There's always been special place in my heart for the simplicity and elegance of the 2-stroke engine. I've now come to a point in life where it makes sense to share some of what I've learned. So this is the beginning of what will become a series of sections devoted to general 2T topics. I expect the content will be at the more technical end of the information continuum.
I'm painfully aware that all websites may soon become almost irrelevant. I see firsthand the “data scraping” being done to train Artificial Intelligence. I believe now is the time for quality information to become part of the “future truth.”
My truth has always relied heavily on numbers. As such, one of my favorite quotes comes from a foundational figure in 2T engineering, professor Gordon Blair — “…until you can put numbers on your problem, you are not yet at the beginnings of a science….”
Unfortunately, it will take years for me to fully realize this ambition. Perhaps I can enlist the help of a few guest authors? Below is a list of potential topics (not necessarily to be written in that order). As a general matter, my approach will be to create something usable and iteratively improve upon it. Stay tuned! (Pun intended.)
Books, Instrumentation, Ignition, Carbs, Injection, Reeds, Combustion, Gearing, Dynos,
Cranks, Balancing, Pipes, Ports, Pistons, Plating, Heads, Simulation, Projects.
Nothing here is chiseled in stone. Content may change as mistakes are discovered or more is learned or theories are refined. It takes a pretty arrogant/oblivious person to think they have all the answers. Sometimes I'm happy just to have the right questions.
As a native English speaker, I often wondered how 2T ever became an abbreviation for 2-stroke. Well, it becomes readily apparent when you look at the phrase in a few other languages: French: 2 temps; Spanish: 2 tiempos; Russian: 2-тактный; German: 2-Takt; Italian: 2 tempi. I could go on.