identification

[Alfred]

Hi, we have 3 wooden propellers at our museum , of which 2 remain unidentified. One is light natural wood colour, but the special fact is, that it has 9 holes instead of the usual 8. There are a lot of stamps of numbers and letters, some rather illegible. I could determine D 2800 - P 2320, so we have diameter and pitch.
Other markings are:
C U I M I N
G I O 8 8 N 4 4
D H P S I D D E L E Y
B 7935
C D or O N I I M I N C or E

The second one is entirely black, has 10 (!) holes and the following inscriptions
858 48 P or F R E 18

553 (?) L B R E (?) 450

We appreciate any advice

best regards
Alfred , Musée Guerre et Paix, Ardennes, France

[pmdec]

Bonjour Alfred,

First prop markings seem to be English. So, you have to wait Bob Gardner readind this.

The second is probably French, so, with clear close-up pictures, I may, perhaps, have something to tell. Hubs with 10 holes is probably a "D" type hub, in use, for example, on Breguet 19. The picture is very small, but the black propeller have the same shape as propellers I know for Breguet 19. BRE could design Breguet and 450 could be the engine power of Breguet 19.
If you can't upload large and clear pictures of the markings, you can send them to my email:
pmdecombeix
à robe hase
yahoo
le point
com (écriture anti spam !)

Regards,
PM

[Bob Gardner]

Bonjour encore, Alfred, et bienvenue.

I too would like to see a close up photo of the data on this prop as there are some aspects that I don't understand.

However I can tell you that it is British.

D 2800 - P 2320 are diameter and pitch in mm. Could 2800 be 2900?
C U I M I N I do not know.
G I O 8 8 N 4 4 A batch number which can be dated to mid 1918.
D H P S I D D E L E Y This is BHP Siddeley, which describes a 200hp engine built by Siddeley and designed by Beardmore, Halford & Pullinger.
B 7935 AB7935, the drawing number, indicating an Air Board design used on the DH9 and the Bristol F2B. It became the standard prop for both aircraft in July 1919 when the BHP Siddeley had been developed and called the Siddeley Puma.
C D or O N I I M I N C or E I don't know.

Do you have any more British propellers in your museum? Or German? If so, can you let me know the details for my research?

With kind regards,

Bob

[Alfred]

identification

Dear Bob,

thanks for the quick reply and help. I can send you some photos of the markings later, however, they are much larger than the restrictions this page has for uploads.

We have a third british propeller , 4-blade identified as being a Rolls-Royce for a Handley-Page photo enclosed) . If this is interesting for you I can send you more detailes images.

Unfortunately these are all we have in our collection. We are recently re-structuring our museum to show more material which came into the collection recently or which (as the propellers) was hidden in the reserves for some years.

best regards from the Ardennes
Alfred

[Bob Gardner]

Alfred,

Thank you for this latest photograph. I would much like a copy in hi-res of the prop and also of the data, if possible. My address (dans le modèle de pmdec)
aeroclocks
à
btinternet
le point
com

How is Belgium these days? Are you going to become part of France and the Netherlands?

With kind regards,

Bob

[Alfred]

Hi Bob,

we are on the French side of the Ardennes ! (departement 08, capital Charleville-Mezieres) Concerning our Belgian neighbours, France is not very keen to get the Walloons and the Flemish dislike the Dutch more than their southern fellow countrymen. This is a question of religion (catholic vs protestant) and history (Belgian independence of 1830) but I fear there is an own forum necessary to discuss all this in detail.
Picture in high res follow later

kind regards
Alfred

[Bob Gardner]

Hello Alfred,

Thank you for the photographs. I can see how difficult it was to read the data.

And I apologise for my ignorance in not knowing that part of the Ardennes was in France. I have been there many times, including the Spa Francorchamps motor racing circuit, and I suppose the name should have given me a clue, but I never knew part of the Ardennes was French.

The data on your hub is as I supposed, although BHP Siddeley actually reads 200 BHP Siddeley which indicates 200hp for the Siddeley engine designed by BHP.

The almost unreadable bit reads gun timing and this is along side a mark which had to be in line with the gun synchronisation mechanism.

Your prop is delaminating and will benefit in being somewhere a bit damper than where it was stored. Polishing it with beeswax will help conserve it.

With kind regards,

Bob