New composite prop for the Lancair 360 from Hartzell

[Chris Zavatson]

Do it also have the nickel leading edges?


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Yep.
And they extend farther back than a quick glance would indicate. The rear half is painted.

[Chris Zavatson]

Do we have a contact at Hartzell to inquire about a composite prop for the ES?

Either Kris Bendickson (Experimental Sales) or perhaps Trevor Parker (Applications Engineer).

[Chris Zavatson]

If those blades are anything like the composite Hartzells on the Cirrus, Evo, IV, PC-12, et al, there isn’t much to worry about. They have proven to be much more robust.

JC how much is a 4-blade? Do you think you get any more top end speed from a lighter prop. I know the 4th blade is also more drag.

Which aircraft?

My bigger point is the damage-resistance of Hartzell composite props compared with MTs. Several maintenance shops I know have a running joke about MT props: MT says they’re easier to repair which is a good thing because they’re constantly needing repair…

What material is the MT leading edge? I have seen some very dinged up examples.

[George Wehrung]

I believe it is some sort of a nickel based metal. But the biggest damage seems to occur after deleting edge protection. MT claims that the damage they suffer behind the leading edge is no worse than any other manufacture of propellers. The problem is I don’t believe that that is true and that is a much more difficult repair. I will say that with aluminum blade you can blend, the leading edge far easier then if you dent the nickel leading edge


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[J.C. Peterson]

What material is the MT leading edge? I have seen some very dinged up examples.

MT says it is nickel. I think part of the problem is that it’s fairly thin metal and the underlying material (wood) is softer than other prop designs. I believe Hartzell uses carbon as the outer material under the leading edge metal, instead of fiberglass on the MT, and it is a substantially thicker layer.

On a related note, I’ve been seeing a lot of instances of MTs with fiberglass delaminating from the wood. While they say it isn’t necessarily a problem by itself, if moisture gets into the wood substrate it can cause blade failure. The thicker carbon layer on the Hartzell hasn’t had a problem with delaminating in my experience, and even if water did somehow wick in it is far less likely to cause structural problems.

[George Wehrung]

So gents,

I am interested in more top end speed out of my ES. I know that sounds ridiculous for a fixed gear plane but I am seeing true airspeed of 193, 194 fairly consistently. I am hoping to break 200 kn, true airspeed and our non-turbo, charged, and non-retractable, Hershey bar wing, ES. I wonder if putting this prop on would do that trick? Oh, yes I need to get painted, but I have one more exhaust covering modification to do before that.


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[Chris Zavatson]

I wonder if putting this prop on would do that trick?

You would need more area. These things are sized for the application. Power and speed combinations.
This prop is cut down for ground clearance. Actually, it was cut down several times and tested at each increment. I have the shortest version. Add more power and you’ll run at a higher blade angle. Go fast enough and you run out of pitch. Then only more area will help.