What do you guys think of the viability of a front cover cast into
the form
of a standard Lycoming dynafocal-1 mount?

The motor mounts on the 12A covers, crack the covers. When between cracking
the covers it is busy pulling the four threaded studs out of the cover.

Hanging

the full engine weight on the already too thin front iron is out of the
question. Later engines are suspended from the center iron where they

should have

been from day one.

Some method of adapting a plate at the oil pan face and a structure to get
some of the load to the rear plate or adapter would be fine. There are

too few

bolts and those are too small for any bending load.

There are no disastrous shaking modes to null out with the rotary.

A design that leaves out the front iron as structure would work. It could
also add a mount for an external oil pump. An alternator pad and vacuum

pump pad.

You can build a crank trigger setup and eliminate the angle sensor.

They will

start and idle at full advance without protest.

Lynn E. Hanover

Thanks for the experience Lynn, it's appreciated as a sanity check for my
day dreaming.

I am planning that the prototype front cover/engine mount will be as much
as two inches thick cast in some places, mostly in the rectangle that
encompasses the four mount points and at the front cover attach bolts.  It
won't be that thick everywhere such as around the e-shaft seal or at the
oil pump "dome".  It will certainly be heavier than the original front cover.

I'm using an old 3rd gen cover for the inside surface mold as
the  distributor style crank angle sensor won't fit in the dynafocal ring.

I'm planning oil drain port pad for turbos (left undrilled for most of us),
3rd gen crank trigger pickup mount, and some means of mounting the water
pump UNDER the e-shaft.  The oil-to-cooler port will face straight out
instead of towards the plug side.  No oil injection provisions since most
seem to be accepting pre-mix as normal.

Do you really think the vacuum pump pad is worth the trouble these
days?  With the trend going to all electric I wasn't planning on one.  I
suppose a vac pump pad and you could use it for that tiny backup generator
that B&C sells would work as well.  (thinking on the fly here)

The external oil pump will come with next year's inverted oil system.  Yea,
my engine builder says it would be easy (once again).  P-)

Mike McGee, RV-4 N996RV, O320-E2G, Hillsboro, OR
13B in gestation mode, RD-1C, EC-2

 
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