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What can ya tell me about this prop?

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  • What can ya tell me about this prop?

    Overall length = 70" I'll let the pics speak for the rest...

    Thanks!








  • #2
    It's a Sensenich prop used on one of several options for aircraft with the 50 HP Franklin engine. The serial number indicates manufacture between 1932 and 1942 but it's a low number so it's likely early thirties. It's been refinished and fabric removed from the tips. It was mounted in a metal hub and likely put in service vs. kept as a spare. (There are "witness marks" on the hub.)

    You can see the list of possible aircraft for that model number on this page, but there is no way to know which of those it was used on.

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    • #3
      Originally posted by Dbahnson View Post
      It's a Sensenich prop used on one of several options for aircraft with the 50 HP Franklin engine. The serial number indicates manufacture between 1932 and 1942 but it's a low number so it's likely early thirties. It's been refinished and fabric removed from the tips. It was mounted in a metal hub and likely put in service vs. kept as a spare. (There are "witness marks" on the hub.)

      You can see the list of possible aircraft for that model number on this page, but there is no way to know which of those it was used on.
      Db, thank you for your gracious reply and obvious knowledge!

      My late father saved one of these exact props from his early years of flying, then went on to beautifully refurbish it complete with the fabric tips you mention (it had some real problems beforehand, as I recall). When it came time to divide estate property there was one of these prop's and three of us brothers, and it didn't find it's way to my home. So it's always been my intention of finding one to display and enjoy in my fathers name - I sure do miss him. Just to give you an idea of his passion, here's one of the aircraft he built - N32RN - Christen Eagle II - now owned by a gentleman nearer to the East Coast.

      Tell me, based on the fact that this prop has been refinished at least once, would I be doing it injustice if I refurbished it back to its original appearance? Or should I just leave it as is?

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      • #4
        Nice plane! Beautiful.

        Once a prop is no longer "original" I don't see any harm in restoring it. To a trained eye it will always look restored so I think a better, more authentic looking restoration is always reasonable.

        The problem comes up many, many years down the road when today's restoration has aged and it gets harder to tell whether it's original or not. We are seeing that with some of the WW1 props that got re-varnished 70 or 80 years ago and now look "sort of" original. That's one reason that preservation of original decals is such a useful indication of original condition. They are hard to duplicate in a way that looks undisturbed for 100 years.

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