Seafire VP 441 propellers and engine

VP441 was rescued from the ravages and vandalism of an ATC unit in Plymouth in the mid 1960’s.

At that time it had lost its original Dowty-Rotol counter-rotating propeller and spinner group.

A restoration to static condition by RNAS Culdrose included the simple fitting of a standard De Havilland counter-rotating propeller from a Shackleton, over large on diameter and over large also on the diameter of the spinner back plate at the engine cowling interface….but OK for static.

When Jim Smith commissioned Ezell Aviation of Texas to just do what it takes to get it flying, one of the solutions was to fit a modified Shackleton 58 Griffon engine and to re-profile a Shackleton propeller to the correct diameters and to build a one off set of spinner and backplate components to replicate the original nose profile.

One of the joys to look forward to with the restoration of Seafire 46 LA564 at North Weald is that enough blades, hubs and spinner components have now been gathered to facilitate the fitting of a correct Dowty-Rotol assembly, as the image below.

What ever turns you on. 🙂

Mark

Hi,

This is indeed a lovely photo, and one I recognise from a set of negatives that included a DH Hornet F3 taken at RAF Hullavington. I used the Hornet photo on the entire rear cover of the Dalrymple and Verdun book from 2010, such was its quality.

When VP441 was given to my ATC sqn at Ernesettle, Plymouth, it came sans props but with original spinners. Whether the props had ever been fitted to the aircraft during its time with the RNEC at Manadon as a GI frame, I have never been able to discover. The original engine had also been replaced but I have long lost my notes regarding the actual mark of Griffon fitted at that time.

Regarding the high-gloss finish. It was certainly standard on the Mk47s and, one of the first comments in the 804 NAS diary, after delivery of the first few aircraft in early 1948, was that much attention was given by pilots to the high-speed (high-gloss) finish of the airframes.

It was a very large 5×4 colour tranny and about four hours of photoshop/PSP to recover it to pristine.

Mark

….Sorry for the drift off topic…..I scoffed a bit at the recent high gloss finish on VP 441, but the 1946 finish on LA 544 has made me realise that these gloss finishes may’ve been the norm in those post war days ??

Got to agree, a fantastic photo, thought it must have been large format,but didn’t realise it was that large.Thanks

It was a very large 5×4 colour tranny and about four hours of photoshop/PSP to recover it to pristine.

Mark

…Gee, You could blow me away with a feather…. That pic looks like it was taken yesterday !…thanks again for great info.

The image is a rare colour shot of LA544, long gone, taken in 1946.

Mark

…Yes, I was getting a little confused…Is/was LA 544 a spurious code ?

…Well that looks more like it ! .. Thanks Mark12. Is LA 464 being restored to flight ?…I had read about the blades being quite problematic on these late mark birds due to age and shrinking of the propeller roots ??

My typo; Read LA564.

…Well that looks more like it ! .. Thanks Mark12. Is LA 464 being restored to flight ?…I had read about the blades being quite problematic on these late mark birds due to age and shrinking of the propeller roots ??

VP441 was rescued from the ravages and vandalism of an ATC unit in Plymouth in the mid 1960’s.

At that time it had lost its original Dowty-Rotol counter-rotating propeller and spinner group.

A restoration to static condition by RNAS Culdrose included the simple fitting of a standard De Havilland counter-rotating propeller from a Shackleton, over large on diameter and over large also on the diameter of the spinner back plate at the engine cowling interface….but OK for static.

When Jim Smith commissioned Ezell Aviation of Texas to just do what it takes to get it flying, one of the solutions was to fit a modified Shackleton 58 Griffon engine and to re-profile a Shackleton propeller to the correct diameters and to build a one off set of spinner and backplate components to replicate the original nose profile.

One of the joys to look forward to with the restoration of Seafire 46 LA564 at North Weald is that enough blades, hubs and spinner components have now been gathered to facilitate the fitting of a correct Dowty-Rotol assembly, as the image below.

What ever turns you on. 🙂

Mark

It’s running a Griffin 58 unit

FB

The restoration of her in 1965 used a Shackleton unit. I imagine her original engine was left in situ.