🚀 go-pugleaf

Hi Mike,
I am happy to hear the damage is minor.
If I were you I would have the prop shaft checked to make sure its 
running true. Have a shop put a micrometer dial on it and rotate it 
slowly. If you see more then a couple of thousand's difference, concider 
replacing the part. It IS expensive though. The consequences of not 
replacing a bent shaft are 1 vibration and 2 premature wear on your 
carrier bearings and metal fatigue in the lower unit housing.

Capt. Frank USCG-Auxillary

la Dolce Vita 26' Formula PC

Mikhael wrote:

> For those who don't know, I own a brand new four winns 180 freedom.  I hit a
> shoal this weekend.  Extremely windy on the st lawrence near
> johnstown/ogdensburg.  In the bay near grenville park there is a bunch of
> shoals.  These are marked, however the one I hit was not.   The marker was
> submerged.  I was just raising my tilt when I hit it. I immediately went to
> neutral, then raised my tilt as far as I could stand it, then puttered out
> of there.
> 
> In 10 years of owning a boat, the shoal incident waits until I own a very
> expensive boat to occur.
> 
> When I finally made it back to the ramp, I brought my boat on shore to
> examine the damage.  To my relief, it was only minor damage to the prop.  I
> planned on purchasing a new prop with my xmas bonus this year anyway.
> 
> Question:  Is it ok to run an Mercruiser Alpha drive in a tilted up position
> where the prop is barely covered in water? I can't really see the joints on
> the drive lasting too long in that position.  If I get into another
> situation where I have to trim way up or hit a shoal, what are my options?
> 
> Mike
> 
>