Gnome on a trolley!!!

[MReyn24050]

How safe is this?
http://www.searchforvideo.com/watchclip.jsp?link=http%3A%2F%2Fvideo.google.com%2Furl%3Fdoc id%3D-7617598868635282304%26esrc%3Drss_searchfeed%26ev%3Dv%26q%3Dr olls%2Broyce%26vidurl%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fvideo.google.com%2Fvide oplay%253Fdocid%253D-7617598868635282304%2526q%253Drolls%252Broyce%26usg%3DAL29H2 2N4JADy0rOp5BvqSdGHDiudW7fmw&title=Rolls+Royce+Gnome+Gas+Turbine+Engine+Running+Jet&publisher=Google&thumbnail=http%3A%2F%2Fvideo.google.com%2FThumbnailServer2%3 Fapp%3Dvss%26contentid%3D5051d1e3c7f8bfda%26offsetms%3D10000 %26itag%3Dw320%26lang%3Den%26sigh%3DWUz7ZJiVg0mXAvMJ3j0n4Q13 PnU&type=search&category=search&description=Rolls+Royce+Gnome+gas+turbine+engine+running+jet 2+min+24+sec+-+Jan+2%2C+2007Here%27s+the+start+sequence&keywords=Rolls Royce Gnome

[forget]

Darwin Awards spring to mind :eek:

[MReyn24050]

forget states:- "Darwin Awards"
Could not agree more. I just could not believe that anyone could be so foolish when I saw it.
Mel

[Shaggy Sheep Driver]

Since the trolly doesn't even try to move, the engine can't be generating much thrust. :confused:

[forget]

The Gnome is turboshaft. Residual thrust is barely a hot breeze out of the back end.

[kms901]

Utterly Pointless

[Saab Dastard]

What's pointless about it?

The intention is to use it in a power boat - according to the accompanying description. Sensibly enough, the engine has been placed on a movable rig, so that it can be moved outdoors to test.

As others have mentioned, it's a helicopter turbine, not a turbojet, so there is no thrust generated, just exhaust.

SD

[alvin-sfc]

Alltogether now...........he must be off his trolley,bu bum.:rolleyes:

[Brian Abraham]

Flew with a copilot who had video of a RR Avon he had purchased strapped to a tree in the street and flashed it up. Just to see if it worked you understand. Had a visit from the secret service subsequently. You still with us Rueben?

[Bigt]

The only safety issue.......would be from his neighbours.......some may not take too kindly to having this run up in the neighbourhood......this may result in a punch on the nose!!!!!!

PS there is a Dutchman running a Viper on his quad bike:p .......his wife left him some years ago;) ;)

[Shaggy Sheep Driver]

The Gnome is turboshaft. Residual thrust is barely a hot breeze out of the back end.

Ah yes, of course. I was confusing it with the Goblin, which is a turbojet. In that case, no safety issues at all.

As far as the neighbours are concerned, I'd much rather hear the whine of a Gnome than the yapping of their bleedin dogs. Wonder if I could get me an Avon that might 'accidentally' blow them away? :E

[ZH875]

This do? -- http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Jet-Engine-Rolls-Royce-Vipor-202-2500-Lbs-Thrust-Runs_W0QQitemZ160097325367QQcategoryZ2983QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewIte m
It is listed as a runner, and if I am near it when it starts, that is exactly what I would do.... A Runner:)

[barit1]

While it is often done, my level of nervousness goes WAY up when running a free-turbine (turboshaft) engine without a proper mechanical load. The results of a power turbine overspeed burst are not for the faint-of-heart! I've heard of a tech nearly killed by the shrapnel, and he wasn't in the plane of rotation, in which case he would certainly be dead.

[MReyn24050]

While it is often done, my level of nervousness goes WAY up when running a free-turbine (turboshaft) engine without a proper mechanical load. The results of a power turbine overspeed burst are not for the faint-of-heart! I've heard of a tech nearly killed by the shrapnel, and he wasn't in the plane of rotation, in which case he would certainly be dead.
My concern exactly. To run this engine in the location shown is extremely fool hardy. With cars and pedestrians passing by.

[barit1]

What a genius! VW (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Xo5GY4kDXg) w/T58 core - and a powerturbine-ectomy.

:=

[oscarh]

Dissapointment!
By the title of the thread, I thought we were going to be treated to a picture of Ron Hardy on a nightstop!!!!
Only those who remember will understand........

[Blacksheep]

I was taken aback that he's running it without any load on the power turbine. The other thing is that he is manually tweaking the throttle and getting loads of smoke - i.e. he has no acceleration control and no surge protection. The engine should be mounted on a proper test stand, properly instrumented for at least N1, N2, PTIT, Fuel Flow and Torque.

Though there was provision for emergency manual reversion, the Gnome was designed to be controlled by an electro-mechanical Fuel Control Computer that provided acceleration control, surge protection and top temp/speed control. Without these controls in place, it wouldn't last long as the prime mover for a boat - or anything else for that matter!

[Wessex Boy]

Yes, those fuel computers were great fun when the Gnome was mounted in the Wessex!
Mostly they would freeze, which if noticed soon enough was OK as the pilot could then keep it running whilst using gentle collective movements, so that the other engine would not hit it's top limit and trip out.
Depending on the speed of the Freeze we would choose our landing; if it was at high power we would come into the hover and then chop the afflicted engine as we touched down, if it was at a low power setting we would do a running landing, watching for the inevitable brake fire!

The engines themselves were pretty hardy and reliable, once they were running! Starting sometimes proved interesting, a couple of flights were abandoned, and some others we had to fire a water extinguisher in the inlet with the fuel C*cks off, to clean the crackers, as it was a 2 hour job to get the lower one out.

The efflux was fairly low energy, but still quite hot, I am not sure why the Stbd one was right in front of the door, people put their heads in it whilst embarking/disembarking, and you could not see a thing laterally through the haze!

[evansb]

How safe is this?
http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r68/convair640/Gnome_on_a_cart.jpg

[Dan Winterland]

When fuel was a bit cheaper, the RAF used to use snow clearing devices which were two centrifugal type jet engines facing forward on a trolley pushed by a bowser, which was obviously supplying them. I gather using this contraption was a bit exciting as if the engines hadn't done their work properly and the bowser lost traction, you could find yourself going backwards at 50mph!

[barit1]

At least one American railroad used a surplus jet engine mounted backwards on a flatbed railcar (pushed ahead of the locomotive) as a heavy-duty snow blower. Given the propensity of early engines to rotor failure, the OEM's disclaimed any responsibility for collateral damage, and forbade their personnel from supporting such non-aviation ops.

[Fareastdriver]

Dan Winterland

They were two Dewent engines suplus from the Meteor fleet. They worked well with wet snow but they turned dry snow to ice. They could lift the front wheels of a nearly empty bowser off the ground until one goon pulled back one engine and turned it over. They then restricted the throttle opening and it was then useless in any snow.