New prop

[doris]

Need a new prop.
Flexofld £2,233 ex vat
Feather stream £1794 ex vat
Dos anyone know the respective merits or demerits of these two????

 

[sailingmartin]

Doris. Can’t comment on Flexofold, but have had a Featherstream on three different boats. Easy to maintain, good performance and reliable (touching lots of wood). One replaced a Bruntons Autoprop on my current boat when a blade fell off crossing Christchurch Bay. Fantastic service from Darglow with the Featherstream. Much quieter and less vibration. Good luck.

 

[Tranona]

Presumably 3 blade Flexofold. I have had both, although my folder was a 2 blade on a saildrive.
My latest project has a Flexofold and I have posted a number of times (including earlier on today on PBO) why I made my choice It is my second of this type and obviously I think they are great! big advantage (for some) is the easy ability to change the pitch and to have a different pitch in forward and reverse. Quality of materials and construction are both of highest standard. Don't think there is much to choose between them in terms of drag reduction under sail or of performance in reverse (often an issue with some props). I declare a (non financial) interest in that have known the people at Darglow for more years than I care to think about, but they do give a high level of service.

This is my latest Featherstream

 

[neilf39]

i have had a featherstream 3 blade prop for the last 4 years and apart from regreasing each year and touching up the antifoul have not had to do anything and worked fine.

 

[Seven Spades]

We had a 3-blade Kiwi-Prop and we found it very needy in that to keep it moving it needed to be re-greased mid-season. We replaced it with a two bladed flexofold blade following a group test in YM which showed it to be a prop that was almost as good as mostthree bladed propellers.

My wife hated it because the thee bladed Kiwi Prop effectivly had no mass and was unbelievable smooth. Replacing it with a two bladed folding propeller introduced a lot of vibration. I bought a two bladed propeller because I genuinely think you are far less likely to get caught up on a pot. However, I would think twice about buying a two bladed prop again. I don't think that the vibration was anything to do with the brand.

 

[doris]

We had a 3-blade Kiwi-Prop and we found it very needy in that to keep it moving it needed to be re-greased mid-season. We replaced it with a two bladed flexofold blade following a group test in YM which showed it to be a prop that was almost as good as mostthree bladed propellers.

My wife hated it because the thee bladed Kiwi Prop effectivly had no mass and was unbelievable smooth. Replacing it with a two bladed folding propeller introduced a lot of vibration. I bought a two bladed propeller because I genuinely think you are far less likely to get caught up on a pot. However, I would think twice about buying a two bladed prop again. I don't think that the vibration was anything to do with the brand.

Interesting post, many thanks.
Also thanks to the other posters, I’ll have a chat with Darglow on Monday. Seems that its balanced between the two but Featerstream is a lot better value.

 

[doris]

We had a 3-blade Kiwi-Prop and we found it very needy in that to keep it moving it needed to be re-greased mid-season. We replaced it with a two bladed flexofold blade following a group test in YM which showed it to be a prop that was almost as good as mostthree bladed propellers.

My wife hated it because the thee bladed Kiwi Prop effectivly had no mass and was unbelievable smooth. Replacing it with a two bladed folding propeller introduced a lot of vibration. I bought a two bladed propeller because I genuinely think you are far less likely to get caught up on a pot. However, I would think twice about buying a two bladed prop again. I don't think that the vibration was anything to do with the brand.

I never had anything on a prop until I had a sail drive. Then I had fitted a stripper rope cutter which had a good munch three times over the course of 11 years. Now a stripper costs about a grand once fitted et al, I am agonising over whether to stump up the wedge and get another one.

 

[Tranona]

We had a 3-blade Kiwi-Prop and we found it very needy in that to keep it moving it needed to be re-greased mid-season. We replaced it with a two bladed flexofold blade following a group test in YM which showed it to be a prop that was almost as good as mostthree bladed propellers.

My wife hated it because the thee bladed Kiwi Prop effectivly had no mass and was unbelievable smooth. Replacing it with a two bladed folding propeller introduced a lot of vibration. I bought a two bladed propeller because I genuinely think you are far less likely to get caught up on a pot. However, I would think twice about buying a two bladed prop again. I don't think that the vibration was anything to do with the brand.

I had a FlexoFold 2 blade on a saildrive for 10 years on 2 boats. No vibration - but that was on a saildrive. While a folding prop is less likely to catch stuff when folded, the number of blades is largely irrelevant, whether folded or running. Any spinning or open blade will catch ropes, pot lines, plastic bags etc. A Stripper provides protection, although of course not 100% as there is always the chance of something that will overload it.

 

[jamie N]

Amongst other things, the people at Darglow were very easy to deal with, and "listened" to what I said, as my propshaft isn't of a standard diameter, and together we worked around it to get an agreeable solution.
Some years on, no complaints.

 

[SaltyC]

I have had 2 Flex-O-Fold props both mounted on a sail drive leg. 1st 2 bladed with 18hp on 31 foot. Lacked 'bite' to punch into a head sea but quiet and no vibration. Astern was non existent, until I learnt tickover did not open the blades, a burst of revs astern and OK.
2nd 3 bladed, 55hp on 37 foot boat. A revelation quiet and smooth (far more so than a friends 36 with shaft drive) BUT it had the bite to power through a head sea or STOP when you got it wrong.
Plus an extra 3/4 knot sailing - will apply to either.

 

[Koeketiene]

Need a new prop.
Flexofld £2,233 ex vat
Feather stream £1794 ex vat
Dos anyone know the respective merits or demerits of these two????

Had a Featherstream on my previous boat for about 10 years.
Not complaints whatsoever - on the contrary.
Performance/responsiveness is very good - both forward and reverse.
Annual change of the annode and some grease every other year.

When I changed boats in 2020, a Featherstream was one of the first things to go on the new boat.
And, the company are a pleasure to deal with. They DO listen when you contact them.

One word of 'advise': when planning to either keep your boat outside the UK or go long-term cruising, buy plenty of annodes in advance.
As far as I have been able to tell, you can only get them from Darglow and shipping/import charges can be eye-watering.

 

[Bobc]

Need a new prop.
Flexofld £2,233 ex vat
Feather stream £1794 ex vat
Dos anyone know the respective merits or demerits of these two????

I love my Featherstream. The drag is nominal, but the stopping power and grunt in reverse are immense. Transformed my boat for close-quarters handling.

 

[Graham376]

One word of 'advise': when planning to either keep your boat outside the UK or go long-term cruising, buy plenty of annodes in advance.
As far as I have been able to tell, you can only get them from Darglow and shipping/import charges can be eye-watering.

Yes, Featherstream anodes are expensive but I've found adding a shaft anode increases the life of the one on the prop by a couple of years.

 

[Koeketiene]

Yes, Featherstream anodes are expensive but I've found adding a shaft anode increases the life of the one on the prop by a couple of years.

I have a shaft anode in place.
And whilst there is just about 50% of the anode left each year, I'm not sure I would want to risk streaching it to replacing it only every other year.

My current boat lives on a swinging mooring year round, but my previous boat spent Nov-Mar in a marina every year.
And when lifted her out each year, there was very little of the prop anode left. Likewise the shaft anode.

 

[dgadee]

I have been trying to sell a Gori for 30mm shaft for ages. Can't understand why it hasn't gone given the new price. Yachties must have too much money.

 

[Tranona]

Slightly tongue in cheek, but maybe because there are better products on the market. Shaft size is only one of 3 key dimensions, diameter and pitch are the other 2 and all 3 need to be right to make it worth buying as new blades are around half the price of a complete prop. Even shaft diameter can be a problem because not all shafts use the standard taper. My 30mm shaft has a standard 25mm taper machined so that I can fit the smaller hub Featherstream with the largest diameter blades.

So, guess a long winded way of saying that it is a very narrow market and finding someone who owns a boat that will be able to use the prop as it is , and wants that particular design is a challenge. Had the same problem with a lovely JF feathering prop that was custom made for my boat. 1" shaft 15" diameter and pitched for a Yanmar 1GM with a 3.1:1 reduction in a 3.5 tonne boat. I found somebody through here who had a virtually identical setup and the prop would have been perfect. However he did not know the taper or thread (it needed a new locking nut) and he would have to lift the boat to find out. Not surprising all too much hassle so the prop stays on the floor of my study!

 

[dgadee]

Yes there are better. But a Gori folder is better than non folding I would have thought. At 1/10th the price of a new folder.

 

[doris]

Thank you all for yoour replies.
After a serious chat with Darglow, who as has been stated are a delight to deal with, I will go with a featherstream. Their rope cutter is a lot better value than a stripper too,.
Now just have to wait for the seller of the boat to agree that the proffered deal is the right one.

 

[Tranona]

Yes there are better. But a Gori folder is better than non folding I would have thought. At 1/10th the price of a new folder.

Agree - for that (rare) person and boat it will fit!

 

[dgadee]

Agree - for that (rare) person and boat it will fit!

It only takes one person to buy one article. Though two fighting is always better for the seller.