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Restoring a wood prop

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Vlad

Well Known Member
I would like to restore a Catto propeller my twenty years old the very first one. I was able to remove blistered leading edge guard with very little damage to the paint. I started sanding the tips. I would appreciate tips on materials and technique. There is nothing in the archives on wood/composite prop repairs.

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Hey Vlad, it’s Steve over at Carroll County airport formally Doylestown. I’ve got a 16-year-old three bladed Catto prop on my nine an on my 9A and here’s what I do. I spoke with Catto a long time ago and he suggested JB weld epoxy to fill any of the dings. Fill it, sand it down, and that will take care of the holes. For the leading edge, you do the same thing but obviously very little where the nicks are. To finish it off. I use flat black paint very lightly on the rear of the prop and if there’s issues on the front then that requires a bit more workdue to the white color and any accent stripe. Good luck I think it’ll work out fine for you. Of course, a new prop would be nice after all those years too!
 
bifft said:
:) When I asked Catto about a ding in mine they suggested JB weld as same as above.
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Could it be diluted to a consistency to skim the surface? There are literally hundreds of tiny dings one third down from the tip.
 
Vlad said:
Could it be diluted to a consistency to skim the surface? There are literally hundreds of tiny dings one third down from the tip.
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I’ve never tried to dilute it. You could possibly put it on very thin, of course using a plastic or metal putty knife. The challenge is when it hardens it’s like a rock, and it becomes very difficult to sand that portion down. Your best bet may be to individually fill all those holes as best as you can in order to minimize an awful lot of sanding. It definitely will be time-consuming.
 
I have restored my catto a couple times. I use jb weld on any dings near the leading edge or at the tips. Abrade and Clean VERY well first - very important. If i am just addressing paint chipping (things that have not gotten into or past the fiberglass layer), i use bondo on it. All of the little divots on the backside of the prop can be filled with bondo, as they don’t see real stress. Most of those are just rock chips. The bondo is easy to sand and will be covered with flat black paint.

You cannot thin the jb weld, but you can work it down to a close size with razor blades or an exacto knife when it is about 50% cured - maybe 6 - 8 hours at room temp. Finish with sandpaper when cured. Best to use a block behind the sandpaper. By bondo, i mean a two part polyester filler, preferably a better brand. West with micro balloons works also.
 
Already plenty of very good advice given above... MT-Propeller are made out of "natural composites" 😉, and publish this guide which mentions using epoxy glues for such repairs.
An additional experience return, I've installed some of this expensive 3M protective tape on my leading edges 6 months ago, and now 200h later, some off the kind of terrain we both affectionate, seem to quite effectively protect the leading edges (of my "freshly" overhauled prop).
 
Dan 57 said:
Already plenty of very good advice given above... MT-Propeller are made out of "natural composites" 😉, and publish this guide which mentions using epoxy glues for such repairs.
An additional experience return, I've installed some of this expensive 3M protective tape on my leading edges 6 months ago, and now 200h later, some off the kind of terrain we both affectionate, seem to quite effectively protect the leading edges (of my "freshly" overhauled prop).
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I should have been more clear. I also use this leading edge tape to avoid abrasion damage in rain. If you don't use this (thought you did from first post), use no bondo near the leading edge.
 
Vlad said:
I would like to restore a Catto propeller my twenty years old the very first one. I was able to remove blistered leading edge guard with very little damage to the paint. I started sanding the tips. I would appreciate tips on materials and technique. There is nothing in the archives on wood/composite prop repairs.

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Hey Vlad - consider this?

FS: 2 Blade Catto Prop (160hp O320) -- $2000

I have a nice used catto prop for sale for a 160hp O320. $2100+shipping It’s boxed and ready to ship.
vansairforce.net
 
lr172 said:
I should have been more clear. I also use this leading edge tape to avoid abrasion damage in rain. If you don't use this (thought you did from first post), use no bondo near the leading edge.
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Copy that Larry I intend to use WS slurry with microbaloons. Will report the results. I used leading edge tape, from self made to the top of the line installed by manufacturer. They work against the rain perfectly but they also make nasty blisters if there is a rock chip. A pain to remove and fix the chip. I would not use the guard unless they are imbedded like in Performance Propellers.
 
Vlad said:
Copy that Larry I intend to use WS slurry with microbaloons. Will report the results. I used leading edge tape, from self made to the top of the line installed by manufacturer. They work against the rain perfectly but they also make nasty blisters if there is a rock chip. A pain to remove and fix the chip. I would not use the guard unless they are imbedded like in Performance Propellers.
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For the large chunks in the leading edge, be sure to use something stronger like jb weld or ws with flox, with the former a better option imho.
 
Vlad said:
Copy that Larry I intend to use WS slurry with microbaloons. Will report the results. I used leading edge tape, from self made to the top of the line installed by manufacturer. They work against the rain perfectly but they also make nasty blisters if there is a rock chip. A pain to remove and fix the chip. I would not use the guard unless they are imbedded like in Performance Propellers.
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How did the WS slurry work for you? I have a lot of little rock chips (1/16 to1/8) on the back side of my catto.
 
For the large field of minor rock chips, you could use Poly Fiber Super Fil. It is kind of an optimized blend of epoxy and fillers that cures hard and sands very easily.
 
Vlad said:
Tom I am on my 4th prop and still have the old ones. :)
Currently flying behind a stock metal Sensenich. Great cruise prop but slow climber.
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Vlad, you need a Performance Prop! ;) I hope you are well my friend! Miss ya here in Jersey.
 
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