Warpdrive Prop Setting

[SkySteve]

I guess I've lost it. I'm doing some prop adjustment on my Warpdrive prop using the Warpdrive protractor. There are so many numbers on the protractor and it's been a long time since I used it I can't remember for certain if I'm doing it right. Here are two photos. The first photo is of the blade that has the protractor on it. That blade has been leveled. The other photo is a close up of how I have the protractor set. Mickey's little white hand is on the "0". Mickey's big grey hand is on the "20", if that helps. I am wanting to set the prop blade at 20 degrees. So the question is: Am I good to go, or am I all screwed up?

[GT280flyer]

That reading will work if your prop hub is 0 degrees vertical. If not 0 degrees vertical you must first place the back of the degree gage on the front of the hub and zero the gage, eg. level the bubble, then add your 20 degrees to the outer grey scale reading taken from the hub surface.

[t j]

Steve,
If you held the protractor against the hub with the white bar in your hand and the opposite side against prop hub, then rotated the white ring to set the bubble to level first, then rotated the white ring the number of degrees you want, then placed the protractor on the blade and rotated the blade to level the bubble, and read the same side of the protractor each time, you are good to go.

If your starting point (protractor against the hub) was zero, you have 20 degrees of pitch.

[SkySteve]

GT & Tom,
Thanks. I think I'm good to go. The prop hub was leveled vertically first, i.e. the bottom of the plane sits horizontally level. Next I leveled one blade horizontally. Then set the protractor to the 20 degrees and attached to the outside edge of the horizontally leveled prop blade, as in the photo. Then rotated the blade to level the protractor bubble. This was done with each of the three blades. Each of the 4 blade bolts were torqued to 120 in lbs, re-checked and adjusted 'till each blade was correct and all three sets of 4 blade bolts were equal. Finally torqued the six hub bolts to 175 in lbs.

[GT280flyer]

Steve, sounds like your in good shape. It is best to set your protractor inner scale to 0 degrees with 0 on the outer scale, lock the scales together, then again set the back side of your protractor on your prop hub to be sure the hub is in deed at 0 degrees, eg. level bubble on protractor.

[SkySteve]

GT, Thanks for the explaination. Yes, that's what I did. I'll finish my annual inspection, then go fly the thing and adjust ... adjust ... adjust to fine tune to the sweet spot!!! Sure wish us Sport Pilots could use an IFA system.

[avidflyer]

Don't know if I ever posted these pics here, but I built a tool that helps to adjust the prop blades to a very accurate setting. It uses a lazer and I usually shoot it accross the hangar and make a mark on the wall with the first blade, and then line the other blades with that mark. If you want to be at a certain setting in degrees, you can set the first blade with the protractor, and then match the other blades to it. I also built a tool to twist the blades easier, don't have a pic handy of it. I'll try to get one tomorrow. Take care, Jim Chuk

[SkySteve]

AvidFlyer,
Now that looks like a pretty interesting set up.

[avidflyer]

Here are a few pics of that prop wrench that I mentioned in an earlier post. It really helps to turn the blade with out haveing to have every thing so loose it doesn't want to stay in place. Take care, Jim Chuk

[SkySteve]

Thanks, Jim!