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Radial Engine Whatzit

Mon May 04, 2009 1:34 pm

OK round motorheads.
Here's a pic of a P&W R1535. Aside from being a pretty rare engine, what's this dingus clamped to the jug or head? (red arrow in pic). It looks to be a solid slab of steel some 1.25" or so thick, split along centerline and the clamped on with socket head capscrews. Could be a sheetmetal artical but looks like a milled/sawed out solid steel item. Is this some whackey wrench to screw the head on/off? What's up?

Image

Or did it simply fall apart and some one cobbed this up to paste it together? It certainly ain't for lifting.

Tue May 05, 2009 11:38 am

The head to barrel joint is usually an interference fit. the head being the female part has a smaller inner diameter than the barrel. They are put together by heating the head and chilling the barrel in dry ice.

Could this "tool" be some kind of alignment tool? Maybe for push rod shrouds or to make or locate baffling? If that is true it wouldn't be installed permanently.

Tue May 05, 2009 5:18 pm

Need a better picture, closer and different angles. And clear not fuzzy shots.

Tue May 05, 2009 6:40 pm

I'm guessing a mount for something. what did this engine come out of?

Tue May 05, 2009 8:54 pm

Which cylinder is it attached to....?

Lynn

Tue May 05, 2009 8:58 pm

Yes like lynn said, what position or cyl, is it

Wed May 06, 2009 5:15 am

The rocker-box sump is on the next cylinder to the right, so it's a lower cylinder--the sump is the low point. But what that thing on the cylinder is, is beyond me.

Wed May 06, 2009 11:30 am

I found this shot on the web so no more pics.
The 1535 only had but perhaps 3 or 4 civil applications....Hughes H1, Bellanca Irish Swoop, and the Rider R-3 was re-engined with a 1535.

By the looks of this engine it almost appears civilian. The 1535 was a bit odd for P&W as the "straight up" cylinder on front row is not in the customary (for U.S. engines) position, instead it is directly down and the sump is betwixt the rocker boxes. So this dingus is on the cylinder one position ahead of the down cylinder.

I cannot even imagine this being something to service a head/jug....that takes some very special fixturing and would never be done on the case. But this could be something that the owner was just messing around with.

Wed May 06, 2009 12:30 pm

Perhaps a cracked jug and a temporary "patch" to keep it together? Can't imagine something quite like that on an operating engine that has any use!

Thu May 07, 2009 12:51 am

Holedigger wrote:Perhaps a cracked jug and a temporary "patch" to keep it together? Can't imagine something quite like that on an operating engine that has any use!
It appears to be around the cylinder barrel... Quite strange.

Thu May 07, 2009 3:32 pm

looks like it might be part of a kit to change a head on a cylinder. The cylinder is bolted to a heating fixture and heated to a point where the head can be pushed off the barrel. It looks like a barrel clamp for pressing the head on or off the assembly.
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