Steve Loebs via KRnet wrote:
>>Mark L, I just read your page on your crankshaft odyssey. Are you,
and any others using Corvair engines, still satisfied that a new billet
crankshaft with good fillet radii (along with the 5th bearing and prop
indexing) will eliminate the issue of broken crankshafts in Corvair
aviation engines?<<
Yes! The defacto reliable crank for Corvairs has become the Weseman
Sport Performance Aviation "Better Than Air" crankshaft, not because
it's new billet, but it because it has reasonable journal fillet radii
carefully machined in, rather than sharp corners that you can easily get
from an incorrectly reground or polished crankshaft. I don't know of
any SPA crankshaft failing, and there are many in "hard" service on
Corvairs. If there had been one, I suspect I'd have heard about it. I
have a "Generation 2" SPA crank in the engine I'm just finishing up, a
3100cc Corvair for the KR2S.
The crankshaft is relatively well hidden on their website at
https://www.flywithspa.com/ , with several broken links, but call them
and ask and you'll get the information you need.
https://www.flywithspa.com/corvair/ will get you close to the
crankshafts, but not quite there.
A quick analysis of prices may lead one to think that the O-200 is a
better deal, and maybe so, but I have to say that I'd far prefer the
Corvair's smooth six cylinders to the O-200's four cylinders, and having
rebuilt both, the Corvair is far simpler to rebuild or maintain than an
O-200, and especially to make a non-leaking engine. At least that's
been my experience and observation.
For the "crankshaft odyssey" mentioned above, see
http://www.n56ml.com/corvair/crankshaft/ . Get a cup of coffee first.....
Mark Langford
[email protected]
http://www.n56ml.com
Huntsville, AL
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