Were any British non-RR ww2-era aeroengines considered for land use? (1 Viewer)

[Engineman]

I understand that postwar some Bristol radials were used as engines in busses.

Love to see? I suspect something like a Lucifer or a Titan?
Bristol did make buses before they started with aeroplanes.

Eng

 

[marathag]

The more problematic obstacle to the Jumo 205 in WW2 is that 2-stroke opposed piston engines inherently have greater scavenging and thermal constraints than conventionnal 4-stroke engines. They work best when the transmission has excellent torque coverage, ideally hydromechanical types. WW2 transmissions are purely mechanical so the Jumo would face much the same constraints as the 5TD did in T-64 and the L60 in Chieftain...but probably worse. 1930's and WW2 tank designers simply didn't and couldn't put in the effort to make this work when there were simpler and in practice better solutions.

Electric Drive. Engine runs at best speed, while electric motors have good torque at 1 RPM to Maximum

 

[MIflyer]

The Meteor engine, based on the Merlin technology, ended up being transferred to Rover. Whittles Power Jets company was under Rover and they did not get along. Hives of Rolls Royce was told about the Whittle engine and that it could produce 1000 lb thrust; he was not impressed until he was told that was about what the Merlin produced. As a result Hives took S.B. Wilkes of Rover to dinner and suggested they trade Power Jets for the Meteor tank engine plant, and the situation for Whittle's company improved a great deal from then on.

But Ford in the USA had been asked to consider producing Merlins, got the manufacturing drawings, and then declined. But It Just So Happened that Ford later brought out a tank engine that greatly resembled the You Know What.

 

[marathag]

But It Just So Happened that Ford later brought out a tank engine that greatly resembled the You Know What.

Other than similar displacement and being a V-12 made of aluminum, not much- but did see the Merlin Drawings. Inspired, but hardly a clone

1939: Edsel was dealing with the French to get a big engine in Production at the new Factory Ford opened outside Paris the year before, but as things worked out, that wasn't an option after May 1940, and Old Man Henry hated the British so much, he spiked the deal for US production of Merlins for the UK. Making a Metric version of the Merlin for France was fine. Not Imperial spec for the British!
Despite Ford UK doing other Ford Products for the War.

Henry told his engine designers to make a better V-12 than the Merlin, to sell to the Navy. That resulted in the GG V-12

Thanks Henry, you crazy old Fool.

Packard got copy of the Imperial spec plans, and reworked it for US methods

on those methods...
Stanley Hooker's autobiography, Not Much of an Engineer,

"In my enthusiasm, I considered that Rolls-Royce designs were the ne plus ultra, until the Ford Motor Co. in Britain was invited to manufacture the Merlin in the early days of the War. A number of Ford engineers arrived in Derby, and spent some months examining and familiarizing themselves with the drawings and manufacturing methods. One day their Chief Engineer appeared in (Merlin development head Cyril Lovesey's) office, which I was then sharing, and said, 'You know, we can't make the Merlin to these drawings.'

"I replied loftily, 'I suppose that is because the drawing tolerances are too difficult for you, and you can't achieve the accuracy.'

"'On the contrary,' he replied, 'the tolerances are far too wide for us. We make motor cars far more accurately than this. Every part on our car engines has to be interchangeable with the same part on any other engine, and hence all parts have to be made with extreme accuracy, far closer than you use. That is the only way we can achieve mass production.'"

 

[Engineman]

The Rolls-Royce / Rover swop of the Whittle engine production development for the RR Tank engine factory at Nottingham is well known and written-up in several sources. Sir Stanley Hooker writes in a somewhat jocular style but, there is an amusing quote in his book that describes the event. Ernest Hives, Managing Director RR, says to S B Wilkes, Chairman Rover, who were friends, "why are you playing around with this jet engine? It's not in your line of business, you grub about on the ground ..!" The story continues and the deal is agreed.

Hookers' autobiography is well worth it's very small cost in paperback. However, his earlier quote about manufacturing tolerances is somewhat anecdotal. By the time that RR production of the Merlin was established, mass production of Merlin parts was the standard and interchangeability of parts was normal. Notwithstanding that, the production drawings of RR differed in details from the motor companies and the drawings were all redrawn to suit, including changes of projection.

Eng