What's new
Van's Air Force

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

Sensenich 0360 GA prop.

billnaz

billnaz

Well Known Member
I see one of these in my future. Currently flying the fixed pitch metal Sensi. Anyone done the switch to the new GA prop from old metal? How did the spinner work out? Any other changes required, spacers etc? I'm also wondering if these props benefit from dynamic balance as much as my old prop did. How does the lower mass effect engine function? Any experiences you could share?

Thanks for the comments!
Starting my prop fund today!
 
Last edited:
I put the one for the O-320 on my RV-6 last summer in place of a wood Aymar Demuth prop that developed a crack.

It's turbine smooth, I haven't bothered to get it dynamically balanced yet because I've been too lazy to paint the new spinner. I also run a Landoll inertia ring weight mounted on my flywheel which probably helps make it run even smoother.

I recommend buying the carbon fiber spinner that is available for this prop since the front bulkhead is way different from the one for a metal or wood prop. The rear bulkhead also has extra holes for the stainless steel dowel pins that help lock the spinner to the prop. These props use a special spacer that has these pins in it. The spacer came with the prop kit I bought direct from Sensenich.

Total installed weight ran 3 lbs more than my old wood prop.
 
Last edited:
Bill,
this prop worked great right out of the box. The spinner was factory cut and it fit perfectly( after some anti chafe tape on front bulkhead)
Easy to adjust and like Neal said" turbine smooth"
I didn't use an inertia ring, but love the quick response of the low inertia prop.
Btw. I took off the Sensenich FM72 series and this prop performs better.

Sean
RV 7-a
220hp exIO-360
 
Mine cost right at $4300 for everything (prop, mounting kit, spinner kit) including expedited shipping.

A couple of things I did to mine after the initial install...

1) the front bulkhead had a wee gap between it and the inside of the spinner cone and wasn't as tight of a fit as I liked, so I ran a bead of RTV silicone rubber around the edge of the front bulkhead, and wrapped a strip of Saran Wrap all the way around the circumference of the front bulkhead, then put the cone on and fastened a few of the screws and let it cure overnight so the RTV would conform to the gap and fill it and the Saran wrap keeping the RTV from sticking to the inside of the cone. After the RTV cured, I pulled off the Saran Wrap and trimmed off all the excess RTV with a razor blade and now have a nice, snug, RTV-cushioned fit between the front bulkhead and the inside of the cone.

2) The two little phillips head #10 screws and the small nordlock washers that hold the front bulkhead to the prop hub don't have enough surface area contact against the soft carbon fiber face, and the carbon fiber will get eaten away under the serrations of the nordlock washer and come loose. I thought I had felt a slight vibration during a flight and after putting the airplane away in the hangar, I turned the prop over by hand, and sure enough, heard a loose screw rolling around inside the spinner. Nordlock washers need to be used only with metal, the carbon fiber of the bulkhead is much too soft to provide a sturdy enough surface for them to dig their serrations into.

I solved that problem by using two short AN3H-3A bolts with drilled heads and two AN970-3 "fender washers" and used those instead of the #10 screws. The amount of surface area covered by the large washers against the carbon fiber will spread the load out much better. I also shortened the bolts a tad with the bench grinder to make sure they wouldn't thread into the prop hub any deeper then the original screws did, and cleaned up the threads with a die afterwards, but later examination seems that this was probably unnecessary and the threaded holes in the front of the prop hub seem plenty deep to accept the length of a stock bolt. I also used a drop of Locktite Blue on the threads in addition to safety-wiring the two bolt heads together. They're not going to vibrate loose anymore. :D
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top