Making some engine parts to facilitate a conversion and producing a comprehensive firewall forward package are two entirely different things. From a liability standpoint, I'd be really reluctant to jump into making a firewall forward package for homebuilders............
If Anyone Wants to Produce Something to Help Promote Rotary Engine Conversions, the best approach in my opinion is to produce the items needed to build up a good lightweight core engine..............
Tracy already makes pretty much everything else, short of airframe specific items to facilitate a conversion. I agree, Tracy has a good business model.
I was really encouraged by the progress Powersport made, especially when it was in the hands of Everett Hatch and Steve Beckham.When Ratek took it over, they spent a lot of time dealing with model specific issues like cooling and........"Mounting The Engine"..........
If there were a few more items available, like the elusive wear-coated aluminum end and middle housings........ "With Built- In Engine Mount Shock Mount Provisions",...............
P-port modified rotor housings, lightweight wrapover intake manifold and plenum(with a choice of forward or rear facing throttle body), then I think we'd be closer to having a more universal rotary engine package.
"A Big Stumbing Block is How to Mount the Rotary".... How about configuring it in such a way so as to be able to be mounted right up to a....."Conical Mount"....... This would lead up to the ability for various builders to step in and mass produce cowls, exhaust systems, and cooling systems for the various Van's aircraft with rotary engines.
The rotary engine is a great engine, if these four things- cooling, ignition, fuel delivery and "Mounting", and exhaust are done correctly, it can't be beat. (Snip)
Brian Trubee