Round Engines

On Feb 12, 4:07 pm, "Jim Macklin"
wrote:
The Merlin is the best sounding engine of all time.

My office used to be under the final approach path for runway 15 at
SBA. One day I heard the unmistakable sound of a Merlin pass overhead.
But wait - that sounded like two merlins! What could that be - a
Mosquito?. I had to go look. Sure enough, it was a pair of Merlins -
on a Spanish-built JU-88. How's that for a rare bird? I read somehere
that it had been Franco's personal plane - and also that it later
crashed.

David Johnson

On Feb 12, 2:07 pm, "Jim Macklin"
wrote:
The Merlin is the best sounding engine of all time.

Followed by the P&W R2800


I agree the only thing I have found that sounds better than a Merlin
as 2 of them in sync on DeHavilland Mosquito.

Brian
CFIIG/ASEL

On Feb 11, 11:30 pm, john smith wrote:
DEDICATED TO ALL THOSE WHO FLEW BEHIND ROUND ENGINES

We gotta get rid of those turbines, they're ruining aviation and our
hearing...

A turbine is too simple minded, it has no mystery. The air travels
through it in a straight line and doesn't pick up any of the pungent
fragrance of engine oil or pilot sweat.

Anybody can start a turbine. You just need to move a switch from "OFF"
to "START" and then remember to move it back to "ON" after a while. My
PC is harder to start.

Cranking a round engine requires skill, finesse and style. You have to
seduce it into starting. It's like waking up a beautiful and classy
mistress. Treat her right and you're in for a thrill. Abuse her and
you'll regret it!!!!

On some turbine planes, the pilots aren't even allowed to start the
engine...
Turbines start by whining for a while, and then give a lady-like poof
and start whining a little louder.

Round engines give a satisfying rattle-rattle, click-click, BANG, more
rattles, another BANG, a big macho explosion or two, more clicks, a lot
more smoke and finally a serious low pitched roar. We like that. It's a
GUY thing...

When you start a round engine, your mind is engaged and you can
concentrate on the flight ahead. Starting a turbine is like flicking on
a ceiling fan: Useful, but hardly exciting.

When you have started his round engine successfully your Crew Chief
looks up at you like he'd let you kiss his girl, too!

Turbines don't break or catch fire often enough, which leads to aircrew
boredom, complacency and inattention. A round engine at speed looks and
sounds like it's going to blow any minute. This helps concentrate the
mind!

Turbines don't have enough control levers or gauges to keep a pilot's
attention. There's nothing to fiddle with during long flights.

Turbines smell like a Boy Scout camp full of Coleman Lamps. Round
engines smell like God intended machines to smell.

Yeah, I prefer square engines myself...