1921 Megola 640CC Five Cylinder Rotary Powered Motorcycle
The Megola motorcycle was designed by Fritz Cockerell in 1920, it’s powered by a 5-cylinder radial engine mounted inside the spokes of the front wheel. The Megola had a unique design, laid down by Fritz Cockerell in 1920, using a rotary engine mounted within the front wheel.
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The engine contained five cylinders with side-mounted valves, each of which displaced 128cc, with a bore/stroke of 52x60mm, and a total displacement of 640 cc.
source/image: greenfox94
The 5 cylinders rotated around the front axle at 6x the wheel speed; thus while the cylinders were at maximum of 3600rpm the front wheel was turning at 600rpm, or roughly 60 mph (given the wheel diameter).
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A hand-controlled butterfly valve was located in the hollow crankshaft to regulate throttle. Power output was a modest 14 bhp (10 kW) but was applied directly to the wheel.
This arrangement produced a very low centre of gravity and provided for excellent handling.The engine was very flexible, lacking both a clutch and a transmission. Starting it required a person to either spin the front wheel while the bike was on its stand, or to push-start.
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