RV-9A, Hartzell CS, Weight & Balance Issues

I received notice that my prop had been shipped.
What caught my eye was the shipping weight of 69 lbs.
I don't know the exact weight of the prop but the crate can't
be that heavy.
I am ready to order the panel, last big thing to do.
I have O-320 with Gami injectors.
Sure would like some feedback on weight/balance, nose gear weight
and any issues with the CS on the front.
Recommended placement of ELT, and anything else that might need to
be moved back due to having the CS prop and it's weight up front.
Figured now is the time to find out what other 9A drivers with CS
have had to do, if anything out of the ordinary.

I just swapped a 7496 74" for a 7605 76", and weighed each Prop:

1. Prop only - no backplate, front plate, or spinner
2. 7496 might have had a little residual oil, but little more has drained over a week
3. 7496 was 57lbs
4. 7605 was 41lbs
5. I understand 7497 weighs ~1.5lbs more than 7496 - Source: somewhere on VAF I think?

RV-9A W&B

PM me your email and I'll send you my W&B with a light wooden prop and with my current Hartzel CS prop. The range for the 9 is wide and the CS puts you biased to front just a little that makes it so you can not get too far aft even if you had over 150# of baggage and well over gross. I did not look but as I remember the only way to get out in front was with empty tanks and a 60# pilot.

WW RV200 41 lb w spinner

Full fuel, single pilot, and no baggage pushes CG most fwd. My empty weight is 1087 lb. In this config mentioned the weight is 1490 lb. and CG 78.9. Limit fwd CG is 77.95. I use some up trim upon landing in this config. and can hold the nose off for a reasonable amount of time. I opted for the lightest CS prop avail, WW RV200 41 lb w spinner. With 20 lb in the baggage area I can hold the nose off longer and it feels better.

Thanks

Thanks everyone, Scott PM sent.
Steve, that makes me feel better, sounds good.

I've been around two RV9A's during the build process and flown them. Both have Hartzell C/S props and 0320's. Nothing was done out of the ordinary, plan wise. They fly great. Lot's of power on the takeoff, and have an excellent "braking" ability in the pattern, due to the C/S prop.

CG diagram

I am 30 hours into a 40 hour phase I with a Whirlwind constant speed prop on a IO-320.

There is a nose wheel weight chart in the documents on Van's site related to nose-over issues. It is under support here: http://www.vansaircraft.com/pdf/Nose_gear_service_letter.pdf

My empty weight is 1126 with 295 on the nose wheel. As someone else mentioned, solo pilot and full fuel moves the CG forward. I considered moving the battery in back of the luggage compartment, but it would add a couple of pounds of wires anyway. It was much simpler to bolt a 2 lb lead weight under the tail fairing with a 219 arm.

The CG on my initial test flight with no wheel pants or leg fairings and half full tanks was 78.23. Close to the forward end of the 77.95 to 84.84 range.