Some light post-Super Bowl technical reading

[gecko]

Though I have to admit this year's Super Bowl was pretty good, I was really looking forward to when it ended and I could read this thread about the throttle controls on the early Merlins. (Is there something wrong with me?) If you're into the nuts and bolts of how these incredible machines worked, it's worth a read: https://theairtacticalassaultgroup.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7529

I was impressed with two things -
1. How much more advanced the Merlin engine was than engines developed elsewhere, with the exception of the DB 601. The simplicity of operation for the pilot would have made a huge difference in combat vs. less user friendly designs. Pilots transitioning into a Merlin-powered aircraft must have been thoroughly impressed.

2. How easy we have it in CFS3 in terms of managing the early war engines. The standard engine in CFS3 is automatically managing quite a few parameters for us at a level that only appeared late in the war on some designs or even post war. I'm on a mission to change that.

 

[mongoose]

On an IL2 ?CloD site, I think. One thing about IL2, its expects one to be more active on engine management, IMO.

 

[gecko]

Yeah, that's the only thing about CloD that I find to be markedly superior than what we have here, though I've found it to be overly sensitive in some cases. Abusing your engine often doesn't have the immediate consequences (depending on what you did to it of course) like it does in CloD. The real effect would be to reduce engine life and cause hidden damage that can suddenly and spectacularly manifest itself on a subsequent flight with little apparent cause.

That said, their modeling of the detailed workings of the different systems is generally really nice and has inspired me to bring the same details to CFS3. Their forum often has some very informative stuff interspersed between the standard Il-2 flame wars.