Hi James
Chris and I have a 19" Three blade feathering prop on our Gitana 43 from hdraline based in Sydney Australia.
It gave us more speed in both forward and reverse gears, saved us almost 1/2 knot on drag over the old 19" fixed blade and has been trouble free for 5 years now.
Also worth noting is that as we have enough room for a shaft anode we put a plastic cutout between the prop and its shaped nose anode to prevent it working and still gain the benefit of a smooth nose.This was because the anodes were bespoke, expensive and wore quickly at the Alan key fixing bolts. We have had no adverse corrosion problems since doing this.

Hi James,
One of them pluses of the Forum is as an archive for information. It would be great if you can report your final decision, the research sources that were helpful and your thinking that lead to the decision you made.
Thanks, Dick Stevenson, s/v Alchemy

As another follow-up note to our new propeller saga.... Alex had taken the throttle cable out and greased it. When he reinstalled it, he decided to start the engine and put it in gear to make sure it worked. The throttle worked but the prop wouldn't spin or feather. Alex contacted the manufacturer who said there wasn't enough grease in the prop. Meanwhile, the instructions to the yard delivered with the propeller were that it was ready to install, no additional grease needed. After several calls back and forth and learning the characteristics of grease required (broad temp range), Alex had to find suitable grease, dive on the prop, remove two tiny set screws underwater, fill with grease and reinsert screws. When he removed the screws, lots of air bubbles came out indicating it had not been sufficiently greased. It worked! Had he not serviced the throttle cable, we may not have known and it could have seized while underway.

Moral of the story, check grease while you can. BTW, the follow up by the MaxProp folks was impressive. They called multiple times to find out how successful we were at each stage, providing guidance all the way.

Vice Commodore, OCC 

Hi Daria,
It is good to know that Max Prop was so actively concerned and helpful. That means a lot to me in a company. In 3 Max props over the decades, I have only dealt with their distributors, who have also been excellent.
Greasing underwater sounds like a silly thing to do, but I also needed to do so in the Bahamas one season, so it is good to spread around the word that this is possible.
My best, Dick Stevenson, s/v Alchemy

Well just to cufuffal you all, we have just gone back to a fixed prop on Destiny, the reason being that our Max Prop was slightly overpitched the last time we hauled out in Scotland in an effort to reduce fuel consumption, but whilst doing so we gained bad cavitation in a rough sea. We have not had the opportunity to reverse the procedure whilst in Iceland- the country has no travel lift and the cranes cost a fortune. Our solution has been to remove the prop by diving, something I had not wanted to do as I felt the risk of losing a part was too great (I would never consider even attempting to adjust the pitch underwater). But remove it I did with a large plastic box beneath it in very shallow water, I then fitted our new 23"x16 fixed prop from Clements Engineering. This is a relatively easy job underwater and for that reason I would recommend high lats or remote sailors to carry one.

We are now ready for meeting some ice this summer season in East Greenland and the North West Passage next year. The fixed prop is stronger than a Max Prop and about 1/5 of the price should we damage it.

Yes we have noticed that in light airs we are slower, but once over 5kts I think that we are doing the same speed, the spinning prop makes virtually no noise ( Our PRM greabox can trail in gear) and I think that handling under power is improved. We have far more thrust for the same rpm, we can stop the vessel far quicker and the prop walk is great for tight turns, admittedly useful only to Starboard.

The proof will be when we come to haul or in Alaska if we refit the Max Prop....

Hi Janice,
We were sorry not to cross paths in Iceland as we heard you were about. Greenland introduced us to lots of ice, but (probably luckily) none found its way to the prop and we are now in Canada.
I suspect a fixed prop is wise, especially the NW passage as that is all/mostly motoring.
A couple of comments though:
For everyday life a Max prop is astoundingly robust. I caught a fish pot between blade and hull at cruising speed which stopped the prop cold and also stopped the engine. The blade was buried hard into the float and needed effort to extricate, but the prop looked fine as far as I could see underwater. I then worried that it would have been knocked out of balance. It was fine. I was surprised and impressed.
New style (years old now) Max props are easily pitch adjustable underwater.
As to the Max prop being damaged by cavitation because it is over-pitched, I am not so sure. I over pitch a bit more than slightly and have for years and have suffered no cavitation problems.. Could you, perhaps, have been motor-sailing? Cavitation can occur (I believe) when boat speed produced by the sails exceeds the speed generated by the prop. The prop then has no “grip” on the water and bad things unfold.
BTW, what type/model etc. prop puller did you use to get your prop off? This can be a difficult task on shore, let alone underwater: good on you.
My best, Dick Stevenson, s/v Alchemy

Am I correct that this stream would be more easily found and make more sense under engines? Dick

Dick,
I moved the thread as suggested. I doubt though that Janice and Andy will be able to reply for sometime as they are overwintering afloat near Maniitsoq, west Greenland. A place not known for internet connectivity.
Simon
[quote=Dick]Am I correct that this stream would be more easily found and make more sense under engines? Dick[/quote]