• VARIPROP
• References
  • Customers Say
• Request
• Contact
• Distributors
• Dates
• About Us
• Downloads

Regarding the 3-blade VARIPROP I’m extremely happy to report that GREAT WHITE I has improved performance from 7.5 to 10.5 kn. with absolutely no vibration. This set up is now silky smooth and bullet proof... Can’t say the same for my previous MAX-PROP ... Your experience with pitch and diameter helped select the right prop the first time... Focus Marine endorses VARIPROP as the world leader in feathering propellers. I highly recommend this product.
GG, Yacht Builder Previous prop: 2-blade feathering

 We purchased our VARIPROP after sailing one season with the standard fixed 3-blade.In light air we gained a full knot of sailing speed. This is incredible enough, but even more impressive was the increased maneuverability under power. We took out the propwalk, inherent in all fixed plade props, and are now able to dock port or starboard with ease. The reverse thrust power of the VARIPROP is really something amazing. We can stop our BENETEAU 331 on a dime. This lets us come into the dock more aggressively under non ideal windy conditions, resulting in a more controlled and safer docking to the envy of our sailing friends. A number of my collegues have actually purchased a VARIPROP after witnessing my wife bring in and dock our boat with ease. The other pleasant surprise was the professional and prompt service of Jesco Afheldt. As we all know service is lacking in the boating industry, but Jesco is very po-active in the service he provided. Under sail or power the VARIPROP makes a significant and noticeable difference. I would, and do in fact recommend the VARIPROP highly. It was probably the single most important item/upgrade we bought for our new BENETEAU 331.
RM, Previous prop: 3-blade fixed

Here are the readings from s/v HYDROGEN: 6.5 kn @ 2000 rpm, 7.2 kn @ 2250 rpm, 7.7 kn @ 2500 rpm, 8.0 kn @ 2750 rpm, 8.2 kn @ 3000 rpm(max.) You have set up the prop perfectly, seems HYDROGEN doesn’t need any adjustments. We are totally satisfied with the VARIPROP on our Beneteau 423. Reverse is very good and the boat appears to sail faster but our biggest satisfaction has come from the elimination of prop walk and how easily we can handle the vessel in reverse. It has helped making docking stern-to totally comfortable and controllable. A VARIPROP is a “must have” accessory on our sailboat.
B/JT Previous prop: 3-blade fixed

I am very happy with my VARIPROP but still have some prop walk. I will adjust the reverse pitch accordingly. A fine piece of engineering, very smooth and quiet.
KC Previous prop: 3-blade fixed

I have been very pleased with my performance in forward and reverse although I have been informed that a pitch increase to 15” will make the boat slightly faster with less effort. I’ll adjust my pitch this winter. Currently my max rpm is 3100 and gives me 8.2 kn. Generally I cruise smoothly at 2400/2500 rpm and get 7.0 – 7.5 kn. Reverse is great. I do get a little prop walk but nothing to speak of. Once you get the feel of it, it helps in your smooth docking port to.
PB Previous prop: 3-blade fixed

After the initial set-up the prop has been delivering outstanding performance. Because the pitch in forward and reverse can be separately set, we were able to fine tune the prop  to optimize it to the boat and engine characteristics. The prop delivers optimum performance   in both forward and reverse. I would and have on many occasions recommended the 3-blade VARIPROP.
RD Previous prop: 3-blade fixed.

I made the decision to purchase a feathering prop for the usual reasons… reduce drag and prop walk, increase thrust and stopping power in reverse and improve over-all sailing performance. All these benefits have been realized with the new prop. I even had the confidence to take the “family cruising boat” in the Lake Ontario 300 race were we had a very respectable showing. I picked VARIPROP because from a technical perspective, it is as good, if not better than its major competitors, it was competitively priced, and differentiated itself by having a local representative in the Toronto market. This representative was key to the proper prop selection, installation and servicing. In summary  I am very pleased and wish  I had purchased it earlier.
DS Previous prop: 3-blade fixed

Appreciate the tips on the pitch adjustment. Have experienced some prop-walk and will adjust at haul-out. Overall extremely satisfied. Glad we requested dhe “VARI” vs. competitors
DC – New Boat

We hauled Kiyomi out and installed the new four-bladed VariProp a few weeks ago. Shortly thereafter we made a week long trip into the Delta and put about twenty-five hours on the new system. So far we’re pleased with the results. The factory had the settings right on the money: we get 2630 rpms at full throttle. I took her out last week when we had a flat day with slack water and gave her a complete rpm/speed run at all engine speeds and have charted it. I’m getting 7.7 knots at full speed; that’s 1.3 knots faster than with the old engine and prop. With the VariProp I can stop from 5.5 knots in less than a boat length. This was measured by reversing when our bow came abreast of a piling at slack water. I did it twice to confirm, and this wasn’t even at full throttle! The four blades do indeed grab some water. Remember we weigh 34,000# plus. Stopping that in less than 40 feet is impressive.  I still notice prop walk in reverse, but the boat gains speed much more quickly now, allowing the rudder to compensate much faster than before. All in all, I guess you could say I’m very pleased.
CM Previous prop: 3-blade fixed

Some people told me about the main engine, Baudoin, that it could be underpowered compared to the weight of Eleonora and the size of the propeller.

On the light of my experience now, I can tell that I don’t have that feeling even, "if on the paper", it could be right. Good power, good maneuver even in small areas. And even with current. I have been a bit surprised by the heavy current in Port Everglades.

Composite Work is a shipyard contractor in La Ciotat, South of France. They have done a lot of refit and maintenance work there, including work on the propeller and the propeller shaft. Jean Michel from Composite Work knows the product and told me that this Variprop is the best on the market, the biggest built by this company, indeed the Rolls-Royce of propellers. A good decision has been taken on this boat.
PL, Captain of Eleonora

Dear Mark

As you know, we fitted a four blade DF 112 propeller to our Hunter 49’ Yacht  Kaumoana in February of this year. We are extremely happy with the performance of our new prop and were pleasantly surprised in the increase in both the torque and speed through the water performance the new propeller gave us.
We also believe that the increase in power is enabling us to achieve cruising boat speed at less revolutions than previously.  This is particularly important to us as we are shortly embarking on a round the world cruise, and fuel consumption is a high priority.  
We would be pleased to update you as our journey progresses.
Regards

Richard Tyree

Hi Jesco,

Good to hear from you and very timely as I was about to contact you for just the items you've mentioned.

The performance of the new prop is outstanding. Your predicted top speed was right on, in fact in flat water the boat does hull speed, 7.3 Knots. Stopping power is excellent. On our engine trials with the new Yanmar, we crash stopped at 5.5 knots and came to rest in approximately one boat length! There is virtually no noise or shudder felt when shifting from forward to reverse and no vibration when running. Unfortunately I haven't had the opportunity to try it in adverse conditions or under full loaded condition since I spent last summer refitting my boat so didn't get to sail or cruise as usual. However this year we are heading south so will have plenty of opportunity to experience all sorts of conditions. Based on our initial trials, I anticipate no problem with the prop's ability to cope. As far as prop walk astern, it is minimal and in fact I prefer a small amount as it assists in docking. I now prefer port side alongside since the new engine turns opposite from my old Perkins. Oh yes, a comfortable cruising RPM is about 2800 and speed is about 6.7 knots. The engine tops out comfortably at 3600RPM and 7.3 knots.

I would like to order a cartridge of grease and two zinc anodes so I'll have a spare while cruising. There is only moderate deterioration on the zinc but I was only in the water for about three months last year. Please advise your preferred method of payment.

I am very pleased with the propellor and will gladly endorse it to anyone considering purchasing one. Please feel free to use my name as a contact if anyone needs convincing of its merits.

Hope you had a successful boat show and all is well with you. Look forward to hearing from you soon.

Regards,

Randy

Greetings from Sunny St Martin

This is just a quick note to say how much we have appreciated the Variprop over the last 12,000 miles of sailing on our new Southerly 42 Distant Shores. I had always wanted a feathering prop but I did not know just how much it would help. Performance in light airs is dramatically improved as the blades feather - I think it gives us over 1/2 knot possibly 1 knot extra speed. But this does not compromise performance under power. We had a situation a few weeks ago where we really appreciated the 4-blades of this prop! We were sailing in behind the Abacos as a norther approached and saw winds in the 40-knot range gusting to 50. We needed to power up into the anchorage and the Variprop did the job. We were able to make 4 knots forward - motoring directly into these very strong winds. I do not think our old fixed 3-blade prop could have done that. So a big thanks to Variprop - we now have the best of both worlds - strong power in gear and very small resistance for great sailing performance.

Fair Winds,

Paul & Sheryl Shard
SV Distant Shores

I must say the builder of the boat and I both like the results of the prop. A great improvement from what was on the boat. At max rpm 3000 we will make about 6.7 knots. We like to run at about 2500 and that will keep us going 5.7-6.1 depending on conditions. Unfortunately we did not have one opportunity to test in absolutely calm water.
As far as reverse, Wow. This is like having anti lock brakes. You can feel the torque and the churning below the boat as the prop is cutting in deep. Just for fun I brought the boat to a stop with the main and DRS up, the wind was about 8 knots and the boat was standing still you could see the turbulence for about 30 feet in front of the boat. My only concern was, am I putting too muck stress on the shaft, coupling and transmission? As for prop walk it no longer exists.
I may be at the boat show and hope to see you if I go. Best regards.
Don

Variprop Bluewater prop

When we decided to move up from our Hunter 34 to a new Hunter 41 we were already convinced to have a Variprop installed at delivery. We had had a 3 bladed model on our old 34 and absolutely loved it. It had great power in both forward and reverse and did not give up any speed while under sail.
Jesco informed us about Variprop’s new Bluewater 4-bladed prop and explained that we would not regret the extra bite that it provided especially in rough seas.
We would not know at the time how true that would be. In early August we were returning from Sodus Bay NY to Cobourg and the weather was nasty. The winds were 25+ knots on the nose and the waves were 6+ feet with the occasional 8 footer. We could not stay another day so set out at 7am headed for Cobourg. It was not a fun day but the prop kept our speed above 5 knots most of the day. We were on the lake for 11 hours and would not have wanted to  imagine how much longer it would have taken with the 3 bladed model never mind the factory standard 2-bladed fixed prop . The difference in price between the 3 bladed and 4 bladed models is small considering the benefit we gained that day on the lake. I would not have anything other than a Variprop on this boat or any future boat.

Dave Sutherland
S/V Dog Days

Hallo Jesco,
I thought it may be helpful to you to if I were to share with you my experiences with other propellers as compared to the four blade Variprop.
All of the props I have used are feathering propellers with the exception of a couple of boats which had fixed two or three blades. You had specifically asked about heavy weather performance so I will emphasize my comparisons to that end.

In no particular order:
The First is fixed two and three blades. Three blades get the top mark for heavy weather performance (two blade not so much) but at a price. The drag under sail is unacceptable .... Period.
The next is a two blade Maxprop. This prop was the poorest performer as it was noisy and vibrated due to the fact that the blades are large and flat. This caused cavitations at higher rpms and the noise and vibration transmitted through the hull. The loss of forward boat speed in heavy weather was unacceptable as at times forward speed would be down to as low as three knots while motoring into 25 knot head winds.
The next is the Auto prop. This was a great prop if you wanted to back up. It had tremendous bite in reverse and performed very nicely in forward as long as it was fair weather. That´s where it ends. In heavy conditions this prop was scary. Until you could develop some forward speed the prop didn't auto pitch up high enough to drive through the waves and even then forward speed suffered. On a couple of occasions I nearly lost control of the boat. Also of note is the fact that this prop has higher drag than a flat blade feathering prop but less than a fixed blade. It did however run dead smooth and no noise from cavitations. Also of note is that this prop requires that the transmission be locked in forward (engine off) in order to have the blades feather. Unfortunately, most transmissions should not be locked in forward while sailing. This necessitates the Installation of a shaft brake.
The next is Buoy Prop. This also is a German made flat blade feathering prop. The three blade I used was as close in performance to the Variprop except that the prop walk in reverse was a pain. There was no independent adjustment for pitch for reverse. This is true for the Maxprop as well. The three blade was a little noisy but not as much as the two blade Maxprop and there was very minor vibration in the higher rpm range again due to the flat blades causing cavitations.
The four blade Variprop has been the best all round performer. The fourth blade overcomes the noise Band vibration issues caused by flat blades at higher rpms and the heavy weather performance is almost as good as a three blade fixed prop but without the drag under sail. In fact I don't think I could measure the difference. When this thing bites the boat goes! Also with the clutch pack; shifting from forward to reverse is smooth and quite. Unlike the Auto prop which made me think the transmission would explode every time I shifted.
I would have no hesitation recommending the four blade Variprop to anyone who is serious about performance without compromise. My opinion is the performance gain is worth the extra cost. What a brilliant piece of engineering.
A very happy sailor,
Bryan W. Bennett "Dovekie"
Nonsuch 36
Bryan W. Bennett, CFP Bennett March IPC

Jesco
A short note to tell you how pleased I am with the new prop. We went up to Lake Huron two weeks ago and found that 1250 RPM gave us at least 1.5 knots greater speed than before. Full speed is increased by at least 1.5 to 2 knots with little or no vibration. Reverse is positive and powerful.
Under sail we now have performance unseen before.We even sailed in 4 knot winds and enjoyed 2.5 to 3 MPH over ground.
All in all we could not be happier. Even the prop walk though somewhat reduced is still present enough to be used as before in turning short or in docking.
Hope all is well with you.
Bob Daudlin

We conducted a final test of the Kiwiprop yesterday morning, removed it from the boat and replaced it with the re-handed Variprop at midday, then tested the Variprop in the afternoon. Three observers and I were on board.

The Kiwiprop performed very poorly indeed. The re-handed Variprop, however, performed perfectly.

The Variprop accelerated the vessel swiftly, strongly and silently to the hull max design speed without any sign of cavitation. Max achieved engine rpm was 3400.

Clearly, the Kiwiprop was unsuitable for our type of vessel. My belief is that the material from which it is manufactured requires the blades to be too thick to perform cleanly through the water, thereby causing cavitation when under load and absorbing too much energy in the so-doing.

I suggest that you do not recommend the Kiwiprop to your own customers; there are plenty of other propellers, such as the Variprop, within the same price band that perform very much better and are far superior value for money.

In the meantime I thank you for all your help in connection with this and have pleasure in letting you know that the optimum result has been achieved.

With best wishes,

Roger Harben

For more opinions please download the PDF below:

Variprop testimonials PDF