Which prop '92 Barefoot/Excel?

I read some good experiences regarding Amce and OJ props.
Any suggestions (brand/type/no of blades)?

My boat is a '92 Barefoot with a 5.8 HO 285hp and BW V drive.
And use the boat mostly for touring and wakeboarding at lower speeds.

Don't know which prop is on now.
I think it's still the original.
Three blade for sure.

The boat is still in the water.
I'll check prop and tranny this weekend.

Acme 328, I got one for my 93 Excel this spring. I gained holeshot, and lost no top end or mpg. Acme builds this prop narrow because of the rudder clearance issue on the Barefoot/Excel hulls, I've heard that some other nautiques of this era had the issue as well, but I can't confirm that.

I've got the Pro Boss (351 Ford carbed) with a Warner Velvet Drive 1:1 and a Walters V Drive. I'm not exactly sure of the reduction on the V drive, it's about 1:1.2, but I don't have time to run down to the dock and look. I ran her all the way up the other night and she does 45 turning about 4200 rpm. I was disappointed because I thought she had run faster in the past, but the reading were of the Perfect Pass Stargazer, and when I looked at the original gauges, they were reading higher, and exactly what I expected. Not that big a deal because we tend to ride between 20 and 25, but I would like her to break 50 just to say I can. Guess I better get to reading that adding HP thread.

The 328 is very thin when you look at it from the side, as far as I know there are no other choices from Acme.    The Excel needs this thin prop for rudder clearance.   I've got a 422 that I'm about to sell and it is over an inch thicker than the 328 when sitting on the table.

I don't know, but I bet they would use the same prop on the Barefoot Nautiques, the BBC would spin it hard enough to get over 50. I got the holeshot I was looking for and that was my primary concern since we rarely see speeds over 30.

When I emailed acme Bill told me a 380 (13.5x17.5) but I dont think I could turn it and I dont know how thin or thick it is. That 328 sounds good and if you are both running 45 and the acme turns 800 less rpm its all the better.

My factory tach reads little bit higher than my Perfect Pass, I set the speedo's originally with a hand held GPS at 24 mph. My original top speed runs were 49mph @ about 5000 rpm's, when I put the 328 on everything read almost exactly the same as Acme said it would. My new numbers are from the Perfect Pass, the original gauges still read about the same. I don't think I've lost anything, I am just able to measure it more accurately now. The prop that was on the boat 14 x 16, it has a 95 stamped on it so I don't know if it is original or not. I might put it back on this winter and make a few runs to see what it does according to the new gauges.

I have been impressed with the fuel usage, I pulled an event outside of Fort Worth about a month ago and the boat used between 3 and 4 gallons an hour. I haven't quite been able to dial in the KDW on the Perfect Pass to get it to stick speeds 20 and lower with a full load of people so I could use a few more RPM's at slow speeds. We've found that switching to rpm mode take care of that though.

As for he through hull, I really have gotten to like the quite ride outside the boat, now if I had a BBC in there, then I would want to let everyone know about it.

I got a tip from someone the other day that I thought should be on this thread for future reference. Just something to think about kinda like the drippless packing or other conversions that are nice if you have the opportunity.

If you have to replace the driveshaft on an Excel, get it an inch shorter and then you can run whatever prop you want instead of having limited choices because of the rudder clearance.

Yes you can shorten,I'm guessing these have a single taper shaft. I have shortened using a grinder-cutoff wheel, grind taper for keyway up shaft for the amount you cutoff, then grind new sideways slots (flats) for the screws.