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Franklin 6 cylinder 205-220hp

hlangebro

hlangebro

Well Known Member
I am curious if anyone has considered a Franklin 205-220hp for their RV project?
I have a 160hp 320 and I cruise along at 162ktas, however the Franklins are in production and are still pretty affordable and lightweight.
The 220hp version has a dry weight of 297lbs, vs 285 for the 320 and 295 for the 360 and 320 for the IO-360.
There is a company who supposedly is developing a FFWD kit for the 7 with a Franklin:
http://www.franklinengines.com/rv7.cfm
It would be interesting to see how much it would cost, and a Whirlwind C/S prop on top of that and cruise speed could increase by 20-25ktas and climb more than double!
 
If I remember correctly, the factory put a Franklin in an RV-8 about 15 years ago. I think they called it "Franklinstein!"
 
I have a fair amount of experience flying behind a Franklin on a Stinson 108. Super smooth, great sound, and *very* easy to start. If parts support is good, I wouldn't hesitate to buy one.

David
 
The low compression "super smooth" puts out 165 hp.
and the high compression 10:1 220hp PZL produced in Poland is
eh, well.. "not so smooth".
You lose your mogas option on a 10:1 comp engine and you are definitely
limited to carbs or pressure carb.

My friend has about 300 plus hours on his 220hp RV-8 with Ellison throttle body.
He is pretty happy with his choice.
 
Franklin

It is only carbureted as far as I know. TBO is 1500, which is reasonable. There is a Velocity at my airport (Ramona, RNM) and he has a either a 205 or 220hp Franklin with a IVOprop, and it is super smooth and very fast. I think he cruises along at 180-190ktas.

I think it would be an interesting option. I did the weight and balance for mine, and I have the longer engine mount, however it falls well within the CG range, although at a slightly higher weight due to engine and C/S prop.

Food for thought.. :)
 
A friend built an RV-8 with the Franklin 220 HP engine and loves it!

He is trying to sell it has he currently has an RV-12 and is working on an RV-14.

Contact me, if you are interested.

PP%252520Flying.png
 
At first glance, the 220 Franklin seems like a good choice for the -14. Light, inexpensive, and high power.
 
Franklin

Toobuilder said:
At first glance, the 220 Franklin seems like a good choice for the -14. Light, inexpensive, and high power.
Click to expand...

At a second glance not so much . We had a Kit Fox wth a Franklin at the airport last year . Full of issues with piston fit , leakage , overheating , after 40 hours it was removed . Not sure what it was replaced with .
 
g zero said:
At a second glance not so much . We had a Kit Fox wth a Franklin at the airport last year . Full of issues with piston fit , leakage , overheating , after 40 hours it was removed . Not sure what it was replaced with .
Click to expand...

Someone tried a kitfox with 220 HP on the nose?

Anyway, Franklins were pretty mainstream engines once upon a time. They have provided millions of hours of reliable service.
 
Franklin

The Kit Fox had the 4 cylinder 125 .
Once apon a time Subarus looked good . I hate seeing someone spend countless hours and money on a homebuilt plane only to end up frustrated or killed by using a "Broken Promise Powerplant ".
I have first hand knowledge of the poor quality of the Franklin Engine .
I would put a timed out Lycoming on the nose before the Franklin .
 
Franklin

I don't think the New Franklin can be compared to the Old Franklin . I believe the new one is built in Poland . My bad experience is related to only 1 engine , but there was zero factory support .
If there is some good experience out there let's hear about it .
 
I don't think the New Franklin can be compared to the Old Franklin . I believe the new one is built in Poland
Click to expand...
It is still the same engine

but there was zero factory support
Click to expand...

There is still no factory support and the few shops that used to service Franklins are very scarce.
You are very much on your own even more so than screwing around with a Subaru but it is experimental aviation and anyone willing to try something new
has a lot of company among Rvators.

You'll have to build your own engine mount and exhaust system,
no small feat even for an experienced gear head.

Weight is hard to pinpoint.
My RV-8 with IO 360 and fixed pitch Sensenich weighed the same as
the Franklin Powered RV-8.
Much effort was spent to keep the weight of the Franklin powered RV down.
Build time stretched out 2 more years after I completed my Lyc powered RV-8.

There is no mechanical fuel pump available for the Franklin, you are stuck with
electric pumps. (no big deal)

You are limited to a McCauley Propeller or maybe an IVO Prop.
(Scariest Prop I ever tried)

On a side by side trip to Oshkosh from California we compared efficiency and
my IO 360 lost by about 10% on fuel economy. (Not a good comparison fixed pitch against constant speed)
If you bring the mogas equation into the picture I would be ahead by dollars.

Taking resale value into account for those who care about it, you decide.

If you want 6 cylinder smoothness, go for the IO 540 and you'll spend less
time making it work than re engineering the front end of an RV for a 220 hp Franklin.
Hang a light weight MT prop on it and you are down to a few pounds of weight shifting to get your CG in the right place.
You'll be able to fly anywhere and get service and parts on a moments notice.
 
Franklin

It may look like the same engine but it is not a quality piece . Ever been to Harbor Freight and see a tool that looks like a Snap On ? it may look the same but made from **** and have **** tolerances .
 
Franklin

Do you mean that the Polish built Franklin is worse when it comes to quality and tolerance, or did you mean it the other way around?
 
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