First I want to give a shout out to Hannays Marine in Minneapolis. I brought my prop in after I hit a rock and instead of just letting me pay around $200 to have fixed he said the damage was minor and explained how to repair it. That's the sign of a great store with great customer service. 

 

He said just bang out the bent parts and file down the rough edges and burrs with a file. 

 

So, I need to know what type of file to get. I'm assuming a fine grain but I'm not sure. 

 

What type of file do I need to smooth out this stainless steel prop?

any good metal file will work. I keep one in the boat with me in case I ding it.  any hardware store or big box store will have what you need. 

 an 8 inch flat wretched file will fill the bill

 

dang I put in flat b a st ard file

32 minutes ago, crypt said:

any good metal file will work. I keep one in the boat with me in case I ding it.  any hardware store or big box store will have what you need. 

 

 

Dont they come in certain grains like fine or course?

I'm not sure what kind of prop shop said use a file.  Most don't want you putting a file anywhere near a SS prop.  The file can leave teeth imbedded in the edge and when they have to tig weld it, those pieces of teeth create problems welding it.  Normally a stone is used

 

The mill B A S T A R D file is the type file.

21 minutes ago, Way2slow said:

I'm not sure what kind of prop shop said use a file.  Most don't want you putting a file anywhere near a SS prop.  The file can leave teeth imbedded in the edge and when they have to tig weld it, those pieces of teeth create problems welding it.  Normally a stone is used

 

The mill B A S T A R D file is the type file.

 

 

Thanks. 

 

 

I actually saw a video where the Evinrude guy (probably not actual Evinrude employee) uses a file to fix a SS prop. But he doesn't explain which file to use. 

 

Here it is:

 

 

This is what SS prop repair actually looks like.

Unless you have the tools & experience to perform this level repair correctly, I'd encourage you to take it to someone who does.

Also once you use a file on a stainless prop, it becomes very difficult to tig weld it if it needs repairs.  The file leaves contamination on the stainless steel,  use sandpaper instead.

 

A-Jay

 

You can passivate stainless steel by soaking the filed metal area in Coke Cola over night.

Agree a hard Akansas or diamond stone is a better option and a prop shop is the best option.

Tom

 

2 hours ago, tcbass said:

 

 

Dont they come in certain grains like fine or course?

They come in fine, 2 nd cut (medium) and bas tard (coarse) in standard flat files. 

Tom

PFERD CORINOX® files possess an exceptional surface hardness of 1200 HV (Vickers hardness), which makes them particularly suitable for use on stainless steel (INOX), heat-resistant steels and nickel-cobalt based alloys.

 

8" CORINOX® Machinists File • Hand (1 Safe Edge), Cut 2 will run you about $35