The Weird History of Screw Propelled Land Vehicles: Slant Sixes, Big Blocks, and all!
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- Опубликовано: 12 май 2024
- The world is filled with vehicles that run on wheels and tracks but what about those oddballs motivated by screws? This is a history of screw propelled land vehicles and it's a wild journey through more than 2,000 years of history. From the invention of the Archimedes screw to the development of ship propellors to the idea that the same principles could be applied on land, there a great collection of odd and interesting vehicles to learn about.
Amazingly, the Chrysler Corporation was responsible for the two most well known modern screw propelled vehicles, the small the interesting Marsh Swamp Amphibian and the much larger Riverine Utility Craft. Both were built in the 1960s. Both were built for the military.
This is a story about innovation, success, failure, and the interesting lessons learned along the way. Gearhead history! 
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I appreciate even the non race topics just as much. You always present a good topic.
Thanks for giving the weird stuff a shot!
I concuŕr
Obscure, not weird
Keep em coming
I wonder what thread pitch those screws are. coarse thread screws for racing, fine thread for crawling.
Hahahah
How far can you go is my question. Lower the pitch and crank the torque up
What if its NPT?
@@alanquintus2069 good question! I guess that’s the plumbers and pipe fitters version?
Acme thread?
That Snow Motor was awesome, makes me want one now.
I am one of the designers of the actual Lunar Roving Vehicles. My supervisor and I did the design for the "mobility subsystem" electric drive, 4-wheel, with dual Ackermann steering. During the early development of the LRVs, there were screw drives considered, since the Lunar dust was considered to have the consistency of fluffy talc, and later this was shown to be true on the Moon in certain spots. One vehicle got bogged down, and the astronauts sank up to their ankles to get it out. I have a couple of videos of the screw-drives which were tested at our GM/DRL laboratories, before the actual design parameters were established. NASA and US-Army did radar studies of the moon, and found that the dirt was usually much more solid. A facsimile of the Moon dirt was delivered to us, and used in carousel testing of the wheels, to determine the traction and wearout features. The wheels were redesigned several times, based on this testing, including dodging of large boulders. The carousel test videos are also available, including the simulation of 1/6-Gravity, here on Earth...
What a surprise, never expected you to cover screw vehicles. Good stuff Brian
Keep up with the vastness of mechanical diversity Brian, it’s very much appreciated! Great work!
I never realized just how fast those things were in the right conditions, 30mph through muck is impressive
Not gonna lie, kinda want to figure out just how fast you could make one and maybe set some speed records...
You could have land speed records on anything that isn't too hard of a surface
You could have water speed records
...what could go wrong???
Yessssss new video great way to spend a Monday thanks for all the videos
Thanks for checking it out!!
Colin Furze made one that worked pretty well, and documented the whole process.
Suspension would have fixed it. Maybe a quad pod arrangement, keep the 440s for reliability.
Great story. Love those bits of history
I, like you, appreciate all sorts of vehicles, very educational video, thank you. See you on the next one 😀🇺🇸
I have no idea where, or how , you research this stuff , but it sure is fascinating. Many , many thanks.
One of the very few times i knew the vehicle and concept featured in one your video. Interesting the same. Always quality 👍👍👌👌
Super cool topic Brian. Where else are we going to find this kind of content! Thanks for all your research! Keep up the great work!
Those are definitely some unique vehicles! I've seen some of the tractors on RFD TV! Always interesting stories! Thanks 👍
Appreciate you checking it out!
Starting to love this channel. Great, fresh stories!
Don't know were you find these stories,but keep up the good work. Love all these different stories!!!!
Brian, i asked you delivered. Thank you.
That thing is great! Thank You for showing this.
Thanks Brian. Another super entertaining video/podcast.
Appreciate you checking it out!!
I love your history lessons Brian
Great show!
Thank you!!
Is it the 'incline plane' concept? As used on bolts, nuts, screws, lag bolts etc, etc!
Wow! When your mind wanders, it finds some outrageously cool stuff!
Thanks for sharing!
Archimedes was smart! And yes…I am weird! Haha
All those nitro fumes? Haha
Awesome topic and footage.
at 12:02, you mention Geoffrey Pike, and this wasn't his only wild idea:
He also figured out a process of freezing sawdust and water into material called Pykrete, and pitched an idea of building an aircraft carrier out of it. The project went underway, as far as making a model in Canada, which actually survived a couple of winters, but it never went beyond that.
I saw the one in Valdez Alaska about 17 years ago, it was behind the museum, rusting away
I’ve seen pictures of some of these, but never heard the history.
Glad it was something you enjoyed!
Saw a purpose built version - looked fairly modern - that was used for creating drainage channels.
The weight of the machine sunk the screw pontoons into the soil creating twin ditches.
From memory it was a fairly large machine, reminiscent of some of RG Le Tournoux’s machines.
Had there been a lighter weight version of the Hemi (like the aluminum blocks Keith Black started making in the late 70’) plus some kind of rudimentary suspension like others have suggested, things might have been different. Seems like the engineers would have come up with some kind of hard rubber or composite screws to make it more operable on hard ground
Looks like a great mud bogging dragster to me! Turbine power might do the trick.
I noticed a video on RUclips a while ago about a guy who found an aluminum slant six engine in a car. I don’t know maybe they made a bunch of them but maybe a came from one of these screw vehicles
Yes! This is gonna be good
I hope you think so!!!
Very interesting, iv heard about the old Ford ones but not the others, thanks for all your work into this
Glad it was worthwhile of your time!!!
Great video, thanks Brian !!
I remember back in the Eighties there was a remote controlled toy like this.
Im in the UK. How cool would an all aluminium /6 be, wow. I have a build kit laying here for one, Crower rods, forged pistons, AUS roller rocker kit and a solid Crower cam kit and stainless valves....I wish, wonder if any exist?...get on it Brian 🤣 Ive also owned a '68 Roadrunner 41 years👍
They are exceptionally rare but do appear from time to time for sale. They do exist here.
More awesome content. Thank you.
Gud vid 💯💥👍, cheers from the UK 😊
awsum as always!
neat stuff! love learning about things i'd kind of known of but in greater detail
Fountainhead antique automobile museum in Fairbanks Alaska has a fully operational snow motor. Their RUclips page has videos of it running. I’ve seen it pull a sleigh in person. It’s pretty amazing
That was a really good video, thanks Brian from a new subscriber
Looks like something Bigun would have for the river.
I want a screw drive vehicle so bad. Just a small one the size of a 12-14 foot boat. I’ve got an Iron Duke sitting around to power it, I just need everything else
The story of my life too! Haha
I read somewhere long ago. Hemi vs.Wedge. Essentially very little difference in performance in stock form.
Nice vid
Seems this drive has a lot of crossover with Hovercrafts.
Can operate over different difficult terrain, but both have limitations.
Would love a vid on Hovercrafts from your perspective 👍
And this makes me wonder why there was so much effort on the super slow snow crawlers that were developed, something with a screw drive would have smashed that brief!
The Fairbanks auto museum has the fordson version. They stated that the drums were filled with aircraft fuel for use at the airport.
Just out of curiosity how do we go from the terrifying toranado to screw drive stuff? Don’t get me wrong I really enjoy everything you cover and learning about this stuff . Talk about diversity 😂
WEIRD! (I like weird V8 stuff), thanks Brian
I wonder if the leading edge of the helix had a strip of rubber if it would have worked better on firm surfaces. Plus giving the body and or seats a suspension system for better ride.
I think it sure would have been better than nothing
The RUC would have been perfect with the Hemis and a pair of...ahem...SCREW BLOWERS. 😂😂😂
I did a deep dive on these a few years ago and if I ever an endless supply of money it is on the list of stupid shit I want build.
smart, but he may have had a screw loose...
Hahahha
That’s puntastic
Speaking of the Archimedean screw and its working to move fluid. Picture an Archimedean screw the size of a large ballpoint pen. At each end rubies act as bearings and have a estimated life of 1200 years. Now imagine this PUMP inserted in your CHEST after your damaged/diseased heart has been removed. Your blood pressure is just one number because there is no "heartbeat" which of course gives you two numbers a systolic and diastolic number. The biggest drawback seemingly is the fact that you have to wear a battery in a backpack at all times. It is my understanding that it may be installed as a backup to your existing heart if you are having problems with your natural heart. It is also my understanding that Dick Cheney has one. Just thought I would throw in my two cents worth awesome video seems like it would make a wonderful toy for folks who live in a snowy climate. Okay that's all I got peace.
I knew of these, read a book with a chapter on the earlier ones. There is also a story on again the earlier ones on You Tube somewhere.
This is the best story on these things. Personally the smaller one with the slopey would be the most suitable. Exhaust could be overcome,,, move it out the back. Use would be limited BUT in Vietnam and similar places it would have a place. The big one is simply too big. Possibly fun,, just needs nitro and zoomies!
As for off topic from Brian,, he does own and old 8N Ford Tractor!!
Somewhat along the same lines is the lovable Ukrainian Sherp atv
TWO 440s? I’m in.
AND Archimedes? Done.
Showing one of the best parts of ubiquitous automobiles...at least when they get stuck in the snow, you're only hitting a bunch of metal. That poor horse!
My grandpa and dad retired from a GM factory that went from being a Fisher Body, to a bunch of other GM shops and eventually to a metal fabrication center (was also a tank plant during ww2 and Korea) and the truck they used to move the giant dies around the shop was a 1979 Chevy Luv with a *_Chrysler slant 6,_* because it had so much more torque than the Chevy straight 6. 😂
There was a screwdrive kit made for old Fords. Like Model T and A.
W I f. Wow holy crap
Haha! I hope that’s a good “holy crap”!
Far out man! ☮☮
Thank you!
I Used a machine like this in south Korea around 1995. It was made in Holland
Great video and it got my wheels turning…. Why was the 426 so much better than the 440?
The original weasel was designed and made by studebaker
Snake Eater😮
naw, the weirdest powered big block "vehicle" was the Chrysler Air Raid sirens that actually used a 426 Hemi.... ones in the Don Garlit's National Museum of Drag Racing.
I’m pretty sure those were powered by a 318 or some other small hemi but yeah, a very neat piece of Chrysler and American history
I remember back in the day… watching a video demonstration on TV news. Have been wondering if Ukraine could use some, but you've shown me it's limit.
We need a non racing video once a month at least
'two hemis of the high performance variety" surely that means blowen and nitro burning ?
They had one of those in Parris Island MCRD back in 72 when I was there it was used to go out and retrieve the bodies of the recruites who tried to go UA and get stuck in the muck and they would drown when the tide came in and drowned them nobody ever made it across the swamp
There is only 3 ways to get off Parris Island MCRD and that's
Dead
Discharged
Graduated
Assuming they didnt make many, would like to find one of those aluminium 225 engines and dump it in a hemi cuda.
That is some screwey shit right there.
🤘😎🤘
Shagohod🤔
US army: We need a screw propelled machine for crossing marshes and bogs
Screw propelled machine: Exceeds at crossing marshes and bogs
US army: Sick? Now how does it do around Daytona?
Seriously what is with the US Army post WW2? Between this thing and the FAL its like they just have no idea what they're asking for when they want equipment
Fall off and your screwed.
i think we would have got the point without having to watch a horse be abused. just sayin
Wow...too bad its flaws could not be overcome. Awesome device though.