Thread: I am looking for someone to make a wooden propeller.

Is it a working propellor or for static display? Aircraft or boat?

Hi ClintO, it is actually for a ceiling fan. It will not need to be anywhere near as robust as an aircraft or boat propeller, but it will need to be relatively light (thin blades), have an attractive finish and when all is complete i'll need to have the finished unit balanced.

As this is a three blade prop do I presume you have the hub to which the timber blades attach?
What specie would you prefer? Even colour would help. Is weight an issue. Laminated?

Hi Rustynail, I was thinking either a wooden hub with three blades attaching or possibly splitting the hub into three pieces of pie, each with the blade extending out and then biscuiting it together or something similar. Mind you, I'm a composites man and know little of the intricacies of building in wood.
We were thinking of using a sustainable Australian or NZ beech as we've been told it is a pretty stable material. Colour is not critical, but a lighter coloured wood would be nice as we could always stain it darker. Weight is fairly critical, but it's easy for me to reduce the material volume to reduce weight if necessary.
Probably the biggest issue is stability of the finished shape as any warping will result in a wobble in the ceiling fan when it is on.
Lachlan

What sort of motor are you planning to drive it with, and at what speed. These will have a significant effect on the design. A prop the size you are considering can absorb up to 100KW of drive power at aircraft prop shaft speeds, and I doubt that you would want the propwash in your house.

Originally Posted by LachlanT

Hi There,

I run a small company with my partner and we need some woodwork and CNC work done. We are trying to construct a 3 bladed wooden propeller of about 1.45m diameter. Can anyone suggest a company or individual who might have the capabilities to perform this work?
Thank you,

Lachlan

. is it just for yourself..(1 off)...or do you require a whole bunch of them ( production)...A quick sketch would probably be useful as well..
I'm sure there are folk here who could help...