V-1 Video

[Bruno Ogorelec]

The nose of the engine is completely enclosed and all running air is delivered via the compressor.

Why? Why? Why? To my mind, it kills the whole idea dead, turning it into a huge leaf blower jet. I must say I have great reservations about the mental attitude of the entire SRL crew -- while absolutely admiring their engineering.

[resosys]

Why? Why? Why? To my mind, it kills the whole idea dead, turning it into a huge leaf blower jet. I must say I have great reservations about the mental attitude of the entire SRL crew -- while absolutely admiring their engineering.

It's not supposed to fly. It simply makes an immense amount of noise and exhaust with a dah of fire. It runs on a heavy cart with a wheel that appears to steer it, presumably so it can be aimed at different things during the show.

It may also help to keep debris out of the valves. During their shows, there is a lot of stuff flying around!

I've met and had the pleasure of becoming friends with several of the SRL engineers over the past 10 years. They are amazing folks and they build amazing machines. I'm hoping to get to work with them in coming years.

Chris

[Bruno Ogorelec]

They are amazing folks and they build amazing machines. I'm hoping to get to work with them in coming years.

Chris, don't get me wrong. As I said, I admire their engineering. It's just that they use it as performing art, which is not my cup of Jet-A.

I love art and collect it to a modest extent. I love engineering and see a lot of art in the best engineering. Whoever has seen a Bugatti car or a Supermarine flying boat up close and knows a thing or two about engineering cannot fail to be moved by the sheer artistry of the things.

The SRL attempts to straddle the two worlds in a different way, by marrying the ancient art of live fairground performance with the nose, heat and fire of mechanical engineering.

To my mind, this is far too sophisticated a concept as art for the audience that actually gets to see the performances -- the world is a tad too banal for such high concepts to be truly appreciated as art. It is also too smug as engineering. It is easy to generate heat and noise and wreak havoc without the need to prove the worth of your design in practical, non-entertainment application.

The real result is -- I fear -- not very far above demolition derby in terms of either art or true engineering. But, that is my private opinion. I regret what I see as waste of obvious talent and determination in the project, but that's neither here nor there. The guys obviously enjoy what they are doing and so does the appreciative audience, which is what matters, I guess. My opinion hardly carries any weight in real life.

[resosys]

The real result is -- I fear -- not very far above demolition derby in terms of either art or true engineering. But, that is my private opinion. I regret what I see as waste of obvious talent and determination in the project, but that's neither here nor there. The guys obviously enjoy what they are doing and so does the appreciative audience, which is what matters, I guess. My opinion hardly carries any weight in real life.

Ahhh, I understand you now and I agree with you to some extent. I do the performance art thing as well and I'm a big fan of chaos, so their shows and projects appeal to me.

I do fear some folks only like the shows for the shear violence and destruction and fail to really appreciate the immense amount of engineering and work that goes into the various machines.

I'll let you know when the video is up. It's fun stuff.

Chris

[resosys]

SRL has put up a very short video of last Saturday's Pranks! Festival run of their V1 engine. It is very dark, but worth a watch either way.

http://srl.org/machines/v1/v1thelab.mpg

More video to come.