single or duel props

[lineman09]

looking at buying a new boat and was wondering if going with a duel prop is worth the extra cash .. iam looking at a 22 ft boat ..240hp volvo penta.. i can get it with DPor a sx out drive with the same HP .. I have a sx out drive now and it does a good job with 200hp but its only a 19 ft boat ..there is a 3k dif in the price .. not sure which way to go ...

 

[Leardriver]

You're right on the edge with that size boat. Dual props, with more blade surface, are like adding four wheel drive. More surface to bit the water, less torque steer for higher HP engines. A heavy boat with a big engine will have prop slip and beat the water into a froth like a blender before it gets moving, unless you find a way to have less slippage.

 

[Chris1956]

A 22 footer will normally have a single powerplant. A 240HP engine will be plenty for that boat.

Twins would need to be outboards, to save weight, but are overkill IMO.

26 feet is the smallest boat for twin I/O motors. Even then, it would likely be inline engines due to space limitations.

 

[72fj40]

If you do a google search, spelling out V/P duo prop vs single prop, you'll find several old side by side comparison videos made by V/P when duos were 1st introduced. Both boats are identical except for the drives. I realize these are old videos , but I would think most of the characteristics would be similar in later model drives.

We have an old, heavy, 23ft Chris Craft Lancer. About 1 1/2 yrs ago we swapped out the single prop AQ280 lower to a duo prop version. We found it is more responsive, easier to dock and has more control, it comes out of the hole a lot harder. RPMs are slightly less when going the same speed as b4 and slightly more efficient in the low to mid rpms. The old drive had a slight whine when in gear and the duo is silent. Top end seems to be about the same, maybe a mile an hour or two faster. I must say I am not familiar with the newer drives. Hope this helps. I never comment on money. I'll only say, if your deciding because of efficiency, youll never recover the money

 

[QBhoy]

No doubt about it. The VP DP drive is an amazing thing and never known one to be anything other than perfectly propped to the boat when originally fitted. But...and it’s a big but...for the price of repairing a DP (should it go wrong)...you could buy a brand new SX or Alpha drive.

 

[cptbill]

Don't forget the DP will make maneuvering in reverse a little better

 

[Scott Danforth]

once you go duo-prop, you will never go back to a single prop unless you get twin surface drives or twin inboards.

seriously, its worth the upgraded price

 

[rallyart]

Just remember that reproping is at least twice the price. I've seen new boats that have been badly propped when purchased. Make sure the dealer will ensure you have the right set of props for your use on the boat, or will change to a better set if you are not satisfied.

 

[Chris1956]

Are props for Duoprop available aftermarket, or are you locked into V-P for them?

 

[Texasmark]

Volvo Penta site has a lot of information on the Penta name and the evolution of it and the products. Advantages of the Duo-prop are discussed in design and application.....worth reading.

Edit: They even have a new Duo-prop design discussed there whereby the props are on the front of the LU pulling, rather than pushing discussed. May be ok in clean water, but for the average Jane and Joe, I'd take something up front to whack that stump or old submerged bridge railing railing other than my propeller.

 

[Scott Danforth]

99.99% of the time the VP props set up on the boat are perfect. so unless you hit things, you wont be re-propping often. unlike the issues with a single prop where you need to have different prop types for different application, the one advantage of a duo prop drive is it simply works.

have yet to find aftermarket VP props, however cost wise, they are running the same as merc or aftermarket ones for merc drives, so not sure what the issue is there

the IPS drive has the props forward. those are used primarily on wake board boats to keep people from becoming chum

 

[Texasmark]

99.99% of the time the VP props set up on the boat are perfect. so unless you hit things, you wont be re-propping often. unlike the issues with a single prop where you need to have different prop types for different application, the one advantage of a duo prop drive is it simply works.

have yet to find aftermarket VP props, however cost wise, they are running the same as merc or aftermarket ones for merc drives, so not sure what the issue is there

the IPS drive has the props forward. those are used primarily on wake board boats to keep people from becoming chum

""those are used primarily on wake board boats to keep people from becoming chum

Interesting thought. Good engineering forethought! Wink!

On the "the one advantage of a duo prop drive is it simply works" statement, the site I mentioned shows by illustrations, just why they simply work. Neat engineering forethought there too!

 

[Dorenom]

99.99% of the time the VP props set up on the boat are perfect. so unless you hit things, you wont be re-propping often. unlike the issues with a single prop where you need to have different prop types for different application, the one advantage of a duo prop drive is it simply works.

that's what i heard but i never was sure about it. thanks for clearance. generally, thanks everyone else. i always thought that duo props are always more advantageous

 

[QBhoy]

You can certainly get aftermarket DP props. Michigan marine did them half the price of VP. Just as good too