What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

Ivoprops?

B

Bitsko

Member
Okay, go ahead. Burst my bubble. Ivo claims "up to 700 hp" for his Magnum prop. In-flight adjustable graphite with a CHEAP constant-speed controller option. 3 blades, 27 pounds, $2400.

I can take it. Tell me why this is "too good to be true." Ruin my day. What am I missing? What's the dirty little secret?
 
I fly one of these on my -6A turbo Subie. Works well, no problems. Might absorb 700hp at 4000 prop rpm. Count on 200hp at "normal" 2700 prop rpms with the 3 blade. Not recommended on Lyco engines as the power pulses have been known to shake them to bits. The C/S controller has not worked well for some people. I just toggle mine and use an ammeter to judge pitch angle.
 
IVO props don't have a very good history on 4 cyl, 4 stroke, direct drive engines. During my 12 year search for the best fixed pitch prop, IVO was one of the first I researched. There were several tried on RVs, several crashes caused by the prop coming apart, and at least one fatallity. My search finally ended just over a year ago when I discovered the Catto prop.
 
A local Lancair 200 builder had one on his O-235. I forget how many hours he had on it (less than 100) and it threw a blade. He managed to land in a soy bean field, but the airplane was a right off.

I'm with Mel. I love my Catto 3 blade.
 
IVO has specifically NOT recommended their props be fitted to direct drive Lyco, Conti engines for over 5 years now. Anyone who does not follow prop manufacturers recommendations is risking their aircraft and their life.

There was a design change about 6 years ago to knurled drive plates and new torquing procedures. If these are followed on recommended engines, the props appear to be very reliable. It appears that some recent failures involved people not following the torquing procedures outlined by IVO. Again do this at your own risk.

I have 193 hours on IVOs with zero problems. Takeoff and climb performance is far superior to any FP prop. My 6A has trued 181 knots with one on the top end also.
 
My $.02

A few years ago a wellington Fl. resident was killed when the Velocity he was flying (WITH his family BTW) had his IVO come apart. Violent crash.
First the facts as observed by myself...
Then, a few months after this crash, I was looking for a prop for my kitfox (bought a warp drive, but my LYC pulses, even with a harmonic balancer, tore it up.....now my new Catto is actually in transit, finally!!!! Thanks Craig !), and I went to Palm Beach Propeller at Lantana Airport in Fl., to get some used prop ideas...PBP had an actual Ivo blade, sent from Ivo himself, that was delaminating. Ivo apparently was looking for a dependable NDT process to check for delamination. This blade he sent to PBP was one that had delaminated in the middle of it's span. Now, the next day I called and spoke to Mr. Ivo himself, and guess what he said..."Nope, no crashes I know of...None have come apart...... A N D , he 100% totally denied the fact that PBP had one of his "delaminating" prop blades, since he does not have this problem ,with his props". Kind of funny, since PBP even showed me later the invoice from Ivo with his name on it.
So, now comes my IMHO.......Go ahead and put an Ivo prop on your plane, but PLEASE don't fly over my house or start your engine near me. Yet another great idea that fails lethally in application.
Glen
 
At the time I was researching IVO props (early to mid 90s), Mr. IVO specifically recommended his Magnun porp for RVs. He told me that there were several RVs flying with the prop and even offered me a super deal to get his props "out there". When I asked him about the RVs I had heard about throwing blades, he never again responded to my e-mails or phone calls. Just my experience.
 
Yes, there have been cases of IVOs failing but so have there been on pretty well every other brand out there. (check the NTSB database) When the Magnum was new, with the un-knurled plates, it was unknown how they would perform on a Lyco as little or no testing had been done to my knowledge. I say IVO should have done some testing before offering them for sale. Much initial testing was done on LOM engined RVs which obviously had different torsional vibration characteristics from a Lyco.

The knurled plates were a huge step forward but once reports of failures on direct drive engines started coming in, IVO stopped selling for these applications. As far as I know now, they WON'T sell to you for a Lyco or Conti application anymore because they just are not suited. These props were designed primarily for alternative engines with redrives and soft couplings and lower amplitude power pulses. There are a number of Wankel, Rover V8 and Sube aircraft flying successfully with them.

My experience with IVO has been very positive. They answer questions promptly and ship things quickly.

There have been some recent cases of failures where the users admitted that they did not follow IVOs recommendations on installation and torquing. Well Duh! Can't blame that on the prop any more than on a wood or Hartzell prop where people ignore manufacturers recommendations. These are airplanes, not tractors we operate.

I'd heard and read lots of bad things about IVO props from both people who had flown them and armchair "experts" before I bought mine. None of the speculation proved correct in my experience.

If you are using a Lyco, best stick with the popular brands- Hartzell, Sensenich, Catto, MT etc. If you have an auto engine with a proper redrive, the IVO is an alternative which works for many of us. I'd buy another as there is no other prop out there for $2500, which weighs 27 lbs complete that gives me the takeoff, climb and cruise performance of the IVO on my Subie installation.
 
Don't

I put a 3 blade, then went down to 2 blade on my Lancair 235 in 1996. Within a few hours after a routine flight I landed. Fortunately I hadn't gotten a new spinner to make the 3-2 blade change and without a spinner was able to immediately observe a crack in the front plate from one of the bolt holes to the edge. Ivo was eager to get the original plates back. Sent me knurled plates and stainless tapes to tell if the blades were moving relative to the plates. Flew it a few more hours and then quit flying it. Good decision. If you contact Ivo today they will tell you their prop is not recommended for direct drive applications. Perhaps if they used a large hub plate with multiple bolts to secure each blade they would stay together. The idea of simply twisting the blade worked like a charm. I was cruising at 185 mph on 115 hp! But remember, as soon as you mount up something as untested as this, you become a test pilot. I think they always wear shutes and fly alone.
---Dick---
 
I hadn't searched this forum for IVO information recently, but came across this thread tonight.

I sent IVO a message Saturday night asking a few questions re: their Magnum prop for my Continental O-200 I'm going to install on my Midget Mustang.

Not only did they NOT tell me not to install their prop on a direct drive engine, they offered to sell me the wiring harness for $36 so I can pre-wire my airplane.

I specifically asked for referral information... I wanted to talk to people using the IVO prop on an O-200. They responded that they "didn't give out their customers' private information" as if I was asking for credit card numbers or something.

The other deal-killer (as if there isn't enough in the above postings) is that the dreaded Service Bulletin #1 applies. It requires the installation of stainless tape and inspection of said tape (at the hub) prior to each flight.

There's no way in heck I'm going to remove my spinner prior to each flight.

My airplane came with a Bernie Warneke "almost constant speed" prop. I'll probably test fly the engine re-build with the old prop and then go from there for a more appropriately sized and pitched prop. Unless the engine rebuild changes things dramatically, I'll probably sell the Warneke prop. It's 64x83 and not really appropriate for a 100hp plane. Maybe it would work for somebody's really lightweight 0320 RV-4 or -3.

Best regards,

Rod Woodard
KFNL
#81964 wings on hold pending completion of Midget Mustang Project
Midget Mustang--Who knew an engine overhaul could lead to this? :)
www.mustangflyer.com
 
Thanks for this information. This sort of thing would not seem to be in IVO's or the customers best interest. A company confident in their products for a given application will usually have a few enthusiastic customers who are willing to be contacted for testimonials. This would not inspire new customer confidence.

As a happy IVO customer (Subaru), I think that the modern design does the job on many auto engine conversions but is unproven in my view on direct drive aircraft engines. If someone from IVO can supply information to the contrary, we'd be happy to look it over. In the meantime, IMHO, I wouldn't bolt an IVO to a conventional aircraft engine.

I agree, checking the tape is easier than checking bolt torque but rather inconvenient unless you had holes in your spinner to inspect it.
 
I received a follow-up e-mail from IVO today. I wrote them last night saying thanks for the info, but I don't think I'll be a customer. I didn't want to get into a mud-slinging contest so I told them my biggest issue was inspecting the stainless tape before each flight.

The response was that the suggested 1/4" gap between the hub and the spinner was enough to allow inspection of the stainless tape prior to each flight. Other than that, I'd only have to remove the spinner to re-torque the bolts every 10 hours.

I'm still not willing to remove the spinner every 10 hours.

After reading some very positive comments on this board and others, I'm now planning on a Catto prop. I think the 3-blade looks cool, but I hear it's not quite as fast/efficient as a 2-blade. On the other hand, it'd be nice to have a little better clearance... 3 shorter blades vs. 2 longer blades. Who knows...

Best regards,

Rod
KFNL
Loveland, Colorado
 
Once the bolts take no more torque after 2-3 times usually, there is no need to check this anymore except at annuals if the tape is intact. Mine are always tight after 200 hours of running time.

I think you will be happy with the Catto if you can get one, Craig is swamped it seems. It might not have the takeoff or climb performance of the IVO but there are no moving parts and cruise should be good by all accounts.

Did IVO still not mention anything about not using their props on direct drive engines?
 
Last edited:
No. Ron from IVO never said anything about not using the prop on a direct-drive engine. I clearly stated in every e-mail I sent that I intended to use the prop on a Continental O-200.

His last e-mail said that I could inspect the tape through the spinner gap near the root of the blade. He also specifically said that I'd need to remove the spinner every 10 hours to check the bolt torque. I'm not interested in that.

I e-mailed Mr. Catto last night. He responded today. I then spoke with him on the telephone this afternoon. I'm ordering a Catto 3-bladed prop. He's backed up for 6 months on the 3-bladed props. Oh well. Given my slow progress the thing will probably still have time to collect some dust!

Best regards,

Rod
 
Hi,

does anbody have some news on these IVOPROPS?
or does nobody uses them anymore on RV's with direct driven engines?

Regards
Uli
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top