|
By Joe Zingali
Pres.
of J &Z Products Inc.
ZINGER
Modern manufacturing methods make it
possible to produce Propellers that require little if any balancing by
the user. Every Zinger Propeller
is high - point balanced prior to leaving the factory and, therefore,
should not have to be adjusted, However, occasionally a prop will require
a little touch up before it can be considered to be perfectly balanced.
To catch those few props that sneak out the door on us, it is wise
to double - check the balance. This
is true of any propeller, regardless of the maker. No matter the type of balancer chosen, a properly balanced
prop will remain at the horizontal position on the balancer, when placed
in that position. Warning, before you check the prop for balance,
Be certain that the balancer's shaft is firmly positioned in the prop
hole. Once in position, you
should not be able to wiggle the shaft in the propeller hole.
If the prop appears to be out of balance, you have a little work
to do. An unbalanced propeller
will occur when one blade is heavier than the other.
The heavier blade will, obviously drop to a lower position than
the other while mounted on the balancer.
Just enough material must be’ removed from the heavier (lower)
blade to put the prop into a perfect balance.
In’ most cases, all that is required is to remove a small amount
of finish from the heavy blade.
I find the best tool for this job is a simple, single-edge razor
blade. Once you have located
the heavy side of your prop, scrape a bit of the finish. From the front
of the blade (where the printing is) along the center line, between the
hole and the prop tip, Do not work the tip itself with your razor blade,
just scrape a little finish from between the hole and the blade tip; however,
favor the outside half of the blade as you scrape. Normally, all it takes is just a touch of scraping, a little
at a time, to obtain that perfect horizontal balance. Remember... Take just a little of the finish off at a time
and check often for proper balance as you work.
And please, NEVER, NEVER, scrape the back of the prop.
Material removed from the rear surface of the blade will cause
the propeller's pitch to change, fomenting a whole new set of problems.
Also, never cut a piece from the tip of the blade to balance it.
If you wish, once the prop has balanced, a coat of clear finish
can be sprayed or brushed on the scraped blade, or just spread on a thin
layer of CA glue to reseal the wood.
I
hope this information is of value and that your use of Zinger Propellers
brings you many happy hours of flying.
·
Home Page
|