Some 30 years ago there was a report of a C-150 that threw 6" off the end of one prop blade. The fracture was due to stress risers from rock chips not properly dressed out. he reported the vibration was severe and immediate. The pilot said he immediately pulled mixture to idle cut off and power all the way back, no avail, he next turned off the ignition, again no effect, then he shut off fuel, but that seemed to not work either. The engine finally quit by itself and he was able to glide to a safe off field landing. Inspection of the engine showed that it had pulled free of the mounts, rotated, and fallen into the nose bowl. The P-leads had pulled free of the mags so there was no ability to ground out the mags. The throttle and mixture cables had pulled free of the engine so no control there either. The fuel line had pulled away from the carb and the engine was running on only the fuel in the carb bowl and quit when that was exhausted. I be believe it was AOPA where I read the report of the incident, but old minds get foggy after a while. It did impress on me the importance of inspecting the prop and immediately caring for any irregularities.
--- In Sport_Aircraft@yahoogroups.com, "Brian" <brian@...> wrote:
>
> Alex,
>
> I agree. I was really leery of even discussing the incident with the reporter, but my DPE was chatting away with them, and I was listening to what he said and more or less stuck with what he was saying (which was all true, so no biggie). I did look the reporter in the eye and told him that I would be proof-reading his article for any factual errors and said to him that the press almost always gets the story wrong with regards to aviation. He acknowledged what I said and responded by saying he would make sure he did a good job. He also wasn't a wet-behind-the-ears newbie either.
>
> As for the vibration question. Oh yeah... there was absolutely no mistaking the improper balance on the front end. The whole plane shook from stick to the tip of the prop spinner. It was VERY unnatural and initially I was worried that _I_ did something wrong.
>
> I have heard of instances of the engine being so far out of balance that it had ripped the motor right from the mounts, but I haven't read anything that is cite-able or seen anything to substantiate those stories. I certainly could see that happening based on what I experienced. The carbs separating from the engine is what probably ultimately shut the engine down in a reasonable and timely fashion, which saved the front end. Had the front end, engine and all vibrated off, my BRS parachute was the next step in the process. We were well within the limits of the parachute (altitude and speed), but that would've been a hard thing to do knowing it certainly would've been a plane-totaling action. But if it comes down to the plane or me - I choose me! :D
>
> Brian
>
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