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Wood Vs. Composite (props)

Wood, Composite, or Other?

  • wood

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • composite

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • other

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    0
T

TCL Customs

Active member
OK another post for me and others needing reference in the future

OK i've been seeing all these diffrent type of props wood composite ect..

And im interesting in knowing the diffrences in quality and proformance for the diffrent types...

like why go with composite or why go with wood...

witch is the best.. witch is the lightest. witch proformes best...

Anyone with lots of prop experience please post... thanks
-randy
 
I only have wood because I can't afford composite.

I gotta toss in that while the woven patterns in most composite props looks cool.... nothing beats the beauty of a newly refinished wood prop.
Even an old beat up wood prop is cool because it just looks like it has a story to tell.

No one hangs a composite prop on the wall.

Just something romantic about wood. ;)
 
I agree with mood on this one composite props are better as far as being durable and not requiring much up keep but the new boat that I am building with the Aircraft engine is going to have a wood prop they are classy and they do look good I think that is one of the reasons I like Cowboys boat so much is it is a traditional looking boat
 
I don't think their is any answer other then if you can't afford composite you buy wood(500 to 700 bucks). If you got the money composite is the way to go.(1,200 to 4,000 bucks more or less.)
I got a few buddies that never let me hear the end of swinging wood on the back of my boat. For safety reasons some guys don't like the idea of a prop that may explode. But I like some of the others swing wood cause right now I can't shell out the dough for a composite.
Plus your able to change pitch on a composite meaning you might be able to re-use the same prop with motor tweaks or upgrades.
 
After crackin the hub on two 700 dollar wood paddle props. My only choice was composite wish I would have started composite. Adjustable Light,Snappy whats not to love.
 
Composite is more forgiving when something goes through your cage then wood and is adjustable but the price is high the wood does the job and like Mood said look good to and much easier on your wallet. IMHO
for your mini I would sty with wood
 
Another attribute that a wood propeller has is its ability to better absorb harmonic vibrations better than a hollow composite. I have heard several people comment on the vibrations felt after switching to a hollow composite, Those vibrations can't be good for the engine or your metal works, I hear this is not a big issue with those running the warpdive propellers however. I bought wood because I could not afford composite but I did spring for the Kevlar wrapped tips that makes it alot more durable than a regular wood propeller. They both have there pluses and minuses. I don't care about speed so if I rebuild my engine in the future with more power I'll keep my current prop and just enjoy the fact that I'll be able to run it up to 3000 that much quicker than I could with my old engine. To each his own. By the way if I would have been able to afford it I would have purchased a 2 blade 72" Q series Sensenich, and I am sure I would have been very pleased with it also, but for now I am sportin' wood.
 
These examples should give you an idea of how much it helps. My old prop prop had the Kevlar also and it has taken a full can of Budweiser and a steel 14" aircleaner lid and it still works fine, just dented up the leading edge. There are some pics on the site someone posted of their Kevlar tipped Sensenich that had an alternator go through it and Sensenich told him they could repair it no problem. Had these same incidents happened to a regular wood propeller the propellers would have surely exploded or been rendered useless and un repairable. Oh yeah I can't tell you how many times my prop has chopped through back wash and all it did was give it a good cleaning.
Chubbys_prop_damage_001.jpg

Thats the one that an alternator went through and could still be repaired.
 
If you can afford the composite I would go with it, for the saftey factor alone it's worth it I had a wood prop explode on me and it ain't no fun and it does do a lot of damage.
 
TCL,

I gotta agree with everybody above that there is something sexy about a wood prop, (it is where airboating started from). I don't think I'll ever run one though cause of the adjustability of composite over wood.

Also something nobody's talked about here is the sound of wood vs. composite props! This is a far bigger issue than most folks realize.
I guarantee ya' if the "sound issue" continues to rear it's ugly head here in Florida wood and warps will become a thing of the past.
Some previous folks "high-up" in the airboaters rankings, seemed to push sending a db number to Tallahassee. My opinion is this will effectively park "Joe airboater" till he can afford a composite prop.

Basketcase
 
i have had several airboats in the past 13 yrs, in the first 4 yrs i ruined 3 wood props from damage and just cracks in the wood, for the past 9 yrs i been running a warp drive composite prop with zero problems after eating several hats, cans, jackets, and the stern light. I also witnessed a new wood prop explode for no reason which destroyed the boat and engine, the most impressive part of the composite prop was the gain in performance.
 
Why would anyone hunt with a bow? It's obsolete . or drive a 55 Chevy
when the new ones are so much better. why do people still ride horses
or paddle canoes? Because sometimes it's just cool to do it the way
grandpa did it. We are passionate about not loosing those links to the
past, and if composite props ever get down to the same price as the
old wood props I'll bet you'll still see some wood props all polished up
and looking good out there on the marsh caus it's just cool and chicks
dig it ! No one ever said it had to make sense!
 
As an example for composite, i dropped a rudder pin messing around on dry ground(hit a ditch)and the entire 4ft aerofoil foam filled rudder went into the prop....the rudder was wrinkled from top to bottom, the old powershift prop rec'd only a ding which they fixed. Had it been a woody, it had been a diff story.
 
The thing is, since we are in the mini forum, it would lead me to believe that this is a question of which is best for a mini. Sure a composite is top dog but we're talking low budget fun here. My vote is wood.
 
IM PUTT'IN A BIG FAT OLE WOODY ON MY NEW BOAT. MAYBE IM JUST A STUBBORN CRACKER BUT I AINT FOUND NOTHING THAT WILL BEAT A GOOD BUILT WIDEBLADE WOOD PROP FOR STRAIGHT GROUND RUNNIN HUNTIN.IT AINT ABOUT PRICE TO ME IT COMES DOWN TO "CLIMB ABILITY" ONCE YOU SET A CARBONFIBER TO THE PITCH YOU WANT IF ITS LOW END , YOULL GET GREAT LOW END THEN FLATTEN OUT ON TOPEND , A WOOD PROP WILL CLIMB AND CLIMB THEY DONT FLATTEN OUT AT TOP RPM'S, WOOD PROPS GIVE YOU THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS IN MY OPINION..
 
AND AS FAR AS HORROR STORY'S , I CAN GUARATEE YOU THAT FOR EVERY GUY WITH A STORY ABOUT A WOOD ONE , THERES A GUY NEXT TO HIM WAITING TO TELL HIS HORROR STORY ABOUT HIS POWERSHIFT.
 
D never had a problem with my power shift at all matter fact Kenny a buddy of mine has been running his for about 9-10 years with no problems same blades might I add. We both run a boat hard . T he only problem I have had with a carbon prop is the Terminator it was breaking the caps all the time tired of no warranty or lack there of plus the prop didn't push worth a crap. I do agree about the wood though they do have there advantages but the safety factor is what I am after
 
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