What makes a Bravo III outdrive better than Bravo I I

Hornblower

Hornblower

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Aug 28, 2009
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I read posts about corrosion problems with the Bravo III out drive, but couldn't find much about what's good about a Bravo III.

What does a Bravo III have over the II?

(I'm looking at 2004 and older 260 Sundancers)

Thanks!
 
Bravo III has two props (counter rotating) and is said to have better handling characteristics, especially around the dock.
 
Well, TWO props is OBVIOUSLY better than one. . .looks real cool on the show room floor.

. . until you hit something. Then, it isn't so cool.

With counter-rotating props, the boat will be far better behaved around the dock -> with a single prop, the boat stern will tend to "walk" to starboard (I think) at low RPM. Dual engined boats will tend to have the two props spinning in opposite directions for this reason.
 
Quint4 said:
Bravo III has two props (counter rotating) and is said to have better handling characteristics, especially around the dock.
Click to expand...

I would agree with this statement; although, reverse maneuverability is horrendous. :huh:
 
Bravo outdrives have stronger internals than Alpha outdrives. But the BIII isn't any better than BII. They are both equally as strong. One has two set of props while the other one has a single prop. The reason the BIII tends to corrode more than other drives is because there is more stainless steel (by having two props) to interact (thru electrolysis) with the aluminum case of the drive. The less stainless on these drives the less corrosion. In fact if you have an aluminum prop then corrosion is practically nil.

Dave
 
I assumed the Bravo II had two props too as I saw pics of a boat for sale that stated it had a Bravo II and clearly had two props in the pic of the outdrive. Of course I can't find it again so who knows. I wouldn't have asked the question if I knew I was comparing one prop vs. two.

Thank you for your replies, and for clearing this up for me.
 
Hornblower said:
I assumed the Bravo II had two props too as I saw pics of a boat for sale that stated it had a Bravo II and clearly had two props in the pic of the outdrive. Of course I can't find it again so who knows. I wouldn't have asked the question if I knew I was comparing one prop vs. two.

Thank you for your replies, and for clearing this up for me.
Click to expand...

No, only the Bravo III has dual props. The ones you have seen may have been a typo.
Good luck on your search.
 
I am also very happy with the way my boat - with only one engine - backs down. It even pulls the aft end around quite nicely.

IIRC, the B3 became the only option around 2002 in the '99 -'04 260DA.

With the right galvanic corrosion protection, the corrosion issue is not a concern.
 
Alpha 1, B1, B11,B111, they all work great compared to a Hamilton 212 jet (this is the better one out there). Once you learn how to drive a Jet everything else is cake!
 
The BIII is awesome out of the hole and makes the boat plane out at much lower speeds. It never cavitates. It is also vibration free. The only dis-advantage I have found is when docking. Reverse manuverability for docking is nearly impossible. Forward is the fine and the same as BII.
 
B3 here, and no problems whatsoever with reverse. I cant understand why some are claiming problems reversing with a B3, the counterroating twin props provide the same advantage in reverse as they do in forward with regards to manueverability.

ps: With regards to strength, I unfortunately managed to hit a rock (or 5) that wasnt marked in Lake George that damaged both props pretty well (and made some sharks teeth out of my skeg). Edges of both props were curled and shredded. The drive still ran flawlessly (could feel a slight vibration because the props were so banged up. I changed out the props and all vibration went away and no issues whatsoever. I'm probably one of the few that actually had a spare set of B3 props, a torque wrench and the B3 wrench on board. :) About 15 years ago when I was new to boating I hit something with an Alpha 1 drive and the drive needed to be replaced, and that was with an aluminum prop.

When I bought my boat new I bought a quart of drive lube, 5 years later and I still have half a bottle left, the drive doesnt use any oil at all.
 
I changed the option on my Sundeck from the alpha to the bravo 3 with my 5.0L and have never regretted it. It pulls like a tractor out of the water and handles really well around a dock. Twin props push a lot of water fast, it just takes a bump sometimes to get things going with them. Yes, there have been corrosion issues (no, not on mine) but like someone else said, take care of them and they take care of you. :thumbsup:
 
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40Sundeck240 said:
When I bought my boat new I bought a quart of drive lube, 5 years later and I still have half a bottle left, the drive doesnt use any oil at all.
Click to expand...

My boat doesn't use any either. . .except when it is leaking :smt021
 
If I understand it correctly, A B-II drive is a single prop drive for twin applications. It's designed for to handle high-torque applications to move big boats, like a big cruiser or houseboat. It can swing up to a 20" prop (big!).

B-II drives are an upgrade from the original Alpha series. As mentioned, they have dual props on a single drive, and are intended for single or dual engine applications. They have better handling than a single prop drive, but can't handle the same torque as a B-II drive. Max prop size is 16".

I've never actually seen a regular pleasure boat use a B-II drive. The vast majority are Alpha drives, or B-III drives. A 260 Sundancer isn't going to have a B-II drive - it's not the right application.
 
Actually, a Bravo 3 and a Bravo 2 are very similar in what they were designed for. It really wasn't until the late 90's and early '00's that the Bravo III truly gained popularity and all but replaced the B2.

A '99-'04 260DA could have a B2, but more than likely it'll have the B3 option.

Back to why some people aren't as impressed with the B3's handling...

I wonder if it could be that said person went from a short boat (with Alpha) to a longer boat (with B3)? Just the sheer length difference will have a profound effect on the boat's handling characteristics - ESPECIALLY in reverse. Trying to pull the stern of a long boat is not easy.

I've had the opportunity to drive (on many occasions) the same model boat with different drive configurations. I can honestly say that the B3 made a noticeable difference (positive).
 
Huh, our BIII backs down perfectly. Same with our 240 - it backed down straight and true.

Lazy, you have a point. Cross winds never really bothered me in the 240. But the bow of the 270 is like a huge sail. Any cross wind moves the bow much faster than the stern and the boat wants to spin. In those conditions, backing into a slip can be a PITA.

Our 240 wouldn't spin, the wind just pushed the whole boat sideways. So we could compensate by starting farter up wind instead of centered in the slip, and as we backed in the wind would push the boat into the right alignment with the slip.
 
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