Honda Prop Pitch

[Stryker]

As Petty and I were talking about this subject, I thought I'd ask you all your opinion........... I have a Honda 5 horse 4 stroker that cannot be trolled down to below 2.2 mph or so without loading up and dieng. I've had it re-jetted numerous times and it still will not troll down below that speed. Honda will not stand behind their product and told me that I did not purchase a trolling motor, I purchased an outboard. So to make this long story shorter.......... and this might sound like an idiot question, but is it possible to re-pitch the prop that is on the motor and still have it spin true? Can a fix-it-shop actually bend the ears without breaking them off?

 

[JIGGIT]

before id did that i would mount a trolling plate to it. or just go real cheap. throw a bucket. i had a 10 hrs that was the same way. i had to throw 2 buckets troll bottom bouncers 1 for most other things.

 

[sillyphil]

Seems to me that it would be the pitch of the prop. I have a Johnson 15 HP 4 stroke, and it will troll down to 1.2 mph. So I would say it is either the prop pitch or the motor is not idling low enough

 

[KokaneeReaper77]

Do you no what the throtle linkage looks like where it is at? When you find it you should be able to adjust it and that may help with the idling to high. After that try adjusting the carb, then if that dosent work look at going to a smaller prop with less bite that should slow you down enough, also ther should be a trim bar for your motore you can raise it up to the highest setting and that may give you enough angle to slow you down.

 

[Trophy Taker]

What pitch is the prop you have on there now?

 

[Kokaholic]

Bruce, It might be worth a trip up to Lee"s to see what he thinks could help it. I would bet money that if some one could come up with an answer,it would be Lee.

 

[Stryker]

Seems to me that it would be the pitch of the prop. I have a Johnson 15 HP 4 stroke, and it will troll down to 1.2 mph. So I would say it is either the prop pitch or the motor is not idling low enough

The motor will idle down very well without being in gear. It's just when it is put in drive that it will load up unless it is kept at a certain RPM. I bought it at Newgate and the folks there have been very helpful in trying to get it to troll correctly. Thats why I figured the pitch change might be the way to go.

 

[Stryker]

What pitch is the prop you have on there now?

I'm not sure what the pitch is on it out of the factory. I don't even know if they would make a lower pitch prop for that small of a motor. I will look in the owners manual and see if it lists what the pitch is.

 

[Stryker]

Bruce, It might be worth a trip up to Lee"s to see what he thinks could help it. I would bet money that if some one could come up with an answer,it would be Lee.

Jason mentioned Lee's also. There is a guy down here out on Antelope Drive at the Marine Prop Repair that I will ask the question to also. When all else fails I guess I'll have to go find that bucket we had at the Derby and drag it.

 

[Kokehead]

Bruce, It might be worth a trip up to Lee"s to see what he thinks could help it. I would bet money that if some one could come up with an answer,it would be Lee.

I would agree 100%. Lees in Hyrum is the best place that I know of that fix or tell you how to fix any problems. But I would defitally chang the pitch of your prop. It would be easier to get a second prop with a 2 blade on it for the slower speeds and keep the stock prop for the higher speeds.

 

[Stryker]

Updated

I spoke with Lee's this a.m. and was told that Honda has little to none for options on their trolling motors. He said I could change the pitch "a little", but that the "little" change probably wouldn't help much. The factory pitch is only 71/2 to begin with.
He said that I could do as Jiggit suggested and put a Little Fella trolling plate on it, or I could do as KR77 suggested and tilt the motor up so that it doesn't have as much "back pressure". Which is why the motor idles fine out of gear, but loads up under a load.
Thanks all for your inputs. Appreciate it. At least I now have a couple of options I wouldn't have thought about before.

 

[Kokaholic]

Hey Bruce, Let us know after your next trip out what happens and what worked for you,

 

[Petty4life]

hope you can find something that will work for you

 

[Full_Monte]

I have a 25 hp Yamaha 2-stroke and found that tilting it upwards was the secret to unloading it and slowing down the trolling speed. Seemed to work very well on the last trip. I was able to toll at .9 to 1.2mph and the engine didn't stall as often as it used to. I'm surprised that you guys are having trouble with smaller 4-stroke engines than my larger 2-stroke. Another trick I learned is to use premium gas. It keeps the engine from stalling more than regular does.

 

[bobco]

I have a 8hp honda that had same issue, by the way you are not the only one that thinks Hondas customer serivce stinks, I will never buy another one, never, did I say never. anyhow michigan wheel makes a sailboat prop for the 8 hp that had a very low pitch, problem solved, hopefully they make a prop for the 5 hp simailar??