Sharrow Props

[loubeer]

Any comments about the new design Sharrow Props. Anyone using them?? Supposedly better performance and mileage - sounds like they may pay for themselves??

 

[seasick]

At about $5K each ( cost depends on size, prices run $2,000 to $8,000), it would take a long time to recover the expense. I also wonder how you would feel if your prop hit something

 

[Automated14]

I've also seen the tests. where do they show how these test boats were optimized with conventional props before they were tested against sharrow?

I'd love to give them a try but I'd hate to get banged for 10K and find out they are 5% better lol

 

[family affair]

A lot of people hate on these props, but they are better - minus cost and durability. The efficiency gains are there, but it varies at different rpms for different set ups. Sometimes those gains actually happen where you want them. The bigger consistent benefit IMO is noise reduction. It is significant. Is it worth $5k a piece? To me no. For people willing to pay $20k/foot for new fiberglass so they can get a warranty, I'm sure it makes more sense.

 

[seasick]

They do look cool but only when the motors are raised I also agree that if you are spending half a million or more (a lot more) on a boat, the cost for the prop upgrade is all relative.

 

[Automated14]

I volunteer to be the first V8 verado powered 330 express to run sharrow props. Sharrow can PM me for the address to send my free props to! If they get 15% better speed at 4500 rpm I'll even pay full retail! lol

 

[Mustang65fbk]

This topic was brought up last year and I remember doing the math on it, but it wasn't exactly favorable in terms of numbers imo. For a Yamaha F250 at the time, their claim was to be able to get "up to 30% better" on fuel economy numbers than a standard prop. I did the math and figured it would take at least 355 hours before you start to break even. I also don't put a ton of hours on my boat every year, maybe at the absolute most I'll put 100 hours on her because I literally row out to my boat on a mooring buoy and then start trolling from there. On top of that, 90% or probably even more than that, of what I do is trolling for salmon and so I think I'd see even fewer benefits of a prop like Sharrow that will do its best in the mid range when cruising at 3k-4k rpm. If one bought a boat that they were going to be holding onto for 10-15 years and were consistently going 50-100+ miles every time they went out fishing then yes, I think the savings would definitely be there and they could even make up for it pretty quickly if they put 200-300 hours on their boat every season. That being said, even at $5 a gallon for fuel, that's still 1k gallons of fuel that I could have spent that money on as opposed to buying a new propeller. Definitely a cool product that likely has its advantages for some, just not anything that I'd have to have for my particular application/fishing needs. Lastly, one of the few performance bulletin's that they have with a single motor on it is from a smaller boat, I believe a Bayliner with a single 150 outboard on it. The best that they could get was I believe in that 15-20% and that was around 4k rpm, IIRC. To me, a savings of 15% is really not worth the expense of spending $5k up front, and the mathematical numbers that I did above on the 355 hours was factoring in that 30% figure that they claimed. It would take even more hours than that to make up for the initial money spent if the fuel economy savings were only 15-20%. Again, definitely a cool product, though not for me in my particular application/fishing needs. For someone that fishes constantly and puts hundreds of hours on their boat every season, especially if they run twin motors, then that's probably a different story.

 

[Automated14]

At about $5K each ( cost depends on size, prices run $2,000 to $8,000), it would take a long time to recover the expense. I also wonder how you would feel if your prop hit something

There's lots of products we buy for our boats that we will never get the money back out of...As a group, we boat owners just piss away money. If normal folks knew the real truth, most would say we were insane. And don't even get me started if our wives actually found out the truth. I'm among the worst of us and I still think sharrow props cost too much. When I first heard that 5000 number, my first thought was "dollars?"

With all that said, I think there's something there and I'd love a set.

 

[Mustang65fbk]

There's lots of products we buy for our boats that we will never get the money back out of...As a group, we boat owners just piss away money. If normal folks knew the real truth, most would say we were insane. And don't even get me started if our wives actually found out the truth. I'm among the worst of us and I still think sharrow props cost too much. When I first heard that 5000 number, my first thought was "dollars?"

With all that said, I think there's something there and I'd love a set.

I would disagree in part and think that the biggest thing any boater, or anyone else in general, can do would be to shop around. I live in the Seattle area and prices for my boat are in the $55k-$65k range, yet I bought my boat out in Maryland for $26.5k. I could've bought the boat outright, but I wanted to keep some money in the bank, so I financed it, and my boat loan is right around $350 a month. For the life of me, I can't imagine that most people would struggle with paying a $350 a month loan, and if they did, then it sounds like they're living outside of their current financial situation. I guess my point would be that $350 isn't much at all and it gets your foot in the door for fishing/boating. Sure, there's other things like insurance, fuel costs, registration tabs, gear and so forth. That being said, if you're into golfing or just about anything else, you're going to spend $50+ a round at the bare minimum on golfing before you factor in food/beverages and so forth. If you golf once or twice a week or more, you're going to be up near that $350 a month figure as well. Which I guess to make a long story short, pretty much all hobbies are going to have some sort of expenses that you'll have to pay for. If fishing is what keeps you sane and can be done so at a pretty bare minimum, like in my particular situation, I say have at it. Lastly, my grandfather taught me how to fish at a young age and he, as well as my brother who are both unfortunately no longer with us, have had some fantastic memories out fishing. Which to me, makes it worth the price and then some. Long story short, if you shop around and are patient, there's no reason why you can't get into boating at an economical price point. Just my opinion of course.

 

[blynch]

There's lots of products we buy for our boats that we will never get the money back out of...As a group, we boat owners just piss away money. If normal folks knew the real truth, most would say we were insane. And don't even get me started if our wives actually found out the truth. I'm among the worst of us and I still think sharrow props cost too much. When I first heard that 5000 number, my first thought was "dollars?"

With all that said, I think there's something there and I'd love a set.

It's an interesting point because there's a small set of the world who's primary use case involves pushing their boats way offshore. They might go for these in the hopes that they can squeeze out 5% more range, even if the investment will never pay itself back in the economic sense.

 

[SeanC]

I’m looking for a bit more range to turn a 1.5 day gamefishing trip into a full 2 days. So a Sharrow prop may be the difference between installing an auxiliary fuel tank or not. Running back to port on those 15 to 20kn afternoons I find planing speed a little too fast and so I’m having to be on and off the throttle a lot. Being able to plane a little slower would be a benefit. Noise reduction would be nice. Also more control in reverse sounds good as the 228 isn’t the best when reversing. So I see benefits besides fuel savings.

 

[FREEDOM!!!]

Seems like the boat version of a cold air intake. Lots of dubious performance promises. Just a LOT more expensive. They have been around for a while and it doesn't seem like they are catching on with boaters. That price point is really hard to stomach. Does anyone here know anyone who has one? I don't.

 

[Ekea]

there is a THT thread that is i think 70 some pages long on these.

the nay-sayers say that there isnt a good comparison where a boat had optimal conventional props before the change to sharrow, and even with the claimed fuel savings, you would darn near need to be a charter boat to really get your money back. most boats that run far off shore have at least twins (i said most, i know some here go out with a single), and at that point, you are in 10k for props (or 15k if you have trips). that really hurts the pay off timeline. very few boats that dont go off shore get enough hours to make the payoff time line short enough

the advocates say that even a small efficiency improvement will save money long term, and there are the other benefits (quieter, better grip docking, cleaner wake for trolling, extended trip with same fuel) are worth it. we all spend money on things to improve our boats and we dont get our money back on most of them.

an interesting side note, they just partnered with veem (or is it veen?) who have very efficient props for inboards. it seems that blending these prop styles could have huge payoffs for boats at displacement speeds.

either way, i am excited to see innovation and exploration when it comes to putting the power to the water. props are the biggest thing that affects how a boat performs other than hull and engines. at this point, i have far too many things on my to-do list before dropping 10k on props when i am happy with the performance of my current set up. maybe one day i will get to that point on the to-do list, but i can promise, its pretty far off.

 

[Automated14]

Seems like the boat version of a cold air intake. Lots of dubious performance promises. Just a LOT more expensive. They have been around for a while and it doesn't seem like they are catching on with boaters. That price point is really hard to stomach. Does anyone here know anyone who has one? I don't.

Very accurate... the ratio of money spent vs confidence doesn't add up

motor vehicle cold air intake: few hundred at most and you can find dozens of people who have put the same on your same exact vehicle- Low buy in and a pretty accurate idea of what you will get for the money even if you ignore what the manufacturer says.

Sharrow: few thousand dollars and except in rare instances, you can't find anyone who's put one on your same exact boat with same power. High buy in and ZERO idea of what you will get for your money and all you have is what the manufacturer says.

Of course, this will likely change over time as more and more people buy them. I feel like you will see them more on new builds as the cost of the prop becomes a drop in the bucket compared to a new boat build... but it's a budget buster on a repower.

 

[FREEDOM!!!]

Very accurate... the ratio of money spent vs confidence doesn't add up

motor vehicle cold air intake: few hundred at most and you can find dozens of people who have put the same on your same exact vehicle- Low buy in and a pretty accurate idea of what you will get for the money even if you ignore what the manufacturer says.

Sharrow: few thousand dollars and except in rare instances, you can't find anyone who's put one on your same exact boat with same power. High buy in and ZERO idea of what you will get for your money and all you have is what the manufacturer says.

Of course, this will likely change over time as more and more people buy them. I feel like you will see them more on new builds as the cost of the prop becomes a drop in the bucket compared to a new boat build... but it's a budget buster on a repower.

Yeah, really seems that their main market would be professional racing or heavy-duty charters....people who really need to maximize performance on a daily basis. Those of us who just like to cruise the sand bars or do a little personal fishing on the weekends really don't need 10% better performance and likely wouldn't even notice. Even if the prop was $500, it still likely isn't worth the investment.

 

[Mustang65fbk]

Seems like the boat version of a cold air intake. Lots of dubious performance promises. Just a LOT more expensive. They have been around for a while and it doesn't seem like they are catching on with boaters. That price point is really hard to stomach. Does anyone here know anyone who has one? I don't.

I would disagree on the cold air intake comparison as those are pennies on the dollar compared to the $5k per motor propeller. I do agree though with the rest in that I remember when they came out several years and they were all the talk. Now, they seem to get brought up once a year or so and no one seems to know of anyone that's purchased one or has any experience with them, other than hearsay. I guess I'm also a bit confused though as they were all a "pre-order" type of thing before and even now, their "MX series" still has a 30-100 day lead time, which seems a bit absurd especially after 3+ years of being on the market. You'd think for $5k that you'd have something readily available within the week and not have to wait potentially up to 3.5 months just to get your propeller, and that's after having spent $5k per motor on them. Their other version, the "XO", still shows as a "pre-order" status as well, which again seems like it would deter a lot of potential customers who want that instant satisfaction. For me, there are simply too many cons at this point to move forward with something like this. Outrageous price imo, a minimal 15% increase in fuel economy and top speed, no first hand or even forum members with experience, up to a 100 day lead time, etc. That being said, if the prop were to get something like an additional 50% savings in fuel economy, was readily available, had lots of forum members or other great reviews and even if it was still the $5k price, I'd give it a bit more consideration. I'd likely still not go with it because I could get radar and a kicker motor for that $5k price, but I would definitely consider it a little more than I currently am, which is not at all.

 

[Mustang65fbk]

there is a THT thread that is i think 70 some pages long on these.

Anyone over there with actual experience that has purchased them before or is it mostly just a dumpster fire of a thread like they oftentimes are?

 

[FREEDOM!!!]

I would disagree on the cold air intake comparison as those are pennies on the dollar compared to the $5k per motor propeller. I do agree though with the rest in that I remember when they came out several years and they were all the talk. Now, they seem to get brought up once a year or so and no one seems to know of anyone that's purchased one or has any experience with them, other than hearsay. I guess I'm also a bit confused though as they were all a "pre-order" type of thing before and even now, their "MX series" still has a 30-100 day lead time, which seems a bit absurd especially after 3+ years of being on the market. You'd think for $5k that you'd have something readily available within the week and not have to wait potentially up to 3.5 months just to get your propeller, and that's after having spent $5k per motor on them. Their other version, the "XO", still shows as a "pre-order" status as well, which again seems like it would deter a lot of potential customers who want that instant satisfaction. For me, there are simply too many cons at this point to move forward with something like this. Outrageous price imo, a minimal 15% increase in fuel economy and top speed, no first hand or even forum members with experience, up to a 100 day lead time, etc. That being said, if the prop were to get something like an additional 50% savings in fuel economy, was readily available, had lots of forum members or other great reviews and even if it was still the $5k price, I'd give it a bit more consideration. I'd likely still not go with it because I could get radar and a kicker motor for that $5k price, but I would definitely consider it a little more than I currently am, which is not at all.

I only mentioned the CAI because it's another "revolutionary" bolt-on product that makes lots of unsubstantiated claims of performance improvements with questionable real-world evidence. The part where nobody on the boat forums has actually seen one in person should give everyone pause. Clearly these aren't catching on.

 

[loubeer]

Very lively discussion with a lot of opinions. It seems that innovation is a contentious, winding, bumpy road. Not sure if the sharrow props are going to be successful and I certainly don't have any skin in the game, but I applaud the effort. I do feel that finding significantly better boat propulsion efficiency is going to be necessary to maintain interest in future power boating.

Ten years ago, who would have thought we'd have acceptance and as many electric street vehicles as we have today!?!?!

 

[Mustang65fbk]

Very lively discussion with a lot of opinions. It seems that innovation is a contentious, winding, bumpy road. Not sure if the sharrow props are going to be successful and I certainly don't have any skin in the game, but I applaud the effort. I do feel that finding significantly better boat propulsion efficiency is going to be necessary to maintain interest in future power boating.

Ten years ago, who would have thought we'd have acceptance and as many electric street vehicles as we have today!?!?!

I'm all for using alternative fuel options and within reason, to try and use a product that will help me get better fuel economy with boats, cars and whatever other toys I might have. That being said, when you're substituting electric cars for gas, yet you're increasing the amount of energy to power up said electric car batteries then to me it's a wash at that point. Especially when that energy comes in the form of coal, which almost a quarter of the country is still using to power their homes, etc.