The Mikulin M-17 was a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

-licensed copy of the German BMW VI V-12 liquid-cooled aircraft piston engine, further developed by

Alexander Mikulin Alexander Alexandrovich Mikulin (russian: Алекса́ндр Алекса́ндрович Мику́лин) (February 14 ( O.S. February 2), 1895, Vladimir – May 13, 1985, Moscow) was a Soviet Russian aircraft engine designer and chief desig ...

and used by Soviet aircraft and tanks during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Production began in 1930 and continued through 1942. More than 27,000 were produced, of which 19,000 were aircraft engines while the rest were used in Soviet tanks of the period.

Acquisition and production

The Soviets had bought examples of BMW's III and IV engines earlier in the 1920s and bought two examples of the VI engine in 1926 for evaluation. Following successful bench trials of the engine the Soviets decided to purchase a license for it. A deal was concluded in October 1927 after prolonged negotiations. The Soviets paid $50,000 and were to pay 7.5% of the price of each engine produced after the first fifty. In exchange, the German company was to inform the Soviets of all changes to the engine for a period of five years. Soviet engineers and technicians were to be trained in Germany and German technicians were to assist setting up production in the vacant factory at

Rybinsk Rybinsk ( rus, Рыбинск, p=ˈrɨbʲɪnsk), the second largest city of Yaroslavl Oblast in Russia, lies at the confluence of the Volga and Sheksna Rivers, 267 kilometers north-north-east of Moscow. Population: It was previously known as ...

. The Soviets also hired a number of German skilled workers to work at Factory No. 26 in Rybinsk, mostly those with communist sympathies. The need to refurbish the factory greatly delayed Soviet production, even though the more complex components, including all electrical equipment, were initially imported from Germany. Soviet changes to the design and production quality issues meant that the Soviet-built engines were some heavier and produced less power than the original engine. The first M-17s, as the engines were designated by the Soviets, were not produced until spring of 1930, but were not accepted for service until an engine passed its service tests on 15 August 1930. The M-17 was the most powerful engine available to the Soviet aircraft industry and it was in high demand, so much that Factory No. 24 in Moscow also began to build the M-17. 165 engines were produced in 1930 at Rybinsk and Factory No. 24 had managed to build its first three engines by June 1930. Unfortunately, the engines built by the Moscow factory were of very poor quality because the management there had made unauthorized changes to simplify production. These had a compression ratio of only 6.15:1 rather than the specified 6.3:1 and they could produce only instead of the of the Rybinsk engines. The Moscow engines, of which only thirty were made, were reclassified as training engines and bought for a reduced price. In the meantime production of the M-17 in Moscow had been cancelled in favor of the M-15. Production of engines at Rybinsk had been steadily increasing, 679 being built in 1931 and 5662 in 1934. Around 1935, development of a version suitable for tanks was begun. This was called the M-17T and 7951 were built from 1936 to 1939. The advent of the

Mikulin AM-34 The Mikulin AM-34 (M-34) was a Soviet mass-produced, liquid-cooled, aircraft engine of domestic design. Its initial development was troubled, but it eventually became one of the most successful Soviet aircraft engines of the 1930s. It was utilize ...

, which was intended as a replacement for the M-17, reduced the need for aircraft models and the Rybinsk factory was producing three tank engines for every aircraft engine by 1936, although production of the aircraft variants continued until the end of 1939 to replace worn-out engines on older aircraft. The M-17L was a version of the M-17T used to power the

T-35 The T-35 was a Soviet Union, Soviet multi-gun turret, turreted heavy tank of the interwar period and early Second World War that saw limited production and service with the Red Army. Often called a land battleship, it was the only five-turreted ...

heavy tank and was the last model placed into production, 530 being built from 1940 to 1941. A number of engines of various models were assembled from spare parts during World War II, but no records are available as to numbers and types.

Development and variants

M-17

The M-17 had an imported ignition system and one Zenith 60DCJ or DCL carburetor. It was built in two versions with different compression ratios. The M-17E6.0 or M-17-6.0, as it was sometimes called, had a compression ratio of 6.0:1, flat-head pistons and a maximum output of . The other version, sometimes called the M-17E7.3 or M-17-7.3, had a compression ratio of 7.3:1, dished piston heads and a rating of .Kotelnikov, pp. 76–77

M-17B

Similar to the improved BMW VIb, a version with a strengthened crankshaft nose, a modified crankshaft end, new valve seats, and smaller exhaust valves was developed. This was designated as the M-17B and it entered production in June 1931. It also was built in two versions with different compression ratios. It could be converted to M-17F standards by exchanging some parts.Kotelnikov p. 77

M-17F

The M-17F was entirely a Soviet design, German development of the BMW VI having ceased some time previously, with articulated connecting rods with a stroke of , sliding bearings under the pins of the connecting rods, valves copied from those of the M-5, a copy of the American

Liberty engine The Liberty L-12 is an American water-cooled 45° V-12 aircraft engine displacing and making designed for a high power-to-weight ratio and ease of mass production. It saw wide use in aero applications, and, once marinized, in marine use both ...

, a K-17a carburettor, Soviet electrical equipment and, from 1935, a generator. This model was optimized for low-altitude operations and was built only in one version with that weighed .

Experimental aircraft variants

A boosted version was developed during 1933–34 with a maximum power rating of . Three prototypes were built and test-flown in a

Polikarpov R-5 The Polikarpov R-5 (russian: Р-5) was a Soviet reconnaissance bomber aircraft of the 1930s. It was the standard light bomber and reconnaissance aircraft of the Soviet Air Force for much of the 1930s, while also being used heavily as a civilian l ...

, but it was not placed into production. One coupled design was tested in 1934 with two M-17s nose to nose, driving a common angle gear, but nothing further is known.

M-17T

This version was adapted for use in Soviet tanks. It was derated in rpm, used a K-17a carburetor, and an oil coil. Its cooling system was improved and the pneumatic starter was replaced by an electric starter. It had a power of and a compression ratio of 6.0:1.

M-17L

This version of the M-17T was modified for use in the T-35 heavy tank. The front part of the crankcase was reinforced, the lower cover of the crankcase was removed and it reverted to a pneumatic starter. It had a power of .

Applications

Aircraft

* Beriev MBR-2 * Laville PS-89 *

Polikarpov I-3 The Polikarpov I-3 (russian: Поликарпов И-3) was a Soviet fighter designed during the late 1920s. It entered service in 1929, but was retired in 1935 with the advent of fighters with higher performance. Design and development Develo ...

* Polikarpov I-7 *

Tupolev ANT-9 The Tupolev ANT-9 (russian: Туполев АНТ-9) was a Soviet passenger aircraft of the 1930s. It was developed as a reaction to the demand for a domestic airliner. At this time Deruluft, one of the forerunners of Aeroflot, flew only with for ...

Tupolev ANT-7 The Tupolev ANT-7, known by the VVS as the Tupolev R-6 ( R – ''razvedchik'' – reconnaissance), was a reconnaissance aircraft and escort fighter of the Soviet Union. The R-6 traces its roots back to early 1928 when the Soviet Air Force needed ...

Tupolev R-6 The Tupolev ANT-7, known by the VVS as the Tupolev R-6 ( R – ''razvedchik'' – reconnaissance), was a reconnaissance aircraft and escort fighter of the Soviet Union. The R-6 traces its roots back to early 1928 when the Soviet Air Force needed ...

Tupolev KR-6 The Tupolev ANT-7, known by the VVS as the Tupolev R-6 ( R – ''razvedchik'' – reconnaissance), was a reconnaissance aircraft and escort fighter of the Soviet Union. The R-6 traces its roots back to early 1928 when the Soviet Air Force needed ...

Tupolev MR-6 The Tupolev ANT-7, known by the VVS as the Tupolev R-6 ( R – ''razvedchik'' – reconnaissance), was a reconnaissance aircraft and escort fighter of the Soviet Union. The R-6 traces its roots back to early 1928 when the Soviet Air Force needed ...

Tupolev P-6 Tupolev (russian: Ту́полев, ), officially Joint Stock Company Tupolev, is a Russian aerospace and defence company headquartered in Basmanny District, Moscow. Tupolev is successor to the Soviet Tupolev Design Bureau ( OKB-156, design off ...

Tupolev PS-7 The Tupolev ANT-7, known by the VVS as the Tupolev R-6 ( R – ''razvedchik'' – reconnaissance), was a reconnaissance aircraft and escort fighter of the Soviet Union. The R-6 traces its roots back to early 1928 when the Soviet Air Force needed ...

Tupolev TB-1 The Tupolev TB-1 (development name ANT-4) was a Soviet bomber aircraft, an angular monoplane that served as the backbone of the Soviet bomber force for many years, and was the first large all-metal aircraft built in the Soviet Union. Design and ...

Tupolev TB-3 The Tupolev TB-3 (russian: Тяжёлый Бомбардировщик, Tyazhyolyy Bombardirovshchik, Heavy Bomber, civilian designation ANT-6) was a monoplane heavy bomber deployed by the Soviet Air Force in the 1930s and used during the early ...

Tanks

BT-7 The BT-7 BT (russian: БТ) is the Russian abbreviation for "fast tank" (, ). was the last of the BT series of Soviet cavalry tanks that were produced in large numbers between 1935 and 1940. It was lightly armoured, but reasonably well-armed fo ...

T-28 The T-28 was a Soviet multi-turreted medium tank. The prototype was completed in 1931, and production began in late 1932. It was an infantry support tank intended to break through fortified defences. The T-28 was designed to complement the hea ...

* KV-1

Specifications

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * {{Mikulin aeroengines 1930s aircraft piston engines Mikulin aircraft engines Germany–Soviet Union relations