jablackwell

Nope - nothing horrible :-)  
~john

Hi Mike,
No worries - you're not being a pain.  ;-)
The prop should be thinned equally from both sides. So if you have carved away enough from one side, then work on the other. 
The images in that link show just how thin the prop blade should be, and their angle. 
~john
 

The trailing edge is that flat edge, the straight one. If you think of it as a cross section, the point where your edge is not is correct. You just need to thin the blade out. Imagine it as a wing.... it has a airfoil shape to it. The side view (profile) should remain constant. 
Check out these images:  http://www.johnsshawaviation.co.uk/wordpress/sopwith-camel-f1-2/sopwith-camel-reconstruction/sopwith-camel-propeller/
 
~john

Hi Mike,
Yes, more wood needs to be removed. The shape and patter you have are correct, but the blades need to be thinner. The front edge will be more rounded than the trailing edge from a cross-sectional standpoint (and also longitudinally which you know and is looking good now). The trailing edge should be thin as can be. All this while maintaining the really nice side-view shape that you already have. Not sure if I am making sense.... I kind of wish they had provided a series of cross-section sketches for the prop shape.
~john
 

Hi Mike,
 
The prop is looking good. The side view looks perfect. You have done a good job keeping the profile to the right shape and dimension. Now to the angles of the blades.  I find it difficult to see what your images are showing me in terms of 3D, so I will try words.
 
The prop spins such that the rounded edge of the blade is the leading edge. It might seem like that is backwards, but it is true. So let's look at the last pic you posted.  The left hand side, towards us, is the curved edge and is the leading edge of the prop. On the right side, this curved edge is up top of the frame: that is the leading edge for the other side. The trailing edge is the flat edge, without any curve. 
 
Looking at the front of the prop, you want to sand or carve (or both!) away the wood on the flat edge of the prop, the trailing edge.
Looking at the back side of the prop, you want to remove wood from the curved edge side of the prop.
Doing this will create an angled propellor blade that pushes wind behind the plane as the prop spins. 
 
Maybe this helps?  Hard to do in words and in 2D images. 
 
~john

I added the timber heads and corrected the steering mechanism.
 
The timber heads were made out of walnut as it is easier for me to form clean edges on a piece of hardwood than on basswood. When mounting the timber heads I lined them up with the existing trenail pattern and cut the appropriate angles to have them sit vertically on the cap rail (images 1 -3).
My initial realization of the steering mechanism would not have been quite functional. The tackle ropes should have met the drum of the steering wheel at right angles, which was not the case in my first attempt (img 4). Luckily some of my fellow modelers made me aware of this. As I had to redo the arrangement anyway I used the opportunity to make the tiller a little bit longer and thus generate more operating room for the long guns in the chase position. I also made the angles between the tiller and the tackle ropes a bit more pronounced (img 4). The final arrangement can be seen in images 5 – 7.
 
Thomas
 

Image 1
 

Image 2
 

Image 3
 

Image 4
 

Image 5
 

Image 6
 

Image 7
 
 

Hi Mike - I did a lot of sanding, that is really all. I started with a Dremel and got more cautious and moved to rough then fine paper.  The rounded leading edge of the prop is upper most when the prop is laid onto a tabletop.  SO.... just a lot of thinning out of the blade.
~j

Mike, The good folks at Model Airways will send you a new set of prop parts for you if you want.
~j
 

Hi Mike - I did a lot of sanding, that is really all. I started with a Dremel and got more cautious and moved to rough then fine paper.  The rounded leading edge of the prop is upper most when the prop is laid onto a tabletop.  SO.... just a lot of thinning out of the blade.
~j

Now I think I get it ! Like a plane wing so it will be slightly convex on the outside and slightly convex on the inside ? If that sounds OK I will get on with some more sanding (!!!) on Tuesday.    I guess, worst case scenario, if I muck it up I can buy one ready done albeit not for a Sopwith !

extra note, now I think of it.  Do not take the difference in angle between root of propellor and tip as exact.  It is an exageration to help you visualise things.
L.H.

Not sure if this helps...
 
Consider the wing of a run-of-the mill airplane (civil, not military).  The wing is rounded on top, hollow at the bottom.  The rounded edge points towards where the lift goes (that is a force that 'pulls' the wing upward).
Also, the bit that hits the air first  is called the leading edge, and the other end is called the trailing end.  To ensure easy airflow around your wing, the leading edge is usually thicker and rounded, while the trailing edge... trails to nothing.  Located rougly 25-30% from the length of your wing (as measured from front to back) is the thickest part.
 
Now turn that wing 90 degrees, so that the rounded bit of the wing is now pointing forward (the direction you want the propellor to pull the aircraft = forward).  What is now the back side of the propellor is hollow, while the front side is rounded.
 
So far the easy bit.  Now for the more complicated bit.
The force called LIFT (i.e. the pulling force) is dependant on V^2 (= speed x speed).  So the faster the speed, the bigger the force.  But if the speed goes too fast the airflow around the wing (propellor) breaks away from the surface, and you end up with no lift whatsoever.
Without getting too technical here, the tip of the propellor goes much faster than the root (the bit closest to the shaft).  Given the problem above, it is important that the speed at the tip does not get too big.  To that end the angle of attack (that is the relative angle the windflow has relative to the forward edge of your aerofoil) needs to be adjusted, from pointing forward at the root of the propellor to almost at right angles to the shaft at the tip of the propellor.
 
The easiest way to visualise this is to take a piece of paper.  Hold it vertical, the bottom touching the table in front of you and you facing the writing side of the paper.  Now while holding the bottom edge of the paper in place, twist the top edge of the paper either clockwise or counterclockwise.  That is the shape of your aerofoil that seems to elude you, as I understand it.
 
Because of the material and forces involved, the tip of the propellor is much thinner than the root (so the aerofoil goes from thin at the tip to oval/almost round at the root.
 
Another way of looking at it is to see your propellor as a series of differently shaped aerofoils layered one on top of the other, each aerofoil slightly differently shaped as well as at a slightly different angle.
 
Wishing you good luck.
L.H.
p.s., been following your build log with interest, might tackle one of these things as well....

The blade starts thickest at the hub and becomes smoothly thinner to the end of the tips. The blade can't be concave on both sides.... only one side and this is the back side, the side closest to the engine. It is very slight.

Nope - nothing horrible :-)  
~john

Hi Mike,
No worries - you're not being a pain.  ;-)
The prop should be thinned equally from both sides. So if you have carved away enough from one side, then work on the other. 
The images in that link show just how thin the prop blade should be, and their angle. 
~john
 

The trailing edge is that flat edge, the straight one. If you think of it as a cross section, the point where your edge is not is correct. You just need to thin the blade out. Imagine it as a wing.... it has a airfoil shape to it. The side view (profile) should remain constant. 
Check out these images:  http://www.johnsshawaviation.co.uk/wordpress/sopwith-camel-f1-2/sopwith-camel-reconstruction/sopwith-camel-propeller/
 
~john

Nope - nothing horrible :-)  
~john

Hi Mike,
 
The prop is looking good. The side view looks perfect. You have done a good job keeping the profile to the right shape and dimension. Now to the angles of the blades.  I find it difficult to see what your images are showing me in terms of 3D, so I will try words.
 
The prop spins such that the rounded edge of the blade is the leading edge. It might seem like that is backwards, but it is true. So let's look at the last pic you posted.  The left hand side, towards us, is the curved edge and is the leading edge of the prop. On the right side, this curved edge is up top of the frame: that is the leading edge for the other side. The trailing edge is the flat edge, without any curve. 
 
Looking at the front of the prop, you want to sand or carve (or both!) away the wood on the flat edge of the prop, the trailing edge.
Looking at the back side of the prop, you want to remove wood from the curved edge side of the prop.
Doing this will create an angled propellor blade that pushes wind behind the plane as the prop spins. 
 
Maybe this helps?  Hard to do in words and in 2D images. 
 
~john

Hi Jesse.
            I have been following along with your build with great interest. Your long boat by-the-way looks fantastic. the way you are going, have you ever thought of joining the scratch build club?
 
                                      kier

Try this for a little reference.
 
http://www.wwi-models.org/Images/Foran/Hand_Carved_Props/index.html

I would suggest that it really doesn't matter. the only purpose is to add strength while you sand and to help keep the False Keel straight. I just used some 1 X 2 scrap I had laying around. I believe it was Fir.

Nice!  Those ribs are so time consuming. There were points when I was almost just DONE with the whole model thanks to these ribs. Well, now you are on your way!  
~john
 

Hi Mike,
Pics of the prop for you. Counterclockwise rotation when viewing the nose of the craft (as if it was going to run you over ;-) (figure 5 in the instructions). Their prop is thinner than mine (and likely more accurate). The side view shape is correct. I could have spent more time sanding and sanding and sanding.... With this engine, the prop was attached to the engine solidly, and the WHOLE engine rotates. Amazing to see in real life actually. Very noisy things.  Here's a vid:
 
 
~john
 
 

Hi Mike,
Sure. I'll do that later in the afternoon when I get home.  There are some (not many) images of the prop being made in my build log here, I think on the first page of the log.  More to come later today.
 
~john
 

The adventure DOES start!  Had some time to figure out that an empty vodka bottle makes a fine way to soak rabbet strips for a keel  ;-)  It is now curved around the keel and waiting to dry before I glue it in place. After that, onto the rabbet itself.  In the meantime, I am starting to hunt around for filler block material. I was thinking balsa, but not quite decided. Any commentary or advice on this? Perhaps something stronger would be appropriate? 
 
~john