Could anyone help me out with picking out the right propeller. I didn't realize that there were soooooo many. I have a P51D mustang with a wing span of 48" and an O.S. .65LA 2-stroke engine. It is all new to me and don't know what propeller would be the best for this set up.

2-blade, 3-blade, carbon fiber, glass-filled/composite, nylon, pusher, variable pitch, wood??????????????

The engine recommends 12 x 8 size. What ever that means.

ANY HELP ????

Thanks

Hi!
APC 12x6, 12x7, 13x5 or 13x6 will be OK!
But! I hope this isn't your first airplane...

That .65 sounds like overkill for a 48" Mustang. Is that in the recommended size range for that aircraft? If not, you may have balance issues to be worked out before flying. This also sounds like your first plane, due to your question, so I'm going to throw a question at you, is this the Mustang trainer or something else?

Now, getting to the props, I agree, the choises are mind numbing. So lets look at various props:
Pusher props....As the name says, it pushes, so the engine needs to be at the back of the aircraft. These are normally used for canard or jet style planes where the designer doesn't want a prop in the front to spoil the look or aerodynamics
Variable pitch...A prop that can change blade angles while in flight. These are used on 4D and some of the more complex aircraft, but not really needed on your Mustang
Carbon Fiber props... A basic prop made from carbon fiber. Very strong but can be easily broken due to it's stiffness
Wood props...Normally used on scale aircraft, it's a basic prop formed from a piece of wood. Temperature and humidity can affect these, so if you're fairly new to the hobby, save some money and stick to the synthetic props
Nylon and glass filled...Your general prop. They come in a wide range of styles and sizes. These are less expensive than wood or C/F and are not weather sensitive like wood.

Now, lets look at sizes. You said the engine calls for a 12X8 prop. This is how it works:
12 is the length of the prop from tip to tip. The importance here is how much room you have to swing the prop. If you don't have more than 6" between the center of the engine shaft and the ground when the plane is level(tail wheel off the ground and wings level with the ground), your prop won't work because it will be hitting the ground.
8 is what is referred to as pitch. Pitch is how far forward the prop will move the plane forward in one complete rotation, measured in inches.

Why do the instructions say to use this size prop? To make it easy, the manufacturer designed the engine to run at a maximum speed. Using this size will keep the engine below that speed due to the weight and drag from the prop blades, thus preventing engine damage. At the same time, by going to a larger prop can damage the engine by overloading it, in the same way you can stall a car by starting from a stop in 3rd gear rather than 1st.

2 Blades or 3? This is where it starts getting confusing. A 2 bladed prop is, in general, more efficient than a 3 or 4 blade. This is due to each blade going through cleaner air, undisturbed by the other blade. The more blades you have, the more disturbed the air is, so each blade pulls less. Also, the more blades you have, the harder it is to balance a prop. Instead of balancing across two directions, now you have to do three or four directions instead. Stick with two blades for the time being

It is my first plane, but a friend of mine has been flying for years and he also has the buddy box that will assist me in learning how to fly. I HOPE !!!

As for the engine size, the P51 that I purchased recommended .45 - .60 or somewhere close to that. I baught the .65LA to use on this plane but eventually use on a larger scale plane.

I was wanting to get a 3-blade prop just for looks, but with the info that you have provided, I am going to stick with the 2-blade synthetic prop for now.

Thank you so much for all the info you have given.

Is this not the most suitable plane for begining to learn how to fly??

One of the worst. On the plus side you are getting help.

Hi!
Just forget the P-51 Mustang...at least for a year or two and at least 2-3 simpler airplanes.
Remember ...you will crash...this despite how much help you get or how old you are.
Get a high winged trainer first ...and learn on then a low winged sport model.
Kyosho Calmato is a good trainer airplane.

A 48" Mustang places you in probably less than 450 sq. Ins. wing area. With a 60 2-stroke you have a potential BOMB in your hands. If this is a scale model or even a sport scale model you will be very lucky to not torque it in on the first flight. If this is one of the very name-only look-alikes with a large-thick wing, it may fly great-fun for a seasoned flier, but a trainer it ain't.

Your friend is going to train you yet he cannot answer your prop question. Sorry Good Buddy, but you sound like a classic case of "Blind leading the Blind."
As one so long in this business, and trained so many, I really cringe when I see/hear people like you head down the highway-to-disappointment at such a rapid pace.
Good luck anyway.

Let's look at a better idea. You already have an engine and I'm guessing a radio. Go and get yourself a Kadet Senior. It's a 60 sized plane that is designed to help a beginner learn to fly. The Mustang is, at this point, a crash waiting to happen(as pointed out by the others that have posted here), so leave it in the box. In all honesty, the Mustang would be a better third airplane. I would look at a Sig 4* 60 as a follow up to the Kadet, then the Mustang. You can use the same engine and radio for both the Kadet and 4*, so it's just a matter of buying the planes themselves and a flight pack for your radio. A flight pack has a receiver, battery pack and some servos. You can also go buy the receiver and stuff as individual pieces as you need them

Also keep in mind that the la series of engines is much lighter than the other OS engine lines, and they don't have near the power.

I had a 40la on my LT-40 and it needed a huge hunk of lead hung under the engine to balance the plane, but I switched it out for a super Tiger 40, and it balances the same without any extra weight. the added benifit is the super tiger puts out more power than the 40la.

I am just learning, and can not imagine training on a mustang.

Get a simulator, and see what it is like to fly a trainer vs. a bi-plane vs. a mustang, you will be surprised!

I was on the simulator last night, and was doing ok with a bi-plane where I only crashed once in 20+ landings.

I did not crash on my 20+ minutes of constant touch and goes in the trainer though.

I recently saw a kid wreck his mustang because he was new, inexperienced, and had the ailerons reversed. It jumped up and flipped onto its back. Did not even get more than 4' off the ground in less than 5 seconds.

I strongly urge you to keep the Mustang hanging from your ceiling for the time being. My first plane was a 48" Mustang. I was lucky enough not to find anyone who would test fly it for me, and smart enough not to try myself. I sold it for a proper High-Wing Trainer. I learned to fly easy enough, and soon had another beautiful Mustang as my third plane. Except, even after a year of flying a trainer, I got the Mustang into a spin I couldn't get out of on my first flight. To an experienced modeler, flying a Mustang is not all that hard, but it is easy to forget just how quick a flight can turn bad with this type of plane.

If you really want a mustang as your first plane, by the Hanger 9 Mustang PTS, and transplant your radio gear. With your 65LA, it should pull a 13-5 prop if you have the ground clearance. The "5" pitch will help you keep your speed down, and will tend to airbrake your plane on landing.

I currently fly an EZ P-51 with a Saito .82 and a 11-10 prop. Lots of fun, and pushes near 100mph on the fly-by's. Your turn will come!

Well thanks for all of the great info. It sounds like that I need to go and buy a trainer plane first.

Could anyone click on the link below and let me know if this is a suitable trainer plane?

http://www.hobby-lobby.com/bellanca.htm

You don't want to do that..... You are already committed to flying nitro planes... and bigger nitro planes fly better anyway. Going electric is just opening up a big can-o-worms... Since you already have a .65 engine... A nice 60 size trainer ARF will be in the same price range as trying to put a whole electric setup together and will fly oh so much better.

Here, just move the equipment you were going to use in the 'stang over to this and you will be much happier for less money.

[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXCAS1&P=0]http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXCAS1&P=0[/link]

Or you can get the seniorita as someone suggested.. it is MUCH prettier... but about the same as learning to fly is concerned.

Alright, thanks for the info.

I will agree with coolbean.

The tower Trainer 60 would be close to perfect.

You could also get the hangar 9 alpha 60

horrizonhobby.com

Hi!
The small electric Bellanca is no good!
Too small, not good electric system and radio , scale(Which is no good when learning to fly).
As you already have the engine... get a large .60 size high winged trainer.
Also get a good radio,like JR and Futaba. I would go with a JR system.

If you are going to fly a warbird you can also start with a warbird checkout hanger 9 mustang PTS. It flys like a trainer when setup properly. I also beleave you shuld look to a AMA Trainer that has exp training. It sucks being upside down on an outwards loop at full power and stress your elevator so bad it fails. almost pulled that one out [:@] fortunitly i had a spair.http://www.hangar-9.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=HAN2825

Dear ALL,  I have a query although I am referring to a different brand of P51 butstill 60 size.  I have World Model P51 size 60 (Model A155), installeda 3-blade prop 14 x 9, installed an engine OS 110FS-a.  Plane weightapprox 4.2 KG.  I think OS 110FS-a RPM range is from 2000 to 11000.
Someone told me not to reach 80% of the max RPM at ground (full throttle) which another expert confirm the RPM issue.

At ground, RPM full throttle is 8000.

Can I have your technical expertise if my set-up (prop, enginem size)is alright or shall I go back to 2-blade 15x8?  3-blade looks nicer.

Thanks.
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