Best aircraft engine to see widespread use

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Overall it was the best engine of the war in my opinion. Reliable and great power.

 

[Udet]

DB 605 AM and DB 605 ASM that powered the G-5, G-6 G-14 versions during the final year of the war.

 

[Jabberwocky]

DB 605 AM and DB 605 ASM that powered the G-5, G-6 G-14 versions during the final year of the war.

It didn't exactly see widespread usage though. Both the Merlin and the R-2800 saw service in over 20 different wartime airframes; fighters, twins and even heavies and transports. The DB 605 really only powered the late Me-110G, some Me-210s, the Bf 109G/K serise and the Italian MC 205 and G.55.

 

[KraziKanuK]

The Junkers Jumo was also noted for it's reliability.

The 211 yes but not the 213.

 

[Smokey]

The BMW 801 deserves a mention, especially with its Kommandogerat device.


http://www.tighar.org/Projects/Histpres/Corrosion_Report/bmw801.html

Most revolutionary however, was the Kommandogerat. This hydraulicelectric 'brain' unit was operated by a single control which was the pilot's throttle lever. It automatically adjusted fuel flow, mixture strength, propeller pitch setting and ignition timing. It also cut in a second stage of the supercharger at the correct altitude. The pilot could, if required, manually set the propeller pitch without altering any of the other settings.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMW_801

The 2800 does look to be overall the best radial and probably the best overall piston engine.

Nice pics here:
http://www.f4ucorsair.com/tdata/r2800.htm

 

[Udet]

Quote:

The DB 605 really only powered the late Me-110G, some Me-210s, the Bf 109G/K serise and the Italian MC 205 and G.55.

ermm...what was the purpose of writing something that in the end tells you agree with me?

If the modified DB 605 powered, say, the G (G-5, G-6 and more importantly the G-14) series of the Bf 109 alone, that will automatically make it an engine that saw widespread usage.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Quote:

The DB 605 really only powered the late Me-110G, some Me-210s, the Bf 109G/K serise and the Italian MC 205 and G.55.

ermm...what was the purpose of writing something that in the end tells you agree with me?

If the modified DB 605 powered, say, the G (G-5, G-6 and more importantly the G-14) series of the Bf 109 alone, that will automatically make it an engine that saw widespread usage.

Not when you compare it to the Merlin, R-2800, R-1820, V-1710 or VK-105, all of which powered in excess of 30,000 different planes and at least a dozen different airframes.

 

[Dogwalker]

for me even DB603 can be considered of "widespread use" (even if at the lower limit).
1100 Me-410 (with 2200 engines), apart of the other planes equipped whit it, are sufficient to know if the engine is reliable or not "under extreme combat conditions".

DogW

 

[FLYBOYJ]

From Wikipedia.

Pratt Whitney R-2800The Pratt Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp was an aircraft engine, and part of the long-lived Wasp family. It was a two-row, 18-cylinder, air-cooled radial design. Displacement was 2,804 cubic inches (46 liters); bore and stroke were 5.75" and 6".

The R-2800 is considered one of the premier radial piston engines ever designed. It became legendary when used in several aircraft during World War II, notably the F4U Corsair, P47 Thunderbolt, and the Grumman F6F Hellcat. During the war years, Pratt-Whitney were always coming up with new ideas to upgrade this already powerful workhorse, most notably water injection to give emergency power in combat.

After World War II, the engine was used in the Korean War, and surplus World War II aircraft powered with the Double-Wasp served with other countries well past the Korean War, some being retired as late as the latter part of the 1960s when the aircraft were replaced. The R-2800 also powered post-war propliners from Douglas, Lockheed and Martin. Today, more than 60 years after the first Double Wasp was built, it is still used in many restored vintage aircraft in air shows.

A partial list of aircraft that were powered by the R-2800 (and a few prototypes that utilized it at one point) includes the F4U Corsair, F6F Hellcat, F7F Tigercat, F8F Bearcat, P-47 Thunderbolt, P-61 Black Widow, B-26 Marauder, C-46 Commando, Douglas DC-6, Lockheed Constellation, XB-28 Dragon, PV Ventura, XF-15C-1, and the XP-60.

 

[delcyros]

Either this or the Merlin would be my favourite! (The later drove some spanish Bf-109G 2) I really think that the US Wasp series is most reasonable.
In general (with a wider timeframe) I would give the title to the RR Nene jet engine.

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

Quote:

The DB 605 really only powered the late Me-110G, some Me-210s, the Bf 109G/K serise and the Italian MC 205 and G.55.

ermm...what was the purpose of writing something that in the end tells you agree with me?

If the modified DB 605 powered, say, the G (G-5, G-6 and more importantly the G-14) series of the Bf 109 alone, that will automatically make it an engine that saw widespread usage.

Not when you compare it to the Merlin, R-2800, R-1820, V-1710 or VK-105, all of which powered in excess of 30,000 different planes and at least a dozen different airframes.

That is still widespread usage by the DB-605 series, lets see, lets break it down:

Well lets see the DB605:

Bf-109G-1: DB605A Number built: 167
Bf-109G-2: DB 605A Number built: 1587
Bf-109G-3: DB-605A Number built: 50
Bf-109G-4: DB-605A Number built: 1240
Bf-109G-5: DB-605AS Number built: 475
Bf-109G-6: DB-605A/DB-605AS Number built: 12000
Bf-109G-14: DB-605A/DB-605AS Number built: 5000
Bf-109G-10: DB-605DM Number built: 2600
Bf-109K-4: DB-605D Number built: 1700
Bf-110G series: DB-605B Number built: Not sure but I am looking for it, would asume it to be over 1000 built.

That alone adds up to atleast 25819 aircraft that used the DB-605 series engine. I am sure that if we check we will find more aircraft that used it. That is pretty wide spread use if you ask me.

 

[Smokey]

Looks like the top three piston engines to see widespread use are the Daimler Benz DB 605, Rolls Royce Merlin and Pratt Whitney R2800

 

[Magister]

And so of those three, which had the best mix of reliability and power?

 

[Smokey]

Radials are aircooled and seem to have a reputation for being tougher than inlines, so the Pratt Whitney R2800 may be the toughest

 

[wmaxt]

Well the Allison was as follows
1. P-39 - 9,585
2. P-38 - 10,000
3. P-40 - 13,732 (Allison equiped)
4. P-51A, A-36 - 310 to 500 (dep on source)
5. P-63 - 3,303
6. P-82 - 250
Total = 37,370 aircraft

A total of 70,000 Allison engines were built.

wmaxt

 

[DerAdlerIstGelandet]

I agree the Allison engines should be up there. My posting was just a point though that the DB-605 was also wide spread used and that just because 10 different countries did not use it does not mean that it was not.

 

[KraziKanuK]

There was something like 150,000 Merlins manufactured.

R-2800 - 114,073 from 1941 to wars end.
R-1830 - 166,504

 

[FLYBOYJ]

Add about another 4,000 R-2800s for the DC-6, Convair 240/440, C-89, CH-37, C-123B, Martin 202 and 404, AJ-1, Breguet BR-765, and PBM-5 in the post war years - some of these aircraft flew into the 70s. It would not surprise me if there 300,000 R-2800s built

 

[helmitsmit]

The merlins power rating were also a bit conservative Rolls royce claimed to have cleared the merlin to 3000hp at 3000rpm yet in service the maximum was 2050hp with the 130 series installed on the Hornets

 

[helmitsmit]

If the Germans could have gotten the higher octane fuels 100 or 150 octane:
1. The DB601a would have had a similar rating to the RR Griffon 60series and would have seen more use.
2. the replacement the DB605 could have had a rating of about 2400hp a therefore it would have been right up there with the merlins and R2800 as as a great engine.