Play for and aft in prop about 1/4 inch is this normal?

[wildvortex]

I am new to the powerboat world and just purchased a 93 bayliner capri with force 120. I noticed yesterday that the prop has 1/4 inch play fore and aft. I am assuming that this is not right but I do want to verify prior to tightening. I checked and the shaft is not moving, just the prop. I can not find anything in my service manual on the subject. Also, what does WOT mean? I see it all the time and am clueless:facepalm:

 

[45Auto]

Re: Play for and aft in prop about 1/4 inch is this normal?

The prop should NOT move on the shaft at all. It's clamped between the thrust washer and the prop nut. You need to pull it off and see what's wrong there. It's possible that the rubber coupling (protects your motor if you hit something by breaking the rubber instead of your motor) between the prop and prop hub is loose. If so, it won't be long before it spins the prop on the hub and you're stuck in the middle of the lake with a boat that won't go. You ought to carry a spare prop anyway.

WOT means "Wide Open Throttle". It's a good test to see if your boat is propped correctly. It should just be able to reach the top of it's factory specified RPM range if it has the correct pitch prop on it for best all-around performance.

My 1996 Force 120 on my 18' Bayliner had a factory max RPM of 5200. It would just reach that at WOT with a 19" pitch prop on it. I also had a 21" pitch prop I kept as a spare and would install when my wife and I just wanted to cruise around. It would only reach about 4800 RPM at WOT but made a huge difference in how comfortable the boat was at cruising speeds, kind of like overdrive on a car versus running down the freeway in 2nd gear.

We had a lot of fun with that boat for 7 years. Never had any problems. Only sold it when we moved up to a bigger boat.

 

[craze1cars]

Re: Play for and aft in prop about 1/4 inch is this normal?

Delete my comment. I didn't read original post fully enough.

I agree with previous reply.

 

[wildvortex]

Re: Play for and aft in prop about 1/4 inch is this normal?

Thank you, it was a loose prop nut. easy fix thank god...for once!!