Early prop ID help

[Martin B]

Hi,
I have just recently acquired this prop and need some help with ID. The propeller is marked with decals from Westmore Propeller, Chicago Ill. The prop has eight bolt holes for attachment. On one side it is marked #3285 (serial I assume?) and SC64014(signal corps serial?). On the other it is marked Hispano Suiza and 8'6" x 5.22" The person I bought it from seemed to think that the prop came of a Curtis N-9H float plane. Is this the case? Is this actually a WWI prop. I sure would like to know.

[Dave]

Maybe they thought that because of this prop on eBay. I don't think there's anything definitive to substantiate either claim.

[Martin B]

Was this prop actually manufactured during WWI and on a WWI aircraft? From what I am seeing from your guide, I would think so. There is probably no way to determine what kind of aircraft it was on or what type of Hisso motor? Do you have any info on Westmore? I am full of questions aren't I?

[Dave]

Westmoore manufactured a lot of propellers during and shortly after WW1, and as with many of the other manufacturers most of them were for the Signal Corps or for the Navy. I'm not sure when the company went out of business, but after the war many of them just reverted to their pre-war manufacturing, which was often woodworking items like furniture or pianos, for instance.

Since they were usually procured in large lots, the stampings often just indicated the length and pitch, and the aircraft they were destined for was clear to the purchaser, but not passed on to the collector nearly 100 years later.

Many of these come with claims to be from a specific aircraft, but it is hard to substantiate that in most cases.

The absence of "witness marks" (indentation on the wooden hub where the metal hub assembly would have been tightened) certainly suggests that this one, along with thousands of others, was sold off as surplus, probably in the twenties.

[Martin B]

Thanks for the information Dave, I appreciate it. I am picking this up today and will check and see if it has other markings on it.

[pmdec]

Hi,

Maybe they thought that because of this prop on eBay. I don't think there's anything definitive to substantiate either claim.

Hi,
About the eBay link Dave posted (Buffairo prop): look at the fourth and fifth pictures of the first row of thumbnails (hub from above and decal: they are the third and fourth thumbnails on the left column of the big picture). This side of the prop has been so much sanded down that the hub is no more flat and round. And the decal appears to rest on a "little mount" (look at the wood grain lines and at the light glints). If my eyes are not kidding me, how, with such a hard treatment, the markings could be visible yet?

Regards,
PM

[Martin B]

Picked up the prop this afternoon and yes, it does have witness marks on the one side so, maybe it was used on a plane. The other curious thing is that the ends of the blades are flat and not rounded like the others I have seen. It appears that they were made this way too and not cut or broken off. I was wrong on the one set of marking too, they are 8' 6" X 5' 22". I did some measuring too. The hub thickness is 7", diameter of the bolt circle is 6.5", bolt hole diameter is .5" and the center bore diameter is 3.25". Does this provide any clue as to what it might be for?

[Dave]

What is the measured diameter (length from tip to tip)?

None of your photos show the tips.

[Martin B]

Maybe it was shortened. It measures 7' from end to end, not the 8' 6" stamped on it.