Captain_John

Captain_John

Well Known Member
Hey All,

I know that Van has been selling the 66 airfoil to RV builders for a long time. They now sell the 97 to us. It is the new scimitar blade. I think they also call it the blended airfoil (whatever that means).

As you know, Van is selling the 97 for almost $7,000.

As you may not know, you can get a 66 for a couple of thousand dollars less.

Now, in order to give this due diligence I would like to know if anyone has done a comparison of the 2 blades.

Hartzell says the new 97 blade is a tad quieter and faster because of a change in the tips.

What are you guys seeing in the real world and on RV's?

Do you have any legacy speed data?

What are your observations?

:cool: CJ
 
There was a comparison article in the RVator newsletter around 2003 or 2004 comparing the first version of the blended airfoil (7496 if memory serves) to the 7666, using Randy Lervold's RV-8. I seem to remember that the 7497 blade was originally meant for the angle valve engines but it was discovered that it worked almost as well on the smaller engines as the 7496 and removed all rpm restrictions, so it was adopted for those engines as well. A search would probably turn up lots of information.

I haven't run mine yet, but my 7497 bladed prop sure looks nice bolted to the flange of my engine!
 
CJ,

I would talk with Bob Axom first and then check Larry Vettermans
web site. Has a lot of Prop info there.
 
The -8 picked up about 4 KIAS at 8500 feet in a very unscientific observation. It should be noted that I did one cross country with the old prop and a few with the BA. Also, the old prop had been rebuilt a few times and was pencil thin. Take it for what it's worth.
 
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