Due to a lot of pain experienced in my right arm cranking the bigger engines, I need to start cranking with my left arm. Any advice on where to orient the prop to do this properly?

Thanks in advance!

Although a written or verbal discussion might help, I'd think you're best bet would be to find a lefty have them show you what they do. As I righty I have enough nicks, cuts and furrows (damn that Fox 35) just getting my dominant hand to function. Probably loose the left teaching it how to start engines.

Prop coming up on the sensor with the blade around 11 oclock and flip straight down I've seen before. Plane on restraints. I generally like to have the end of my arc wind up with my hand hitting my body somewhere. Silly but when my hand hits my chest after a flip, or my leg with the 60's and under, it's reassuring that the thump means my body parts are out of the path of the prop. A physical check mark I don't have to think about.

You out past the Grandview Triangle or up north by Claycomo.

being ambidextrous if I start with my left hand I stand behind the prop to flip it over. I leave the prop In the same place it would be when flipping it with my right hand.also make sure the plane is restrained...

The majority of the Left Handed starters I have seen have flipped the prop from behind the prop.
Those that flip them from the front have just done so with the usual "2'oclock" prop positioning or if anything, closer to the "3 o'clock" position. They usually stand sort of "side on" to the plane when flipping.

Now I have a mental picture of the readers of this sitting near their screens and doing "Air prop flips" (the engine starting equivalent of playing an air guitar) with their left arms.

Get a starter.

To everybody,

Thanks for the replys. I'll try to respond in order:

Sunchasers field at Cookingham Drive and N.Woodland. Will be there Sunday @ 9am. Come on out!

Standing begind the plane isn't something I had considered. Will try that..

The 2 o'clock position makes sense. I'll try that too.

Have a starter for up to a 180 glow engine. Hate using starters, though. Probably a macho thing.

Damn, but getting older really sucks......

9 am is blueberry pancakes with the grand-daughter.  Been a while since I was a Sunchaser member, haven't been a Dambuster member since 2003 but still hold my Knights membership and currently home field at River Rats.  9am, man, you must LOVE flying into the sun.  What I really need is a field that has a good east/west runway along with the North/South.

The guy i fly with is left handed and he has the prop in the standard position but catches it on the left lower blade with his left hand and not the top right blade with his right hand. He wears a welder's glove on his left hand to start them.

I've always been a lefty but I have started engines the last 20 yrs with my right hand.

I have injured my right hand with a prop and no longer start engines by hand.

I have a Sullivan Dynatron with a Miller 4:1 reduction drive and a big cone. I run two 7 amp Hr Gel cells in series for 24V. I start them all with it from .30" up to a little over 100 cc. I moved the starter switch so I could use the starter in my left hand and press the heavy duty start button with my left thumb.

I have a back up Sullivan Megatron starter that is spliced onto some heavy jumper cables that I hook onto my truck battery. It will start them all too.

I didn't buy these starters new. They came from the swap meets. You can rebuild a Sullivan starter with repair parts from Sullivan.

I also have a couple extra Sullivan Dynatrons that are just plain. They will start the 36 cc engines I know. Have not tried them on anything bigger. The size of the small cone becomes a problem.

I am a left handed flyer and Iset my props for the 2 and 8 O'clock position. Then while to the front and just to the right of the prop center I flip the lower 8 O'clock blade with my left hand and have my hand slap against my stomach. This works well and insures that my hand is well away from the prop when the engine does fire. Also as everyone should do turn the prop to the starting position using the spinner this will insure your hand is clear incase of a kickback or firing of the engine while setting the prop for the next swing.

By the way I am doing this from a wheelchair so you should be able to do it from a kneeling position or standing if the plane is big enough. I am fliping 17 and 23" props on a DLE20 and BME58Xtreme engines.

Again, my gratitude to all that replied.

Mr. Clean, I fly early this time of year to avoid the heat. I'll start later once it cools down a little. The sun isn't that big an issue, though. Got to have my flying fix!

lefties do it best from behind.

Now, Pe - that is one way of looking at it ...... very borderline political correctness

Border line my posterior. Then again, with Pe's outlook one may not want to leave that accessible if he's a lefty. I do recall his mention of spending a lot of time below decks aboard ship

just get a righthanded teenager to flip the prop,they are indestructable or so they think

Because I'm a very polite man, I'm going to leave it at that point exactly
BTW, wasn't Napoleon left-handed?

Then again, where I fly there is a left-handed guy who flips his prop with the left hand. I have seen him flip from the 8 o'clock blade towards the right and up. He doesn't seem to have any problems there.
Another option is a long padded chicken stick held by both hands and applied to the top blade the same way as right-handed people do

There is also plenty of them, should something go wrong
They also always know better, how could anything go wrong?

I start them the same exact way. Works for me!!

I am letf handed this is what works for me.from the front with the prop at 11 oclock  I flip it with a down and to the left movment.


Brad

Wow! Being 68 years old, and lefty, I just don't get it. What exactally is the difference? Us lefties just adapt. If you didn't bring it up, I wouldn't have thought about it. Is this something I should be worrying about??

fidhkillbill,

I'm right handed, and using the left to flip is new to me. Am trying to avoid being bitten!!!!

Ok guys, jest aside. I am right handed, and have my larger engines at 12 O'clock so I flip the prop downward. It is a flick from the wrist and elbow, so my hand clears the prop disk very quickly. All glow engines I bump flip to start.
My brother in law is a lefthander, and uses the under flip. I did see movies of lefthanders stradling the plane and flip from behind the prop working disk. That way you can hold the plane without tethering it, and always stay behind the prop spinning disk. That's a very safe way to go about it.
I tried it, but my left hand coordination is a bit lacking, whilst at 68 years of age I am not all that willing to put a lot of effort in changing habits.

Pe,

I don't have much choice in the matter.

electric starters are great.... the problem is it becomes a two man job.... i hate to bother my buddies when i see them relaxing... i love the setup at my field, all i have to do position the plane against the foam restraints on the pilot station and hand start....