The basic idea is that if the motor is bogging trying to get up on plane, remove or enlarge one or more PVS holes to let the prop ventilate a bit and get the motor up into its horsepower band. If the prop slips excessively and blows out on takeoff (motor winds up but you go nowhere) you need to back off on the hole size or plug more holes up to stop the excessive slip. It is akin to taking off in a manual transmission. If the clutch slips excessively, you cant build up speed. If you let it out quickly, you drag the motor down to a low RPM where it makes no torque and cant get you up to speed very fast. Only problem is, the PVS holes are a “one size fits all” adjustment. As you change the load in your boat, or the weather/season changes, the optimal PVS setting will change. Most try for a setting that works all or most of the time, although it wont be optimal for all cases. Note. As the boat comes up on plane and “rolls over” (where the bow starts to drop) the motor will usually “wind up” a bit. This does not hurt a thing, so long as the prop doesnt completely start to slip and the speed doesnt continue to rise. It wont hurt the motor to wrap up to 5K RPM plus if it is accelerating well. In fact, the motor will like that better than being bogged down. I used to call this “the chopper wrap” as a chopper prop will do this every time and it sounds unlike other thru-hub props. My suggestion for setting up a PVS prop is this. First, wear a set of ear-plugs so you cant hear the motor. Then put some tape over the tach so you cant see engine RPM. Make an adjustment, and in a clear area, idle forward. As you go to WOT, start a stopwatch. Stop it at 45mph. record the time. Adjust the PVS holes and repeat. Pick the setting that gets you to 40 the quickest, without regard to sound, RPM, superstition or anything else… If you fish tournaments, fill the livewell. If you usually have a non-boater with you, get someone to go along. You want the test weight to approximate the tournament weight when you set things up.2008 Pantera Classic2014 Mercury Pro XS 200
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