will this prop work ok?

i bought my boat about a month ago and when i bought it the prop (14 1/2 x 17) was kind of rough with litttle nicks on all the blades. well over the weekend at the ramp, i went to put it in reverse and it hit bottom and stalled out on oyster shells. when i took a look at the prop it had a little 1/8 inch bend about 2 inches long on one blade. i caught up with a buddy of mine on the water who had an extra prop when he bought his boat and gave it to me to try, but this prop he gave me has a 21 pitch. at wot with my 17 that is in rough shape it runs 4800 rpm's at 36 mph with 4 adults and 1 child. my boat has a 3.0lx merc with an alpha one, and my buddys boat has the exact same motor and outdrive. my boat is 18 foot 1950 lbs. his boat is 17.5 foot 1800 lbs. i was thinking this prop would work good for my boat being that we have almost the same identical setup and the original prop that came with my boat was a 19. also my wot rpm range is 4400-4800. i would have thought with that 17 prop the rpms would have been higher than 4800 but maybe being that it is in bad shape it is holding the motor back a bit. what do you guys think sorry for such a long post just wanted to lay out everything i knew before people asked any extra questions.

Re: will this prop work ok?

Thanks for trying to cover all the bases.But it was a little hard to follow what you are after.I'll see if I have it straight. Rpm from a damaged prop could go either way so without an undamaged rpm to go by you can't tell much except what your present rpm is.My guess is your max prop size would be 19-21.
but that wouldn't leave much power for skiing or a big load.I'm pretty sure your 17 was a comprimize for increased hole shot and in good shape rpm may have been a little high.I think the 21 will be at the lower end of your rpm range may produce a little more speed if the motor can twist it up to the right rpm.

Re: will this prop work ok?

thats exactly what i was thinking i'll try this weekend after hanna passes through. thanks for the info man.