Spitfire and Hurricane propeller question

A big thank you for quick and full answer.

Your welcome 🙂

I thought I’d heard that AR501 was getting a Rotol prop in this restoration?

You may well be right Eddie, we will have to see – I mentioned 501 really as she has flown for a long time with the metal prop.

Spitfires: virtually all are flying on wood based props today, apart from AR213 and AR501 (when she was and soon will be again airworthy).

I thought I’d heard that AR501 was getting a Rotol prop in this restoration?

Spitfire and Hurricane propeller question

Hello
A big thank you for quick and full answer.

Hello
I got a questions about the propellers on the flying version of the about planes flying today.

How many are flying with wooden propellers and how many use metal propellers ?

Probably best to answer this seperately as the answers are quite different. Spitfires: virtually all are flying on wood based props today, apart from AR213 and AR501 (when she was and soon will be again airworthy).

Because the Hurricane can (and should, if its a Canadian manufactured example) be fitted with a Packard Merlin/metal blade Hamilton Standard prop combination around half of the flyers are so configured. The reasoning for this is a combination of technical accuracy and ecconomy. Metal blade Hamilton Standard props are significantly cheaper to aquire and maintain than a Rotol unit. Most Packard built engines (apart from the Merlin 266) generally have the correct prop shafts to take the Hamilton prop too (fewer splines on it compared with RR built versions).

Can you run a wooden or metal propeller on the same plane at differnent times?

With the Spitfire they would be relativley easy to swap between the two. With the Hurricane, less easy due to having to change the drive shaft on the engine to suit the propellor.

Hope this answers your questions.