bronze or stainless... for thru-hull, cleats, etc.

[KenB]

Does this boil down to star board versus teak? Where teak looks better but starboard is 100x easier to clean and take care of?

Or are there performance related reasons for using bronze versus stainless...

[Bushwacker]

Unless you use Monel (nickle-based alloy), you'll get crevice corrosion on even the best stainless. It needs exposure to oxygen to keep it "stainless", so where it's exposed to moisture but no air, you can get some pretty serious corrosion. That's why the big boats use bronze for stuffing boxes, seacocks and through-hull fittings, etc.