"Jim-Ed Browne" wrote in message
om...
The LyCon flat air cooled engines belong in museums and restored
MM-era bug smashers, nowhere else. I saw a composite biplane built to
very detailed skin perfection in one of the crappy "popular science"
magazines-it was built by some guy who works for Rutan- and I actually
started laughing out loud when I saw that stupid 1920's era
construction overgrown lawnmower engine under the cowling.

The Harley engine is obsolete and overpriced, but nowhere nearly as
much as anything nominally out of Williamsport. (I say nominally
because they don't even make anything anymore-they outsource
everything, often to the same companies that make aftermarket H-D and
Chevy parts.)

All of which reminds me. I just installed 6 beautiful Millenium cylinders
by Superior in an O-300 and the pistons were made in Brazil. They were so
stamped in blue letters on their tops. The valves were made in Italy.
I'll let you know how they perform. We're getting ready to fly. I
noticed the exhaust valve guides are completely encased in the aluminum
castings, which Superior says will make them run cooler.

Now don't you go defaming Lycoming and Continental. They don't put you in
the trees like the airsoobs, vw's, gm's and fords do, except that little 65
HP Lycoming, which is better suited as a boat anchor. My own personal
experiences, of course. But I guess I'd fly behind an A-Model engine in a
low and slow Pietenpol. I have a little Continental I rebuilt in a
Taylorcraft and when I bring her in from flying she don't even drip oil.
That engine was tricked to believe it was space age, with special valves,
guides and seats but the stock 6.3 to 1 compression ratio.

I would fly behind one of those Suzuki Sprint 3-cylinders. That's a gem of
an engine in my book. It would need a good redrive, nacherly.

I had a vw nearly put me in a lake. I bounced it on the beach and had 10'
of runway behind us when we stopped, deadsticked all the way to Shiflet
Field and seized up.