Why the Merlin engine was essential to the war
The Rolls-Royce Merlin Engine powered some of the most famous aeroplanes of World War II, including the Spitfire, the Hurricane, the Mosquito, the Mustang and the Lancaster. The Merlin was also used in aeroplanes like the Fairey Battle and the Boulton Paul Defiant. Over its production life, over 50 different development types of the Merlin Engine were produced, ranging from just over 1,000 horsepower, to right at the end of the war, the two Merlins that powered the de Havilland Hornet giving 2,050 horsepower each. In this video, Graham Rodgers looks at what made the Merlin Engine so vital during the Second World War, and we hear from some pilots and mechanics who worked with the Merlin Engine during the war, including test pilot Captain Eric 'Winkle' Brown.
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Credits:
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My grandmother helped make Merlin engines, she worked on the phosphor bronze exhaust valve guides...... she died in 1986 RIP
Love how the women of Britain and the US built the planes their men flew. The dedication with which they did their work was incredible.
I live in the countryside near Dover. For some reason these WW2 warbirds fly over us almost every day in the summer. A couple of years ago, a pair of Spitfires flying in close formation flew over unusually low, perhaps less than 1000 feet. I can understand how our grandparents felt so reassured by the sound of the Merlin. Hats off to all the restorers and fabricators who keep all these wonderful old aircraft and their engines flying.
Heh heh. That sense of reassurance doesn’t ebb. We’re 4000 miles away from the risk of hostile air strikes, but the sound of F35s zooming overhead is still VERY reassuring.
@@covertcounsellor679743,000 lb of thrust certainly is reassuring
I live near Duxford, and before Stansted Airport holding pattern was moved, all air show planes would fly over my house, I was up scaffolding when an Lancaster, couple of spitfires and some hurricane went over in low formation. 11 merlins
If one is lucky and in the right place/right time one will have the BoB Flight Lancaster fly over you AND its engines for a moment synchronise - memorable moment.
No matter how many times I hear a Merlin, whether singly in the Spit, doubled in the Mozzy or four up in a Lanc, it/they always give me goosebumps. Never, ever get tired of hearing a Merlin.
I remember seeing an aged Afro American airman who had come to UK to an airshow because he wanted to thank the RR engineers. He said that a number of times his P51 was well shot up but the RR engine never let him down.
Good man.
What a great story. Have a 'like,' sir.
If he is still alive, his P51 didn't let him down either. If the Merlin took a hit, it would have stopped working. Supposedly the air cooled radials could have a cylinder shot off and the engine would still run. .
Very true, the Pratt & Whitney R-2800 series “Double Wasp”, and its massive big brother, the Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major (or “Corn Cobb”), were legendary. More powerful and far more reliable any of the water cooled V type engines, they could fly with multiple cylinders shot to pieces. Many stories have been told at a pilot landing in one of them, and telling the mechanics that it l felt a little down on power, it felt sluggish”, only for the mechanic to find several cylinders shot up!
There was a company on Slough Trading Estate who developed and machined advanced alloys. In the entrance to their offices was a display cabinet holding a piston out of a Merlin. Embedded in the piston head is a 20mm cannon shell - obviously a dud and one trusts disarmed. The Spitfire pilot reported that the engine continued to run, though it smoked a bit and ran rather rough. Now about that bit saying the Merlin stopped if hit The factory had the piston because they made the piston head and the rings
A retired aviator with a widely varied background ... ag driver, corporate, charter, ferry, aerobatic, CFI, with IFR etc. . I have the supreme honor that will live with me forever, of having several PIC hours in a Mustang. I was introduced to this airplane by the owner, who during my first flight, actually performed a half-hour air show routine. You never lived until you've ridden through a precision, crisp, eight-point roll in a Mustang, a hundred feet off the deck!! (This airplane had a makeshift "back seat" --- you sat with an auto seat belt across your lap, on the wing spar, behind the pilot!) THIS was a crowning achievement for my aviation career. Those all too few precious hours will never leave me. I flew that Mustang down a strip, twenty feet off the deck, at something over 430 MPH!! Then, pulled straight up at just under six Gs and was through 12,000 ft in seconds!!! That stunning airplane just wanted to go, and go ... staright up!! The Merlin was just superlative. One thing which seems to be rarely mentioned, it was totally, literally DEAFENING!!! A few seconds of no ear protection would render you quite seriously deaf for some time. Few aviators who haven't been there, can start to imagine that sound level .... in the cockpit. SIX straight stacks, on either side of the engine cowling, six feet in front of your face? It truly has to be experienced to understand that level of engine noise, sound energy. It is actually palpable!! It literally pounds your chest. One last comment, that engine LOVED to run at power .... smooth, and always with the sense it was power incarnate. BUT .... like all thoroughbreds .... it did NOT like to be throttled down, in flight! Thing would backfire, shake on the mounts, pop, cough .... spit ... until you brought the power to something a bit above idle. THE most incredible experience of my life!! Every aviator should have the experence ... just once (more if possible, of course!!)... to appreciate this engine. The particular a/c I flew ... was later purchased by an individual I believe, and was sent to an air museum in England, then flew for some time under the registration G-SUZY.
Congrats on your 20 years service! How amazing to be surrounded by those dream machines...
"Its contribution cannot be understated." Truer words never spoken. I was born in April 1940 in the south of England, I remember the noise of flights of fighters and bombers going overhead on their way to enemy targets when I was three years old. Recommended reading is a book by Sir Stanley Hooker "Not Much of an Engineer", it was his work on superchargers etc that enabled the massive horsepower gains.
Well, no. The intention is right, but you cannot praise it enough. Its contribution cannot be overstated.
you don't remember bombings when you were three! Come on.
@@iamTheSnark Funny how such a blatant error could have gone unnoticed.
A lovely presentation, balanced and calmy spoken, with the obvious respect for the engineering excellence. The sound of the Merlin has a strange allure. Once while in the magnificent gardens of an English manor house with families having picnics, the perfect sound of a Merlin came from the sky. About 100 men and teenagers poured out of the gardens and orchard's, all looking up trying to get sight. A single shout of 'Spitfire, there'. Arms pointed and silence came of everyone until the 'bird' had passed. As the gathering started to return a few Women appeared muttering together 'what is wrong with these men over a plane'. No sense of the poetry within that glorious music.
My first thought too: well balanced in crediting British and US contributions. Great to hear it that way
Nicely written mate
Only fair, because that's the truth of it.
My own view on the soundtrack of the Merlin is it is the sound of freedom and nothing comes quite close to it
Mr Ryan, there are female engineers in this family, be careful they and others of that persuasion might take offence. Remember it was a Miss Shilling's Orifice that was the quick fix for the Merlins fuel starvation stall. (There was a Wetherspoons in Farnborough named the for the RR engineer Tilly Shilling. I hope it is still there. )
There is no sound in the world like that of a Merlin engine. I always get goose bumps when I hear one! The contribution of the Merlin to the Allied war effort is immeasurable. Thank you, Rolls Royce, we are, and remain, very grateful.
The greatest Merlin sound is that of the Lancaster Bomber. Those 4 Merlin Engines throbing in unison. I would love to had heared what my mother did as a child in Lincolnshire during the war and that was the formations on Lancasters heading off on their nightly bombing runs.The sound of all those engines must have been amazing.
I remember seeing/hearing a Spitfire at the Air Show at Ontario Place, Toronto, Ontario, Canada many years ago. The sound of that engine made the hair on my arms stand on end. It was a sound that ' meant business !! '. Great engineering !
Totally agree. One of, if not the best sounding engines ever built. So important to allied armies, they even drew attention to it and it’s sound in the movie “Dunkirk”. “Sweetest sound you’ll hear out here”. Richard King even went so far as to use 24 microphones on the airframe surrounding the engine to capture its correct sound for the movie.
I should get one in my car.
@@snorttroll4379 doesn't run on diesel, so you'd be fine at the pumps !! 🤪
The carburettors in the Merlin were later replaced by Stromberg pressure carburettors, which meant that the pilots could safely pull negative-G manoeuvres.
Yes and the drawings of those carburettors were given to Stromberg free of Charge by Rolls Royce
@@jacktattis This type of carburettor were developed by both Bendix in America and used on the DB601 predecessor, the DB600, well before WW2
You cant "pull" a negative G , you have to "push". Are you a pilot??
@@johnwh1039 Go to A Brief History of Aircraft Carburettors and Fuel Part 9 : speed density System by Terry Welshans Bardstown Kentucky Aug 2013 R/R-S/U Speed Density Fuel System Diagrams sent to Bendix Argue with him
@@johnwh1039 If it was the first Stromberg They were from R/R drawings
Fascinating video! As a kid in Ohio in the early 1970s, I was fortunate to hear the beautiful sound of the Merlin. A friend's dad owned a P-51D Mustang, and flew in our area with a club of Mustang owners. It was awesome to see and hear them maneuvering overhead. I learned of the Merlin's legendary status back then, but all I ever knew about the engine itself was that it was supercharged.
@Wilbur Finnigan I'm sure that's accurate, but none of the allies could have won that war alone...teamwork makes the dream work my man! 🎉🤘 #RR #PACKARD #THEGOODGUYS
Every piston engine of nearly any combat aircraft of WW2 was supercharged. What made the Merlin special was that it had a twin stage twin speed supercharger.
@@dogeness I'm not an airplane mechanic, I was just always told the Allison engine in the early Mustangs was not supercharged, explaining the original poor high altitude performance. And my point was simply that in all my years I never really learned anything about the Merlin before watching the video.
@@bjs301 It's a very common misconception but one that is definitely wrong. The Allison had a single stage, single speed supercharger which started giving out at about 10,000 ft. The Merlin 61 and its Packard equivalent, with their two-stage two-speed supercharger could hold out up to about 28,000ft. Superchargers had been pretty old technology by the time the war started. Any plane not using any form of supercharging would have been hopelessly obsolete by the late 1930s, and all engines for new combat aircraft were being designed with at the very least, a single-stage single-speed supercharger like you find on the Allison P-40s, Allison P-51s, P-39s, early Spitfires, etc.
As far as I know Sea Hornet TT193, originally sent to Canada in 1948 for Trials, was sold off in 1950 to a private operator to save the cost of bringing it back to the UK. A few years later it was dismantled. It was bought by a New Zealand company in 2017 and is currently undergoing restoration, hopefully to flying status.
Confirmation : Pioneer Aero in Auckland, New Zealand [recently] announced that they have acquired the substantial remains of de Havilland Sea Hornet F.20 TT193, and will be restoring this unique ‘survivor’ to flying condition. They will be working with Aerowood, a company already hard at work building wings for deHavilland Mosquito FB VI PZ474 currently coming together at AvSpecs Ltd. These two New Zealand-based companies have rebuilt all but one of the Mosquitos currently flying or under restoration to fly, in close collaboration with Glyn Powell, who developed the fuselage moulds. These skills will prove essential to restoring the Sea Hornet.
@@CGM_68 fake news
@@margarita8442 at the risk of being proven wrong (and Hornet fans would love to be proven wrong) We believe the remains of TT193 which are now owned by Pioneer Aero Ltd are the last mortal remains of the Hornet/Sea Hornet series of any substance and represent the only known viable project. Back up your brash statement with some facts Honey.
Holy cow! About 15 years ago some friends and I on a bicycle trip stumbled across an open sided barn with of all things, a Dragon Rapide. We made our way over to the barn, and talked to a guy who had been flying a small home built aircraft with a Suzuki Swift engine. He was not the owner, but we talked for a while and he showed us around the place. What the owner had in those buildings blew me away. An old DH Dove, in pieces. A Beech Staggerwing under repair. A home built copy of a DH Comet racer, about 80% built, an actual copy, from some original plans he had got from somewhere. I was in awe! At one point we walked out into the grass around the barn, and he showed me a fragment of a wing, and he told me that had been a Sea Hornet, If my memory is correct, the part was a wing hinge. At the time, I understood that was all that was left. The Comet Racer also went to Pioneer Aviation in NZ. Could the Sea Hornet they have be the same? I'm glad, that after all this time to find out that , maybe the information was wrong, and that she might live, or even fly again.
@@margarita8442 And your proof of this statement is?
My Grampa was an RAF mechanic with PR squadrons at Benson and then with 2nd TAF, and he always spoke about the Merlin with something very close to love. Heaven only knows how much time he must have spent working on them and their successor, the Griffon. It was a Griffon engined Spit that gave him his finest hour - he was one of the ground crew on Flying Officer Frank Fray's machine that took the photos after the Dams Raid.
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There is no sound on Earth quite like the Merlin engine when it's angry! It /growls/ at you, and you can feel it in your chest if the air show performer flies low enough. What an amazing piece of engineering! Good on you, Rolls Royce! ^_^
Sounds like victory
It has a snarl...no engine sounded like it
A very good video told with humility. In my view, British heroism and defiance of the Axis will stand as long as history of the free world is told. The brilliant Merlin engine is a thrilling part of the story. Cheers from the US.
Well said; Britain was the last sentinel of freedom in Europe, and then remained. God bless the Allies, from a Canuck.
@riverbluevert7814 I entirely agree, but the video does not adequately address the importance of the American-built Merlins. Packard made important design changes in the RR Merlin that permitted mass production. They did not just chrome plate the bolts and other fittings.
@@nicholaspatton1742 I agree about Britain, but I also think that Canada does not get the credit it deserves in the War. Canada punched well above its weight, as it did in World War I.
@@dennisweidner288, beginning at 4:12, the American "mass production system" and the number "fifty-five thousand" engines was mentioned approvingly.
@@leehaelters6182 Yes, I did not mean to suggest that Packard was not mentioned, but there the American Merlins only get lip service, less than a minute of the video. And there is a suggestion that all Packard did was crome plate a few bolts. Actually, the chrome had a purpose and Packard made other changes that turned the RR version into one that could be mass-produced. About 150,000 Merlins were built. Packard did 55,000 in a little over 2 years. Unmentioned were Chrysler in America and Ford in Britain. The American Merlins did not just go for the American P-51s, but went into British aircraft as well. It would have been interesting to know how performance varied. Just how many RR built (over the 6 years of the war). And if RR adopted any of the American mass production techniques.
Wonderful segment, well done! And I must agree: here in the U.S. at the annual airshow in Oshkosh Wisconsin, there is always a large number of WWII aircraft in attendance, and the sound of a Merlin is- as you say- distinct, unforgettable, and one you never tire of hearing.
have you heard a DB 601?
@@mathiasr.sander-nielsen5250 Only once- a restoration-in-progress display of a Bf 109, at the air races in Reno, Nevada. Also a very unique sounding engine!
Sir Stanley Hooker played a vital role in the Merlin’s development . He was responsible for developing the super charger . Baron Hives called Hooker “ not much of an engineer ! “ 😂
Great biography - well worth a read!
@@clewerhillroad Yes indeed. Essential reading for anyone interested in the Merlin engine.
By god what an own goal. Hooker’s record, both at Rolls and Bristol mark him out as one of the engineers of his generation.a
@@brianwillson9567 sorry , I don’t understand “ own goal “ ?
Great interview/documentary about him here: kzhead.info/sun/ld1tnKxqrpqenaM/bejne.html
My, so far, only visit to IWM Duxford was made all the better by hearing Merlin engined Spitfires and Mustangs flying over while I was enjoying the exhibits. The sound reverberating around the hangars as they flew over brought the place to life. It was fantastic.
Cannot be OVERstated
Congratulations on your long service at Duxford, I am lucky enough to have witnessed a Merlin powered hydroplane running on methanol do a full speed run about 75 metres from the edge of lake burley griffin in Canberra in the act. The regatta it took part in had a special dispensation as power boats were not normally allowed on the lake. The Sound was UNBELIEVABLE.
Hydroplane racing was a big deal in the US in the 50's and 60's. These 'unlimited' class boats almost exclusively used Packard Merlin's for power. What a thrill to see and hear the thundering power of six boats racing around the course and speeds well in excess of 120mph (200kph).
The lovely sound of a Merlin engine is instantly recognizable, I am so lucky to have a Spitfire and a P51 located at the local airport, i hear them, and see them several times a year when they are out flying, often passing just over my house. There is even a Fiesler Storch at the airport, that engine makes quite a racket for its size and displasement.
Yes, I remember the Fiesler Storch or however it is spelt. It is the German reconnaissance aircraft and I remember having an Aifix kit of it some 55 years ago!
Thirty or so years ago, I saw a Merlin stripped down completely and being entirely rebuilt; even stripped down to parts, she is an beautifully built; impressive.
This year to celebrate the late Queen Elizabeth's platinum jubilee a Spitfire and a Hurricane did several fly-bys by the Humber bridge in Hull, hairs on the back of the neck went up and a lump in throat, (and maybe I got something in my eye) what a mgnificent sight and sound!
Congratulations on your 20 years of service. I’m not a particularly patriotic man at 61. But with the country in such decline and it’s international reputation so tarnished, this upload by IWM on the Merlin, makes me feel proud of British ingenuity and what we were once capable of. Thank you.
I'm not certain that this country's international reputation is as tarnished as the left wing dominated media would have you believe. I'm pretty sure that most foreigners as they go about their daily lives couldn't give a flying toss about us, frankly. And rightly so.
let's add jet engines and radar to the list as well...cheers...
Not as tarnished as the USA my friend
That was Brilliant. And you are right - there is NOTHING like the sound of a Merlin. And again you are right - all the best aircraft used it! You mention the Griffon and that its rotation was opposite to the Merlin. The reason was the Griffon was initially developed for naval aircraft, and the rotational torque of the engine would make the fuselage turn to starboard, "into" the deck of the ship and not off the deck during landing and takeoff. Genius!
Unfortunately, no mention of the contribution made by Sir Stanley Hooker and his team to supercharger development which enabled all of that extra power to be wrung out of that engine. His Autobiography ‘Not Much of an Engineer’ is a brilliant read, covering not only his work on the Merlin but also the RB211 and the Concorde pwerplants
I heard one at full chat flying over lake wanaka in NZ, he then pulled up and cleared the alps, absolutely magnificent. I have not heard a sound like that since.
as an A&P mechanic I loved the sound of a merlin from childhood till now I only have worked on 1....
Nearly a century later the sound of a Merlin still weaves its magic over any lucky to hear lt.
I live not too far from Biggin Hill, and they do tourist flights in Spitfires. You can't mistake the sound of that thing. And then, one day I was driving back from the supermarket, and a frickin Lancaster went right over the top of me (it was the BBMF at the Farnborough air show). My grandfather was a flight engineer on the Lancaster, and rests in Abbeville. I didn't know whether to feel scared or proud. I picked the latter.
I agree, I love the sound of Merlins. We use to have a Spit' flyfing regularly in the summer at Filton and it really is the most distinctive and almost heavenly purr on any aeroplane.
Yeh, it somehow makes me feel patriotic when I hear it.
I live near Leavesden close to the Old Rolls Royce factory now film studios and home to the overpriced Harry Potter "London" experience. In its last days as a factory there was regular flights in and out by spitfires. Would you believe there were complaints about the noise? Complaining about the sound of freedom 🙄 FFS!
Fascinating video. When my son was a wee boy I took him to Leuchars airshow using back roads to avoid congestion, I could see the BBMF Lancaster, a Hurricane and a Spitfire approaching from the West to go out over the bay and approach to land. I got my son out of the car and got the engine off, just in time to see and hear 6 Merlins go over the top of us. Incredible sound.
As a child of the 1950s, I associate the Merlin and its beautiful sound with hydroplane racing here in the U.S.
De Havilland Hornet, such a pretty plane, it just looks right, so graceful. Genius design.
If it looks right it'll fly right
@@simoncullum5019 Ahem...Not always. I had a nice picture of a Blackburn Firebrand. It looks brilliant. Then I read "Winkle" Brown less than flattering thoughts on flying it.
The song of a Merlin, once heard, never forgotten.
I'm very fortunate to live not far from Oshkosh, Wisconsin where the EAA has its annual Airventure. The Merlin Powered aircraft have such a distinct sound one cannot help but look.
It gives me goose bumps every time I hear the Merlin over the White Cliffs.
The sound of a Merlin is possibly the greatest sound... In the world.
Fact
I suspect many hated that sound
@@nickpaine And very easy to recognize. Got me running into the garden several times. The last time it was a Lancaster, and the time before that, two Hurricanes.
@@chrisgibson5267 I've heard it only in the Mustang. It really is quite distinctive. The best roar ever produced in an internal combustion engine, imo.
DB601/605, Sakae 31 and R-2800 entered the chat
Last phrase: Cannot be OVERstated
The sound of the Merlin engine is so distinctive! Congratulations on 20 years at IWM, keep up the good work.
Another outstanding video from IWM Duxford. I’ve been to all the big Aero museums in the US and a plane geek my whole life. These IWM videos are stunningly good! Finally getting to see the UK in April/May and this is on my Must Do list. Great job, gentlemen.
Brilliant film, thank you. I live in East Sussex near the south coast of England and in the last few years the explosion of Spitfire experience days has meant what was a once or twice a year experience, hearing a Merlin, has turned to something to enjoy daily through the flying season. Despite the regularity, it's enough to bring me out of the house, garage or workshop and watch every time. It truly is a privilege to witness. For me there is no more evocative sound on the planet.
During the summer through to early autumn in this part of the world we can hear Merlins almost every day. Such a treat.
Thank you. You mean (right at the end) that the contribution of the engine cannot be "overstated", not "understated".
The spitfire in all its iterations is unquestionably the most beautiful flying object ever made.
Gee you will draw the Crabs
... its iterations ... (No apostrophe!)
@@SpeccyMan right you are
@@burtvhulberthyhbn7583 See I told you
During my training as a motor mechanic in the 60s, we had a certain instructor Mr Gibson who was a fitter on Merlins during WW2 - a really lovely man who managed to purloin a Merlin from the RAF for the workshop, which us lads regularly tore apart for sheer fun 😁
Congratulations on 20 years with the IWM! Excellent presentation.
A great presentation. Very easy to watch similar to Battleship New Jersy with Ryan. You both have a love for the old machines that hopefully will get passed down to the next generation. Saw a Merlin engine out in a shop in Phoenix some years ago getting cyrotreated. The machinists said it machined like virgin material. Says a lot for the original quality control of the metalurgy department.
It was, and still is the best sounding engine ever built.. And it's British 😊
@@wilburfinnigan2142 but it still was a merlin so!
I agree it is the best sounding engine ever made. Hearing a Lancaster or a group of spitfires fly over is just thrilling to me. It stirs my heart and gives me goose bumps. No jet does the exact same though it has it's own thrill.
That sound is so distinctive and sends a shiver down my spine every time.
I too love the sound of the Merlie. I got goosebumps the first time I heard it.
Visited the IWM in the late 70s, impressed to this day by it. Wish I could go again.
I agree 100 percent, the sound off the Merlin engine is so beautifull... Keep those warbirds flying. Big tumbs up for everyone who keeps history alive!
Loved my trip to Duxford in September! One of the highlights of my UK visit. Thanks guys for such a great museum!
11:20 absolutely agree. Here in Melbourne we occasionally hear one of the old warbirds (Mustangs) with their Merlin’s roaring along. A great sound .
The Packard-built Merlin’s were in many ways, better than the RR model. As the RRs were hand-built, the tolerances were all over the map. Packard’s mass-production techniques built the tolerances much closer and more consistent.
Why is it Americans thinks the British workers used a rat tail file The Brits had micrometres hell the Australians had micrometres
@@jacktattis It's not about using rat-tail files; At the time that Packard started building the Merlins, Rolls was still hand-building their engines, such that cylinder bore sizes were not uniform, requiring hand-fitting of individual pistons, etc. Packard re-worked the plans and tooling for uniform repeatability, ergo, making the engines more precise than the English version.
Quand j'étais jeune, dans les années 70, j'ai vu passer un spitfire au dessus de ma tête, au cap gris nez en France. Je n'oublierai jamais le son du merlin !
I think you meant to say at the end “cannot be overstated” - a minor quibble because I knew what you meant.
Thanks great presentation, I still have my dads RR issued Merlin Operators handbook and blue prints. Much cherished, he started military life in the Royal Flying Corp, when WW2 came around he was working for RR as an engineer and specifically on the Merlin. He got to meet many of the famous names in British air industry and told me many stories.
Regarding the negative-G problem with the carburettors, have you heard of "Miss Shilling's Orifice"? This was an extra diaphragm in the float chamber, with a hole in the middle to prevent engine cut-outs, proposed by Beatrice Shilling, a scientist at the Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough. It was used from 1941 to 42 when RR developed an anti-G version of the SU carbs. RR stayed away from fuel injection because carbs allowed a greater fuel-air density the injectors, giving a power advantage.
"Truely great masterpiece of engineering. ❤️✌️
Happy Birthday! What an amazing job you have! I'm extremely envious! Thanks for the usual great video and the fantastic information.
Graham....we met yesterday in Graveley...your knowledge of the Merlin engine is very very impressive. A fabulous presentation, well done.
Certainly a great engine. This, along with the Pratt & Whitney R2800 radial, certainly were huge influences in the Allied war effort. Superb engines.
PW 2800 great engine for USAAF planes but for pure fighters and P/R nothing beat the Merlin Highest flyer Fastest Climber
@@jacktattis Grumman F6F Hellcat Republic P-47 Thunderbolt Vought F4U Corsair
The capital/industrial might, cooperation, ingenuity and research development of all the allies was a giant awoken.
in the day, 70's 80's they used the Merlins on the hydroplane racing, i'd hit tri cities or lake washington in seattle to watch.. welp one seafair sunday I was stuck working at Sambos on 15th and what 61st is it in ballard, just a kid then.... I sat out back on this fine Sunday on my break and I could hear the Hydros racing all the way from lake washington, made me miss it even more but of course I drew the black card, my turn.. and they were pretty loud not just a faint rumble, you could tell when one had a miss for sure, 5-6 on the lake at once, why it was dubbed "thunder on the lake" .. them some good times for sure
Watched from Jamaica and congratulations on your 20 years of service.
Great video! Thank you! 👍
I love your videos and Graham is a great story teller and even better in person when I get to visit IWM Duxford
Another great video Graham! Completely agree about Hornet, an absolutely beautiful aircraft! 20 years of doing something you love, lucky you!
In some aspects, the Allison was a better engine design, but the Merlin had a more efficient supercharger. The two-stage supercharger gave the Merlin better altitude performance. It wasn't that the Allison engineers didn't appreciate the benefits of multi-stage supercharging, but USAAF doctrine was that altitude performance would be achieved using turbocharging. Unfortunately the turbochargers of the time were very large and required the aircraft to be designed around them. Lockheed succeeded brilliantly in packaging two turbocharged Allisons in the P38. Then when the wartime crush of demand set in, there was not enough production capacity to provide turbochargers to the big bomber programs as well as the fighters. G-model Allisons came late in the war with 2-stage supercharging and intercooling, but it was too late for the V1710's reputation. The P82 Twin Mustang used G-model Allisons. The last Allison was produced in 1948, capping an overall production run of 70000. But yeah, the Merlin has a raspy edge to its sound that the Allison just lacks. Different firing order.
The P38 was not a great fighter those turbos played up over Europe
So many astounding facts that just kept making my jaw drop! What a testimony to the amount of sheer brilliance that went into supplying the Allied effort in World War II! And to the sheer versatility of the internal combustion engine!
@robabiera733 And to the central importance of the Anglo-American alliance.
Such a perfectly assembled video, thank you for all the information!
As usual Graham a polished and professional presentation could listen to you all day ,also congratulations on 20 years at IWM .
For me, the Merlin is as much a work of art as it was a feat of engineering for its time. A magnificent, haunting sound that actually makes me tear up when I hear one. Hats off to Rolls Royce's designers, engineers and the brave few who operated them...
Sounds like… Victory
Very well presented here! Enjoyed it. Thanks for posting!
"never been bored" with the sound of the Merlin, what a great line/quote
There's an excellent argument between the Merlin and the P&W R-2800. I wouldn't make either argument by tearing the other one down, just by building one of them up.
I'd argue the Merlin because it was in the fight longer than the R2800. Not putting the R2800 down at all, that engine played a massive part winning the war in the Pacific in the F6F Hellcat & Vought F4U Corsair
@@kevatcrewe No plane powered by a radial got to 49500 ft Game Over
What’s not often acknowledged is the important work done by Ford UK engineers and drawing office making it possible to mass produce Merlín engines by the thousands. Rolls Royce were used to producing engines pre-war in hundreds that could be tuned, hand finished and fettled by their apprentice trained highly skilled engineers. Ford made the tolerances finer and improved quality control so every part was uniform and could be assembled quickly by semi-skilled wartime production line operators.
@neilbone9490 Absolutely correct and a very important part of the Merlin story. No matter how good an engine or weapon is, unless it can be mass-produced, the impact on the war effort is limited. Although I would mention that it was Packard that began mass-producing the Merlin. My understanding is that it was Packard that made the first modifications that began mass production. But have no idea as to the relative role of Packard and Ford engineers and to what extent they cooperated. (Or for that matter what designs Fiord in Britain used.) The IWM video mentions, but does not stress how important mass production was. Or that the 1940 plans for the RR Merlin given to Packard were a nightmare when it came to mass production. Packard and Ford had to do a lot of reengineering before it could be mass-produced--far beyond just chrome plating the bolts and fittings as suggested in the video. It would have been interesting to know how the performance of the American-built Merlins compared with the RR Merlins. And given that the Merlin was constantly being upgraded, how all of this was coordinated by RR, Packard, and Ford. Also interesting to know is to what extent RR adopted the American design changes so they could begin mass production in Britain.
My friend 1. Ford USA refused to make the Merlin as it was NOT politically expedient because he thought his friends the Germans would win and 2 Ford Britain was no longer under Henrys control but Lord Beaverbrook and Rolls Royce who had their own people there. And this is an excerpt from Morgan and Shacklady Spitfire a Definitive Report page 430 "There was another viewpoint this time from Washington . Officials there considered that the Ford Company would not be able to match the fine limits of the engineering required for the Merlin with Fords Mass production methods"
Fascinating; thank you very much for sharing this.
3.00 "More permanent solutions involved moving the fuel outlet from the bottom of the carburettor to half way up and the use of fuel injection using a Stromberg pressure carburettor (used on Allison engines from 1939) and finally an SU injection carburettor." 3.14 "It had been intended to utilise the evaporative cooling system but was replaced by the more reliable ethylene glycol liquid cooling system developed in the United States." The Spitfire Society Technical page
What is better than the sound of a Merlin in a Spitfire? The sound of 4 in a Lancaster.
What the Rolls Royce did to the North American A-36 (I think, I could be wrong) is noteworthy. The P-51 Mustang, the RAF was the originator of the Mustang program, was a war winning weapon.
More or less. As larger quantities of fighters were needed, a British purchasing commission was in the States attempting to get one of the aircraft companies to build quantities of the P 40, a good, solid fighter that served well on many fronts, especially in the N. Africa campaign, and had great firepower with its six .50 caliber m/guns - but was becoming anachronistic, and no match for a well-handled Me 109. A small company, North American, offered, instead to design a state-of-the-art fighter with several high-tech features like laminar-flow wings and a cooling system that actually produced thrust instead of just drag. When the Brits said that they couldn't wait the normal two or three years for a completely new design, N. American promised to complete a prototype within eight months - and they did. Britain contracted to buy every one of the new fighters, and N. American installed a typical American high-speed production-line. The RAF found the new fighter, which they christened Mustang, a delight to fly, being highly maneuverable and fast low down, but its US Alison engine ran out of breath at high altitudes where most of the combat was taking place. Rolls Royce replaced the of the fighters' Allisons with Merlins at their test airfield, and transformed a good fighter into a magnificent one, superior to any Luftwaffe fighter in all respects. When the US realized the potential, they reserved future ones, which they called the P-51, fitted with Merlins made by Packard Motors, for their own use. With drop-tanks installed they were able to escort US day-bombers all the way to any target in Germany and out-fight any Luftwaffe planes on the way there and back.
Appreciate the extended commentary concerning the De Havilland Hornet. The Merlin 130/131 engines installed in that airplane made power equivalent to the Rolls Royce Griffon, but without all the bulk and weight of the larger engine, thus contributing a great deal to the excellent performance of the Hornet. To add a bit to the recording of Captain Brown that you played, he also had this to say about the Hornet: _"For sheer exhilarating flying enjoyment, no aircraft has ever made a deeper impression on me than did this outstanding filly from the De Havilland stable."_ - that's saying quite a lot, considering that a very solid argument can be made that Captain Brown is the one pilot with experience in more different types of aircraft than any other pilot in the history of aviation.
I think you perhaps meant to say ETHYLENE glycol which is a common coolent/inhibitor/antifreeze agent and not ETHANOL which is a synthetic alcohol based highly inflamable liquid. and also corrosive.although ethanol can in some cases be dehydrated to extract a small amount of ethylene. but apart from that a very enjoyable delivery, thank you.
Merlin always.
The one thing that made the merlin engine was getting 130 octane fuel from America. It would never have made the horse power figures with out that fuel. The English fuel was only 100 octane. This 130 octane gave the merlin a 300 hp power increase. Great engine was able to reach its full potential.
130 octane, are you sure about that ?
@@niclasjohansson4333 That's about right. After 1943 aviation fuel was 115/145 octane (first number the lean burn rating, the second number the full power rating). It contained very high quantities of lead and xylene and wasn't something you wanted to inhale or make contact with your skin.
Oh well you were paid for it so what is the problem
Wet well presented! I as a Canadian am proud to have been a part of Mitchell’s genius in the contribution to the war effort!
I totally agree: The sound of the merlin engine is so beautiful and delightful :) I love to hear it at airshows, and sitting inside a spitfire it does such a good job!
In Stanley Hookers book, 'Not just an engineer', he talks through some of the Merlin development.
An essential book for anyone interested in the Merlin.
It is my understanding that when Rolls-Royce sent plans for the Merlin to the Packard company, Packard found that Rolls-Royce was essentially hand finishing the engines and that they had to create an entirely new set of blueprints in order to build the engines to the proper tolerances for Mass production.
While Rolls-Royce’s manufacturing techniques churned out very high quality engines, they simply didn’t jibe with Packard’s way of doing things (or Ford in Manchester for that matter). In his book “Not Much of An Engineer”, Rolls-Royce engineer Sir Stanley Hooker recalls his introduction to the matter with Ford: “One day their Chief Engineer appeared in Lovesey’s office, which I was then sharing, and said, ‘You know, we can’t make the Merlin to these drawings.’ I replied loftily, ‘I suppose that is because the drawing tolerances are too difficult for you, and you can’t achieve the accuracy.’ ‘On the contrary’ he replied, ‘the tolerances are far too wide for us.’ We make motor cars far more accurately than this. Every part on our car engines has to be interchangeable with the same part on any other engine, and hence all parts have to be made with extreme accuracy, far closer than you use. That is the only way we can achieve mass-production.’” Like Ford, Packard was obligated to redraw all of the Merlin blueprints to satisfy their own manufacturing requirements. This effort took the better part of a year to complete and was closely coordinated with Rolls-Royce emissaries in Detroit. During the time that Packard was gearing up for production, Rolls-Royce was making continuous improvements to the Merlin based on feedback from the front lines. These updates also had to be incorporated into Packard’s operation. This continual two-way exchange of data took a heavy toll on the men tasked to manage it. Of the two original Rolls-Royce liaisons at Packard, one died during his tenure in Detroit and the other perished soon after his return to England. pdf The Packard Merlin: How Detroit Mass-Produced Britain’s Hand-Built Powerhouse
@@nickdanger3802 You did not tell us that the Ford Rep was British
@@nickdanger3802 Ford in Manchester were British for the duration and Rolls Royce had control NOT Ford USA He was persona non gratis in the UK AND ITS TERRITORIES
@@nickdanger3802 Incorrect Nick I suggest you get Morgan and Shacklady" Spitfire a Definitive Report" Page 430
Well done video in every which way. Keep up the great work you guys are doing.
I totally agree with you. Nothing much beats the beautiful music of the Rolls-Royce Merlin
Well, it is related in Stanley Hooker's Autobiography "Not much of an Engineer" on pages 58-59. " ...A number of Ford engineers arrived at Derby, and spent some months examining and familiarizing themselves with the drawings and manufacturing methods. One day their Chief Engineer appeared in Lovesey's office, which I was then sharing and said " You know, we can't make the Merlin to these drawings" I replied loftily " I suppose that is because the drawing tolerances are too difficult for you, and you can't achieve the accuracy". ' On the contrary', he replied, ' the tolerances are far too wide for us. We make motor cars far more accurately than this. Every part on our car engines has to be interchangeable with the same part on any other engine, and hence all parts have to be made with extreme accuracy, far closer than you use. That is the only way we can achieve mass production'. Lovesey joined in, "Well, what do you propose now?" The reply was that Ford would have to redraw all the Merlin drawings to their own standards, and this they did. It took a year or so, but this was an enormous success, because, once the great Ford factory at Manchester started production, Merlins came out like shelling peas at a rate of 400 per week. And very good engines they were too,....."
@bigwoody4704 Fascinating post. And totally ignored in the IWM video. The same occurred at Packard. Was any of this coordinated? And of course, RR was constantly upgrading the Merlin. Was all of this fed into Ford and Packard? Did RR ever adopt the Ford and Packard modifications for mass production? Do you know if there were ever any studies done comparing the RR Merlins with the American Merlins?
Funny woody that Ford Britain was run by Rolls Royce I think that was after Henry Ford refused to build the Merlin for Britain and Go and read PAGE 430 Morgan and Shacklady Spitfire a Definitive Report where it says that American Officials in Washington had doubts that due to Fords Mass production Methods that Ford would not be able to match the Fine Limits reqd to build the Merlin American Officials not British
Yes Packard made the merlin stateside around 50-55,000 of them. Also they ended up putting the the Bendix-Stromberg high pressure carb on them. As this eliminated any stalling problems climbing/diving. The British designers had come up with Miss Tilly's orifice(true story) some tart came up with it that worked well prior to the new carb. And i wasn't ignoring anything just adding to the conversation
@@bigwoody4704 Some Tart?????? nice one woody That TART was a fully qualified Aeronautical Engineer a record breaking motor bike rider and she went around all the airfields showing the Fitters how to do the changes' And the Pressure Carbie from Stromberg was a British design[R/R - S/U ] the Drawings were given to Stromberg free of Charge
@@dennisweidner288 Woody Ford UK became a fully controlled British Company when Lord Beaverbrook gave control to Rolls Royce Henry Ford had turned down the contract saying he thought Germany would win. American engineers at Ford UK had the choice to go home. And this was from Page 430 Morgan and Shacklady Spitfire the History and I quote" Washington Officials considered that the Ford Company would be unable to match the Fine limits of Engineering required for the Merlin with their mass production methods End Quote So someone has been misquoting someone else
A wonderful video. Can you make one about the DeHavilland Hornet please?What was its maximum speed ? Where did it have its armaments installed was it sideways or in the wings?It kind of resembles a bit to the He129,.Have a good one.
Hi, the following from the book 'Aircraft of the Royal Air Force' by Owen Thetford; de Havilland Hornet, armament 4 x 20mm Hispano Cannon fitted in the nose, plus bombs or rockets under the wings. Maximum speed is listed as 472 mph at 22,000 ft, Initial climb rate, 4,000 ft per minute, Range, up to 3,000 miles, and service ceiling 35,000 ft. Hope this helps 👍
Nothing better than a Merlin in full song except maybe 4
'The contribution of this engine to the war effort cannot be understated.' Overstated, surely?
The Merlin was improved by the use of additional superchargers and fuel formulations.
No not additional but a second stage in similar size casing
No doubt about it, the Merlin was a fantastic engine and essential for both US and UK air forces in the conduct of the war. That said, I would love to have seen what could have been done with the Allison V1710 had it received the same development and, particularly, multi-stage supercharger that the Merlin had (in the US, anyway).
allison was junk
@@margarita8442 It was hardly junk. It was not utilized in the high altitude role that the Merlin was and as such wasn't equipped with the same two stage supercharger. With that supercharger and intercooler setup, as well as methanol-water injection, it likely was capable of achieving the same performance characteristics as the Merlin.
@@margarita8442 imagine listening to a thot 😂
@@chuckschillingvideos I recall watching some video that stated that the powers that be told Allison to stop developing superchargers/turbocharger on the V-1750 as General Electric had been tasked with that job. What GE eventually came up with was way too large and too late for the likes of the P-40... (I think it's the one that found its way into the P-47 though.....unless I have crossed some wires there..?) There's a good doco on the Tube about the "44-days" defence of Port Moresby by 75-SQN RAAF, using P-40s. In the interviews with the pilots, they speak very highly of both the aircraft and the Alison Engine, which could take some serious abuse.
If if if always an IF tHE aLLISON did very well with the turbo super charger and did not spend any money on 2 stage 2 speed Supers during the War