved on the best by redesigning its industry-leading MasterGuard interchangeable hub system. The new hub is now smaller, stronger and less expensive.

Utilizing a high-tech polymer material, the new hub efficiently absorbs damaging shift shock and engine vibrations, while incorporating an inventive design that won't leave boaters stranded and frustrated with a spun hub. Its small diameter allows optimal exhaust for better fuel efficiency and peak horsepower.

The new hub design is used in all propeller lines Turning Point produces - Rascal, Hustler, Express and SpeedZone propellers. The new hub design adapts to a variety of propeller sizes, giving boaters an inexpensive option of purchasing different propeller pitches to fit on the same hub.

New 9.9 Series Propellers

NEW PROPS MAXIMIZE LOW HP ENGINE POTENTIAL

Well-designed propellers can enhance engine speed and performance. Now, with Turning Point Propellers' newest additions to the Rascal series, boaters can squeeze more pull out of their 9.9 to 15 hp outboards with a 2.5" gearcase.

The high-quality Rascal aluminum propellers sport increased blade surfaces and improved geometry. Available in 11" and 13" pitches, the props feature specially formed cupping to eliminate common ventilation problems. Perfect for inland or coastal fishing and cruising, they bring high-performance to low horsepower engines.

Each Rascal propeller housing features Turning Point's MasterGuard hub system. The interchangeable hub employs a high-tech polymer material that absorbs damaging engine vibrations and shift shock. Differently pitched or spare props don't require a separate hub so modifications are simple and inexpensive.

The new Rascal Series is available now.