PPRuNe Forums - View Single Post - Damage due to pulling/pushing on Propeller
Old 24th Jun 2012, 21:45
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peterh337
 
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This old one again

It is hard to say it is never possible, but traditional ally props are very strong. At the max rated RPM the stress in the metal is roughly 25% of the tensile yield point - many tons for a normal sized GA prop. This indicates the required strength of the hub too....

There is I suppose a possible weakness in that during operation the blades "come out" a little and compress the tapered roller bearings in which they sit, ensuring that any clearances are taken up. During ground movements, this doesn't happen.

But if you saw the internals of say a Hartzell CS prop, you would realise that not even Geoff Capes could do anything to it, by orders of magnitude. They are massive.

Backplate/spinner damage is much more likely and is very common, and becomes evident long after the event(s). The problem is that if somebody is sufficiently unclued-up to push on the spinner, they are probably pushing on the cowling and cracking it, and elsewhere too.

Last edited by peterh337; 24th Jun 2012 at 21:45.
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