3 vs. 4 blade propellers

[86Hat41]

Hello all.
After doing lot's of engine work, I am now underpropped a little and will be keeping my current 3 blade props as spares. With today's fuel prices I am strongly considering investing in 4 blades with the hopes that handling and efficiency will justify the expense. Has anyone with original Detroit power switched to 4 blade from 3 blade? Was it worth it? I don't care about top speed. Ultimately looking to stay on plane at a lower Rpm.

 

[cww]

A lot of people have gone to the DJX/DQX style high-skew propellers that have significantly more blade area. The DJX's blade area in the larger sizes is equivalent to what you get with a set of dynaquads. It's sort of the best of both worlds if that makes sense, and doesn't cost you top end like 4 blades. I would call a shop like black dog props and get their opinion on this. The extra $1k you'll spend over finding the cheapest available props online will pay for itself when it's one-and-done instead of trial and error. If your guesswork doesn't get it spot on the first shot out of the box and you have to change the pitch once at $350/prop x2 then you haven't saved anything.

 

[q240z]

Tony Athens provides great advice on properly setting up propellers. Diverging from his advice can lead to a very expensive education in how not to do things. https://www.sbmar.com/tonys-tips/

 

[krush]

I always post this thread. Extra lift seemed to give him a great cruise improvement.

https://www.thebassbarn.com/threads/38-henriques-huge-performance-gain.855242/

 

[cww]

I always post this thread. Extra lift seemed to give him a great cruise improvement.https://www.thebassbarn.com/threads/38-henriques-huge-performance-gain.855242/

Exactly my thoughts. Michigan’s DJX/DQX series were their answer to Acme’s. They look very similar, modern designs with high skew and more blade area. Acme’s cost like 2-3x more.

 

[krush]

Exactly my thoughts. Michigan’s DJX/DQX series were their answer to Acme’s. They look very similar, modern designs with high skew and more blade area. Acme’s cost like 2-3x more.

If I can get 2-3 knots at cruise for same fuel burn, I'll spend 2-3x for the ACMEs. However, some have told me these new high-tech props also have thinner blades and are not as durable.

 

[DCMY #92]

I always post this thread. Extra lift seemed to give him a great cruise improvement.

https://www.thebassbarn.com/threads/38-henriques-huge-performance-gain.855242/

Can't find anything at ACME about variable pitch - the thread seems to be from 2017.

I'm interested if this is still available.