Reno Racers
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So what does it take for a Mustang to win at Reno?
1 Power. The top Mustangs are getting 3600 to 3800 HP from their Merlins. Think 130 inches of manifold pressure, and 3200-3300rpm. In earlier years they set engines up differently with different supercharger gearing and would run up to 3800 rpm with less MP, but tended to regularly toss connecting rods through the crankcase and out into the desert.
2 Aerodynamics. These airplanes are glassy smooth -- even the numbers and lettering are flush with the paint. Wings are clipped and often recontoured. Tail incidences are changed. Coolant exit doors are extended, and cooling drag minimized. The top dogs generally run a P-51H liquid to liquid heat exchanger to reduce cooling drag. Cockpits are sealed and airflow under the hood is scrutinized for the same reason.
3 Systems. Many races have been lost and engines destroyed because of a failed throttle linkage or a plugged ADI line. Everything is examined and checked constantly.
4 Attention to detail.. A famous crew chief I knew was known to irritate his crew by insisting that any time a crew member did ANYTHING to the airplane, the work had to be carefully checked by at least 2 other crew members. Bill's feeling was that anybody -- no matter how skilled-- can make a mistake and that's OK in such a demanding environment. The crucial thing is that there be no mistakes once the airplane takes off.
5 Crew and especially crew chief. Racing draws the best people in their various specialties and they know they're the best -- the crew chief has to manage and motivate these egos and abilities and make sure it all comes together on race day.
6 Money in large quantities. For one racer I crewed for, the owner-pilot estimated that it took something over $100,000 (this was 1980s dollars) just to get the airplane (and trailer, tools, spares for everything, and general infrastructure) to Reno and ready for race week. This did not include engine and prop work, fuel, repairs and modifications and all the other general expenses at home and at Reno during race week. Racing consumes money in vast quantities.
Sisu
GregP
Major
1. Interesting you should mention tail incidences. For the two fastest Mustangs, I believe the engine mount, wings, and horiztonal and vertical tails have all been changed to zero incidence. The airplanes do not fly well at low speeds, but are right in the middle of the trim range at race speeds.
2. I think both of the top Mustangs also have had the airfoil reshaped, but I do not know the airfoil numbers. There is a study showing the airfoil is faster with a small bumpo on the leading edge. I am not sure if any of the racxers other than maybe Dago Red had that bump.
3. All the top liquid-cooled racers all employ spray bars to assist cooling.
4. Before Jimmy Leeward crashed from a failed trim tab, his elimination of the radiator airscoop was working as he was catching the leaders, had passed his way into 3rd place, and seemed to be gaining on the leaders. Of course, there is no way to say he would or would not have caught the front runners, but the cooling system on "The Galloping Ghost" seems like it was doing the job, even if there were some ripples in the skin. Maybe a total loss evaporative cooling system would add some speed, but it surely would make it harder to fly them into Reno from elsewhere.
5. All the fast guys (and gals) have complete gap seals, sealed cowlings and canopies, and most of the faster ones have small tip plates at the wingtips to help stop spanwise airflow at least over the ailerons.
6. The fastest Mustangs have reshaped wing-to-fuselage fillets and the top two both have redesigned radiator airscoops of carbon fiber. That is, the opening is not shaped the same as a stock opening and the contour of the radiator housing into the fuselage is not the same as stock.
7. They are all running the lowest compression ratio they can. They'd run 4.5 : 1 if they could get it to start, but I believe the lowest compression ratio that will start reliably is around 5:0 : 1. Maybe what they need is a better starting method that spins the engine fast enough to start with a lower compression ratio.
8. The Pond Racer and Tsunami showed us all what can be done with a bit of modern design, and I think engines have "caught up" with the need to get high horsepower from small displacement. I'd love to see another modern design. A team from Brazil's Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG) recently took a world record for 4-cylinder engine at 323.78 mph with a small, Formula 1-like, fixed gear airplane called Anequim.
Anequim shown above. They were making in the neighborhood. of 220 hp to go 323 mph. Imagine what they could do with an automotive Formula 1 engine of 900 hp in a small airframe.
2. I think both of the top Mustangs also have had the airfoil reshaped, but I do not know the airfoil numbers. There is a study showing the airfoil is faster with a small bumpo on the leading edge. I am not sure if any of the racxers other than maybe Dago Red had that bump.
3. All the top liquid-cooled racers all employ spray bars to assist cooling.
4. Before Jimmy Leeward crashed from a failed trim tab, his elimination of the radiator airscoop was working as he was catching the leaders, had passed his way into 3rd place, and seemed to be gaining on the leaders. Of course, there is no way to say he would or would not have caught the front runners, but the cooling system on "The Galloping Ghost" seems like it was doing the job, even if there were some ripples in the skin. Maybe a total loss evaporative cooling system would add some speed, but it surely would make it harder to fly them into Reno from elsewhere.
5. All the fast guys (and gals) have complete gap seals, sealed cowlings and canopies, and most of the faster ones have small tip plates at the wingtips to help stop spanwise airflow at least over the ailerons.
6. The fastest Mustangs have reshaped wing-to-fuselage fillets and the top two both have redesigned radiator airscoops of carbon fiber. That is, the opening is not shaped the same as a stock opening and the contour of the radiator housing into the fuselage is not the same as stock.
7. They are all running the lowest compression ratio they can. They'd run 4.5 : 1 if they could get it to start, but I believe the lowest compression ratio that will start reliably is around 5:0 : 1. Maybe what they need is a better starting method that spins the engine fast enough to start with a lower compression ratio.
8. The Pond Racer and Tsunami showed us all what can be done with a bit of modern design, and I think engines have "caught up" with the need to get high horsepower from small displacement. I'd love to see another modern design. A team from Brazil's Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG) recently took a world record for 4-cylinder engine at 323.78 mph with a small, Formula 1-like, fixed gear airplane called Anequim.
Anequim shown above. They were making in the neighborhood. of 220 hp to go 323 mph. Imagine what they could do with an automotive Formula 1 engine of 900 hp in a small airframe.
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N4521U
Colonel
I think number 3 is ADI,
Anti Detonation Injection.
Something I heard on the ramps.
Anti Detonation Injection.
Something I heard on the ramps.
Dash119
Senior Airman
Spray bars are located in front of the radiator, and use plain water to increase cooling efficiency.
ADI is injected directly into the induction trunk, after the supercharger, to lower the temperature of the fuel/air mixture. It allows for higher levels of boost and is a mixture of water and alcohol.
GregP
Major
I though EVERYONE used ADI. All the spray bars work, but some systems are MUCH better than others. I like the total loss evaporative cooling systems and steam cooling used on the MC.72 and He 100, and think they'd be fine for racing purposes but not for general use.
Some facts about spray bars:
First used in 1964, on Chuck Lyford's Race #8, flown by my old friend Bob Love. He ran at close to 400 mph, with all the other Mustangs at least 50 mph slower. (He also had the only real race engine, which helped a lot). I was very surprised to find out that the vaunted P-51 cooling system is utterly inadequate for going fast in the Reno environment. At Reno's 5000 foot altitude (usually with a density altitude of 7-8000 feet) a stock Mustang will not run more than a couple of laps at takeoff power without getting really hot. The radiator exit door will be wide open within a lap or so, with a huge drag penalty and even with the door wide open the engine will not maintain 60 inches without overheating. Efficient spray bars and a good radiator will let the pilot of a stocker run decent power for a whole race with the exit door pretty much closed. Basically way under 300 mph without, and 325-350 mph or so with spray bars and closed exit door.
That big thing in the back seat of this stock Mustang is the tank for spray bar water.
Sisu
N4521U
Colonel
I missed meeting Bob by a few months, where did you know him from?
I was at the LVK when Russ owned Bernie's Bo and rode in that plane several times. It qas good to find out it was rescued from Black and beautifully restored and painted in warbird colors.
I did Screamon Deamon and Merlins Magic #22 for Stu there at Livermore. I lettered the blue tail of Crocker's #6 at Mike Bogues old shop at Oakland just before he left there for the CA hills. Like I said, good times.
He did my name too
Hello, Willie...
nope, wrong W
Must be Wayne then -- guess I'm getting old after all. I have some YAK questions for you...
N4521U
Colonel
I didn't letter the gear doors.
Did the Reno Ramada and shadowed the numbers and name over the exhaust.
Touched things up and asked Mike if they'd throw in a couple scheckles for the extra work.
"We didn't ask you do do it"! So I threw my name on the wing tip!
Put John's name on the Tiger Cat as well.
Still was good times!
But I did get to ride in the B-23 and the TBM when it went to Moffett Field and back! Couldn't put a price on that.
Did the Reno Ramada and shadowed the numbers and name over the exhaust.
Touched things up and asked Mike if they'd throw in a couple scheckles for the extra work.
"We didn't ask you do do it"! So I threw my name on the wing tip!
Put John's name on the Tiger Cat as well.
Still was good times!
But I did get to ride in the B-23 and the TBM when it went to Moffett Field and back! Couldn't put a price on that.
Bill, I knew you didn't do the doors, but the rest of the work you did was first class And I loved your signing on the wingtip
now you got the right W. Ask away or pm me
Thinking about unusual planes for an air race, I remember Clay Lacy and Al Paulsen flying a DC-7 at the 1970 California 1000 in Mojave. The theory was that they could fly the whole course without making a pit stop. Yes, the P-51's and Bearcats were awesome, but there was something about that DC-7 making those low-altitude pylon turns that was a special brand of incredible. They finished 6th out of 16 - no too bad, but I don't think Super Snoopy ever raced again.
GregP
Major
Here it is ... passing a Pylon.
A little story on the paint scheme change for 1988. John Crocker had been named chief pilot for World Airways and had to move to their headquarters on the east coast. He wasn't able to come out when the crew started prepping for Reno. John was not a big fan of change, but the crew was ready for giving Race 6 a new look. So I made up some sketches for some possible schemes and the crew picked this version. Mike Bogue (crew chief) favorite color was dark blue, so that's how the blue was picked. John was unaware of the change until he came out for test flights after prepping the P-51. At first he didn't like it, but after arriving at Reno and he started getting a lot of compliments, John decided it looked pretty cool.
