SE5 Propeller (cont’d)

[Gabriel]

My search for, and purchase of, an SE5a propeller has been completed.

I am now the proud owner of a lovely four blade prop, as fitted to the Hispano Suiza 200hp engine. I will shortly post some photos of it now it has been cleaned and had several coats of beeswax. Additionally, I have discovered some of the provenance of my particular prop from the 1920s onwards. More of that in a future post.

So that I can put together the best picture of the prop’s whole history, please can I ask if anyone can provide an approx date of manufacture? The drawing/pattern number is the standard T28096 for the four blade Hisso prop. Mine is batch number G64 N61.

Any information gratefully received. Thank you.

[Dbahnson]

The person who can date that production number (Bob Gardner) is currently dealing with some health issues and may not be able to participate at this point.

He has in the past commented on this forum about other "G and N" numbers, so if you wanted to spend the time searching through old threads here you might be able to narrow it down considerably.

Congratulations on the acquisition.

[Gabriel]

Many thanks for the reply. I’ll do a search of previous posts and see if anything turns up relating to relevant “G and N” numbers.

In the meantime I’d like to extend my best wishes to Bob G and wish him a speedy recovery.

[Bob Gardner]

Gabriel,

G64 relates to a series of batch numbers introduced by the Air Board in the summer of 1917, prior to the formation of the RAF from the RFC and RNAS in April 1918. It describes a batch of 100 props ordered for the SE5A aircraft. It probably dates from early in 1918.

With kind regards.

BobG

[Gabriel]

Hello Bob,

Many thanks for taking the time to reply, that's the final piece in the jigsaw. I can now definitively track almost the complete 102 year history and provenance of my particular propeller from manufacture until it arrived at my house at the end of December!

I will shortly write another post (with photos such as I have) to document the life of my prop which I hope will be of interest.

[Bob Gardner]

Gabriel,

Putting details of your pop and photos on this forum is an excellent idea. I encourage other forumites to do likewise. It will be of considerable value as it grows and expands our knowledge.

With kind regards,

Bob