Propeler

[SAADA]

I have on my Bavaria 39 with saildrive an alluminum 2 blades propeler. Same body as an opinion about Autoprop 3 blades

[Pblais]

I'm not sure what the real question is?

A two blade prop vs. an Autoprop 3 blades. Seems the autoprop should do more for you but at a high cost . A neighbor has a Bavaria 37 and a two blade. He really has no trouble with it as is. The boats are pretty light and handle pretty well.

[Alan Wheeler]

Welcome SAADA. If you scroll down the board further, you will find the "propulsion" topic heading. There has been a lot of dicussion on Propellors there. It may be of some help to you.

[swagman]

Hi Saada,
If you are serious about a folding / feathering three blader then suggest you check out the Kiwi props. From all I read and hear they seem a huge step forward for boats of your size.
Cheers
JOHN

[LaLeLu]

Originally Posted by SAADA

I have on my Bavaria 39 with saildrive an alluminum 2 blades propeler. Same body as an opinion about Autoprop 3 blades

Previous owner put an autoprop on our boat - it caused us to have a strut failure. You can't just stick any prop on your shaft. Your boat is engineered for a particular prop. I would be especially cautious about this on your boat in light of the fact that you have a saildrive and your existing prop is alluminum (ie light weight - btw, are you it's alluminum?? that doesn't sound right). In any event, I assume that prop weight would be a big issue with a saildrive as you don't really have anything holding it up. Here's the long version of what we learned from our own prop/strut failure:

There was an autoprop on our boat when we bought it - we didn't think twice about it. A few months after purchase, we were motoring down the ICW wide open when we heard a terrifying screech, bang, boom. My husband dove the prop and found that the strut was sheered in half and one of the prop blades was missing. After haulout we dissassmbled the running gear and took it to Caliber (our boat maker). They could not say for sure whether the prop blade broke first or the strut. (FYI, we did contact Autoprop and they told us "too bad - so sad" so if you think that you will get service after the sale with them - forget about it.) Caliber told us that the autoprop is way too heavy for the strut/shaft design and it quite possibly could have caused the strut to stress fracture. Further, McCreary told us that they caution Caliber owners about switching props, and particularly not to use autoprop on their boats (b/c of the weight issue). If you do switch props, contact the manufacturer and find out what props are compatible. Obviously, clearance can be an issue. If you have a folding prop, need to make sure that the rudder has adaquate clearance. McCreary told us that he knew of a boat yard that cut a notch out of a rudder in order to give clearance for a max prop (instead of shortening the shaft). Also, you have to consider your engine and make sure that the pitch is correct so that you can reach max rpms. Bottom line, from a person that has been burned by having the wrong prop installed, I would caution you to get advice from other owners and the manufacturer.

Best of luck!

Susan

[SAADA]

Tks for your reply. When returning from Med last summer and after pass C.S. Vicent we got 3/5m waves and wind from nw force 4 we need same help from our 39hp volvo engine and same times we toke 30min to move 1 mile
I confirm it is a Saildrive with alluminium propreler

[SAADA]

Originally Posted by LaLeLu

Previous owner put an autoprop on our boat - it caused us to have a strut failure. You can't just stick any prop on your shaft. Your boat is engineered for a particular prop. I would be especially cautious about this on your boat in light of the fact that you have a saildrive and your existing prop is alluminum (ie light weight - btw, are you it's alluminum?? that doesn't sound right). In any event, I assume that prop weight would be a big issue with a saildrive as you don't really have anything holding it up. Here's the long version of what we learned from our own prop/strut failure:

There was an autoprop on our boat when we bought it - we didn't think twice about it. A few months after purchase, we were motoring down the ICW wide open when we heard a terrifying screech, bang, boom. My husband dove the prop and found that the strut was sheered in half and one of the prop blades was missing. After haulout we dissassmbled the running gear and took it to Caliber (our boat maker). They could not say for sure whether the prop blade broke first or the strut. (FYI, we did contact Autoprop and they told us "too bad - so sad" so if you think that you will get service after the sale with them - forget about it.) Caliber told us that the autoprop is way too heavy for the strut/shaft design and it quite possibly could have caused the strut to stress fracture. Further, McCreary told us that they caution Caliber owners about switching props, and particularly not to use autoprop on their boats (b/c of the weight issue). If you do switch props, contact the manufacturer and find out what props are compatible. Obviously, clearance can be an issue. If you have a folding prop, need to make sure that the rudder has adaquate clearance. McCreary told us that he knew of a boat yard that cut a notch out of a rudder in order to give clearance for a max prop (instead of shortening the shaft). Also, you have to consider your engine and make sure that the pitch is correct so that you can reach max rpms. Bottom line, from a person that has been burned by having the wrong prop installed, I would caution you to get advice from other owners and the manufacturer.

Best of luck!

Susan

Dear Susan
I realy TKS your reply and from now Autoprop is removed from my list.