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Duesenberg Aircraft Engines

A Technical Description

William Pearce

This copy of Duesenberg Aircraft Engines: A Technical Description has been prepared especially for the Aircraft Engine Historical Society. A printed version is available through Old Machine Press or at .

Old Machine Press Los Osos, CA

Copyright ? 2012 William Pearce

All rights reserved.

The information in this work is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. However, all information is presented without any guarantee on the part of the Author or Publisher, who also disclaim any liability incurred in connection with the use of the information.

All trademarks, trade names, model names and numbers, and other product designations referred to herein are the property of their respective owners and are used solely for identification purposes. This work is a publication of Old Machine Press and has not been licensed, approved, sponsored, or endorsed by any other person or entity.

Revision 04172012 - AEHS

On the cover: Upper left--Rear view of the Duesenberg V-12 aircraft engine. Middle left--The 16-valve, four-cylinder Duesenberg aircraft engine. Lower left--Sectional end view of the Duesenberg-built King-Bugatti aircraft engine. Right--Rear view of the Duesenberg Model H aircraft engine (Martt Clupper photo via AirPigz, ).

Tittle page: The Gallaudet D-1: perhaps the first aircraft to fly with Duesenberg engines.

Humble beginnings. Young Fred and Augie Duesenberg on their racing bicycles.

Duesenberg wartime ad from 1918.

Contents

Preface

1

1. Fred and Augie Duesenberg

3

2. Duesenberg "Walking Beam" Valve Gear

9

3. Straight-Four Engine of 1915

13

4. V-12 Engine of 1916

19

5. Sixteen-Valve Straight-Four Engine

29

6. The King-Bugatti

43

7. Duesenberg Model H

57

Epilogue

81

Appendix A ? Duesenberg Aircraft Engine Comparison

83

Appendix B ? Duesenberg Valve Gear Patent

85

Appendix C ? The King V-12 Aero Engine

95

Appendix D ? Duesenberg Engine Test House

99

Appendix E ? Christensen Self-Starter

103

Appendix F ? Notes on Descriptions and Conflicting Information 107

Bibliography

111

Preface

This book began as a quest to consolidate information on the Duesenberg Model H aircraft engine and eventually evolved to include all the Duesenberg aircraft engines. Information on these engines is hard to come by, for while the Duesenberg automobile became legendary, Duesenberg aircraft engines did not advance aviation or even the art of aircraft engines. But these engines did possess unique features and are well worth being remembered.

My interest in the Duesenberg Model H began as a result of Martt Clupper's article on the engine. I found the article on his website, , and the photos in his article made me want to know more about this masterpiece of an engine from a bygone era.

My internet searches did not uncover much more than what I had already read about the engine. I turned to my ever-expanding bookshelf, and I went through several engine books from the 1920s. I found much more information on the Model H, but to my dismay, I also found contradictions and closed the books with many questions unanswered. That was when I decided to get serious with my research and to put together all I could find on the Model H. I knew others were interested in this engine and that it would be very helpful to have most of the information in one place. I soon realized that the Model H owed much to the previous Duesenberg aircraft engines, so I included them as part of its history. While searching for more about these earlier engines, I realized that information on them was even harder to find, so I decided to include everything I could on all the Duesenberg designed or manufactured aircraft engines.

Admittedly, everything contained in this work exists in print somewhere else. Even so, I'm confident that much of the information will be new to the reader, given the rarity of the subject. I have compiled the information from old and obscure sources, and I attempted to clarify

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