Can anyone help me out?

Re: Can anyone help me out?

Originally posted by jade_butterfly
Hi there,

I am a final year student at the University of Sydney in Australia. Currently undertaking a course in propulsion (the assignment at the moment involves design of propellers for any chosen aircraft).

Having tried numerous resources, I have still been unable to obtain all the information that I need. Maybe anyone here might be able to help?

I still need to find out the specifications of the propeller used for a Supermarine Spitfire Mk IX

1. How many blades were used?
2. What is the diameter, pitch distribution, chord length, thickness to chord ratio, and an estimate of aerofoil section?
3. Where would I be able to get information on the engine’s performance data (with or without supercharger)?
4. Suggestions of possible sources for the above questions

Your help and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

JB

I’d love to help you out, which way did you come in?

Re: Can anyone help me out?

1. How many blades were used?
2. What is the diameter, pitch distribution, chord length, thickness to chord ratio, and an estimate of aerofoil section?
3. Where would I be able to get information on the engine’s performance data (with or without supercharger)?
4. Suggestions of possible sources for the above questions

Your best easily available source of information, unless you are able to spend time researching in archives, is ‘Spitfire: The History’ by Eric Morgan and Eric Shacklady and published by Key Publishing (the publishers of Flypast Magazine).

As far as I can make out from the above book, the Mk IX flew with a Rotol 4-blade propellor of 10ft 9 inch diameter. The Merlin 61 engine had a 30 degree pitch, whereas the Merlin 63 had a 35 degree pitch.

The performance of the aircraft was FIX: 408 mph @ 25,000 feet. HFIX: 416 @ 27,000 feet. LFIX: 404 @ 21,000 feet. Cruise (most marks): 324 mph. Rate of climb: 3,950 ft/min.

I hope this is helpful as a starter until you can get more detailed info. I should add that I’m not a Spit expert – I’m more interested in twin-engined types.

The prototype Mk IX was tested with four bladed Hydulignum (wooden?) Dural and Jablo props each of 10ft 9 in diameter from Dowty.

First production model had a Four bladed wooden prop, again from Dowty Rotol. Early production models were then extended to 11ft 1 in dia.

Looking through “Spitfire The History” it seems that most production aircraft had Rotol props, the majority four-bladers, but some with three. The spec of the prop varied between the normal F, and the LF and HF versions as you would expect.

Dowty Rotol still exists to the best on my knowledge in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. They’d be my next port of call for information.

Moggy

The proeller used on the MkIX was four bladed but that is all I can tell you.
As for specifications on the engine I suggest you try Rolls-Royce Aero Engine division, from what I can make out they have still got a lot of this kind of information in their archives