Airframes
Benevolens Magister
Ah, now I understand, thanks.
Calgary's Hurricane on the Move
- Thread starter Crimea_River
- Start date
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Great shots!
- Thread starter
- #203
Crimea_River
Marshal
MiTasol
2nd Lieutenant
At least it looks like it traveled at speed and was not a mobile road block like this
https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/h...t_fullsize.jpg
https://s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/h...t_fullsize.jpg
fubar57
General
Very cool
Good stuff!
- Thread starter
- #207
Crimea_River
Marshal
The story continues.
To pick up where we left off, though we never did get the engine running properly, we delivered the Hurricane to its permanent home and held the turnover ceremony in late 2019 as captured in the last couple of pages. The understanding was that, despite returning the aircraft to its owner and displaying it in its new home, our organizing would continue to work to resolve whatever it was that prevented the engine from running on its own.
We traced the problem to the fuel accelerator pump. This unit is located on top of the air inlet duct just above the carburetor and is essentially a fuel injector that squirts the fuel into the air duct upstream of the supercharger. The unit was overhauled at Vintage V12's - Rebuilding the Power of History and returned to us for reinstallation in the engine. With the advent of Covid-19 and its associated lock-downs through 2020, all hopes of accessing the Hurricane last year were dashed and so we sat and waited for the right time to reinstall the accelerator pump and give the engine another try.
At some point during the wait personnel at the museum attempted to turn the engine one revolution using the hand crank. After a full revolution, the engine stopped turning and somehow locked in position. The prop could not be pulled through in either direction.
Nonetheless, our opportunity to reinstall the pump came last month and the guys from Historical Aviation Services Inc. (HASI) came down to replace the pump. We had understood that there would need to be a lot of stuff removed to achieve this, given that the pump was buried within and under various struts, glycol tank, an armour plate, pipes, and wires but the guys at HASI, with access to their own restored Hurricane RCAF 5418, found a way to do this without removing all those parts and so they successfully reinstalled the refurbished pump and about three hours:
That left the issue of freeing up the engine. We pulled the starter out, inspected the valves, and sent a borescope up into the combustion chambers and through the crankcase. None of these inspections revealed a cause and the engine remains frozen. The prop can not be moved by hand in either direction; there is a hard mechanical stop on either side of what I would term gear backlash.
We made a call to Jose Flores, owner of Vintage V-12s, and everything that he suggested we try was already done up to that point. That left us no other option than to pull the engine out and begin dismantling it in a more controlled environment. This is very unfortunate but there are no other options.
Anyone who has had the privilege of working on one of these Hurricanes can appreciate that pulling the engine is not a simple task. The design does not allow for a quick replacement of an engine as all of the supporting structure is part of the airframe and the cowl supports are all built of loose pieces around the engine once it is in place. It is not a "power egg" concept as seen on many other aircraft where pulling an engine involves disconnecting all services at the firewall and removing 4 main engine bearer bolts and removing the entire unit as a whole, complete with plumbing and wiring. Add to that the astonishing complexity of the connections and one is left wondering how on earth the ground crews were expected to get these things turned around quickly. Check out these photos:
The glycol tank is supported from the firewall and needs to be removed to allow the engine to be lifted out. Ahead of the glycol tank can be seen a piece of 1/4" thick armour plate. This is mounted onto a semicircular frame that is mounted on longerons and held with 6 struts to the firewall. Removal of the glycol tank requires removal of the semicircular frame and armour plate. The accelerator pump mentioned above is UNDER the glycol tank so you can appreciate the great job the HASI guys did getting this thing in.
A trapped bolt head (arrow) is shown below at the longeron mentioned above. To remove the longeron, which also interferes with vertical lifting of the engine, one first needs to remove the vertical bolt and nut and then get at the trapped bolt. The bolt below that one is accessed through a hole in the strut but, you guessed it, the hole is too small for today's standard sockets and so a bent open-ended wrench is needed from the top.
So, as we stand today, we have now drained the oil and removed all of the services and obstructions to allow us to pull the engine. Here's a pic of the guys, myself included, where we are close to having all of the necessary stuff out (photo by Richard deBoer and linked from our FB page):
By the way, that piece of cowl that can be seen just behind the prop is a completely riveted ring and can only be removed once the prop is off. We now need to get an engine stand fabricated before pulling the engine and I'll post again when we are at that point.
To pick up where we left off, though we never did get the engine running properly, we delivered the Hurricane to its permanent home and held the turnover ceremony in late 2019 as captured in the last couple of pages. The understanding was that, despite returning the aircraft to its owner and displaying it in its new home, our organizing would continue to work to resolve whatever it was that prevented the engine from running on its own.
We traced the problem to the fuel accelerator pump. This unit is located on top of the air inlet duct just above the carburetor and is essentially a fuel injector that squirts the fuel into the air duct upstream of the supercharger. The unit was overhauled at Vintage V12's - Rebuilding the Power of History and returned to us for reinstallation in the engine. With the advent of Covid-19 and its associated lock-downs through 2020, all hopes of accessing the Hurricane last year were dashed and so we sat and waited for the right time to reinstall the accelerator pump and give the engine another try.
At some point during the wait personnel at the museum attempted to turn the engine one revolution using the hand crank. After a full revolution, the engine stopped turning and somehow locked in position. The prop could not be pulled through in either direction.
Nonetheless, our opportunity to reinstall the pump came last month and the guys from Historical Aviation Services Inc. (HASI) came down to replace the pump. We had understood that there would need to be a lot of stuff removed to achieve this, given that the pump was buried within and under various struts, glycol tank, an armour plate, pipes, and wires but the guys at HASI, with access to their own restored Hurricane RCAF 5418, found a way to do this without removing all those parts and so they successfully reinstalled the refurbished pump and about three hours:
That left the issue of freeing up the engine. We pulled the starter out, inspected the valves, and sent a borescope up into the combustion chambers and through the crankcase. None of these inspections revealed a cause and the engine remains frozen. The prop can not be moved by hand in either direction; there is a hard mechanical stop on either side of what I would term gear backlash.
We made a call to Jose Flores, owner of Vintage V-12s, and everything that he suggested we try was already done up to that point. That left us no other option than to pull the engine out and begin dismantling it in a more controlled environment. This is very unfortunate but there are no other options.
Anyone who has had the privilege of working on one of these Hurricanes can appreciate that pulling the engine is not a simple task. The design does not allow for a quick replacement of an engine as all of the supporting structure is part of the airframe and the cowl supports are all built of loose pieces around the engine once it is in place. It is not a "power egg" concept as seen on many other aircraft where pulling an engine involves disconnecting all services at the firewall and removing 4 main engine bearer bolts and removing the entire unit as a whole, complete with plumbing and wiring. Add to that the astonishing complexity of the connections and one is left wondering how on earth the ground crews were expected to get these things turned around quickly. Check out these photos:
The glycol tank is supported from the firewall and needs to be removed to allow the engine to be lifted out. Ahead of the glycol tank can be seen a piece of 1/4" thick armour plate. This is mounted onto a semicircular frame that is mounted on longerons and held with 6 struts to the firewall. Removal of the glycol tank requires removal of the semicircular frame and armour plate. The accelerator pump mentioned above is UNDER the glycol tank so you can appreciate the great job the HASI guys did getting this thing in.
A trapped bolt head (arrow) is shown below at the longeron mentioned above. To remove the longeron, which also interferes with vertical lifting of the engine, one first needs to remove the vertical bolt and nut and then get at the trapped bolt. The bolt below that one is accessed through a hole in the strut but, you guessed it, the hole is too small for today's standard sockets and so a bent open-ended wrench is needed from the top.
So, as we stand today, we have now drained the oil and removed all of the services and obstructions to allow us to pull the engine. Here's a pic of the guys, myself included, where we are close to having all of the necessary stuff out (photo by Richard deBoer and linked from our FB page):
By the way, that piece of cowl that can be seen just behind the prop is a completely riveted ring and can only be removed once the prop is off. We now need to get an engine stand fabricated before pulling the engine and I'll post again when we are at that point.
Jeff Hunt
1st Lieutenant
Excellent update Andy. Too bad about the engine issue, time, smarts, sweat, blood and money(?) is all that is needed.
Best of luck.
Jeff
Best of luck.
Jeff
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SaparotRob
Unter Gemeine Geschwader Murmeltier XIII
Great post! I see at least one Hurri is getting some love. Looking forward to reading about its completion.
N4521U
Colonel
I'm up too early, just snooping posts and threads and I found this one!
Masterful updates. Great job by all who have touched her.
I have an engine stand, unfortunately it's 1/32nd scale!
Keep up the good work!
Masterful updates. Great job by all who have touched her.
I have an engine stand, unfortunately it's 1/32nd scale!
Keep up the good work!
Snautzer01
Honourably banned
- 38,038
- Mar 26, 2007
Put up a pic perhaps with some measurenents just to give the boys an idea. Who knows... it might help.. cant harm.
Airframes
Benevolens Magister
Thanks Andy, great up-date.
Great stuff Andy!
MiTasol
2nd Lieutenant
A perfect example of why my training school manager on my first day of training in 62 said his job was to teach us the three ways of building aircraft.
The right way
The wrong way
The British way
Have fun (got my coat - got to run)
The right way
The wrong way
The British way
Have fun (got my coat - got to run)
dogsbody
Airman 1st Class
Maybe I'll get down there next year, so I can finally see the Hurc. The last couple years have prevented me from doing the Alberta aviation museum tour I was planning. Hopefully 2022 will be better!
Chris
Chris
- Thread starter
- #218
Crimea_River
Marshal
On Tuesday this week, we prepared the Hurricane's Merlin for removal by removing the prop dome and loosening the "Jesus nut".
On Wednesday, we removed the prop and engine. Here are two time lapse vids of the process:
Yours truly after the engine was lifted clear:
I designed the engine stand and had it custom built at a local steel fabricator. The stand has the capability to tilt and support the engine 30 degrees from the vertical so that the heads and cylinders can be pulled vertically:
The engine is now being taken to our VP's hangar at the airport where he has tools and shop facilities. We will begin dissecting the engine shortly to see what the heck is causing it to seize and will likely begin by pulling off the supercharger.
On Wednesday, we removed the prop and engine. Here are two time lapse vids of the process:
Yours truly after the engine was lifted clear:
I designed the engine stand and had it custom built at a local steel fabricator. The stand has the capability to tilt and support the engine 30 degrees from the vertical so that the heads and cylinders can be pulled vertically:
The engine is now being taken to our VP's hangar at the airport where he has tools and shop facilities. We will begin dissecting the engine shortly to see what the heck is causing it to seize and will likely begin by pulling off the supercharger.
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Very cool Andy!
wow, nice work Andy
