The Sound of Big Radial Engines

[JimT]

I heard them coming over the house as I was out feeding the critters. Through the trees I saw a B-25 heading East out of the Georgetown Airport. It was BEAUTIFUL!

[jeepnik]

There is a group of pilots locally, at least 9, that own AT-6 Texans. They regularly do overflights for special events including missing man flights for deceased aviators.

Having the USS Iowa, literally 14 blocks away, and the ship doing events to commemorate WEII events we see/hear them often. A large cemetery is just slightly further to the north. So, they do missing man flights there. Both bring the aircraft directly over my house.

Occasionally other WEII aircraft appear at events, at a nearby airport named Zamperini Field. Yes, that Zamperini. He was a local kid.

Our generally mild weather makes SoCal a popular place for older aircraft.

[JimT]

One day I was out for a walk and behind me I heard this airplane coming. Before it got to me I knew what it was. I could hear it clearly, the big V12 of the P51! Love the sound of those also.

I am kinda prejudiced for the radials. I first learned to work on the old Pratt & Whitney R985 radial and was captivated by them.

R985.jpg

985 cubic inches .. 300 to 450 hp depending on the model ..

[Bill in Oregon]

When I hear a radial I run out of the house to look for it. Learned that from Dad.

[GunnyMack]

The Reno air races were the holy grail for engine noise- all those warbirds with throttles to the firewall going by was truly amazing. The P51s, Bearcats, Hawker Sae Fury's and my favorite the Corsair's would shake ya to your toes.
The day the SR71 came low & slow out of the East while the National Anthem was being played is a memory I'll not forget, especially the second pass where halfway across the field he pulled it back, shoved the throttles forward and lit the burner's going out of sight in seconds!

[COSteve]

Every summer we have airshows with a mix of B-17s, B-24s, B-25s, and sometimes B-29s that give rides for a price. They typically fly over our valley as it's on the west side of the metro area in the mountains. I always look up to see the lumbering bombers cruising at about 1,500 ft above us. Beautiful sounds and sights.

[TedH]

It could have been this one? I'm at the airshow in Jefferson City, MO today, and it arrived just a while ago.

20240914_111939.jpg

[JimT]

It could be Ted. I could not see it clearly through the trees when it came over. Going away from me, heading East, I could see what it was.

[jnyork]

Some of the radials I had experience with over the years:
C7A Caribou at Phu Cat RVN

Mechaniced on KB50 at Biggs AFB TX and Yokota AFB Japan

T28D at Udorn Thailand 1964, that's me in the rear cockpit

EC 121 at McClellan AFB CA, Flight Engineer

My "office" in the EC121, management of four big R3350's and associated systems.

[junkbug]

When I first saw this thread, I believed it was about an early Sherman tank. I think it uses the Continental R975 engine.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MkHXoZyiJ ... wgZW5naW5l

[Wiresguy]

It's kind of in the middle of nowhere in western Minnesota, but well worth the visit if you are in the area:

https://www.fagenfighterswwiimuseum.org

About a 2 hour run for us, but we've been out several times and they keep adding aircraft and memorabilia.

[TraderVic]

Most every summer I hear the radial engines, look up to see vintage WWII aircraft, most of them bombers of different sorts, flying over my farm enroute to the EAA show in Oshkosh, WI.

[Streetstar]

how about the radial thats missing 7 cylinders?

[LeverGunner]

I love the sound of piston drive aircraft. I've never been around aviation, but just having planes fly over, the piston driven ones have a certain something that the others do not. Thanks all for sharing.

[1894cfan]

Question for you guys...what is the #1 main difference between the F6F-5 and the prototype F6F-6? How about the difference between the P-51A and P-51B? THAT one ought to be rather easy. Anyone ever see any pix of a spitfire mkV with a DB605 engine?

[stretch]

When I hear a radial I run out of the house to look for it.

Me, too!

-Stretch

[2ndovc]

While I was growing up, there was an old Ford Tri-Motor that would fly over town once or twice a week taking people out to the Erie Islands. Even then, everyone in sight would stop and watch it pass by.
Good stuff!
jb

[Grizz]

I love the sound of piston drive aircraft. I've never been around aviation, but just having planes fly over, the piston driven ones have a certain something that the others do not. Thanks all for sharing.

I go outside for radial engines too. There is an A-26 that flies by sometimes. It's music!

Dad said that if God wanted flat engines He would have built them that way. Dad flew in Costa Rica for a while, a Ford Tri and a single engine plane. He had a monkey for a copilot. Can't fly with a monkey on the yoke any more . . . He said that a word in one village that was perfectly OK could get you killed in a village 10 minutes away by air, two days by donkey.

[KWK]

A Cessna 421 has two turbocharged, geared-down flat 6 engines and sounds mighty fine. The first time I heard one, I thought a B-25 must be near.

[jeepnik]

Aircraft engines end up in the darnedest places. On several models of 1950's USAF crash trucks the pump engine was a Continental P-200. This was pretty much the same as the O-200 that was used in Cessnas and such. It was a four cylinder with the pistons arranged in a dual opposed configuration. Reliable as all get out, could start cold and go right to full rpm without complaint.

[Grizz]

One day I was out for a walk and behind me I heard this airplane coming. Before it got to me I knew what it was. I could hear it clearly, the big V12 of the P51! Love the sound of those also.

I am kinda prejudiced for the radials. I first learned to work on the old Pratt & Whitney R985 radial and was captivated by them.

R985.jpg

985 cubic inches .. 300 to 450 hp depending on the model ..

I drempt a lot about making a single cylinder MC engine from one of those jugs. No skill is my primary excuse.

OR, as an after thought, how about a vee on the harley pattern, AND a 218 cu-inch boxer engine.

[Bullard4075]

I've been a big engine fan for years. I've got books on many including the R985,R1340,R2800,V1710,V1650,R4360. I wish someone would right a book on the R3350 especially the development of it.

[JimT]

Back in 1966 I was in the US Army, stationed in Korea. My MOS was Aircraft Mechanic and we had quite a few airplanes on the flight line. One day I was exploring the top area of the hanger and found a brand new jug and piston for the Wright R985 that the Beaver's had. The top of the hanger was where stuff was stashed that weren't on the books. Someone had hidden this jug away in the past and I had discovered it.

I didn't think too much of it until one day some Navy guys landed at our strip in their Beechcraft twin with one engine out. They had blown a jug. I saw them hanging around for several days and one night at the Club I met a couple of them. They said they were having problems getting a new jug. I asked them what they had to trade for one and they offered a bottle of Johnny Walker Black Label. We shook hands and the next day we traded. They were happy and later that day had their airplane back in the air.

I kept the pistol and brought it home with me a couple years later. I used it for an ashtray since I was smoking in those days. One day I pulling some old bullets and dumping the powder into the piston/ashtray. Later, forgetting about it, I stuck my cigarette in the ashtray pistol and POOF! .. blew butts and smoking debris around the room.

I quit smoking in 1971 and what I did with that piston I don't remember. It was a big ole thing.

Dehavilland Beavers on the Flight LIne.

IMG_6406.JPG

[jeepnik]

Yes, hanger monkeys did "hide" all sorts of stuff in back on top in hangers. One bunch built a "break room" there. Completely unauthorized and meeting no code regardless of how antiquated.

One day a Phantom was brought in. Being very cold the maintenance types didn't follow protocol. They ended up dropping a wing tank. The tank , now leaking was moved out of their way. Right next to the huge homemade space heater.

The resulting fire was somewhat spectacular. That DIY break room brought me closest to dying in a fire than any other event.

A few folks got into serious trouble for that one.