Radial Overhaul
06-08-2009, 02:46 PM
#1
Radial Overhaul
I am posting up a few pics of a radial engine here because I thought it might be of some help for any of you guys building a scale bird with a round engine.
I am finishing the seventh quarter of an eight quarter A&P program in middle Georgia and Iam one of a three man team to completely disassemble and restore the engine pictured below. The engine belongs to the Warner Robins Museum of Aviation and will be on display there when it is completed. The guys from the museum said that it had been sitting in a field for about 20 years prior to their retrieval and it was in pretty bad shape when we got ahold of it. I have no information on this particular engine's service history or why it was sitting in sombody's field, but it is the type that was on the Boeing B-17.
We had hoped to finish restoration by the end of our quarter tomorrow, but we are lacking a few couplings and some hardware that the museum has not yet delivered, so we are forced to take a short break from this project until the beginning of next quarter in July. I will post more pictures of the completed engine when work resumes, but I will post what I have up until now.
Engine: Wright R-1820-97 "Cyclone 9'
Displacement: 1820 cubic inches, nine cylinders
Output: 1,200 HP
Supercharger: 7.1:1 compressor with 11" diameter radial outflow impeller
Cylinder compression ratio: 6.7:1
Five point primer
Operating oil pressure: 65 PSI, 19.5 gallon reservoir
Propeller gear reduction ratio: 16:9
Fuel: 87 Octane minimum
Firing order: 1-3-5-7-9-2-4-6-8
Carburetor: Bendix-Stromberg PD-12-H2, pressure injection type
Starter: Bendix, 700 ft/lbs torque
Built in 1942 at the South Bend, Indiana Studebaker plant
Manufacturer number: SW-025902
Contract number: W53_AC17399
Engine Spec number: 666CVAR.A
The parts catalogue alone is 241 pages long. (There were a few nuts and bolts on this engine...)
Like I said above, I have no information on where or for how long this engine served until it's demise, but the oil cooler is stamped with a recore date of September 1966, indicating that it ran for at least 24 years.
The engine appears to have self-destructed itself on the inside, so it is being restored as static display only. As best we can figure, it appears that one of the crankshaft counter-weights broke loose while it was in operation. This of course, had devestating effects on the other internal components. All but three pistons were fused in the cylinders, five of the nine connecting rods were turned into mulch.
I am finishing the seventh quarter of an eight quarter A&P program in middle Georgia and Iam one of a three man team to completely disassemble and restore the engine pictured below. The engine belongs to the Warner Robins Museum of Aviation and will be on display there when it is completed. The guys from the museum said that it had been sitting in a field for about 20 years prior to their retrieval and it was in pretty bad shape when we got ahold of it. I have no information on this particular engine's service history or why it was sitting in sombody's field, but it is the type that was on the Boeing B-17.
We had hoped to finish restoration by the end of our quarter tomorrow, but we are lacking a few couplings and some hardware that the museum has not yet delivered, so we are forced to take a short break from this project until the beginning of next quarter in July. I will post more pictures of the completed engine when work resumes, but I will post what I have up until now.
Engine: Wright R-1820-97 "Cyclone 9'
Displacement: 1820 cubic inches, nine cylinders
Output: 1,200 HP
Supercharger: 7.1:1 compressor with 11" diameter radial outflow impeller
Cylinder compression ratio: 6.7:1
Five point primer
Operating oil pressure: 65 PSI, 19.5 gallon reservoir
Propeller gear reduction ratio: 16:9
Fuel: 87 Octane minimum
Firing order: 1-3-5-7-9-2-4-6-8
Carburetor: Bendix-Stromberg PD-12-H2, pressure injection type
Starter: Bendix, 700 ft/lbs torque
Built in 1942 at the South Bend, Indiana Studebaker plant
Manufacturer number: SW-025902
Contract number: W53_AC17399
Engine Spec number: 666CVAR.A
The parts catalogue alone is 241 pages long. (There were a few nuts and bolts on this engine...)
Like I said above, I have no information on where or for how long this engine served until it's demise, but the oil cooler is stamped with a recore date of September 1966, indicating that it ran for at least 24 years.
The engine appears to have self-destructed itself on the inside, so it is being restored as static display only. As best we can figure, it appears that one of the crankshaft counter-weights broke loose while it was in operation. This of course, had devestating effects on the other internal components. All but three pistons were fused in the cylinders, five of the nine connecting rods were turned into mulch.
06-09-2009, 01:42 PM
#9
RE: Radial Overhaul
Thanks EM, I was and am thankful to have the opportunity to work on this piece of history. Many others from my class turned this project down and chose to overhaul a modern Lycoming or Continental engine instead. I volunteered for this one, and although it has been tedious, frustrating and time consuming -taking many weeks longer than everyone else's overhaul project- I knew that I may never have the opportunity to restore a piece of equipment that helped fight for and preserve our freedom. It is awe inspiring to think that 65 years ago this engine was likely bombing Berlin and dodging flak, while its crew was praying for the guys flying the Mustangs to keep them safe from the Luftwaffe.
06-09-2009, 01:46 PM
#10
RE: Radial Overhaul
Sorry it's taking so long to get all the pictures up fellas, either RCU is having troubles or my computer is not feeling well.
Perhaps I'm not holding my mouth correctly.
More pictures of the engine before restoration below.
Perhaps I'm not holding my mouth correctly.
More pictures of the engine before restoration below.
06-09-2009, 01:51 PM
#11
Senior Member
My Feedback: (13)
RE: Radial Overhaul
You are very lucky to have access to that kind of powerplant.
Further up the coast stuff like that gets more rare and almost impossible to get around even when you are willing to donate your time. The Collings Foundation up near me has lots of great stuff, but for some reason they only want my money, not my time...
Further up the coast stuff like that gets more rare and almost impossible to get around even when you are willing to donate your time. The Collings Foundation up near me has lots of great stuff, but for some reason they only want my money, not my time...
06-09-2009, 01:51 PM
#12
RE: Radial Overhaul
Well then make a visit down here sometime if you want to get your hands dirty on some historic aircraft. Our museum down here is always looking for volunteers and they'll let you do pretty much anything you're capable of doing. They are always looking for volunteers to do everything from sweeping the floors to cleaning displays or guiding tours, and the maintenance shop will let you work on restoration projects if you have just about any kind of experience turning a wrench.
06-09-2009, 02:03 PM
#13
RE: Radial Overhaul
Below: Although three of us were tasked with complete tear down and restoration, we often enlisted the aid of others in our class and even random passers-by were drafted into giving us a hand. In the last photo below you can see two of my classmates preping the oil cooler before it was reinstalled. Notice it's construction- honecomb copper. The amount of copper and brass used in this engine is astounding. Dozens of bolts, washers, fluid lines and even some keepers were copper and brass.
06-09-2009, 02:26 PM
#16
RE: Radial Overhaul
In the first picture below, (view from the rear) you can see all nine cylinders have been reinstalled and you can see the starter in the center, the two magnetos above and to either side, and the carburetor at the top.
06-09-2009, 02:35 PM
#17
RE: Radial Overhaul
This is as far as we got yesterday afternoon, and stopped work for our final exam today. Our quarter has ended, leaving the pushrods, pushrod tubes, rocker arms, and rocker covers off the engine. We were waiting on some clamps from the museum before we could finish those details and they were delivered today, but too late to get anything done. The remainder of the work will have to wait until July.
For those of you building a scale model, note that the black tubes going from the rear of the crankcase to the cylinder heads are intake tubes. The radial outflow supercharger is inside the rear crankcase section there. The silver tube connecting the cylinders together in the rear is the exhaust ring (note that only the top half of the exhaust ring is present, the rest of it was not with the engine when it was delivered). And the large olive drab tank at the top and rear is the oil reservoir. The oil sump is on the bottom of the engine between cylinders number 5 and 6, and is visible from the front. It is the housing upon which the data plate is mounted.
For those of you building a scale model, note that the black tubes going from the rear of the crankcase to the cylinder heads are intake tubes. The radial outflow supercharger is inside the rear crankcase section there. The silver tube connecting the cylinders together in the rear is the exhaust ring (note that only the top half of the exhaust ring is present, the rest of it was not with the engine when it was delivered). And the large olive drab tank at the top and rear is the oil reservoir. The oil sump is on the bottom of the engine between cylinders number 5 and 6, and is visible from the front. It is the housing upon which the data plate is mounted.
06-09-2009, 02:38 PM
#18
RE: Radial Overhaul
Just a couple of extra pictures below of some of the other radials we have in our recip lab. These two engines are from a Cessna UC-70 "Bamboo Bomber" and were restored several quarters ago by another class.
Somehow, a picture of my toolbox made it onto my camera as well.
Somehow, a picture of my toolbox made it onto my camera as well.
06-10-2009, 07:42 AM
#20
My Feedback: (43)
RE: Radial Overhaul
Good stuff. We have the Fighter Factory here locally and they will let you watch. I do not think they will let just anyone touch the planes as a volunteer.
WRT the Bamboo Bomber. I have one about 80% complete from Don Smith Plans....good luck, you are in for an adventure. Not much fits, and there is alot of user engineering to be done. Not a big deal, but when I contacted DS about something, he said everything was on the drawings....uhh no, it isn't.
Mine will be done like the Wright Stuff Squadron in Ohio.
WRT the Bamboo Bomber. I have one about 80% complete from Don Smith Plans....good luck, you are in for an adventure. Not much fits, and there is alot of user engineering to be done. Not a big deal, but when I contacted DS about something, he said everything was on the drawings....uhh no, it isn't.
Mine will be done like the Wright Stuff Squadron in Ohio.
06-10-2009, 09:34 AM
#21
Senior Member
My Feedback: (13)
RE: Radial Overhaul
ORIGINAL: JeffH
Good stuff. We have the Fighter Factory here locally and they will let you watch. I do not think they will let just anyone touch the planes as a volunteer.
WRT the Bamboo Bomber. I have one about 80% complete from Don Smith Plans....good luck, you are in for an adventure. Not much fits, and there is alot of user engineering to be done. Not a big deal, but when I contacted DS about something, he said everything was on the drawings....uhh no, it isn't.
Mine will be done like the Wright Stuff Squadron in Ohio.
Good stuff. We have the Fighter Factory here locally and they will let you watch. I do not think they will let just anyone touch the planes as a volunteer.
WRT the Bamboo Bomber. I have one about 80% complete from Don Smith Plans....good luck, you are in for an adventure. Not much fits, and there is alot of user engineering to be done. Not a big deal, but when I contacted DS about something, he said everything was on the drawings....uhh no, it isn't.
Mine will be done like the Wright Stuff Squadron in Ohio.
06-10-2009, 05:06 PM
#22
Senior Member
RE: Radial Overhaul
Very nice job!!! Just to bad it couldn't be made functional again. Then you could start her up and listen to your work. Again Well Done!!!
Barry
www.canopyrailsforwarbirds.com
Barry
www.canopyrailsforwarbirds.com
06-10-2009, 07:15 PM
#23
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Summerfield,
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RE: Radial Overhaul
You lucky dog. Congrats on working towards your A&P! Its a tuff road. I've had my licensesince 1995. You probably have heard of thename of the company I now work for. Its here in Greensboro N.C. called Timco. We have a satellite company in Macon. I've worked there for 11years now. Good luck with your project, Good luck with your schooling, and Good luck with your future. Barry
06-10-2009, 07:29 PM
#24
RE: Radial Overhaul
Thanks Stuka Barry, I have indeed heard of Timco. I toured their facility in Macon about a year ago.
I earned my airframe certificate on Super Bowl Sunday of this year and have my powerplant O&P scheduled for the end of September.