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Military Variants - Technical Data, main page
Pratt and Whitney's R-2800
The Pratt & Whitney R-2800 "Double Wasp" was
probably the most important aircraft piston engine ever produced. It powered more different types of aircraft than any other.
In addition to its inestimable contribution to victory in World War II, it also helped establish postwar commercial aviation
in classic prop liners such as the Martin 404 and Douglas DC-6.
Pratt and Whitney's R-2800 cu in. (45.9 L) was America's
first 18 cylinder radial, the Double Wasp. Much smaller than the world's only other modern eighteen, the Gnome-Rhone 18L of
3,442 cu in. (56.4 L), it was nevertheless more powerful, and heat dissipation was correspondingly more of a problem. This
meant that, for the R-2800, the cast or forged cooling fins that had served so well in the past had to be discarded. The cooling
fins needed were so thin and fine-pitched that they had to be machined from the solid metal of the head forging. All the fins
were cut together. A gang of milling saws was automatically guided as it fed across the head so that the bottom of the grooves
rose and fell to make the roots of the fins follow the contour of the head. The results were worth the trouble as it was a
case of designing an engine component that could only be made by a new method and then keeping everything crossed until the
new method proved to be practical. In addition to the new head design, the Double Wasp had probably the most scientific baffling
yet to direct the flow of cooling air, more so even than the excellent arrangements on the Ranger inline air-cooled engines.
2,000 hp was obtained from the R-2800 with 1 hp/1.4 cu in.
(43.6 hp/L) of displacement. In 1939, when the R-2800 was introduced, no other air-cooled engine came close to this figure,
and even liquid-cooled ones barely matched it. The designing of conventional air-cooled radial engines had become so scientific
and systematic by 1939 that the Double Wasp was introduced at a power rating that was not amenable to anything like the developmental
power increases that had been common with earlier engines. It went to 2,100 hp in 1941 and to 2,400 late in the war, but that
was all for production models. Experimental models, as always, were coaxed into giving more power, one fan-cooled subtype
producing 2,800 hp, and considerably more (up to 3,600 hp) on dynamometers. Technicians at the Republic Aircraft Corporation
ran the engine at extreme boost pressures at 3,600 hp for 250 hours without any failure using common 100 octane avgas, but
in general, the R-2800 was a rather fully developed powerplant right from the beginning.
It was exclusively a powerplant for fighters and medium
bombers during the war, being used in the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, the Grumman F6F Hellcat, and the Vought F4U Corsair,
and also in the Martin B-26 Marauder and Douglas A-26 Invader twin engine mediums. Post-war its reliability
commended its use for long-range patrol planes and for the Douglas DC-6, Martin 404, and Convair transports. This last application
is noteworthy, since these were twin-engine craft of size, passenger capacity, and high wing loading comparable with the DC-4
and the first Lockheed Constellations.
Two engines were all right for transports as with the Douglas
DC-3's moderate wing loading, and the high wing loading of the Douglas DC-4 was safe enough when there were four engines,
but all that weight with only two engines seemed like tempting fate. However, the Convair engineers knew what they were doing.
(Those at Martin, and those who tested the Martin for government approval didn't—the Martin's wings failed from fatigue
after a while.) The Convairs were just as good in their way as the four-engine transports. A well engineered installation
and good controls were probably what made the difference.
When the USA went to war in December 1941, there were very
quickly some major changes in philosophy. Such long-established engines as the Cyclone and Double Wasp were re-rated on fuel
of much higher anti-knock value to give considerably more power. Perhaps the most outstanding example was the great R-2800
Double Wasp, which went into production in 1940 for the B-26 Marauder at 1,850 hp and by 1944 was in service in late model
P-47 Thunderbolts (and other aircraft) at a rating of 2,800 (experimental) hp on 115-grade fuel with water injection. Of course,
all engines naturally grow in power with development, but a major war demands the utmost performance from engines fitted to
aircraft, whose life in front-line service was unlikely to exceed 50 hours' flying time over a period of only a month or two.
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R-2800 General characteristics
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Type: 18-cylinder air-cooled two-row radial
engine with water injection
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Bore: 5.75 in (146 mm)
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Stroke: 6 in (152 mm)
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Displacement: 2,804 in³ (46 L)
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Diameter: 52.8 in (1342 mm)
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Dry weight: 2,350 lb (1,073 kg)
Components
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Valvetrain: Poppet, two valves per cylinder
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Supercharger: Variable-speed (in F8F-2, unified
with throttle via AEC automatic engine control), single stage single speed centrifugal type supercharger
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Fuel system: One Stromberg injection carburetor
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Fuel type: 100/130 octane gasoline
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Cooling system: Air-cooled
Performance
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Power output: 2,100 hp (1,567 kW)
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Specific power: 0.75 hp/in³ (34.1 kW/L)
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Power-to-weight ratio: 0.89 hp/lb (1.46 kW/kg)
Ignition System
The
ignition system was a low tension, high altitude type, comprised essentially of one double tandem, low tension magneto,
two distributors, thirty-six shielded ignition harnesses, eigthteen double high tension coils, shielded spark plugs, and one
induction vibrator for each engine. The system is completely independent of the aircraft electrical system, with exception
of the induction vibrator."
The distributors were those shaped like an inverted tapered drinking cup. The coils were
bolted to the baffle plate on top of each cylinder. The Quickboost set has the wrong engine for the A-26K. On the upside,
the engines are correct for the R2800-27 used in the earlier A-26B/C.
The Aires Late R-2800 is the best choice for
the R-2800-52W. The Aires kit supplies the correct ingition parts. Aires obviously based their resin engine on the CB-16/17
series engines.
Note:
The A-26A R-2800-52W engine
was the military version of the CB-17. The R-2800-52W had the bolted front case like that of the "C" series R-2800. The ignition
was, quoting the "Dash -1":
Clarification
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Flight tests revealed excellent performance and handling,
but there were problems with engine cooling which led to cowling changes and omission of the propeller spinners on production
aircraft
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The noticeable visable difference between the engines
is the shape of the propeller reduction gear case.
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The " B " having a single piece tapered bell shape,
while the " C " series has a two piece gear case, the rear section being cylindrical with the forward part being nearly hemispherical.
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The two sections are connected at the peripheral
parting flange with around 36 attachment bolts. The Magneto / Distributors and Propeller Governors were different as well.
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Douglas A/B-26 Invaders and their propulsion
type
USAF/USAAF versions
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XA-26 |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27 Double Wasp |
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XA-26A |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27 Double Wasp |
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A-26A |
Counter Invader |
Douglas/On Mark |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-52W Double Wasp |
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B-26K |
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XA-26B |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney/Ford R-2800-27 Double Wasp |
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A-26B |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney/Ford R-2800-27/71/79 Double Wasp |
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B-26B,
XJD-1 |
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TA-26B |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney/Ford R-2800-27/71/79 Double Wasp |
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TB-26B |
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B-26B |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney/Ford R-2800-27/71/79 Double Wasp |
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A-26B,
XJD-1 |
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CB-26B |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney/Ford R-2800-27/71/79 Double Wasp |
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DB-26B |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney/Ford R-2800-27/71/79 Double Wasp |
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RB-26B |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney/Ford R-2800-27/71/79 Double Wasp |
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TB-26B |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney/Ford R-2800-27/71/79 Double Wasp |
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TA-26B |
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VB-26B |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney/Ford R-2800-27/71/79 Double Wasp |
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XA-26C |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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not built |
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A-26C |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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B-26C,
XJD-1 |
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FA-26C |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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RB-26C |
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B-26C |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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A-26C |
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DB-26C |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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RB-26C |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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FA-26C |
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TB-26C |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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XA-26D |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Chevrolet R-2800-83 Double Wasp |
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A-26D |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Chevrolet R-2800-83 Double Wasp |
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cancelled |
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XA-26E |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Chevrolet R-2800-83 Double Wasp |
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XA-26E |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Chevrolet R-2800-83 Double Wasp |
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cancelled |
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XA-26F |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Chevrolet R-2800-83 Double Wasp and 1 General Electric J31 |
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XB-26F |
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XB-26F |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Chevrolet R-2800-83 Double Wasp and 1 General Electric J31 ( See article on page 2 ) |
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XA-26F |
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A-26G |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp |
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A-26H |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp |
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B-26J |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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DB-26J |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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JD-1D |
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UB-26J |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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JD-1 |
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YB-26K |
Counter Invader |
Douglas/On Mark |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-103W Double Wasp |
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B-26K |
Counter Invader |
Douglas/On Mark |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-52W Double Wasp |
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A-26A |
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RB-26K |
Counter Invader |
Douglas/On Mark |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-52W Double Wasp |
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RB-26L |
Invader |
Douglas/General Dynamics/E-Systems |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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B-26N |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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RB-26P |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
Navy versions
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XJD-1 |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71/79 Double Wasp |
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A-26B,
A-26C, B-26B, B-26C |
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JD-1 |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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UB-26J |
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JD-1D |
Invader |
Douglas |
2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-27/71 Double Wasp |
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DB-26J |
Note: Beginning with the A-26B-45-DL
block, the engines were switched to Ford-built R-2800-79 with water injection, raising the war emergency power to 2350 hp
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C Series R-2800
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