Propeller blade for identification

[George Blake]

Hi guys,

I'm new here and I've been trying to identify a propeller blade recovered from the North Sea. I've been looking through previous posts here and can see that a key feature is the stamping on the base, unfortunately this is missing on my example and so I'm limited to providing the measurements. The blade is 30cm wide at the widest point and 165cm long (excluding the base) but looks to be slightly cropped at the top.

Many thanks, any help you could give would be greatly appreciated.

G

 

[dairwin]

Hi guys,

I'm new here and I've been trying to identify a propeller blade recovered from the North Sea. I've been looking through previous posts here and can see that a key feature is the stamping on the base, unfortunately this is missing on my example and so I'm limited to providing the measurements. The blade is 30cm wide at the widest point and 165cm long (excluding the base) but looks to be slightly cropped at the top.

Many thanks, any help you could give would be greatly appreciated.

G
View attachment 480593 View attachment 480594 View attachment 480595

Looks like a German/VDM blade.

 

[Airframes]

Yes, it does look like a VDM.
The lack of pitch gear notches on the blade end of the hub, and the size, suggest possibly from a He-111, more than a few of which ended up in the North Sea.
The 'cropped' tip looks like damage, rather than deliberate cropping.

 

[Wurger]

Yep if the blade tip is damaged it might be the prop stated above. But if not... it isn't the ww2 one at all.

 

[Airframes]

I agree.

 

[George Blake]

Thanks very much for the information guys. The tip has been damaged (see pic) rather than cut deliberately. HE 111 is an interesting prospect, I've been told it's too long for a 109 and too narrow for a 190. Is it only the base of the blade that is usually stamped? I know mine's damaged but could there be markings elsewhere I'm missing?

 

[Airframes]

As far as I know, the only stamps would be at the base of the blade, and on the hub itself. At one time, the front face of the blade probably ahd the makers logo, or a data label, either painted or decal, but of course this will be long gone.
Do you happen to know approximately where in the North Sea this was recovered from ?

 

[George Blake]

Unfortunately not, I acquired it from a collection in Holland but the history is lost (I suppose Dutch coastal waters doesn't really narrow it down). In an earlier post you mentioned a lack of pitch gear notches on the hub, are these associated with more manoeuvrable fighter-type aircraft or were they found on a specific aircraft?

 

[Airframes]

On closer inspection, it appears that the pitch gear notches are there after all, but they do not seem as prominent as on some other VDM props, the one I was thinking of at the time being that on the Bf110, purely due to the location of the find, thinking more of the 'central' area of the North Sea, further north than the Dutch coast.
Having been found in Dutch waters, that does leave it open to the prop being from other types, including the Bf110 and Bf109, although the dimensions, and the style of the hub, do look more like that on the He-111.
The pitch control hub would be found on any prop with a variable pitch, either manually operated, via a pitch control lever, or a 'constant speed' prop, operated via a Constant Speed Unit (CSU) controlled automatically by the engine revs. Most combat aircraft of the period had variable pitch props, the He-111 included, the latter being manually operated as far as I know.

 

[George Blake]

Thank you very much, interesting stuff. Tank parts are usually my thing but I just couldn't resist this piece.

 

[Airframes]

You're welcome. Just wish I could have made a positive I.D. for you.
Ar there any small aviation museums near you ?
Some of the smaller museums and collections often have this type of artefact, and could possibly help more towards a more accurate I.D.
Either way, whatever aircraft it's from, it's a piece of history worth having, and there's sure to be a story behind it somewhere.