Tom, " Funny how one real world test can blow away hundreds of arm chair expert theories."
I'm not sure your reading these results for what they are. Side by side testing of different blades on the alternator.
For me they don't tell me what I suspect you think they say.
To me it is just comparing different load matches in a limited range. I think you feel that it says more about the different blade materials perhaps.
As an example, if we double the wind speed, we should get 8 times the power if things are matched well.
If we look at his cut ins, and double speed we find interesting figures
For the foam blades we go from cutin to about double wind speed, and get 183 times the power...... for the Jerry blades, we get about 74 times the power instead of 8 times, the figures for the zubs is for 5.9 times (not enough figures to go further, but this still yielded 68 times instead of 5.9 times. Hughs blades in this setup from cut in to max figures should be 6.16 times, but was about 17 times. In this startup range we can expect a rough ride as we settle down to our design TSR.
So it seems to me to be a test of different TSR blades as well as materials. The big performers at cut in to double wind speed must soon succumb to stall.
From this I would say that if you only wanted low wind speed performance, then use very high TSR blades, and stall when the real wind turns up then no more power.... this is not as silly as it sounds....a very high tsr in stall at 15 mph, may not need much in the way of furling if the alt is electrically stiff???.
The real world testing of plastic fantastics that I'm aware of, seem to indicate that the real world power outputs are much better when the owners stopped persisting with the pipe blades etc and built modest wooden ones... but thats only small sample too that I know of.
Even the AWP down here with the chainsaw "emergency" blades kept up very well with the sexy glass originals. With a rewire, there is a big increase in power now. (from 23-4 to 30Amps@58-60v).. it is the matching that counts.
..........oztules