First Post - ?? about propeller guards

[Ken Paydon]

Greetings all... I have been registered for months now, and have enjoyed reading the forums. There are some scary-smart boat people here, man o man I thought I was a boating fanatic!<br />For background, I've got a '99 Viper Coral 19' fishnski with a 175 Merc EFI... the family and I live and work in the Missouri Ozarks, and boat Bull Shoals, Taneycomo, and TableRock lakes. I love to read about boating destinations on this board and in Trailer Boats mag, but I gotta tell you, the Ozarks is a boating paradise!<br /><br />Okay, propeller guards... the Mrs. was listening to NPR as they covered the latest in "lawyerly" pursuits. Apparently Mercury Marine is being sued for selling a dangerous product(outboard motor) because they do not come standard with propeller guards. Listeners were then treated to a number of horror stories, complete with titillating detail I'm sure. So now the Mrs. is outraged that big corporate America (Mercury) is needlessly killing and maiming and perhaps even looting and pillaging , and my beautiful boat needs one of these abominations.<br />Can anyone help with a cold hard fact that propeller guards cannot be used with bass boat hulls, or over 40mph, or some other deal breaker? please? thanks very much!<br /><br />Yours in Boating, Forsythian

 

[beckerdg]

Re: First Post - ?? about propeller guards

Dang, I always thought that this was a bonus. I could take the wife fishing and blame merc when I push her, I mean she falls, oops . . .

 

[Boatist]

Re: First Post - ?? about propeller guards

FishnSki<br />Well you will loose top speed, use more fuel and look dumb. Blaming the prop for this damage is like blaming the gun for shooting or the car for traffic deaths.<br />If you want to place blame then blame the boater who lets the kids or people sit on the bow where they can fall in and be run over before operator can stop. Blame the operator who does not keep track of his skier in the water and runs them over or the boat following the skier.<br />On the other hand if Fast Food Restrants is responsible for over weight FAT people, maybe SHE IS RIGHT. I always though it was people who eat more than they need.<br />People will do anything to place blame on someone elese and make money instead of takeing blame them self and admiting it was their fault.<br />I am over wieght but it can not be my fault. Who should I sue???

 

[roscoe]

Re: First Post - ?? about propeller guards

I can't imagine that there would be much difference between getting hit in the back of the head by a prop or a prop guard at 60 mph.<br /><br />If we have to put a guard on the prop, what would be next? Is it possible to put a guard on the hull? How about if we park the boat in an IMAX theater and just pretend we are on hte water.

 

[magster65]

Re: First Post - ?? about propeller guards

Lawyer : Open sore in the rectum of a sewer rat. What is with society today? Prop guards... is that on planes and ceiling fans too? My computer has a cooling fan in the back of it, I'm trying to get my pinky in there right now.......... wait........ just about......... OUCH! Excellent dude! I'm suing the outfit that sold this to me, the people that made it, the hydro people for supplying the power to it and a fellow outside (he was just walking by). I'll have NO trouble finding a lawyer to pursue this. TGIF<br />Boatist, Don't laugh too hard, I read in the paper a while back that some fat slob and his 'open sore' (that's catchy) were suing a donut chain for supplying hi-carb. fatty food. He claimed he didn't know until it was too late. True story.

 

[Ken Paydon]

Re: First Post - ?? about propeller guards

I floated this same question over on a Missouri- outdoors site and got this excellent response: "You can't lawyer-proof anything... the minute you make something idiot-proof they will build a better idiot!".<br />I don't want to make light of anyone who has suffered from a boating accident, I just wish that certain elements of our society understood the inherent meaning of the word "accident".<br />Back to the guards, I would be very nervous with one of those contraptions on my lower unit when I am planed-out at a healthy speed... seems to me it could collect and keep ahold of debris and I might find myself in an uncomfortable situation!

 

[Terry H]

Re: First Post - ?? about propeller guards

fishnski...I think we ought to leave this topic out for a while and then send the results to the attorneys involved in the case. <br />The pilot of the craft should be held responsible for anyone falling out of his boat...only logical.<br />Mercury had no control over how the boat was driven...and anyone riding in unsafe position...just a Thought

 

[Jack Shellac]

Re: First Post - ?? about propeller guards

I'm not a lawyer, but in my job I have to be around them a good bit [a lot more than I want, I gaurantee you]. Listening to them talk while we're waiting on something is very revealing. All they seem to ever talk about is how big a settlement Lawyer So and So got. Never the merits of the case or how justice was done, just how much money they got. The greedy lawyers are one of our big problems today, in my opinion. Right or wrong means nothing to them, just "who's got the deep pockets?". In the case cited at the start, it's Mecury Marine of course. Even though we know it was the captain's responsibility, they'd never take millions of dollars from him. Makes me sick.

 

[ndemge]

Re: First Post - ?? about propeller guards

-Not boat related-<br /><br />Last week, I was at DairyQeen with my fience'..(man that sounds wierd, ..Proposed Yesterday, she said yes!)<br />anyway....<br />I took the 3yo kid to the bathroom to clean up his catchup covred face. He was not wearing shoes as we were just in the playground area.<br /><br />As we are standing inside, an employee walks in and the door scrapes over the top of his feet, giveing that ungodly loud 3yo scream that everyone within 5 miles heard. The kid that worked there was soooo apologetic and you could feal he felt bad for the kid, but he wasn't hurt, I think it scared him mroe than it hurt.. kinda like a lil stubed toe. 2 minutes later, he's back out there running around playing again like nothing happened. <br /><br />The manager comes out to ask if he is ok, and all you can see on her face is (were gonna get our butts sue'd) no senserity.

 

[495v]

Re: First Post - ?? about propeller guards

Fishnski, how do you like the Viper Coral? Almost bought one 2 years ago, thought they were very nice. I was looking at the 21 fter. Nice rig, you'l have to post a pic of it sometime. The he*l with the prop guard, I'm sure you will lose performance.

 

[DJ]

Re: First Post - ?? about propeller guards

sishnski,<br /><br />Some good comments here about prop guards. I have had some experience with them in slower moving craft-mainly pontoons.<br /><br /> The reason for putting them on pontoons was an entirely different reason-to spare the props. in shallow areas with small rocks around. They were marginally succesful in protecting the props and did make a BIG difference in top speed.<br /><br />Just explain to your wife that NO ONE is going to be any where near that prop when the engine is running. I'm sure you avoid putting your hand on the hot stove and don't sit on the hood of the car while it's moving. Same principles apply!

 

[Ken Paydon]

Re: First Post - ?? about propeller guards

Everybody, thanks for the replies.<br />No way am I going to put one of those guards on, you probably figured that by now I guess <br />This issue has been flying below the radar, hopefully it will stay there and Mercury will be able to nip this in the bud... I suppose we consumers will then get to pay the lawyer bills each time we buy a new motor, sigh.<br />495v I love the boat, just got it last spring (had an older Glastron openbow prior) and so far so great! Might try to post a pic from work in the coming days... thanks again!