plane

spinning razor blades . . .

I spotted some rather interesting correspondence under the above heading on one of the r/c model aircraft newsgroups over the last couple of months. It all started with this:

There should be a law against selling plastic props which can instantly remove fingers and slice up a hand. Yesterday, I watched my friend try to start a .40 size engine with a starter motor. The throttle was set at 1/4 open and when he activated the motor, the engine started and the starter motor flipped around and his hand went into the prop. Very bad scene. This seemed almost non-preventable and could happen to anyone. I swear not to ever use another sharp plastic prop. I have been starting these engines for many years and have been into lots of wooden props but never have been seriously hurt by them. I also seldom use a starter motor since I get a special joy from cranking with a chicken stick. Hope this will alert you all to be especially cautious. By the way, we took our friend to the emergency room. The prop got the outside of his hand. He got some stitches and must be examined later for nerve and tendon damage. It could have been much worse.

As you might imagine, that set off a long sequence of comments, the majority of them helpful although a few were extremely scornful - or even downright rude in my humble opinion - of the poor chap who had suffered this accident. For example, someone suggested that "you have to be a bit of a bozo to use an electric starter and end up with your hand in the prop arc", whilst someone else referred to the victim as an imbecile and said "don't punish us because your friend needs a child-proof plane". I assume they have both enjoyed an entirely accident and mistake-free life!

One thing that most people took exception to, of course, was the suggestion that plastic props should be banned just because someone had an accident using one. Lyman Slack pointed out that there are a lot of dangerous items in our hobby - props, blades, glues and solvents, fuel and even getting hit by a plane. Should we outlaw cyano because someone glues his fingers together, he asked, or even flying r/c altogether because someone got killed by a r/c plane (an obvious reference to last year's tragic accident that most of us know about), etc., etc. This seemed a fair point, and one with which most model-fliers would probably agree.

It was very obvious that most correspondents had suffered from accidental contact with a spinning prop at some time or other, whether on starting or adjusting the needle, etc. and many had scars to prove it (as does a chap at my own club, who had stitches in several fingers of his hand some years ago and five days off work into the bargain).

Although the dulling of the edges of plastic pops was an obvious (and frequent) recommendation, the point was made that props of any material, including wood, do have the potential of making mincemeat of the average guy when he hand turns an engine. Apparently, when starting some 4-strokes the initial direction of prop travel is backwards (I didn't know that), so "IMO" always trains beginners to "remove the flashing on the leading AND trailing edges of all non-wood props to make the back as 'safe' (?) as the front".

"IMO" also referred to the proper use of an electric starter. He suspected that in this case, the starter battery was almost dead or the victim used the wrong side of the cone insert. "Frequently, folks will use the spinner side of the insert against a safety nut, a very dangerous thing to do," he says. "What happened is almost typical; the starter slipped off the nut just as the engine fired up and the user was holding the starter and managed to get it clear of the prop, but not his hand. When using an electric starter we need to ensure that the correct end of the starter cone is going to be in contact with the plane".

"jd-johnson" came in with some nice practical advice:

1. Dull the prop edges

2. Make sure the starter is properly applied to the spinner before trying to start the engine. Do not spin up the starter then jam it on the spinner.

3. Wear a glove or use a chicken stick to manually start.

4. Always remove the glow starter, or turn off the ignition before priming, spinning, or otherwise messing with the prop or spinner.

5. If you're mind is on something else other than flying, stay away from the field (planes last longer that way).

To finish on a less sober note, though, "bspeed" demonstrated a 'goonish' sense of humour with his suggestion of a somewhat different starting aid:

"The best chicken stick I have found is not from a chicken, but from a cat. A cat's tail, properly stiffened by the sun and an ancient concoction of herbs and spices makes for a great starter. The fur is soft on your hand and feels good in your pocket :). Also, if you have a table saw, dead cats make for good push sticks". I haven't visited the cat-lovers newsgroups to see what they made of that!