Databases of WW1 propellers

[Dbahnson]

Yup...pictures of my Jntegral propeller uploaded. It has the standard Integral sunburst logo with "JPW" in the center. I believe this was for Jntegral Propellerworks.

Beautiful item!

[Jlangworthy]

Admiralty Design

Hi Bob, I have a single blade of one of my Grandfather’s planes. He was RNAS. I think it may be from a DH4 but I’m not sure. I have his log book and he broke the last two DH4 props on landing in France so maybe he cut a blade off for a keepsake and had to cut the tip for transporting it. Would like to know your thoughts. There are no numbers on the blade. Jon.

[Bob Gardner]

Jon,

The line near the tip is a witness mark of where the linen around the tip was cut off.

The blue band indicates a left hand rotation prop. (Red; a RH rotation). These show that the engine could come in either form, and could be used on twin engine aircraft to counter-balance swing on take off.

I only know of this marking on RR Falcon engines, in both 190 and 250hp form, used on Bristol Aircraft such as the F2B Bristol Fighter. But the marking was intended primarily for twin engine aircraft to counter torque swing on take off. I'll do some research tomorrow and come back to you.

With kind regards,

Bob

[Jlangworthy]

Possibly a Bristol

Hi Bob, thanks so much for replying. The tip of the blade is actually cut off, I had it fixed but the glue etc is dry and the tip comes off easily ( I’ll fix it again). There are a couple of Bristols mentioned in his log, BE2E’s and Scouts are mentioned, one rough landing in a Scout losing the prop so it could be this one. Jon

[Kafister28]

I'm new here

Can you help me identify this WW1 prop
History:
I believed it belonged to an ACE PIOLET IN WW1 , who lived on Campbell Ave in Long Branch,New Jersey.
My aunt and uncle had just purchSed his home in the early 60's and were throwing away the leftover contents in his cellar. My brother and I took the prop and I've kept it all these years.
It has obvious marking of an anchor and US a long with numbers and letters throughout he prop. It has two markings of what seems to be a ships prop also stamped on it
Can I send you a few photos of this prop?
Thank you
Kevin Fister

[Kafister28]

More pictures of my WW1 wooden prop

Please see my pictures attached
Thank you Kevin Fister

[Dbahnson]

Can I send you a few photos of this prop?
Thank you
Kevin Fister

Try mailing them to dave@woodenpropeller.com and post here when you've sent them. If they don't go through I'll come up with another plan. We need a picture of the entire prop centered on the center bore exactly perpendicular to the face of the hub (to avoid distortion).

The "SE" component of the drawing number refers to "Steam Engineering", which was the branch of the Navy charged with procuring propellers for the flying boat development at the end of WW1. Many of those props were sold off as surplus in the 1920s.

Is the hub notched on one side? It looks from one photo that it might be. If so that would be an indication that it is half of a four-bladed prop.

[Kafister28]

Having trouble posting pictures

Thanks for that info. I will email Dave. I tried to post all my pics but the site only posts one at a time

[Dbahnson]

You should be able to upload several photos. You just need to do them one at a time, but they will all appear on one post. (I think there's a limit of five, but then you can add another post and repeat the process.)

But feel free to send them and I'll upload them.

[Dbahnson]

I've uploaded a few of the most relevant photos sent to me. They're attached.

The propeller is indeed half of a four-bladed propeller. The notching on the hub combined with a matching notch on a second one they were bolted together within the hub.

It's a very common prop, sold off as surplus in the 1920s and used on a variety of aircraft using a Liberty engine. Most of those were ordered by the Navy (That's where "Steam Engineering" comes into play.) and they have various Navy stamps in addition to the drawing number.

Even though it's half of a prop combination, it's best to keep it in original condition. I've only seen one matching pair of these (consecutive serial numbers) and those, sadly, were sold off separately to two different buyers.

Interestingly, the P5368 and P5364 may refer to the blade numbers that are designed to match each other and/or the blade numbers in between.

[Kafister28]

Thanks for replying to me.

That gives me some insight what I have
Wondering if I should try to find its partner or list for sale as is

[Dbahnson]

You might spend a lifetime searching for its matching blade and would likely still come up empty. Besides, chances are high that the two blades had significantly different storage in the past 90+ years and as a result their display value would be significantly reduced.

I would just list it for sale.

[Littlewood]

Hi Bob,

We are trying to research the history behind a wooden propeller which is in our family’s ownership and which we believe dates back to WWI.

The propeller is manufactured by Lucraft & Westcott with the only other markings being “No. 101”, “50 HP” and “A23”. The propeller is 94’’ inches in length with 8 holes in the centre boss. The wood is laminated, not carved from a single piece of timber. We believe it may be made from mahogany.

We would like to find out more about it particular what sort of plane it may have been from

Any information you can provide would be gratefully received.

Regards

Andy Cook

[Bob Gardner]

Andy,

Many thanks for this data.

Lucraft & Westcott were furniture makers who began to make propellers in June 1915 when they asked their bank, the Capital & Counties Bank, for a £350 overdraft to carry out the first contract for 100 propellers for the Government.

I have recorded five of their props, now six with yours. One of these carries the serial number 15 which is likely to be the earliest in existence.

Ah! My supper is ready; more will follow tomorrow.
With kind regards,

Bob

[Bob Gardner]

Andy,

To continue;

Your data might be incomplete.

The drawing number A23 relates to WW1 Vickers aircraft. I have recorded one prop, besides yours, which was for a 110hp Clerget engine on the Vickers FB19 Mk 2, which was a rare fighter aircraft from 1916. Few were made. It had a prop of 6ft 6ins diameter whereas yours is 7ft 10ins.

So your prop comes from something entirely different.

One possibility is from an early biplane from 1913 which used 50hp engines. These were still in use as training machines in 1915.

A second possibility is that the data on your prop is only partially readable.

L & W made many props for naval aircraft. One drawing number was AD543 for a 90hp Curtiss OX2 aircraft. After decades of squinting at almost unreadable data on WW1 props I can see that AD23 could be constructed from the drg no. AD543. And 50hp might be read from the 90hp Curtiss OX2 engine.

Please advise if you come up with any new information.

With kind regards,

Bob