J/30 Class Association Forums J/30 Forum The Boat, Sails and Equipment Martec Folding Prop

Before I had my prop rebuilt one blade would stay closed and one would open. This produced a lot of vibration and little, but some, horsepower. The pin had worn and I believe it would allow the center of mass of one blade to get on the wrong side. Therefore, spinning actually foced the blade to stay closed. Is there enough play in your prop that you can actually pull one or both of the blades past centerline when closed. My prop now is set up so that the blades do not even touch when closed. There is about a 1/4" gap between them.

My prop was re-built by Martec last Winter. The gear shift linkage appears to be fully engaged when put into foward. In other words the engine idles at about 900 rpm'and the shaft is moving rapidly when engaged.The shift lever at the transmission side is fully engaged.
I did try reverse and then going into foward and this opened the blades fully.
Can anyone recommend a nice 2 blade fixed sailor prop for cruising? Thanks.

I need to follow up on my propeller situation. After further study, I found that indeed the propeller shaft was spinning too slowly. It was a problem in what I called the transmission, but what the professionals call the reversing gear. The clutch was worn out and no amount of linkage adjustment would correct it. I had a new clutch and seals installed by Mack Boring, and it works perfectly now. So if anyone assumes that their propeller is not opening correctly, don't go buy a new prop like I did, but check first that the clutch is fully engaging.

I had the same problem with my prop. I ordered a new one and it still was not opening. I found that the four engine mounts were bad and needed replacing. If you have any questions , skenny2@optonline.net

Yes, Have had problem with prop opening over past 5-10 years. Had it back to Martec twice and had transmission cause opening problem before that.

Most recently I had shaft aligned (adjust motor mounts) and that seems to have helped.