I've just read some of the postings on McCauley props and feel compelled to post this message. I flew a Mc prop and engine from a '91 Mooney 20J for over three years on an RV6 and strongly recommend anyone considering using this prop to reconsider. The prop has a harmonic while not very prevalent on the Mooney seems to resonate with the RV. This only occurs when operating below 15in MP and between 1500 & 1950 rpm, unfortunately the RV needs to pass through this power range when landing, some times more than once if you add power. The airplane will literally almost shake like a wet dog. Very unsettling to say the least and you will scare the heck out of your passengers, even when forewarned the look of panic will appear on their face. This resonance can be minimized by flying a very careful and planned approach to reduce your airspeed below 100mph before passing through this power band, a very difficult thing to do in the RV.
This prop , in my opinion, is not safe to use on the RV because of the extra attention and distraction it creates for the pilot in the cockpit during landing. I spent many hours and many phone conversations with the McCauley people and Lycoming. There is no fix for this prop on the RV and for those of you that feel it is OK to cut the prop below the minimum diameter or adding an extension you are playing ?Russian Roulette?. You could be moving a harmonic along the length of the blade or the crankshaft with catastrophic results. Many prop blade failures resulting in separation from the aircraft have occurred over the years as a consequence of these actions. If you have already set up your plane for the prop the easiest fix would be to change the Mc blades out with one of the manufactures making blades for the McCauley hub.
You will be much happier with your airplane and enjoy flying more if you select a better suited prop for the RV. I finally gave up trying to make the McCauley work and modified the cowl to accept the Hartzell (74in), the result is that I no longer had to manage my approach to land and I could pull the power back at any speed and enjoy flying again.
This prop , in my opinion, is not safe to use on the RV because of the extra attention and distraction it creates for the pilot in the cockpit during landing. I spent many hours and many phone conversations with the McCauley people and Lycoming. There is no fix for this prop on the RV and for those of you that feel it is OK to cut the prop below the minimum diameter or adding an extension you are playing ?Russian Roulette?. You could be moving a harmonic along the length of the blade or the crankshaft with catastrophic results. Many prop blade failures resulting in separation from the aircraft have occurred over the years as a consequence of these actions. If you have already set up your plane for the prop the easiest fix would be to change the Mc blades out with one of the manufactures making blades for the McCauley hub.
You will be much happier with your airplane and enjoy flying more if you select a better suited prop for the RV. I finally gave up trying to make the McCauley work and modified the cowl to accept the Hartzell (74in), the result is that I no longer had to manage my approach to land and I could pull the power back at any speed and enjoy flying again.