Sleeve valve engines

[rpdoris]

Does anyone know of someone who has built a model sleeve valve engine or any resources for building such an engine?

[UnkaJesse]

Only sleeve valve engine I ever saw was a Willys-Knight that is in the Smithsonian. Bout all I can remember of it was that there was a little crank shaft instead of a camshaft. Wee little con rods raised and lowered the sleeves as I recall.

Unka(Let's see now, was in 1952 that I went to the Smithsonian [img]/ubb/images/graemlins/confused.gif"%20alt="[/img])Jesse

[RpDoris]

For those who are interested, I did find an article in Strictly I.C. Magazine Vol. 14 No. 83 and No. 84 for the construction of a 1/3rd-scale Barr and Stroud sleeve valve motorcycle engine. The author stresses that "This is not a job for the beginner. It will take an accomplished machinist to build one." The article describes the construction and has nice AutoCad drawings.

[auto249243]

You should check-out WWII aircraft, namely the "Typhoon". It was used to chase down V-1 buzz bombs. It had a sleeve valve engine. Also an engine called the "Nomad" by Napier designed after the war for air transport but never used. It was very fuel efficent but everyone was interested in jets.

[SpinDoctor]

This has to be the ultimate sleeve valve scale IC engine unless if some onetackes the Hercules or Deltic. The workmanship on this is absolutelly spectacular

http://www.enginehistory.org/tmv3n2.htm

[Doug_C]

I knew I had seen one, but could not recall where it was.

Thanks for the link. That is one very impressive undertaking to say the least.

DC

[mrehmus]

There is a fellow building a Deltic who belongs to the Bay Area Engine Modelers but who resides in the UK. We get progress reports from time-to-time. I don't recall any pictures yet.

[PhilC]

If you aren't too fussy about your definition of "sleeve valve" a British company, RCV Engines has been producing engines for several years. The cylinder liner rotates, via gearing, at half shaft speed. The valve is a smaller cylinder in the head that rotates with the sleeve. Runs quite nicely as a model airplane engine. www.rcvengines.com

[Doug_C]

Another twist on the sleeve valve would be the migrating combustion chamber of the Erickson engine. It may have been posted somewhere here in the past. It has been out about the same amount of time as the RCV engine, maybe a bit longer.

Erickson

Both engines have very fascinating concepts, but possibly a compromise on usable life spans? I really wonder about the data on average hours compared to the standard reciprocating 2/4 cycle engine. Not that it is less than a fair tradeoff for all ambitions.

The RCV engine questionable if it would not get good thermal transfer, suffer those effect and the Erickson long term seal troubles. Both well suited for the glow fuels that pump through more lubrication than actual fuel.

Neat designs in their own right.

DC