I have be using rcs for a couple of years now, and am thinking of a project that might be viewed as crazy by some people. This is the video that inspired me [link]http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5721579124059513186&q=ferrari&hl=en[/link]. If anyone has an answer to my question please respond. Im thinking of building a mini rc sized 12 cylinder engine. I have been doing some research and it doesnt seem imposible with the right tools. My questions are do you think it is possible? What materials can it be made out of? do you have any good links to this subject with breakdowns of v12s? and most important, does anyone know of a website or company that will machine metal parts based on professional drawings that you create? ,thank you very much for any responces.

Sure it's possable. Is it practical is another question. The next question is how much have you got to spend. I guarentee you won't get one for under a grand and probably a whole lot more.
A while back, a year or so, maybe two, there was a guy that had made a working 8 cy model of the dodge hemi engine. If I remember right he was trying to sell it for around $6,000.
So, yeah, it's possable if you want to make that kind of commitment for a one off engine that will be hard to fit into anything and cost more than many used 1:1 cars.

To get parts made your pretty much going to need CAD files, drawings arent going to work, so welcome to the wonderfull world of [link=http://www.alibre.com/]Alibre[/link]. Its a free CAD program. A v12 is just like a v2, just a bunch of them joined together. If you have basic engine understanding you should be able to draw it up. CAD is pretty easy to work with and Alibre has a part movement thinger which allows you to move a part and other parts will move in relation to it based on set constraints. Do the tutorials and youll understand what I mean. Also decide if you want to make a 2 stroke or a 4 stroke after you research a bit and before you start drawing things up.

cool thanks, I researched today and found some more things on this, and i also found a site that will machine parts for you as long as you have a cad drawing but its not too cheep for setup otherwise they said its about a dollar per part around 150 estimated for setup. I also found many different ways to make an engine like this and this is where i need help again. can a 12 cylinder engine use glow plugs and gas? If it had the setup of an rc engine? I have a basic understanding of engines but am a little confused about 12 cylinder engines. If i wanted it to sort of have that race car sound like the one in the link would it have to be 4 stroke? also i run nitro engines and was wondering if glow plugs can be used for gas, but im thinking they can as long as they are for gas engines? sorry if my questions are wierd but its just hard to ask what i need to ask, thank you.

Thats the problem with getting parts custom made eh? It always costs a ton for setup and then the actual parts are almost free.

From my understanding, gas needs sparkplugs. A nitro engine is more similar to a diesel engine because the fuel is lit by pressure and heat while gas is lit by a spark.

http://www.weberprecision.com/
http://www.conleyprecision.com/
You can actually buy them if you want.

Thanks, Im also confused at how a custom engine has to be setup, and how it should be set up. Does it have to use spark plugs, can they be glow? how should your cooling system be? what fuel to use? do you need a camshaft and valves? or can you use the principle of nitro engines? how would you time the sparks and what would you use? these are all the kinds of questions i have. ,thanks