You are right, John. Efficiency should not be a gatekeeper into electric propulsion. It is good for the new electrosailor to know wherein his deficciencies lie, though. Some things are easier and cheaper to fix than others. Propellor is a very good thing to keep in mind for an upgrade. I was running my original 2 blade folder for a long time. I knew it needed to go, but hey, it would still push me just as well as it did when it was turned by an Atomic 4. But when someone offered to give me not one but two old 14x10 3 bladers, I wasted no time in cleaning them up and putting one on. The results were gratifying. Would I have paid for a brand new prop that size? Probably not. Not yet, anyway. But I was very close to scanning craigslist and fleabay for a used one, and when two free ones were offered to me, I didn't hesitate. Likewise, my batteries. Now don't get me wrong... I like FLA. It is a mature technology. Maintenance and use are well understood, and no specialized equipment is needed. On a displacement hull, weight is not much of an issue. Peukert effect is a bother only at higher output currents. But if a couple of Volt or Tesla packs just fell in my lap, I would probably waste little time adapting the high tech, high performance battery to my system, relegating the FLA bank to backup status. As long as a new adapter can afford to put together a system that WORKS, it doesn't have to be a $25k state of the art setup. For some guys into yachts, money is no object, and starting out with an advanced system is smart and sensible. For others, compromises will have to be made, and available or cheap components can and will be made to serve. Temporarily, or permanently. Not-so-good electric is better than none. The more of us there are, the better.
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