Chrysler A57 Multibank

[Rmoore45]

Started this thread to not go off topic anymore on Mydogishaggys thread.

What's better than one inline six? 5 of them bolted together!

For those unfamiliar with this engine, it is a 30 cylinder engine made from five individual Chrysler 251 cubic inch flat head inline sixes. Mounted in a pseudo-radial formation. The bottom 2 banks are angled up 15 degrees. Engines like these have always fascinated me so I made a thread where we can talk about it. Another interesting Sherman tank engine is that GM6046 Twin Diesel.



Here's a good video with lots of information

A quote from FTF

I listened to your posted video. It got me to thinking - how was each bank of cylinders timed WRT all the other banks? Did #1 cylinder of each bank fire simultaneously with the #1 cylinder of all the other banks? Or was each bank staggeret WRT all the other banks? With 30 cylinders would the #1 cylinder be offset 360/30 = 12 degrees from the next bank? Or 24 degrees since it was a 4-cycle? Or something else entirely? The banks don't even appear to be evenly spaced around the common crankcase. What gives?


I'd love to adapt one of those distributors with the lay-down caps to a 300 Ford.

Found the firing order and phasing information here

FTF - Saw your right angle drive magneto in one of your videos so I have no doubt that you can make a front mount horizontal drive distributor. What about the oil pump though?

 

[THE FRENCHTOWN FLYER]

Thanks for the additional info.
I wondered about the six firing order since every six I can remember has a firing order of 153624...

...until I reasized the 142635 order is just a reversed connotation.

I saw one of those engines many years ago when the Chrysler Museum in Auburn Hills MI was open to the public. Pity the new corporation closed it.

 

[aussie7mains]

This sort of combination thing was done quite a bit years ago. Detroits did it a lot by bolting blocks together, eg two 6v-92s to become a 12v, 149 series, even EMDs. Foden did it to make a 12 cylinder engine for british mine sweepers. The russian did it with some of their stuff as well.

 

[427John]

It was also done with aircraft engines, Daimler did some coupled twin V-12's and Rolls Royce and Allison did some X 24's by coupling 2 of their V 12's into a common crankcase.

 

[Bronctopia]

I like Chrysler's FrankenSix ersatz radial for disposaTanks.
It has that ''quantity is a quality of it's own" vibe down pat.

But the most beautiful piston engine ever made has to be the Bristol Centaurus.
It's core is a giant Swiss watch geartrain. The supercharger looks like some Cyborg Ammonite fossil. Even the exhaust piping looks like something straight out of the Matrix.

 

[Bronctopia]

Peak piston perfection.

 

[Rmoore45]

Peak piston perfection.

Found a machinist online who made a model of the 14 cylinder Bristol Hercules. Sadly he never got it running. Looks awesome though!

 

[Bronctopia]

That is a true shame. That is one jewel of a model!

Was this to be a running engine? For RC planes?

I bet the secret was the sleeve metallurgy.
Bristol commissioned a study of 1100 different alloys to find the right one.
Sir Ricardo himself was in the development.

 

[Rmoore45]

That is a true shame. That is one jewel of a model!

Was this to be a running engine? For RC planes?

I bet the secret was the sleeve metallurgy.
Bristol commissioned a study of 1100 different alloys to find the right one.
Sir Ricardo himself was in the development.

Yes it was supposed to be a running engine, just for static display though. You could put it in a model aircraft I suppose. There are several other amazing model engines on his website that he has built and they all run. He made a single cylinder test rig as a proof of concept for the sleeve valve engine. There's a video of it running on his site.