“We have been sailing with the 3B FeatherStream propeller, on our Nicholson 35 yacht, since the beginning of May. I Read More…
P. John
FeatherStream B-Hub 3B
Nicholson
“We have been sailing with the 3B FeatherStream propeller, on our Nicholson 35 yacht, since the beginning of May. I phoned you towards the end of May and told you that the initial impressions of the prop’s performance were good. We’ve not long returned from a month’s cruise up the West Coast of Scotland and have put the FeatherStream to more challenging test.”
“We have not been disappointed. In flat water we’ll do 5.5 to 6knts at 1750rpm on the Beta 35 engine. In the short chop sea that would have had us back to 2 to 3.5 kts with our old fixed pitch 2-blader, we were able to maintain 4 to 4.5. I fully endorse Rose’s initial advice about 3 blades in a rough sea.”
“With manoeuvring, the blades transition smoothly, from forward to reverse, without hesitation. The prop walk, in astern, is pronounced at high revs but probably no worse than the fixed. The Nicholson 35 doesn’t like reversing but, with a bit of stern way on and low revs, she’ll steer in calmish conditions.”
“We are thoroughly delighted with the prop’s performance thus far. It is a beautiful piece of engineering that does the job extremely well.”
