Build The Tiny Giant

Weighs a mere 40 Lbs (less than 20 Kgs) and produces 200 HP

New content CAD!

This auction is for  a CD filled with blueprints, 33 patents, pictures, text... detailing the history and construction of free piston jet engine(s).

Most engines have a crankshaft to deliver output. The Free Piston Engine does not have a crankshaft and the added complexity of  rods, bearings, complicated lubrication mechanism... The Free Piston Engine Consists of little more than the Piston itself which oscillates inside a metal tube (cylinder) generating high volume of heated gas which is used to propel vehicles thus a jet engine. The Free Piston Engine is a great project for a beginner. Even if you never built an engine before.

Building the engine is simple as there's only two moving parts, even if you lack the necessary tools such as a lathe, there are instructions on getting one fabricated. Should you desire a smaller engine all you do is slim down the size of the cylinder and piston. Everything else remains the same. Should you require more power increase the dimensions of cylinder and piston, that simple!

The engine is so small and easy to build it is economical to scrap a disabled engine, replace it with a new one.

Although the engine is not meant for automobile use, it can be installed on airplanes, helicopters, and even boats.

Due to its small size and high thrust, the engine can be installed where turbo jets are not feasible. Best of all there would be no torque, making planes highly stable and helicopters can do away with the tail rotor, thus allowing for a lighter craft and greater mobility.

New research into maritime applications has produced some amazing results. Propellers, augers, impellers... all are terribly inefficient. Pure jet drives do away with the high maintenance associated with conventional drives and are economical to run. By placing the jet exhaust under the hull some researchers have decreased the abrasion created by fast moving boats over water while increasing the top speed of vessels and lowering fuel consumption.

Even direct electrical power generators have been built using Free Piston Engines. By fabricating the piston of partially magnetic material and wrapping the cylinder with copper wire, tremendous amounts of energy have been generated by very small engines. Due to the Free Piston Engine's high rate of operation which is about 20,000-40,000 cycles per minute, high energy can be extracted from relatively small engines. The technology has even been used to power hybrid cars with some remarkable results.

Originally developed by Charles Gahagen, the engine has only two moving parts. The inventor boasted an amazing 50% thermal efficiency (this has been improved upon recently).  Diesel has an efficiency of only 40% and the four cycle gasoline engine is the least efficient with a thermal efficiency of only 30%. 

The secret of it's amazingly high efficiency lies in it's design. Each stroke produces power, a four stroke engine of similar displacement only produces a fourth of the power and is terribly complicated and heavy compared to free piston engines.

You get a digital version of Gahagen's article Little Giant and  his Free Piston Jet Engine Patent. You also get plans for an engine running on butane or acetylene and is built of aircraft alloy. This section includes blueprints drawn by  John Starner and 5 pages of instructions on building the Loudmouth written by Jack Horton. You also get the digitized version  of Jack Horton's Mechanic's Illustrated article, filled with pictures and diagrams detailing the engine's internal parts and operation... Also included in the CD is a series of files exposing the Dynacam Engines, you decide if they are a truly free piston engines.

Plus! The latest CAD.

Other possible uses for the engine include: vibrating concrete forms, hammer, chisel, saw or any other use where vibrating action is needed.

The item is in the public domain and was purchased with resell rights and does not violate any copyright laws.