Is it preferred to use a prop reamer or a drill press?

I have never had good success with a drill press. I use the reamer on all of my props.

A reamer turned by hand is what I like the best.

Then I hack out the spinner with an axe. [X(]

<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt"><span style="font-size: 9pt">Actually both. Iuse the reamer in the drill press. You do have to find a way to lock down the prop so it can't swing. I use a 2x4 clamped to the table and adjust it's position so the reamer hits the center and doesn't deflect.. The big issue with the drill press is not so much reaming the hole, but removing the reamer. When I was on my Apprenticeship, I was taught to never turn a reamer backwards as it destroys the cutting edge. So, I'll power the reamer through the prop, then remove it from the chuck and hand turn it out.

Pushing a drill through a prop gives some very ugly results. The drill chatter before it finds center all but eliminates any possibility of balancing the prop later. I've got three or four 22" props, both wood and APCComposites that were drilled. They look like some little guy took a stone ax to them around the hole edges.Big ugly hunks chopped out. A reamer, especially one of the stepped prop reamers gives a very clean hole. I use a debur tool and make a single pass around both top and bottom after reaming and now the tapered cones of the balancers have a real chance of finding center.

The key though is making sure that your drill press table is trammed to the spindle. It doesn't do much good to have a nice clean hole that is a half degree or more off perpendicular to the rotation of the prop.</span></div>

Don

The hand reamer is one of the most useful tools made specifically for our hobby.

And it's cheap for what it can do, and do accurately.

Wouldn't go flying without it.

I use a reamer, just be aware there are two sizes of reamers, one in metric, it's the four step reamer as I recall. When I'm reaming out my big props I keep thinking about Dons drill press trick, the DP I have at home wobbles though so I can't use it, I would have to use my wood clubs presses to do it.