Hi  Paul.

  1)  Aside  from   perceived  poor  fuel  economy  of  rotary  engines,   what  are
  its  disadvantages ?

  2)  You  advised  carbs  and  magnetos.    Why  are  they  not  discussed  here?
  Are  they  not  suitable  for  rotaries ?   If  suitable,   Let's  have  more
  discussions.

  3)  Can  there  be  carb  icing  in  tropical  countries  below  3,000 feet ?

  Best regards.
  Ben

  Fuel economy is only 5% higher than an aircraft piston engine. This is more than made
  up for by the 25% lower cost of auto gas.

  Magnetos are suitable. They will work fine.  They are just too costly. $2000 each new
  and $400 to $800 re manufactured plus cores. People don't want to pay as much for two
  aircraft magnetos as they pay for the rest of the engine. In some case much more than
  they payed for the engine. RX8 ignition coils are $25 each for a total of $100. One
  coil per plug.

  However if I were certifying a rotary I would use aircraft magnetos
  and an aircraft carb. The FAA is much more comfortable with that they they are with
  EFI and electronic ignition. In that case the rotary engine would pass certification
  in a heart beat.

  The best carb (cost verses power) to use is a two barrel 500 CFM Holley with a
  leaning kit.

  The FAA will not sign off on your carb engine unless it has carb heat.

  Paul Lamar

 Thanks  Paul.

 I'm  glad  there  is  someone  like  you  who
 has  the  knowledge  and  patience  to  answer
 our  questions.

 Can  there  be  carb  icing  in  tropical  countries  at  an  altitude  up  to
 4,000 feet ?

  Best regards.
  Ben


 At the higher altitudes for sure. The evaporation of the fuel in the carb venturi
 causes a cooling effect.

 Paul Lamar
 --

Yes, you can definitely get carb icing in tropical countries.  Here's the FAA diagram
for carb ice:


Lots of folks decided there was no need for carb heat when flying in nice warm
Florida weather, and got surprised when their motro quit.  Tropical climates feature
high relative humidities, and the cooling is supplied by the low pressure in venturi
and the atomization of fuel Paul described.

Mark Waldron

-- 
The Rotary Engine News Letter. Powered by Linux.
ACRE NL web site. http://www.rotaryeng.net
You Tube key word PaulLamar2
Copyright 1998-2012 All world wide rights reserved.