The Sunbeam Nubian, also called the Sunbeam 155 hp, was a British 8-cylinder aero-engine that was first run in 1916.
Design and development
In March 1916 Louis Coatalen, the chief designer at Sunbeam, responded to the
Admiralty
Admiralty most often refers to:
*Admiralty, Hong Kong
* Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964
*The rank of admiral
* Admiralty law
Admiralty can also refer to:
Buildings
*Admiralty, Tr ...
's request for more powerful engines by designing the V-8 Nubian. The Nubian featured the twin overhead camshafts and four valves of his prewar engines for Grand Prix and TT racing cars. With a bore of and stroke of the Nubian displaced and was rated at with a reduction gear ratio of 0.615:1.
The original engine was built with a 60 degree angle between cylinder banks but severe vibration problems forced Coatalen to redesign it with a 90 degree angle, emerging as the Nubian II. Intended to power the
Supermarine AD Flying Boat
The AD Flying Boat was designed by the British Admiralty's Air Department to serve as a patrol aircraft that could operate in conjunction with Royal Navy warships. Intended for use during the First World War, production of the aircraft was t ...
the teething troubles of the Nubian forced Supermarine to use a Hispano-Suiza V-8 engine instead.
Deliveries of the Nubian II began in October 1917, by which time the Nubian was overshadowed by the more powerful V-8s from Hispano-Suiza and the
Sunbeam Arab
The Sunbeam Arab was a British First World War era aero engine.
Design and development
By 1916 the demand for aero-engines was placing huge demands on manufacturing. To help ease the pressure the War Office standardised on engines of about ; ...
. The only aircraft known to have been powered by a Nubian was the
Saunders T.1
The Saunders T.1 was the first aircraft built by the Saunders Company, a two-seat single-engined biplane with unusual monocoque fuselage construction. Only one was built.
Development
Before World War I, the Cowes-based firm of S.E. Saunders ...
, but some of the 36 engines built, of 50 ordered, are believed to have been supplied to the
Imperial Russian Air Service
The Imperial Russian Air Service (russian: Императорскій военно-воздушный флотъ, , Emperor's Military Air Fleet) was an air force founded in 1912 for Imperial Russia."''12 августа 1912 года прик� ...
.
The Nubian suffered from a poor design decision at first and was overtaken by events which prevented widespread use, but its cousin, the V-12
Sunbeam Afridi
The Sunbeam Afridi was an aero-engine produced by Sunbeam during the First World War.
Design and development
Conceived to replace the Crusader/Zulu on the production lines, Louis Coatalen designed a companion engine for the V-12 Cossack, gi ...
and its family members found greater success.
Variants
;Sunbeam Nubian
:The initial V-8 engine with 60 degree V and rated at .
;Sunbeam Nubian II
:Redesigned with 90 degree cylinder angle to alleviate severe vibration problems, the Nubian II was late in delivery and was not widely used.
Applications
*
Saunders T.1
The Saunders T.1 was the first aircraft built by the Saunders Company, a two-seat single-engined biplane with unusual monocoque fuselage construction. Only one was built.
Development
Before World War I, the Cowes-based firm of S.E. Saunders ...
*
Blackburn GP
The Blackburn G.P seaplane, (the second aircraft ( serial number 1416) was sometimes referred to as the Blackburn S.P. for Special Purpose), was a British twin-engine reconnaissance torpedo floatplane of the First World War, built by the Bla ...
- handed left and right
Specifications (Nubian II)
See also
References
Bibliography
*
* Lumsden, Alec. ''British Piston Engines and their Aircraft''. Marlborough, Wiltshire: Airlife Publishing, 2003. .
*
*
External links
Sunbeam Overhead Cam Engines
{{Sunbeam aeroengines
Nubian
Nubian may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Nubia, a region along the Nile river in Southern Egypt and northern Sudan.
*Nubian people
*Nubian languages
*Anglo-Nubian goat, a breed of goat
* Nubian ibex
* , several ships of the Britis ...
1910s aircraft piston engines