Incident Summary
After landing, the pilot felt vibrations in the airplane and decided to stop on a taxiway to perform an inspection. He reported that he pulled the mixture to idle and removed the magneto key before exiting the airplane. While bending down to examine the nose wheel, he was struck on the head by a propeller blade.
Inspection and Ignition Key Handling
An employee of the fixed base operation reported that he removed the ignition key by turning it three clicks to the left. Examination of the magneto system revealed no anomalies.
Mechanical Findings
A mechanic who repaired the airplane reported that the nose wheel was extremely loose, with bearings that could be heard rattling. The axle bolt was only finger tight, and the lower strut bolt was bent. The mechanic further stated that he found a small split in a tube, which he attributed to age.