Al Shukle's Rolls-Royce EXE 24 Cylinder Aircraft Engine

Hi folks, Doc here. My friend Al is back with perhaps his most impressive creation yet: a working model of a 24-cylinder aircraft engine. His previous aircraft engine models, terrific model design experiments in their own right, can also be seen here in the Model Gallery. Now, here is Al to describe his creation - there are numerous detail ohotos, plus two video clips of the motor in action, one of which shows the amazing internal workings. Enjoy!

Al writes: "Rolls-Royce EXE, a 24 cylinder, sleeve-valve engine in an X configuration with spur reduction gearing driving a Fairey four blade, fixed pitch, left hand rotation, stamped aluminum propeller. Dual ignition by means of four rear mounted magnetos. Enlarged test stand shown as well as larger shop dolly. N.B. The English were always a little strange in their lack of standardization in regard to engine rotation. Whereas American manufacturers almost exclusively used clockwise rotation (except in some fighters such as the P-38 and P-82 which had "handed" engines to reduce torque problems), the blokes made both clockwise and counterclockwise rotating engines even within the same company. For example, the Rolls-Royce Merlin turned clockwise (mostly) while a later RR engine, the Griffon also a V-12, turned counterclockwise. Go figure."