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Your Own Design / Re: Mercedes-Benz W165 Grand Prix engine in 1:3 scale
« Last post by Vixen on April 18, 2025, 11:24:26 PM »Part 36 Flywheel + Clutch
Thank you Roger,
Yes, playing this ChatGPT to generate the action figures was good fun, a fun way to waste a complete afternoon. But the images were just that; images within the memory bank of the AI machine. Nothing tangible, nothing you could actually touch, was produced. For a tangible result, you need to get out into the workshop and make chips.
So, to return to the engine. The top, the sides and underneath of the engine are now becoming well detailed. However, the rear of the engine, aft of the cam box covers, is completely bare. So the next step (mini project) is to make the flywheel/ clutch assemblies for the two engines.
I have good references for the flywheel/ clutch. I have a copy of the original Mercedes works drawing for the flywheel/ clutch assembly, obtained from the British Intelligence BIOS Report No 1755. I also allowed to take a set of photos (courtesy of Crosthwaite and Gardner) of the component parts of the almost identical W125 engine. The W165 flywheel/ clutch is a lot smaller than the one for the W125 (260HP as opposed to 600HP for the W125) but almost identical in design.
You can see the flywheel is an extremely light racing flywheel. In fact, the clutch driven plate and the clutch pressure plate together, comprise the majority of the flywheel's rotating mass. Clutch pressure is applied by a ring of 12 coil springs. This engine design predates the diaphragm clutch by a couple of decades. A ring of 6 withdraw levers, pressed by a central thrust bearing, engage and disengage the clutch. I intend only to make the flywheel clutch assembly but not the bell-housing.
As ever the first task, was to generate a set of 1/3 scale working drawings from the Mercedes blueprint and collect together enough stock.
More to follow, so stay tuned.
Cheers
Mike
Thank you Roger,
Yes, playing this ChatGPT to generate the action figures was good fun, a fun way to waste a complete afternoon. But the images were just that; images within the memory bank of the AI machine. Nothing tangible, nothing you could actually touch, was produced. For a tangible result, you need to get out into the workshop and make chips.
So, to return to the engine. The top, the sides and underneath of the engine are now becoming well detailed. However, the rear of the engine, aft of the cam box covers, is completely bare. So the next step (mini project) is to make the flywheel/ clutch assemblies for the two engines.
I have good references for the flywheel/ clutch. I have a copy of the original Mercedes works drawing for the flywheel/ clutch assembly, obtained from the British Intelligence BIOS Report No 1755. I also allowed to take a set of photos (courtesy of Crosthwaite and Gardner) of the component parts of the almost identical W125 engine. The W165 flywheel/ clutch is a lot smaller than the one for the W125 (260HP as opposed to 600HP for the W125) but almost identical in design.
You can see the flywheel is an extremely light racing flywheel. In fact, the clutch driven plate and the clutch pressure plate together, comprise the majority of the flywheel's rotating mass. Clutch pressure is applied by a ring of 12 coil springs. This engine design predates the diaphragm clutch by a couple of decades. A ring of 6 withdraw levers, pressed by a central thrust bearing, engage and disengage the clutch. I intend only to make the flywheel clutch assembly but not the bell-housing.
As ever the first task, was to generate a set of 1/3 scale working drawings from the Mercedes blueprint and collect together enough stock.
More to follow, so stay tuned.
Cheers
Mike
