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  #1   IP: 148.170.240.1
Old 02-24-2011, 12:10 PM
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So - pros versus cons re: Indigo prop?

Well from what I'm reading here and in the prop FAQ at the Moyer Marine web site, it seems that there are nearly zero negative comments regarding the Indigo 3-blade prop, and the general consensus is it works very well with a direct-drive A4.

I'm leaning towards going ahead and buying one, as using the prop that is on the boat now (which has been on it for years, as far as I know), the engine never gets above about 1700 rpm at WOT.

The previous owner told me he had the timing and everything checked by a marine mechanic and the engine did run very well, so I figured the only thing left was the prop. The surveyor agreed that was the likely culprit.

I guess the primary potential downside is increased drag from the 3-blade versus the existing 2-blade prop.

But being as my prop is in a cutout between the rudder and stern end of the keel, I'm wondering if that increase in frontal surface area might potentially be minimized. Here's a lousy photo:




Also, Indigo states that the increase is about 9%, so I'm thinking that on a 30-foot, 10,000 - 12,000 lb. boat (1968 Pearson Wanderer), the extra drag of that prop likely will be so small as to be negligible and not noticeable. After all, I'm not racing; I'm just cruising around the Chesapeake Bay.

All in all, it looks like to me that it probably is worth it to drop the $$ on the Indigo prop, but I figured I'd drop a note to see if anyone has any other "cons" I should consider to balance out all the "pro" comments I've seen, before plonking down another few hundred bucks and yet another new thing for das boot.

Thanks...
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  #2   IP: 173.166.26.241
Old 02-24-2011, 01:21 PM
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hanleyclifford hanleyclifford is offline
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Talking

Go for the three blade Indigo. Three blades run truer than two and for a cruiser that is important. You didn't say, but my hunch is that your present 2 blade is too much prop for your situation. If you cannot get to 2000 rpm in flat water, you have too much prop.
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Old 02-24-2011, 02:26 PM
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PRO - Works better in every possible way under power
CON - Slower under sail than a feathering, folding, or fixed 2 blade.

So
RACE = Not a good choice if you want to win.
CRUISE = hell yes!
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Old 02-24-2011, 02:54 PM
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Thumbs up

Quote:
Originally Posted by joe_db View Post
PRO - Works better in every possible way under power
CON - Slower under sail than a feathering, folding, or fixed 2 blade.

So
RACE = Not a good choice if you want to win.
CRUISE = hell yes!
+1 what Joe said... and with yours partially hidden in a aperture, the drag concern is less than say someone like me with it just hanging from a strut between the keel & rudder.
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Last edited by sastanley; 02-24-2011 at 02:56 PM.
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Old 02-24-2011, 03:17 PM
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It's funny. Wasn't that long ago if I hauled my boat and the prop tips were bent like Shawn's picture I'd wonder what the Hell I'd hit.
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Old 02-27-2011, 01:22 AM
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No complaints whatsoever with mine - I have an apature like your vessal and the ability to manuver at low speed has been greatly improved.

You won't regret buying one.

Cheers!
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Old 02-27-2011, 10:45 PM
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Neil, those are the vortex reducing and thrust inducing fancy wingtips!!! - I almost feel I should enter into a race, except the other props are spinning 8,500 RPM

Nothing wrong with trickle down technology in my opinion.

In reality, there is reduced prop wash across my Cat 30 Mark I rudder compared to the two blade 12 x 7 Michigan Wheel prop. I used to get bruises on the inside of my right leg!!
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Old 02-28-2011, 07:51 AM
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There was an FAA inspector famous for grounding airplanes he saw with "bent" props. The technology was called Q-Tip when it appeared on airplane props.

Quote:
Originally Posted by ndutton View Post
It's funny. Wasn't that long ago if I hauled my boat and the prop tips were bent like Shawn's picture I'd wonder what the Hell I'd hit.
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Old 02-28-2011, 08:24 AM
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I have a P30, which has a fin keel and a spade rudder. When I changed to the indigo
I had more reverse and more thrust in beating.

Steve
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Old 02-28-2011, 08:49 AM
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The anti vortex tip concept isn't lost on me and I admire Indigo developing the product.

It's appearance looks like the prop on a WW2 plane wreck. Here's a pic of a crashed F4U, one of my favorite dive sites. Check out the one visible prop tip, clear evidence the prop was turning when she went in.
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Old 05-30-2011, 04:31 PM
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New Indigo

I put on an Indigo SS 3 blade prop and launched last Friday. Thus far I am very happy with the new prop. The engine revs a little higher but the power is a lot smoother.

There was always vibration in the back of the boat with the 2 blade and it was bad enought to make the swim ladder and cockpit hatches vibrate while motoring. There was virtually no vibration with the new prop.

Very happy with the performance.
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Old 05-31-2011, 09:29 AM
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Go 4 it!

Laker, I too was a bit doubtful although I do have a bit of prop experience under my belt. I played with many a 2 blade (4 props and about a dozen combinations of re-pitch and diameter adjustments) an finally decided to try it. Well it's been on the boat now for the 6th season and I have not considered any sort of changes, a rarity for me.

Dave Neptune
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Old 05-31-2011, 10:03 AM
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Smile 3 blade prop

does any one know if you can reconfigure a good 3 blade prop to the shape of a indigo 3 blade, from my experience a good prop shop can do miracles in reshaping a prop an probably a lot cheaper are there any specs out there on indigos prop art.
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Old 05-31-2011, 11:39 AM
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Thumbs down Prop shop!

I worked in a prop shop for a short time and they can do a great deal to tweak one. However I don't think they could duplicate the winglets without welding/or brazing.
There are many new props available today such as the Indigo that are using a far different crossection for fluid dynamics (Campbell Propellar in Canada)assiciated with forward thrust just as an aircraft wing is associated with lift. Most props are more of a linear screw with good flow at the edges only.
The nicest thing with the Indigo is it works well on the A-4 direct drive which it was designed for!

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Old 05-31-2011, 03:06 PM
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Question

ILR,
Did you ever pick up an Indigo prop?

With a clean prop & timing adjustment (reset from scratch actually ) I was able to get 2,300 RPM WOT this weekend..that is 150 more than I could get last year.

I even did some sailing this weekend, and I agree that the additional drag is negligible compared to a 2-blade fixed. The prop is so tiny when you install it you won't believe it!
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Old 07-09-2013, 11:12 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sastanley View Post
ILR,
Did you ever pick up an Indigo prop?

With a clean prop & timing adjustment (reset from scratch actually ) I was able to get 2,300 RPM WOT this weekend..that is 150 more than I could get last year.

I even did some sailing this weekend, and I agree that the additional drag is negligible compared to a 2-blade fixed. The prop is so tiny when you install it you won't believe it!
Well, I too was taken aback by its small size! It works! I am using it on an Islander 28. The Islander has minimal wetted surface for a 28' boat. I am still having difficulty getting to 2000 rpms with a clean hull and prop. I am thinking I don't have the timing right? It is a fairly "new" Moyer rebuilt (less than 100 hours). I installed it. When I read that boxier 30+ footers are getting 2000+ rpms I am jealous.

Back to the drawing board. Any suggestion of how I should proceed?

I have a new complete exhaust and Moyer ss waterlift. I installed the back pressure gauge when I replaced the exhaust and its reading are fine. Time to add a vacuum gauge.

George
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Old 07-09-2013, 12:13 PM
Dave Neptune Dave Neptune is online now
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Lightbulb Probably

George, you're spot on with the RPM diagnosis. You should easily get to 2300, my tired 43 year old original A-4 will get 2700 at WOT.

Are you using an EI or points? If points as they wear the timing really changes which will not happen with the EI. I'd also check under the cap to be sure the centrifugal advance is functioning before doing any "tuning".

Dave Neptune
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Old 07-09-2013, 12:45 PM
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Thanks Dave,

The boat is on the hard this year. I just didn't have the time I needed to use it with family obligations this summer. Births, weddings, and birthdays. My twin sisters celebrate their 60th in WI this month. That will include some time on Lake superior. One of my seven kids is stationed in Rome and I am spending the month of October in Italy to visit and get to know the youngest grand daughter who we only held for a week a year and a half ago when they were in D.C.. Another birth is due in November in Arkansas and I am trying to get the construction of a new house (kid magnet) started here on Mt. Desert Island. The Marshall Catboat is our only sail boat this season. We enjoy that boat, too.

While the I-28 is out I will drop the rudder and replace the cutless bearing. I want to inspect the rudder shaft for fatigue, too. The A-4 has been running well. Starts right up. Idles smoothly. I installed a heat exchanger when I installed the engine. It runs cool. Usually around 150. Perhaps hotter plugs? It has an EI. We rarely put 20 hours on the engine in a season.

I can inspect things while it is out of the water. Won't be able to test the results. I have a timing light and a tach and dwell. I will look at the advance weight.

Thanks,

George
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Old 07-09-2013, 02:31 PM
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Adding to the chorus, I have seen no downsides with the Indigo prop and also like the fact that running the engine at higher RPMs in gear enables me to get noticeably more current out of the high-capacity alternator that I strapped on a few years ago.

I have a V-drive and cruise at about 1800. I can get her up to 2400 no problem in flat seas, though Dave Neptunes 2700 would be a stretch.
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Old 07-09-2013, 03:15 PM
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Yes, I was fortunate enough to come across a first-gen stainless steel Indigo that was unused, for about $100 less than new. Tom actually asked me to send it to him so he could check it to make sure the pitch was correct, which it was.

I put it on when I put my engine back in and splashed the boat.

I managed to get out for a sail only a couple times in the past year, but I did find that I still can't get the RPM up to where it should be, so I'm now suspecting perhaps a minor timing issue, or quite possibly an exhaust restriction.

The engine also was running hotter than it should, which seems to me to corroborate the theory that it's one (or both) of those things.

I've been so busy trying to get my business going, I haven't been to my boat since about January. I never even drained the antifreeze out of the heat exchanger that I put in there when I winterized the engine last year.
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