I haven’t made any decisions about what engine I’ll hang on the front of this thing when I get to that point. In a conversation with Dave Hertner, former owner of Fisher, I recall him saying that the engine weight needed to be at or below 200# — which would limit my choices somewhat. Small Continentals (A65 through C85 or O-200) are obvious choices, though the smaller ones are a bit less power than I’d like and the bigger ones are rather expensive. Of course there’s always a Rotax 912 ULS, or a Verner or Rotec 7-cylinder radial, or Aero Momentum, and so on. Corvair? Maybe, maybe not; I have yet to see a straight answer to the simple question of, “What does a complete Corvair engine weigh?”
While I have flown a lot behind a Rotax and like it, I’m not wild about the idea of building all of that into the plane, and I’d like something that “sounds better” – or more appropriate for a classic looking biplane. The Rotax sounds great on an RV-12, but it’s just not the experience I want for the Celebrity. Ditto Aero Momentum: I like their engines, but don’t really want to use one for this project.
A few days ago I was exchanging messages with a guy on POA. He’s about my size, and flies a Celebrity — with a Lycoming O-235 up front. He says the weight & balance work out fine, and he’s still got 200# of load – though he didn’t specify the conditions there, so maybe it’s full fuel, maybe just him and no fuel, I dunno. I’ve asked what his plane’s empty weight is.
So, I’m adding the O-235 and O-290 to my list of engines to watch for. The O-235 seems to be pretty well supported for parts; the O-290 less so – seems like new cylinders are not available — but they’re available pretty cheaply and weigh about the same as the O-235. And of course either one could be switched to electronic ignition, vacuum pump deleted, lightweight starter, and so on.