JET-POWERED - Maverick Blackout V2
Discussion
ecsrobin said:
That is superb, now I want a small jet engine don't know what for but I want one.
That was precisely my situation to begin with! I initially thought I'd just be getting it to sling on a workbench, and that would be that - I'd happily spend hours tinkering and running it.But then the alternative project occurred to me, and thankfully the rest is history.
I've been into jet engines ever since I was a kid (am 41 now) - so feel very blessed to be living in the day and age when model turbines came into the reach of amateur enthusiasts.
I also went personally to Wren in Barnsley to get the engine, and I pop back there randomly to keep in touch - that is also a big part of the ownership experience for me, as Wren were a large part of pioneering the technology.
Arif
rhinochopig said:
Needs to mounted to a bicycle though. How have you resisted doing so???
An excellent question!! I literally wake up having dreamt about how that would be executed! The thing is that it wouldn't be road-legal, so would need to be discrete, so as not to draw the wrong sort of attention even when off - so panniers for twin fuel tanks, and really all that would give away that there's anything odd about the bike would be a little hole at the back. The bulk of the sound actually exits at 45 degrees to the nozzle (rather than if you were directly behind) - so I'd need to develop deflectors of some sort, or rather, it would be situated slightly down a metal tunnel.Also - that engine on a pushbike I think would only take a person to about 30mph on the flat, whereas I'd want it to be a bit more notable than that, seeing as one can do 30mph anyway on a road-focused bike. So we're looking at a 20kg thrust engine, I'd only ever source it from Wren, and they don't yet make that version of their engine in the newer 'digitised' version.
So when they do...!
Arif
Arif110 said:
An excellent question!! I literally wake up having dreamt about how that would be executed! The thing is that it wouldn't be road-legal, so would need to be discrete, so as not to draw the wrong sort of attention even when off - so panniers for twin fuel tanks, and really all that would give away that there's anything odd about the bike would be a little hole at the back. The bulk of the sound actually exits at 45 degrees to the nozzle (rather than if you were directly behind) - so I'd need to develop deflectors of some sort, or rather, it would be situated slightly down a metal tunnel.
Also - that engine on a pushbike I think would only take a person to about 30mph on the flat, whereas I'd want it to be a bit more notable than that, seeing as one can do 30mph anyway on a road-focused bike. So we're looking at a 20kg thrust engine, I'd only ever source it from Wren, and they don't yet make that version of their engine in the newer 'digitised' version.
So when they do...!
Arif
Is it definitely not road legal? It may fall between legislation. The Y2K turbine motor bike was/is certainly legal in the US - not sure about UK - and that had either a helo or APU GT fitted exhausting straight out the back. Jay Leno - an owner of one of the bikes - said that it would melt the paint of cars that got too close.Also - that engine on a pushbike I think would only take a person to about 30mph on the flat, whereas I'd want it to be a bit more notable than that, seeing as one can do 30mph anyway on a road-focused bike. So we're looking at a 20kg thrust engine, I'd only ever source it from Wren, and they don't yet make that version of their engine in the newer 'digitised' version.
So when they do...!
Arif
rhinochopig said:
Is it definitely not road legal? It may fall between legislation. The Y2K turbine motor bike was/is certainly legal in the US - not sure about UK - and that had either a helo or APU GT fitted exhausting straight out the back. Jay Leno - an owner of one of the bikes - said that it would melt the paint of cars that got too close.
The Y2K bike was powered with a turboshaft engine which drives the rear wheel, these small engines are turbojets and rely on thrust although the exhaust temperatures will be pretty similar, somewhere around 450C to 600C. Way back in the early noughties I put one of my small turbine engines onto a dodgy Apollo mountain bike and subsequently chickened out at around 30mph. What tends to happen is you make a lot of noise and don't go anywhere fast, then the speed starts to climb, and you go faster, faster, faster ooohhh. I imagine a small jet on one of my lightweight carbon road bikes you'd be getting some fast times on Strava. I also remember seeing somebody with two turbines on a recumbent bike in the late 90's, if I remember correctly he was getting towards 90mph down a runway during a model airshow.I've recently got hold of an APU from a Chinook that puts out around 150 shaft Hp which would make a fairly decent motorbike engine :laughs: Still haven't decided what to do with it yet though, may remove the power turbine and convert it to a turbojet.
Just seen the videos Arif, need to see a video of one of your high speed runs
. Plus I think it would make a damn cool toy to clear the snow in winter! Although seeing all those leaves and twigs I'd be terrified of FOD damage!I seem to recall some TV programme, possibly even Top Gear, putting the issue to bed for good, through getting a VOSA bod or somesuch to examine and comment on a jet-powered bicycle. I think the problem is that it is a 'self-propelled vehicle' - and as such becomes subject to all the other reg's that the likes of quad bikes have to comply with - lighting, etc.
However - in reality, it would seem to be treated as a grey area - much in the way of A-frames being used to tow cars (unbraked).
I'd only ever go on lonely country lanes at quiet times!
Apparently there's a fireman that Wren know of, who regularly travels to work on one!
Fugazi buddy - I used to be extremely molly-coddling over the engine and debris - e.g. making bespoke secondary FODs with zinc car bodywork repair mesh - but these seemed to trap more things too, and were a pain to hoover out after every run.
So now I just leave it with its own FOD screen, and really what it does it attract grass and other 'long' things to itself, such that a fast blat means its created its own secondary filter! After it turns off, it all largely falls away, then a bit of hoovering!
However - in reality, it would seem to be treated as a grey area - much in the way of A-frames being used to tow cars (unbraked).
I'd only ever go on lonely country lanes at quiet times!
Apparently there's a fireman that Wren know of, who regularly travels to work on one!
Fugazi buddy - I used to be extremely molly-coddling over the engine and debris - e.g. making bespoke secondary FODs with zinc car bodywork repair mesh - but these seemed to trap more things too, and were a pain to hoover out after every run.
So now I just leave it with its own FOD screen, and really what it does it attract grass and other 'long' things to itself, such that a fast blat means its created its own secondary filter! After it turns off, it all largely falls away, then a bit of hoovering!
Fugazi buddy,
1) Sometimes after a run, I've taken to spinning the engine up manually to listen to the bearings, using a vac!
It will also obviously suck any accessible debris out - but could it do any harm, that you can think of?
And if powerful enough, could it suck debris out from the front end too, even though the path is not of course direct, but centrifugal?
2) Fuel cavitation - I was using a 'brass-balls' fuel filter dongle in the tank itself (as well as the aluminium can-type on the pressure-side of the fuel pump) - only to realise that the engine at times wasn't revving beyond 100,000 RPM, and indeed would flame out with bubbles in the fuel line coming from the tank - as though it was empty, but when it was nearly full!
So - I'd created cavitation, hadn't I? The sheer force of suction pulling the fuel apart in effect, and releasing stored air?
I've binned that dongle now, and allowing the main fuel filter to do its job. I'd been trying to 'protect' the fuel pump!
Arif
1) Sometimes after a run, I've taken to spinning the engine up manually to listen to the bearings, using a vac!
It will also obviously suck any accessible debris out - but could it do any harm, that you can think of?
And if powerful enough, could it suck debris out from the front end too, even though the path is not of course direct, but centrifugal?
2) Fuel cavitation - I was using a 'brass-balls' fuel filter dongle in the tank itself (as well as the aluminium can-type on the pressure-side of the fuel pump) - only to realise that the engine at times wasn't revving beyond 100,000 RPM, and indeed would flame out with bubbles in the fuel line coming from the tank - as though it was empty, but when it was nearly full!
So - I'd created cavitation, hadn't I? The sheer force of suction pulling the fuel apart in effect, and releasing stored air?
I've binned that dongle now, and allowing the main fuel filter to do its job. I'd been trying to 'protect' the fuel pump!
Arif
Fugazi said:
rhinochopig said:
Is it definitely not road legal? It may fall between legislation. The Y2K turbine motor bike was/is certainly legal in the US - not sure about UK - and that had either a helo or APU GT fitted exhausting straight out the back. Jay Leno - an owner of one of the bikes - said that it would melt the paint of cars that got too close.
The Y2K bike was powered with a turboshaft engine which drives the rear wheel, these small engines are turbojets and rely on thrust although the exhaust temperatures will be pretty similar, somewhere around 450C to 600C. Way back in the early noughties I put one of my small turbine engines onto a dodgy Apollo mountain bike and subsequently chickened out at around 30mph. What tends to happen is you make a lot of noise and don't go anywhere fast, then the speed starts to climb, and you go faster, faster, faster ooohhh. I imagine a small jet on one of my lightweight carbon road bikes you'd be getting some fast times on Strava. I also remember seeing somebody with two turbines on a recumbent bike in the late 90's, if I remember correctly he was getting towards 90mph down a runway during a model airshow.I've recently got hold of an APU from a Chinook that puts out around 150 shaft Hp which would make a fairly decent motorbike engine :laughs: Still haven't decided what to do with it yet though, may remove the power turbine and convert it to a turbojet.
Just seen the videos Arif, need to see a video of one of your high speed runs
. Plus I think it would make a damn cool toy to clear the snow in winter! Although seeing all those leaves and twigs I'd be terrified of FOD damage!Just a shame they small ones are so expensive as every man should have one to play with. I always thought it would be fun to try and re-create the flying bedstead using a real bed and a raft of small turbines
Video - not quite one of fast motion, but my solution to getting across visualising its thrust!
https://youtu.be/Swl5m_PGgSI
https://youtu.be/Swl5m_PGgSI
You need to stop mucking about with it on the ground, learn to fly it in a plane 200mph+ is much more impressive!! 
https://youtu.be/cnYvrLAdNbo
But you can go much faster with no engine!!
https://youtu.be/hFPJ6DUAY10
https://youtu.be/cnYvrLAdNbo
But you can go much faster with no engine!!
https://youtu.be/hFPJ6DUAY10
Edited by Easternlight on Saturday 13th June 16:44
We've got a Wren Turbine at uni... makes quite a noise
https://www.instagram.com/p/9eB2hqCobW/?taken-by=m...
https://www.instagram.com/p/9eB2hqCobW/?taken-by=m...
Gassing Station | Scale Models | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff