engine vibs & GSC prop

[turboturner 3]

has anyone ever had vibration issues w/ a GSC propellor? I had a Warp Drive on a 912UL & it ran smooth. Got this GSC w/ the KF I bought (on a 912ULS) & am getting vibrations at various power settings.

Carbs seem balanced, so I'm starting to suspect the prop. Am I off?

[C5Engineer 1170]

My Warp runs like a Mack truck compared to the Ivo I swapped it with. Not sure how gsc does their blade pitch changes but you want them as perfect as possible. I would also check the tip tracking. Props can absolutely cause vibes.

[High Country 69]

We had lots of problems with our GSC wood prop as well (on 582) check balance, tracking, and pitch. we balanced ours with clear spray paint but even after that was fixed we found that the blades were self adjusting in the hub. We did find that best way to fix it was to simply take a nail and place it into a stud on your living room wall and hang it up. vibration gone!!!

[turboturner 3]

thnx gents. Tracking is w/i a blade tip thickness. I will be shipping them to GSC for a balance check/fix. It only has 300 hrs.

What did u replace yours with HC?

[C5Engineer 1170]

I vote for Ivo or Warp. Warp is a bit more involved to ground adjust than Ivo but the blades are beefier. I had good luck with a tapered tip warp for 300 hrs. The ivo I swapped to is a three blade runs super smooth.

[akflyer 1427]

Gsc is a 5 year or 500 hr prop at best. They pull ok but no one I know of has ever said they run smooth lol. I love the classic look of the wood prop but the ivo is 100 times smoother running.

[EDMO 1078]

Leni and Joey,

     Are you comparing the GA IVO or just the IFA IVO with Warp Drive and GSC?

I have seen some postings showing cracks and other faults that happened with GA (or other?) IVO - don't know how many out of all the IVOs running have had a problem.

I would not be afraid to try one instead of my Warp Drive, but you probably get less vibs with the 4 cyl/4cycle.

EDMO

    P,S.  Got to take my hat off to the guy who designed the IVO for building his own bird and prop and flying to freedom across the Russian border (East Berlin?)  I was there when many people got shot trying to escape...

Edited 28 May 2015 by Ed In Missouri

[C5Engineer 1170]

Ed the blades of the IFA and GA Ivo are identical. Only the front plate where the electric motor bolts on is different. To adjust the GA you just turn a big nut and all three blades move together. On the Warp the blades are independent and you have to use smoke and mirrors and lasers if you want to get it really accurate. The protractor tool they sell works fine but I suspect that was part of the reason it didn't run near as smooth as my Ivo

[EDMO 1078]

I think Jim Chuk came up with the ultimate pitch setting laser fixture for the WD -

I like the way the IVO adjusts better, but I have a WD.

EDMO

Edited 28 May 2015 by Ed In Missouri

[Guest]

Yes I have seen vibration problems with GSC. My buddy lived with them till he switched to Whirlwind. He was unable to do anything to get rid of vibration on his 80hp 912 with the GSC. Another friend was running a GSC on his 80hp 912 KF and it was smooth as butter. One of the smoothest props I've ever felt so it must be possible to get it right. Maybe the blades dry and warp or something depending on wood grain.

I ran an in flight adjustable GSC that was awesome. It had more vibration than IVO but wasn't bad, but the reliability, convenience and performance beat the IVO hands down. I have nothing bad to day about the GSC in-flight adjustable.

[EDMO 1078]

I had never heard about an IFA GSC - Do they still make them?

EDMO

[turboturner 3]

Called GSC before sending them my blades & decided to re-install them from scratch. I had a tracking issue with one blade which I fixed by using shims inside the hub. Then I set the angle/pitch as accurately as I could (using a "level" app on my iPod) and the vibrations are all but gone. I was leaning on getting another Warp (same I had on my previous machine) but I'll hang onto the GSC for as long as I can. Only 300 hrs but built in '06 (9 yrs +). 3 blades.

[C5Engineer 1170]

I had never heard about an IFA GSC - Do they still make them?

EDMO

 

The last guy I knew that had one threw a blade and twisted his engine off the airplane in cruise. He was very very lucky.

[Av8r3400 1179]

I won't fly behind a GSC.  I don't trust the design.  There have been too many thrown blades.  

 

The idea of "shimming" a blade to make it track properly scares the hell out of me.

[dav8or 20]

I would have to agree that shimming a blade does not sound like a good idea. I have found that The blade tip tracking changes slightly by starting the tightening sequence from a different side of the prop hub both in pitch adjustment and when mounting to the gearbox. Getting the individual blade angles exactly the same is a PIA but the GSC angle gauge is pretty simple and useful. My hangar mate has used the GSC angle tool to adjust his Warp Drive prop instead of the protractor.

 

The only prop I have run other than the GSC GA was a fixed pitch wood prop which was smoother but unfortunately had a little too much pitch and prop diameter for my 582. I ordered new blades for my hub last year to try an increase in diameter. I also noticed that the old blades were over 20 years old with only 250 hours on them. I am waiting until I find a deal on a Rotax C box before buying a new prop but will likely change to a full composite GA prop at that time.

 

Dan

Edited 29 May 2015 by dav8or

[Guest]

I flew my IFA GSC for hundreds and hundreds of hours. BryceKat is flying behind it now. I thought it was super well built and a very nice piece of engineering. Would like to hear more about the one that threw a blade. Seems so unlikely from my experience with mine.

http://www.ultralightprops.com/gta_inflight_adjustable_props/adjustprops.htm

http://www.greenskyadventures.com/gssGTA.htm

Chris

[EDMO 1078]

dav8or,

     Can you post a photo and tell a little more about the GSC angle setting fixture - I have a WD protractor.

Still think that Jim Chuk made the best fixture with his laser thingy.

EDMO

[wypaul 448]

http://www.ultralightnews.com/safety_bulletins/gsc_servicebulletin.htm

 

here is a link to a bulletin issued by GSC on one prop failure. 

Edited 1 Jun 2015 by Paul S

[High Country 69]

thnx gents. Tracking is w/i a blade tip thickness. I will be shipping them to GSC for a balance check/fix. It only has 300 hrs.

What did u replace yours with HC?

we changed over to the G/A 3 blade 68" IVO, much smoother, better performance, and super easy adjustment. 

[Cropduster13 11]

Please get rid of that prop ,I had one throw a blade on a KF4, I was lucky . Get an IVO.