enginehistory.org

kmccutcheon · Posted: Sat Sep 27, 2003 17:09 Post subject: Experimental and Odd-Ball Engines

I am interested in all engines, from steam to rocket, but my writings seem to have been mostly about WWII era piston engines. I am particularly interested in the experimental engine concepts that were tried in the 1920s and 1930s. This led to my book on the Wright Tornado, the first in a series about the experimental engines built for the US military prior to and during WWII. If you are interested the experimental aircraft engines of Continental, Chrysler, Ford, Lycoming, Pratt & Whitney, Studebaker, or Curtiss-Wright I would very much enjoy hearing from you. I would also enjoy discussing barrel engines and other such concepts that were outside the mainstream.
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Kimble D. McCutcheon

szielinski · Joined: 13 Jul 2003 Posts: 94 Location: Canberra, Australia

Check this out, can you suss how it works ??
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_McMaster

kmccutcheon · Posted: Tue Dec 16, 2003 22:08 Post subject:

Interesting! While I have not had time to explore it in detail, here iswhat appears to be the patent for it: US 6390052
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Kimble D. McCutcheon

lmoretti · Joined: 13 Jul 2003 Posts: 13

There was an excellent presentation, with rapid prototype model of the engine which really made clear the concept, at the last American Helicopter Society Forum in Phoenix in summer 2003. I had to see it to believe it but it definitely is interesting. At the time they had not yet built an operating engine, just the plastic model. You should be able to get the paper from the Society at www.vtol.org.
Have fun,
Luigi

gryan · Guest

Kim

I too am interesed in unusal engines and spent a lot of time looking for information about barrel engines, nutating disc engines, rotary engines (Wankel and non-Wankel), vane motors, cat-and-mouse engines, swashplate engines and all the rotary valve engines as well. There are plenty of them!

Felix Wankel wrote an interesting text book where he attempted to categorise all the possibilities of rotary engine. He missed out an entire class of engine; intersecting axes machines. Even without these the number of possibilities is staggering. Surprising that in all these none seems to have made it. Most of these engines never saw the light of day for good technical reasons but a few look as if they deserved to succeed as they were well designed. I guess it was lack of funding (there have been some excellent articles in TM about this).

Do you have much information about rotary engines (non-Wankel)? In particlular I am trying to discover what became of the Mallory rotary engine. It was tested to 400 bhp but aside from that I know nothing of the story surrounding it. Does anyone know more?

Sleeve valve engines are impressive. This concept deserves to be utilised in cars as well as aircraft for the packaging advantages alone. It can also use lower quality fuels than can a conventional engine at similar compression. I recall hearing that Hewland (the gearbox manufacturer) tried to revive the concept. This was during the 1970s I think. Does anyone know about this? I'd like to find out more about it.

I don't know much about barrel engines but did come across some information about a nutating disc engine. It was called the Clarke Engine. Seemed to work OK.

Regards

Gerald Ryan

fbarrett · Joined: 10 Sep 2007 Posts: 32 Location: Lakewood, Colorado

jaymerich · Posted: Mon Jan 14, 2019 07:15 Post subject: Unusual engines

Hi!: Douglas Self maintains an interesting page on mechanical oddities, including engines. The book: 'Some unusual engines', by J K Setright is a classic in the field.
Wobble plate motors, Scottish Yoke, 'Rivals to the Wankel', Barrel engines, are a relapsing subject, almost none reached production.
Should you need prototyping, www.protolabs.com offers services at reasonable costs, but the field of Powder Metallurgy, Additive Metal Manufacturing, and related activities is growing fast, you know aircraft and engine makers are switching to this way of making parts, cheaper, and with same or higher standards. The aircraft and car spare parts business is to change deeply because of the Metal 3D printing. Salut +
To Gerald Ryan: Car&Driver published in the July 1974 issue an interview with Mike Hewland about their Sleeve-Valve research, I've added the main references I have about this to the Sleeve Valve Wikipedia article, also some things to the Wankel engine article, but besides the AEHS site, nothing compares to www.SAE.org