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Paul A. Franz, P.E.
Joined: 02 Dec 2008
Posts: 280
Location: Bellevue WA
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 Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 9:39 pm Post subject: Propeller failure - 1949 account of frightful event |
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On Fri, May 1, 2009 9:21 pm, Lynn Matteson wrote:
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So we can now take the wooden propellor off the dangerous list, and
put it in the category of things that are safe, but have gotten a bad
rap. Good story...scary for the fliers, of course. I hope hearing
this clarification will allow you to put the fears to rest, Paul, as
there are thousands of wood props out there, and people fly behind
them every day...I do.
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I don't have any preconceived notions about wood propellers but I do see a couple of
drawbacks. I believe they are more vulnerable to damage when used on the water such as
with a plane on floats and no one can dispute that wood can shrink and swell and rot
with the presence of water and weather. Users have pointed out that it's easy to
over-torque the bolts as they only need 100 in-lbs of torque and that is something you
can easily overshoot pulling the wrench with just a little pinky. I'm not shopping for
a wooden propeller either because I don't think I could ever keep one dry all the
time. I fly in the rain, and sometimes have to park and tie down an airplane where it
is going to get exposed to the elements while on a trip or just waiting for weather to
clear. So, I don't think I would score well in the care and use of a wooden propeller.
I also want a constant speed propeller or at least a cockpit adjustable one and I'm
not aware of any that use wooden blades. That might not be the case, just that I don't
know of any. And Lynn, since you've made an engine choice where the manufacturer
mandates a wood prop, you're locked in. Since you hangar the airplane all the time and
keep that propeller dry even on trips, you're used to whatever accommodation it
requires. Your locale and your willingness to give proper care make the use of a wood
prop more suitable for you than for me.
In the case of my Uncle Vic's propeller, the original factory prop was a composite and
it is not the one that failed. He ordered a newly designed Hartzell which was either a
fully pitch adjustable in-flight propeller or a two speed deal. The upgrade used all
metal blades and it is thought that the all-metal heavier blades were the cause of the
hub failure. The details of this propeller aren't clear to me. I believe the original
composite propeller was a wood composite rather than the modern day carbon fiber
plastic composites. The original factory propeller was not the one that failed. In
another photo of that airplane before that fateful Sunday afternoon it looks like a
wood prop to me.
Unfortunately when I did the posting on the forum interface, I posted the original
scans my uncle Vic sent me rather than the rotated and resized ones. I have attached
the little buggers to this e-mail.
--
Paul A. Franz
Registration/Aircraft - N14UW/Merlin GT
Engine/Prop - Rotax 914/NSI CAP
Bellevue WA
425.241.1618 Cell
"If the present Congress errs in too much talking, how can it be
otherwise in a body to which the people send 150 lawyers, whose
trade it is to question everything, yield nothing, & talk by the
hour? That 150 lawyers should do business together ought not to be
expected."
--Thomas Jefferson, autobiography, 1821
"It will not be denied that power is of an encroaching nature and
that it ought to be effectually restrained from passing the limits
assigned to it. After discriminating, therefore, in theory, the
several classes of power, as they may in their nature be
legislative, executive, or judiciary, the next and most difficult
task is to provide some practical security for each, against the
invasion of the others."
-- James Madison, Federalist No. 48
About the Federalist Papers - wiki
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federalist_Papers>
All of them presented in the Library of Congress
<http://thomas.loc.gov/home/histdox/fedpapers.html>
Searchable e-text of the Federalist and other documents too.
<http://www.foundingfathers.info/federalistpapers/>
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_________________
Paul A. Franz, P.E.
Registration/Aircraft - N14UW/Merlin GT
Engine/Prop - Rotax 914/NSI CAP
Bellevue WA
425.241.1618 Cell
425.440.9505 Office |
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Cwehner
Joined: 15 Jan 2009
Posts: 17
Location: Tulsa, OK
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| Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 10:07 pm Post subject: Re: Propeller failure - 1949 account of frightful even |
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Wow, amazing they weren't hurt. So this brings up a question I have not yet tackled. My father and I are in the finishing stages of our Kitfox IV build and just recently were discussing if anyone was securing the engine to the frame by cable. He seems to remember discussions of it in the past. Just wondering if any one has done this?
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Chris Wehner
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Kitfox IV, 912, Final push for completion! |
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Tom Jones
Joined: 12 Mar 2006
Posts: 752
Location: Ellensburg, WA
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| Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 6:04 am Post subject: Re: Propeller failure - 1949 account of frightful even |
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That is an interesting story Paul. Thanks for posting that and the pictures. By the way, it is a small world. My wife's great grand father had a ranch about 12 miles east of Shrag. His name was Radke. I thik she said he moved away from the area in 1925.
do not archive
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Tom Jones
Classic IV
503 Rotax, 72 inch Two blade Warp
Ellensburg, WA |
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Paul A. Franz, P.E.
Joined: 02 Dec 2008
Posts: 280
Location: Bellevue WA
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| Posted: Thu May 14, 2009 7:25 pm Post subject: Propeller failure - 1949 account of frightful event |
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On Thu, May 14, 2009 5:39 pm, fox5flyer wrote:
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That is really awesome! Very small world we live in. Hopefully, Paul will
see this.
Deke
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I did. I have some more photos of that plane I'll send to Derek and I'll let Vic know
who owns that airplane now. There was a time after Vic last knew the owners in TX that
the plane was listed as "salvage" in the registration so might be interesting what
happened. Vic said it was a bit squirrelly on rollout compared to the C170 and some
other tail draggers he owned.
[quote] do not archive
---
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_________________
Paul A. Franz, P.E.
Registration/Aircraft - N14UW/Merlin GT
Engine/Prop - Rotax 914/NSI CAP
Bellevue WA
425.241.1618 Cell
425.440.9505 Office |
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