mechanic Posted March 9, 2010 Report Share Posted March 9, 2010 Hey, I read this on Vertical Online. A few other notable news bits at RHC include the return to aluminum main rotor blades. The R66 has them now and the R44 will soon, followed by the R22. Anyone operating a current model need not worry, as this will not impact the use of the stainless steel blades now in service. What is the main difference in the alum vs. stainless blades?? Just the material or structure of the design? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
permison Posted March 9, 2010 Report Share Posted March 9, 2010 You can eat off one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RagMan Posted March 9, 2010 Report Share Posted March 9, 2010 Saving weight maybe? Making room for slightly more power. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldy Posted March 9, 2010 Report Share Posted March 9, 2010 Hey, I read this on Vertical Online. What is the main difference in the alum vs. stainless blades?? Just the material or structure of the design?Thanks Wow, I'm behind the times. I noticed the new main rotor on the R66..definitely wider than the Raven II blade. I thought they were aluminum with stainless steel leading edge? Didn't know they changed metal composition once again. When is someone going to STC a carbon fiber version?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomPPL Posted March 9, 2010 Report Share Posted March 9, 2010 The R22 has a low inertia rotor, I would have thought that by making the blades lighter the inertia will become even lower - is this true? Or can this be compensated for by making the blade a bit wider? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ironranger Posted March 9, 2010 Report Share Posted March 9, 2010 Pat Cox mentioned at Heli Expo that the aluminum skins would be about 3x thicker then the stainless ones which would make them more damage resistant. It sounded like the weight would be the same. IR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spw1177 Posted March 9, 2010 Report Share Posted March 9, 2010 (edited) Only a few years ago all R22s and R44s had blades with stainless steel spars and aluminum skins (-2 blades). They were having some de-bonding issues in coastal environments (dissimilar metals and the salty air), so they replaced the aluminum skins with stainless steel skins (-4 blades). In order to keep the weight of the blades the same the stainless skin had to be much thinner than the aluminum one. Which had the added affect of making the blades easier to damage. Does anyone know whether the spar on the R66 blades are aluminum or stainless steel? Edited March 9, 2010 by spw1177 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shaun Posted March 9, 2010 Report Share Posted March 9, 2010 (edited) I was just at the factory where they said the change was made to address the skin de-bonding issue, and in the future pilots may have to sign off on the airworthiness of the blades every flight. Edited March 9, 2010 by Shaun Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldy Posted March 10, 2010 Report Share Posted March 10, 2010 and in the future pilots may have to sign off on the airworthiness of the blades every flight. They tried that one before! Let's go get an STC on the carbon fiber blade with some tip weights and a 4400 hour TBO. I have noticed the numerous small dings that the -4 blades suffer after a few thousand hours of use. Goldy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beckwith Posted March 10, 2010 Report Share Posted March 10, 2010 Let's go get an STC on the carbon fiber blade with some tip weights and a 4400 hour TBO. CF is great until it gets a chip in it then it just comes apart. At least in ski poles and mountain bikes. I'll pass on blades made out of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amphibpilot Posted March 10, 2010 Report Share Posted March 10, 2010 (edited) Does anyone know whether the spar on the R66 blades are aluminum or stainless steel? R66 MR blade spars are stainless steel. Edited March 10, 2010 by amphibpilot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wulfman76 Posted March 10, 2010 Report Share Posted March 10, 2010 They tried that one before! Let's go get an STC on the carbon fiber blade with some tip weights and a 4400 hour TBO. I have noticed the numerous small dings that the -4 blades suffer after a few thousand hours of use. Goldy I'm all for the carbon Fiber blades too. If they are durable enough for the military i'd say they should work for the relatively "pleasant" environments most of us would be using them in. I'm sure they would be pretty pricey but if you could get twice the time out of them and not have to worry as much about early replacement, or replacement at all due to corrosion. Maybe frank should take a few lessons from bell on how they can get 5000hrs out of a set of blades for the B-47. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam32 Posted March 10, 2010 Report Share Posted March 10, 2010 Maybe frank should take a few lessons from bell on how they can get 5000hrs out of a set of blades for the B-47. Or Hiller B/C's and 47 D's with no time life... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delorean Posted March 11, 2010 Report Share Posted March 11, 2010 It's very easy to "ding" the SS blades. We had a 5 foot section of a old R44 blade (from the early double trim tap recall.) A light hit with your knuckle would leave a dent--not even enough of a hit to make your knuckle hurt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jumpngonuts Posted March 12, 2010 Report Share Posted March 12, 2010 Or Hiller B/C's and 47 D's with no time life... Isn't that crazy? A helicopter made 60 years ago with wooden blades are still flying and have thousands of hours on them... The 47 that I flew had the old wooden blades on it and the owner always said if i crack it up and live that he'd kill me for ruining the rotors Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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