Forget your 3 liter engines. This is a 3 liter cylinder! (Brand new, yet.)

The complete engine has 18 of these. OK everybody ... what's it from?

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'88 Formula
Project Testostarossa
"Anything worth doing is worth overdoing."

[This message has been edited by Marvin McInnis (edited 06-11-2003).]

Radial aircraft engine???

I'd say it is part of a Pratt & Whitney Double Wasp. Front row maybe.

Civic type R?

Wow nice jug! I'd have to say some type of aircraft but I am no expert.

The cylinder is from a Curtiss-Wright 3350 radial aircraft engine. (See www.centennialofflight.gov) Total displacement 3350 cubic inches. These engines were used in the B-29, B-36, AD-4 (Douglas Skyraider), DC-7, some models of the Lockheed Constellation, and a couple of other military aircraft. While the engine originally produced 1800 cruise horsepower at 2400 rpm, later versions produced 2200 (B-29), 2800 (AD-4), and 3250 (Constellation) horsepower.

According to NASA (www.hq.nasa.gov), "The Lockheed L.1049G was powered by four Wright turbocompound engines of about 3250 horsepower each. The Wright 3350 turbocompound engine employed a two-speed gear-driven supercharger and, in addition, was equipped with three exhaust-driven turbines. The three turbines were geared to a single shaft that in turn was hydraulically coupled to the engine crankshaft. Each turbine was driven by the exhaust of six cylinders. About 15 percent of the total power of the engine was obtained from reclamation of exhaust gas energy. The specific fuel consumption was probably the lowest ever achieved in a reciprocating aircraft engine."

This performance came at a price. The complex 3350 had an even worse reputation for fire than the Fiero! At one point, I think as many as one trans-Atlantic Constellation flight out of ten (!) reported either an engine fire or an engine shutdown for other reasons.

I bought the cylinder in the picture as a piece of industrial sculpture after seeing an ad in Trade-A-Plane. I expected it to be a used cylinder that was no longer servicable. Instead, what I received was a brand-new cylinder in the original box! The golden color in the cylinder picture is actually the original preservative ("Cosmoline") ... you can even see a puddle of it in bottom of the left (exhaust) rocker box.

The markings on the cylinder and box indicated that it was manufactured in 1967 and shipped to NAS (Naval Air Station) Alameda in 1968, where it sat in a warehouse for the next 30 years. I can just imagine some new Naval supply officer going through the warehouse and asking, "What the hell are we doing with hundreds of spare cylinders for an engine that we haven't flown for twenty years?"

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'88 Formula
Project Testostarossa
"Anything worth doing is worth overdoing."

[This message has been edited by Marvin McInnis (edited 06-13-2003).]

I'd think they'd want to sell those for actual aircraft. I know the slurry bombers (fire fighting aircraft) in Goodyear are using modified DC-7's.

PS. How do you tell when a radial engine is out of oil?

quote Originally posted by Steve Normington: PS. How do you tell when a radial engine is out of oil?

Answer: When it stops dripping!

Incidentally, the oil consumption of a radial engine like the 3350 is measured in gallons per hour.

Also ... I bought the cylinder from an aircraft supplier. Engine rebuilders and restorers are their major customer base. The local Save-A-Connie organization has used at least 72 cylinders like this .... probably several times that many ... getting their ex-TWA Constellation flying again.

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'88 Formula
Project Testostarossa
"Anything worth doing is worth overdoing."

[This message has been edited by Marvin McInnis (edited 06-13-2003).]

Hey that is a friggin huge cylinder with alot of detail to the cooling fins. How much does one of those cylinders go for?

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1986 Pontiac Fiero 2.8
pocket ported, gasket matched complete intake. Still has no nut.
3.4l turbocharged project in process!
http://www.outwar.com/page.php?x=1033721

So what if I lost everything, would you want me if I was a failure?

[This message has been edited by IROC (edited 06-12-2003).]

wow.

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Ray - rturner@fieronews.com
The Ultimate Fiero Site - FieroNews.com

quote Originally posted by IROC: How much does one of those cylinders go for?

I have no idea what that cylinder cost the U.S. government in 1968, but I'm almost ashamed that I only paid about $100 for it. It's truly a work of art.

About the cooling fins. You can't really tell from the photo, but the head is one big aluminum casting and all the cooling fins in the head are saw cut! Note also that the cooling fins are much deeper on the exhaust side than on the cooler intake side. Again, it's truly a work of art.

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'88 Formula
Project Testostarossa
"Anything worth doing is worth overdoing."

[This message has been edited by Marvin McInnis (edited 06-13-2003).]