Bristol Mercury revisited

[Tonyr]

I have been trying to think of a comment to add to this thread.
I can’t think of anything to say, it is that good.
Tony

[Roger B]

Excellent     

Are you planning an alternative ignition system for the first trials?

[Vixen]

Thanks for all your kind comments guys and thank you to all those who are following along quietly in the background. 

Roger, my thoughts are to use one of the magnetos as a distributor (centre terminal connected to the coil) rather than hope for a working 1/4 scale magneto. The magnets and Hall sensor are already built into the magneto units.

They started the full size engines in a similar way. The pilot hand cranked a starter magneto in the cockpit. this provided the sparks to fire the engine. The engine mounted magnetos only turned fast enough to produce sparks when the engine was running and up to speed.

Stay safe,

Mike

[Vixen]

Well, It's mid winter, nothing much is happening in the workshop at the moment and the forum is unusually quiet. I thought it may be a nice idea to give you all something to look at for a few minutes, something to take your minds off world events. So here is a repeat my slide show showing the completion of my two 1/4 scale Bristol Mercury radial engines. Work started on these two engines over twenty years ago. They have been a 'Work in Progress' for a very long time. I thought I would title this slide show

                                                                                               "Happiness is a lovely pair of Big Bristols"

Here you see the two completed engines side by side. One is an exploded display to allow you to view and examine both the outer and inner details of the Bristol Mercury engine. The second is fully assembled and almost ready to run








Lets start with a slide show tour around the exploded engine and then look at some of the details.





















There is the second engine. It has now been fully assembled and almost ready to run. It will need a 36" diameter propeller before that can happen. As before, I start with a tour around the outside before looking in on some of the details.





















 
I hope you liked my slide show. Apologies if some of you may have seen it before, but it did go some way to filling an otherwise cold and dull winters day



Mike

[cnr6400]

Great photos! have seen some of them before and they are always a treat. Outstanding work. 

Liked the "big bristols" philosophy. Been a good plan for me since high school!      Oh wait, this is an engine thread........

[Admiral_dk]

Quite a good number of engines build on this site will always be nice to see again 
Though it's different tastes between us all here, we do also have a lot in common taste vices .....
In my case as a petrol head and some interest in flying and planes - this one certainly 'Floats my Boat' 

[fumopuc]

Speechless.

[Vixen]

Thank you both,

Per, the truth is, so much has changed over the last year. The fine toys we used to build have lost their importance, lost any relevance. They now belong to a previous world.

The previous post was my way to mark the end of a long journey. I have finally reached that destination. And I have enjoyed the company of all of you along the way

Take care

Mike

[propforward]

Fantastic work. I can revisit those engines again and again.

I think coming together to share these is even more important now than ever.

Inspiring builds as always, thanks for brightening my day!

[Trevorc]

Mind blowing! Very envious of your abilities.
Thanks
Trevorc

[petertha]

Thanks for posting Mike. Every time I look at these engines I see another level of detail I missed the time before. Very impressive accomplishment!

[Kim]

Just amazing!  You have done incredible work here!  Those engines are gorgeous!  And I love how you did the exploded view.  Just incredible!
Kim

[Admiral_dk]

Per, the truth is, so much has changed over the last year. The fine toys we used to build have lost their importance, lost any relevance. They now belong to a previous world.

The previous post was my way to mark the end of a long journey. I have finally reached that destination. And I have enjoyed the company of all of you along the way

Was this meant as a goodbye Mike ?
If this is the case, I for one will miss your company and say thank you for your great contributions here.
If it on the other hand is a kind of I'm beyond caring until this Covid thing has come to and end - I hope you find a number of good books etc. or whatever can keep you out of trouble ....

Best wishes

Per

[Vixen]

Was this meant as a goodbye Mike ?
If this is the case, I for one will miss your company and say thank you for your great contributions here.
If it on the other hand is a kind of I'm beyond caring until this Covid thing has come to and end - I hope you find a number of good books etc. or whatever can keep you out of trouble ....

Best wishes

Per

Per,
No it's not a goodbye.

It's a change in perspective and priorities. My wife and I have been, like so many others, confined to the house for the last 10 months.  Spending endless hours alone in the workshop building engines, no longer seems as important as time together.

Best wishes to you, Stay safe

Mike

[nj111]

As others have said that is incredible work Mike!
Also, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for your enormous input here over the years.  In addition to your super human practical abilities you are a mine of accurate information and advice for us all! 
For those like myself it's hugely inspiring to see how you have created your complex builds. I really enjoy your posts.
Will the little Westbury 4 cyl build continue in due course?