Gori offers perfect pitch

Parasitic drag is something every sailor wants to eliminate. Fixed propellers on a yacht’s auxiliary engine may deliver better manoeuvrability but thanks to the extra drag, there’s a cost in terms of performance under sail.

Gori claims to have the solution -- new saildrive compatible three-blade single-pitch (SP) folding propellers. The new Gori SP design is claimed to offer the lowest drag of all sailboat propellers in its class. But, says Gori, the simple to install design also offers excellent low RPM operation and stopping power.

Australian Gori importer, Power Equipment, recently fitted the latest SP folding propeller design to Leopard, a 44-foot sailing cat owned by Brisbane-based Chris Petersen.

Petersen uses Leopard for short-stay trips around southeast Queensland but, says Power Equipment, wanted to extend his trips to medium-length coastal cruising.

“To do so, he [Petersen] decided to upgrade his propellers to reduce drag when sailing and get better low-speed responsiveness and stopping power at anchorages and marinas when under power,” Power Equipment stated.

The Gori design fitted to Leopard is a three-blade set-up. Matched to the 13-tonne vessel’s twin 39hp Yanmar 3JH5/SD60 saildrive engines, the new propellers give a maximum speed of nearly 10 knots and a “comfortable” cruise speed of 7.5-8kt at 2400-2450rpm, says the importer.

Petersen commended the set-up as “noticeably smoother across all speed ranges”.

Based on the standard three-blade propeller that Danish company Gori introduced in 1994, the new SP propeller is a 360-degree blade inversion design which offers identical pitch in forward and reverse. The propeller does not auto-rotate when folded and therefore does not require a shaft brake.

Gori says the new SP propeller is available for left-hand rotation saildrives only, in diameters from 15-20-inch.

Next year, Gori plans to launch a shaft propeller range in the same design in 22-26 inch sizes for applications of 10-300hp. These propellers will include a right hand rotation variant, Power equipment confirmed.