skeg protectors

[95glas]

anyone try any of these or others? black fin, skeg guard, etc.. can't make up my mind which one to get

[4JawChuck]

I have a SS Skeg Guard on my 90HP Merc, it works as advertised and fits like a glove. I have already wacked a couple rocks with it and even dragged the launch with it once, seems like its stronger than an AL skeg (I lost a good chunk and bent my factory skeg on a rock last year 2 days before I went on holidays) There was enough of the original skeg gone and it was bent enough that it pulled terribly to one side and didn't steer very well. They FedEx'd the Skeg Guard to me overnight and I installed it as we were loading the boat to go camping, took me 15 minutes to install it...I didn't have a week to wait until the skeg could be properly repaired.

Some people don't like the way it looks but I don't mind it, I can say if I ever lose it on a rock along with the rest of my skeg I wouldn't hesitate to buy another one to do a temp repair again...kept me fishing this year. To be honest I am not repairing that skeg until it breaks completely off, I think the drilled holes will be where it snaps off the next time which might save me a completely broken lower.

Well made solid product for an emergency repair if you ask me although I would not put one on a good skeg.

[95glas]

from the reviews i have read.. skegguard seems to be the best option thus far, blackfin is held on with adhesive- read one review where guy says it fell off and skegpro ( the brand i am/ was sorta leaning towards) review i read on it- says poor fitment, extended 3/4" - 1" too far

[Tom Foley]

Total waste of time and money ...it will end up breaking off the whole skeg ..seen plenty ..save your money .

[olmo40]

Have used Skeg Guard successfully many times :thumbsup:

[props4u2]

Total waste of time and money ...it will end up breaking off the whole skeg ..seen plenty ..save your money .

:iagree:


It is also not for performance boats by any means!!!


Lee

[Capt.Insane-o]

Fill the cavity up with 5200 or silicone before you slide it on. The screw holes wallow out after awhile and the silicone keeps the guard from wobbling around.

[RB in NM]

There's sumthing plain wrong with drilling holes into yer skegg.........:eek:

RB

[95glas]

why would they cause a performance loss?

[Riverratt]

why would they cause a performance loss?

Drag one finger through the water by itself then drag 2 fingers side by side through the water and then tell me which one was easier to drag through the water. With the skeg guard you are making the skeg wider which is creating more resistance.

[Brad Zastrow]

I have some Herring skegs on some Number Six drives that are thinner than the Sportmaster skegs on outboards. Thin props and thin skegs are much faster. But they also break. Why would you install a skeg guard? Just fix the nicks and gouges on the skeg as needed. I think the extra thick guard would stress the skeg.

[mdc]

After losing half the skeg on a 200 case with Bob's nosecone I tried a skeg guard. Surfacing a chopper at around 75mph there was no noticeable difference in top speed but one of the rivets broke and it split at the top rear edge.

[95glas]

Drag one finger through the water by itself then drag 2 fingers side by side through the water and then tell me which one was easier to drag through the water. With the skeg guard you are making the skeg wider which is creating more resistance.
makes sense.. but not sure if measureable loss or not, i think higher loss would be from the hydrofoil i had on my old boat ( been told not to put on my new boat as they are just a bandaid for poor prop selection) performance wise thus far only seems to make sense to put my $$ towards a s/s prop and maybe reeds ( not sold on them yet). remotely possibility of a jackplate though i have been told on my boat would probably make it slower ..wasn't thinking of the skegguard really as a performance addition more as a preventative measure

[Tom Foley]

The point really is that while a Skeg Guard (which i wish i had invented !!!) may stop evident damage from minor groundings , it will also amplify the hit right up to the bottom of the case and many times cause the whole skeg to break off losing the thing in the process . It really has no place on a HP boat imho . Good money maker though !!

[Raceman]

makes sense.. but not sure if measureable loss or not, i think higher loss would be from the hydrofoil i had on my old boat ( been told not to put on my new boat as they are just a bandaid for poor prop selection) performance wise thus far only seems to make sense to put my $$ towards a s/s prop and maybe reeds ( not sold on them yet). remotely possibility of a jackplate though i have been told on my boat would probably make it slower ..wasn't thinking of the skegguard really as a performance addition more as a preventative measure

Somebody else already said it, but apparently it bears repeating............ there's no place for a skeg guard in a high perf application, and unless the boat is a toad, IT WILL slow it down, and it DOES stress the skeg. Incidentally, seems like I remember in another of your posts that you were asking about a nosecone on a relatively slow boat. It too will COST YOU speed unless you're running fast enough to need it to prevent blowout OR intend to raise the motor high enough to need the low water pickups.

As far as "not being sold" on the reeds, if you use the search function here, you'll see that the overwhelming majority agree that reeds are basically an insurance policy against breaking/injestion on a higher RPM engine. You won't find any significant power advantage from 'em. Some engines seem to idle better, and some think a little better midrange, but you won't see improvement on top end.

[Jeff_G]

We use and install Skeg Guards on fishing boats. I would never install one on a boat that does over 50 mph. We use them when a portion of the skeg is broken off. If the entire skeg is broken off, get a new gearcase.
I find them adequate for their purpose on slower pleasure boats. When I install them I use epoxy or 5200 in the guard then push it on to prevent corrosion build up inside.