Prop Reseal

[moosebreath]

I am submitting a current data point on the price of a prop reseal.  

I have a 1996 M20J with a two blade McCauley Prop model B2D34C214-B.  The prop is  17 years old since new and has 825 hours time in service. (It was replaced after a nose truss failure 17 years ago.) It recently began to sling oil from one blade hub.  There are a lot of divergent opinions on this subject in other posts.  The McCauley manual states that if the leak can not be stopped by cycling the prop on the ground then it should be repaired within 20 hours.  It also recommends a reseal every 6 years.

Western Aircraft Propellor Service in Sandy, Oregon replaced all the seals in one day for $1500.  Unsurprisingly they found the prop hub seals stiff and deformed.  The mechanic stated that once the prop begins to leak it is essential that the seals be replaced otherwise water will be able to enter the hub leading to corrosion.  This is by far the leading cause of having to scrap a prop at overhaul.

The list price of a new prop from McCauley is currently $12,109.54  The shop states that used serviceable props are commonly available due to owners replacing them  with three blade props.

My personal feeling is that it is annoying to have to reseal the prop on an unscheduled basis.  I drove mine to the shop to get the work done quickly.   If I had know how commonly props leak I would have had mine resealed during a recent annual rather than waiting for it to fail.

[haymak3r]

Interesting. How bad was it leaking? 

[moosebreath]

Streaking on one blade and a light oil mist on the wind screen.

[haymak3r]

ok. I have a slight leak, but nothing really on the blade. some very slight spray right on the end of the cowl over a number of flights. And inside the spinner there is some grease. I know it probably needs to be resealed as well, but just continue to monitor for it getting worse.

[MikeOH]

@haymak3r

I'm afraid I can't offer advice, only sympathy for being in the same situation for the past 7 years!

The leaking prop was missed on the pre-buy (naturally), so shortly after purchase I had the prop sent out for re-seal and the shop accidentally overhauled it (to their credit, they only charged me the reseal price).  Still leaked...sent it back. Came back...still leaked!  I've lived with it until last annual (June 2024) when I had it sent out again!  Well, progress...only ONE blade leaks, now

I don't have any 'mist', however.  Just a bit of grease streaking on one blade.  Make sure your leak isn't really oil from a leaking prop flange 0-ring.

[haymak3r]

No worries at all. sorry, the slight mist is grease when I wipe it off. flange seal is dry, I check it periodically. It's all grease. I can see where it is coming out on the seal of one of the blades. I plan on getting a new prop at some point in the nearish future. It's a 3 blade, and I would rather go to the hartzel top prop. 

[Shadrach]

Good for you. The last time I had a seal fail, the shop refused to reseal because my prop was 18 months from calendar TBO.  They said this was for liability reasons. They only charged $1800 for the overhaul, so I agreed.

[Ragsf15e]

56 minutes ago, Shadrach said:

Good for you. The last time I had a seal fail, the shop refused to reseal because my prop was 18 months from calendar TBO.  They said this was for liability reasons. They only charged $1800 for the overhaul so I agreed.

Yeah they wouldn’t reseal mine because it was past its oh time too.  So it’s oh, but was definitely more than $1500!

To the OP, mine misted my windscreen too, but I got lucky and that started about 3 weeks before i was down for annual anyway.

[Shadrach]

7 hours ago, Ragsf15e said:

Yeah they wouldn’t reseal mine because it was past its oh time too.  So it’s oh, but was definitely more than $1500!

To the OP, mine misted my windscreen too, but I got lucky and that started about 3 weeks before i was down for annual anyway.

I sort of understand that policy, but the pilot is the responsible party here. My prop had 18 months to go before reaching calendar TBO and only about 600SPOH.  Shops are liable for the work that they do, but not for the pilot’s decisions about compliance with manufacturer recommendations.  It’s not really a grey area legally.

[Cody Stallings]

On 10/18/2024 at 9:01 PM, Shadrach said:

Good for you. The last time I had a seal fail, the shop refused to reseal because my prop was 18 months from calendar TBO.  They said this was for liability reasons. They only charged $1800 for the overhaul, so I agreed.

You were lied to about the liability part.

Sorry to say that, but it’s true.

[Shadrach]

12 hours ago, Cody Stallings said:

You were lied to about the liability part.

Sorry to say that, but it’s true.

I would not call it lying exactly, just an unrealistic view of the shop’s liability.  There’s always that first case and award that makes rational people think WTF?  Hard to talk a service provider out of their policy decisions even if the current facts are on your side.  Especially given some of the frivolous payouts awarded by juries.  

[PT20J]

Funny, my shop talked me out of an overhaul. Said once he got it apart he could convert it to an overhaul if it warranted. 

[Ethan]

Just had my prop resealed at Western Propeller. One day service. Similar charge. My propeller was losing grease mostly out of one blade and it made a huge mess on the cowl inlet, windscreen, antennas on the top of the plane etc.  

[Cody Stallings]

On 11/9/2024 at 10:25 AM, Shadrach said:

I would not call it lying exactly, just an unrealistic view of the shop’s liability.  There’s always that first case and award that makes rational people think WTF?  Hard to talk a service provider out of their policy decisions even if the current facts are on your side.  Especially given some of the frivolous payouts awarded by juries.  

I would call it that, A spade is a Spade.

Until TBO is backed up by a Reg of some sort and not documented by most all manufacturers manual as a Recommendation, the shops exposure is minimal.

The liability really gets tied on with the Overhaul though.

Shop ties itself to that accessory for Two years.

Edited November 15, 2024 by Cody Stallings
Fat fingers