subscribe

  I plan to put one in a Midget Mustang.

  Thanks,
  Jeff

The front main bearing (rear in the car) is fine for prop loads. The
problem is thrust loads.
Perry Mick destroyed the front thrust bearing in 650 hours with direct
drive ducted fan. It can be redesigned by doubling up on the needle
bearings. Minor mod.

The problem is the power to weight ratio is bad in direct drive at 3500
RPM  unless you spend big bucks
  on aluminum  end housings. The 16X would be better if it ever
appears. The 56 inch prop is also rather inefficient at low speeds.

Jeff, it would be cheaper to build or buy an RV4.

Paul Lamar

Anyone thinking of building a Midget Mustang better sit in one before
investing time or money in the project.  At 5' 10" my head hits the canopy
of my neighbor's MM.  BTW, it is a 200 hp stretched MM, with Constant Speed
Prop.

Tom Parkes
20B Lancair ES



Hey Paul,

I have 2 MM1 kits.  One is an airpane that was stripped, then sold to a guy to restore, he died, his widow sold it for scrap (along with almost all of his stuff), it was saved by EAA members in MI, sold to me.  The other kit is flat.  I plan to put the bubble canopy option on it.  That allows up to 6'4" pilots to fly it.

So I really need to get the project moving.  The engine is a ways off, but I need to begin to decide, or at least delete options.  My main concern is the weight of the rotary.  The 16X...is that all aluminum?  I can rebuild a motor, or have portions (short block) farmed out, I also like the EFI option.  So I have to put together a spread sheet of weights, costs, and horse power / speed.

I considered the RV-4.  But the speed of the MM1 captivated me. Plus the uniqueness of it is a big plus.

Jeff

The 16X is vapor wear. We may never see it.

The iron end housing engine normally are 300 to 350 pounds firewall forward.
If 130 HP direct drive knock off 35 for the PSRU. Still out of the question for a MM.

The three aluminum end housings add $4500 to the cost of the engine. Knock off about
75 pounds.  If you can handle that and you are OK with 130 HP direct drive you are good to go :)

Motec EFI will probably be around $1500 extra.

If you have the time I have a used Tracy EFI computer I will sell for $800 with high
2 pressure pumps, pressure regulator, Press sensor,  4 LS1 coils on mounting bracket
and one of Ed Anderson EFIS. Tons of doc on both items.  It ran for 30 hours on the RV4.
I switched to a carb.

If you have the plans scan the firewall dwgs and rear fuse dwgs and email them.
I'll see what I can do with the cooling system and stuffing the engine in a smooth
side cowl.

Paul Lamar

  The Rotary Engine News Letter. Powered by Linux.
  ACRE NL web site. http://www.rotaryeng.net <http://www.rotaryeng.net/>
  You Tube http://tinyurl.com/beqqxas
  Copyright 1998-2013 All world wide rights reserved.