Airplane engines

[TrutrakTech]

I think it's safe to say that most of us involved in this "sector" have some sort of affinity toward mechanical things. Personally, I love engines. I like to look at them, listen to them, and work on them (except my own, I get tired of that).

So, I want to know what gets your motor running, flat-4, flat-6, round, turbine, jet? For me, it's the sound of a round engine. I really believe I could sit and listen to one of those all day. I'm actually much more of a car guy, so a nice healthy V-8 wins hands down, but since we're talking airplanes here...

So let's hear it!

[PhantomPholly]

Turbines - but they are out of my price range.

My Lancair 320 is limited by horsepower and weight. I would get enthused if someone finally has a breakthrough in the hp/weight issue without sacrificing reliability or incurring astronomical cost. Some promising contenders are Gemini (http://www.ppdgemini.com/) (the 275 hp turbo model would do nicely for my application if it ever moves beyond pretty pictures) and Adept Airmotive (http://www.adeptairmotive.com/site/awdep.asp?depnum=26011) (the turbo model, naturally!).

Now, if we want to take off on flights of fancy there is always the MYT (http://www.angellabsllc.com/Engine_cmparison.html) (pronounced Mighty) engine. 850 hp/150 lbs sounds really nice, but as it's been years since they updated the site I'm gonna lump this in with science fiction...

:D

[TrutrakTech]

Turbines - but they are out of my price range.

My Lancair 320 is limited by horsepower and weight. I would get enthused if someone finally has a breakthrough in the hp/weight issue without sacrificing reliability or incurring astronomical cost. Some promising contenders are Gemini (http://www.ppdgemini.com/) (the 275 hp turbo model would do nicely for my application if it ever moves beyond pretty pictures) and Adept Airmotive (http://www.adeptairmotive.com/site/awdep.asp?depnum=26011) (the turbo model, naturally!).

Now, if we want to take off on flights of fancy there is always the MYT (http://www.angellabsllc.com/Engine_cmparison.html) (pronounced Mighty) engine. 850 hp/150 lbs sounds really nice, but as it's been years since they updated the site I'm gonna lump this in with science fiction...

:D

There is something fascinating about a turbine during startup. There's a King Air 350 in the hangar next door to our main office. I love to listen to that! Who DOESN'T like the sound of a PT-6?

The Adept engine looks interesting. It looks a lot like a 120° design with overhead cams. I really like the looks of it! Let's hope it comes to fruition. It would be good to see some other options out there.

[PhantomPholly]

Another one that once seemed promising was once called "DynaCam" and is now called "Axial Vector (http://www.axialvectorengine.com/index.html)." A 200hp engine was a 20" long 8" diameter cylinder weighing about 150 lbs and acting effectively as a 12 cylinder motor. Don't know why they never produced these, unless they just couldn't get them to be reliable - but that doesn't seem to fit with the marketing on the site that they are used in GenSets (a constant-duty application).

New to the scene from down under is ReveTec (http://www.revetec.com/development.htm). This is another approach at modified geometry to solve the "problem" of power production.

Now, if I had millions to invest and was a sneaky guy I'd figure out a way to apply the ReveTec idea of counter-rotating "glide-guides" to the circular DynaCam setup to occupy less physical space - although the DynaCam seems to have plenty of torque already.

[PhantomPholly]

Almost forgot Freedom Motors (http://freedom-motors.com) (Moller - the skycar guy). They have a working 65 pound 150hp motor they hope to have in production soon. Looks like they have $1 billion in orders as of early this year, so it may not be too long now.

[TrutrakTech]

Wow! If that pans out, it could really turn into a heavyweight player in the market. (bad pun intended)

[PhantomPholly]

Yeah, I've been watching them for so many years that I hadn't checked their site in over a year. $1 billion in orders JUST FOR MOTORS is absolutely HUGE (pun equally intended)...

There is nothing intrinsically different about their aviation motors from their other models, which leads me to have some real hope they'll actually start producing them. Now, if I can just shoehorn in two of them where my IO-320 sits now...

:D

[TrutrakTech]

Yeah, I've been watching them for so many years that I hadn't checked their site in over a year. $1 billion in orders JUST FOR MOTORS is absolutely HUGE (pun equally intended)...

There is nothing intrinsically different about their aviation motors from their other models, which leads me to have some real hope they'll actually start producing them. Now, if I can just shoehorn in two of them where my IO-320 sits now...

:D

Where there's a will there's a way right? ;)

[PhantomPholly]

Where there's a will there's a way right? ;)

Or at least an attorney...

;)

[TrutrakTech]

Or at least an attorney...

;)

That was a good one! I love one-liners!

[foka4]

I can't believe no one has mentioned the Merlin, so I thought I'd chime in. Hands down, one of the most beautiful and revolutionary engines of all time. Definitely my favorite.

I'm glad some of you mentioned the Adept engine. The design is thoroughly modern, with the internal bits strongly resembling the latest in automotive and motorcycle engines. Importantly, it seems to have a good measure of the necessary bottom-end beefiness for smoothly delivering high output in aircraft applications. That separates it from the crowd of auto conversions (including the Thielert and Austro).

I'd like to see a modern, liquid-cooled aircraft engine make it into the fleet. With fuel prices climbing ever higher, the efficiency gains would outweigh the complexity of the cooling system. Most GA aircraft don't have to worry about bullet holes punching through coolant lines, so the Achilles' heel of Merlin-powered aircraft should be of little significance.

[PhantomPholly]

Are you speaking of the Merlin engine used in WWII fighters, or something different? I don't think they are in production any more...

:(

With the Adept, the one feature I wish they had was a clutch or shear to automatically disengage the prop in the event of a prop strike. I know it adds some weight, but considering the time, expense, and labor in a tear-down it would be a valuable option for anyone with a retract who wanted a little "insurance."

[TrutrakTech]

I have to admit some severe interest in the new iE2 line. I'd really like to see some fuel burn comparison numbers between equivalent engines once this new line is out. Being a late model car guy, I'm glad to see some modern control technology finally making it into (hopefully) mainstream aviation propulsion.

[PhantomPholly]

There is nothing really "new" about the iE2 engines. Those of us in the experimental world with electronic ignitions and balanced injection get about the same performance for far less money.

We really need something more revolutionary.

Like this (http://www.desertaerospace.com/turbines.html).

:D