Slight prop damage

TCW_14

Recruit
Joined
Aug 10, 2020
Messages
3
Hey guys, first time posting on here. Over the weekend I purchased a 1987 Four Winns 170 Horizon with the 4.3L V6. Went on the lake for a test drive, everything checked out good there and checked out good on inspection out of the water. Bought the boat and went back to our campsite and loaded up and went out for a full day on the lake and everything went well. I had not realized the stainless prop is missing some material (didn't feel any vibration or anything that seemed out of the ordinary as everything ran well). As you can see in the image, there is a slight flat spot on all three prop blades (same amount missing on all three). How harmful is this to the lower unit? Should I take it to a prop shop for repair or just swap for an aluminum prop instead? If I swap to aluminum, will I lose any performance?

Any advice would be great. This is my second boat and the first time I've had to look into props so I'm learning a lot.

Thank you!
 

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alldodge

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Mar 8, 2009
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42,572
Not the greatest pic, but the flat spots on each blade is made that way from the factory
 

TCW_14

Recruit
Joined
Aug 10, 2020
Messages
3
Not the greatest pic, but the flat spots on each blade is made that way from the factory

Yeah I know it's not the greatest picture, but it's all I had from this weekend before we left it in storage. Forgot to grab a close up of the prop before leaving. The tips of the prop are kind of flattened, so I'm not sure if it was designed that way or not.
 
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