Green Marine to Build Boat Powered by V12 Spitfire Engine

[Benjaminpalma]

http://news.thehoworths.com/2013/06/green-marine-t...

[Hooli]

Excellent

The only other boats I can think of with them were Air Force Rescue launches & they might have been the none s/c Meteor version.

The Schneider Trophy connection makes boats sensible to me as well.

[tr7v8]

Hooli said:

Excellent

The only other boats I can think of with them were Air Force Rescue launches & they might have been the none s/c Meteor version.

Nope no WWII boats were fitted with the RR Merlin or Meteor lump. Most used the V12 Packard which was derived from a pre-war engine. This was not the Packard Merlin. ASRL were Napier Lion engines of 500BHP each
Interesting using the Merlin if it is that as they are only rated at full power for a few minutes in overboost.

[Simpo Two]

I'm not convinced it's right. The Merlin was designed for optimum performance driving an airscrew in air, not a marine screw in water.

I think they're trading on the 'woo' factor rather than sound physics.

And a Merlin will sound very different with gallons of water coming out of the exhaust I think.

[mebe]

Out of the exhaust??

[Simpo Two]

It's going to need cooling somehow. No 300mph airflow through radiators on a boat. Maybe they've cooked up another wheeze like hull cooling, but the way the website goes on about the sound reinforces my view it's a gimmick.

[tr7v8]

Simpo Two said:

I'm not convinced it's right. The Merlin was designed for optimum performance driving an airscrew in air, not a marine screw in water.

I think they're trading on the 'woo' factor rather than sound physics.

And a Merlin will sound very different with gallons of water coming out of the exhaust I think.

No difference, the original was cooled by glycol & radiators, so it could feasibly have heat exchangers & use the same method. NOt all real performance boats have wet exhausts so could be dry, but would be very noisy!

[MOTORVATOR]

Simpo Two said:

I'm not convinced it's right. The Merlin was designed for optimum performance driving an airscrew in air, not a marine screw in water.

I think they're trading on the 'woo' factor rather than sound physics.

And a Merlin will sound very different with gallons of water coming out of the exhaust I think.

As you say trading on 'woo'.

All that power and only 50 knots projected out of 7.75t and 46 foot. Somehow they have to get that single engine power split to a pair of props unless they want it to just fall over sideways as they leave the harbour and put the foot down. So a splitter gearcase and Arnesons at a guess.
The concept is showing a rudder so far back behind the running surface that you probably wouldn't want to take it past 10 knots anyway.

And £3m? well you could put together a 45 foot Chief with twin Ilmor power that would sound better as you arrive at the restaurant for 3/4m and throw a 1/2m at a fancy interior to look better too. Have a matching pair and still have change.

An excellent example of design over function but then again they only have to find ten customers so who knows?

[tr7v8]

Bare in mind that a Merlin is around 1000kg or 1Ton before you start on the rest.

[MOTORVATOR]

Not exactly a new idea though. There's been a good few hydroplanes with them in. I guess they can drop the reduction gear and replace with a splitter to keep the weight reasonable.

[Mr. Magoo]

2 things it will have in common with a Spitfire engine. Rolls Royce and V12.

[richw_82]

They could have saved themsleves a ton of hassle by using a Sea Griffon. 37 litres, derived from the Griffon as used in a Spitfire, and it already has a gearbox hung off it for marine use.

[King Herald]

tr7v8 said:

Simpo Two said:

I'm not convinced it's right. The Merlin was designed for optimum performance driving an airscrew in air, not a marine screw in water.

I think they're trading on the 'woo' factor rather than sound physics.

And a Merlin will sound very different with gallons of water coming out of the exhaust I think.

No difference, the original was cooled by glycol & radiators, so it could feasibly have heat exchangers & use the same method. NOt all real performance boats have wet exhausts so could be dry, but would be very noisy!

Wet exhausts and water cooling are not inexorably linked. You only run water through the exhaust to keep it cool. If you're happy to have red hot headers inside your boat then it is okay, heavily lagged it would be no problem. I've seen it in a couple of yachts before.


And you can fit mufflers.

SW to FW cooling would be ideal with an inter-cooler. It is not like cooling an engine in a boat is a massive problem.

[Simpo Two]

So how is this 2,000hp beast that's crammed into a very small airtight box cooled then?

[Simpo Two]

What's the exit point?

[Boatbuoy]

Simpo Two said:

What's the exit point?

Through the .303 machine guns and the 20mm cannons?

[aeropilot]

Plenty of vintage wooden boats on Lake Tahoe running ex-aero V12 engines, google Dispatch, and Thuunderbird among others.

[MOTORVATOR]

Boatbuoy said:

Through the .303 machine guns and the 20mm cannons?

There's the man that would know. Have any of Claydon Reeves designs actually come to fruition yet and do they have the experience to shoehorn an aero engine into a Fabio Buzzi rip off with an added bustle designed to make Batman come in his pants?

[MOTORVATOR]

Simpo Two said:

So how is this 2,000hp beast that's crammed into a very small airtight box cooled then?

That's actually really easy Simpo if you think about it.

[King Herald]

MOTORVATOR said:

Simpo Two said:

So how is this 2,000hp beast that's crammed into a very small airtight box cooled then?

That's actually really easy Simpo if you think about it.

Which he obviously hasn't.

With a gazillion gallons of cool sea water all around the boat, it ain't quantum science.