Rotax, Continental, Lycoming THRUST PULL. You won't believe the WINNER!

Three airplanes. Three engines. Three propellers. One thrust pull competition at 7,100' density altitude — and the smallest engine of the bunch did NOT come in last. In this video @TrentonPalmer and Carson from @Wairworthy, and I lined up our bushplanes for a back-to-back static thrust pull to settle the question: which combination actually produces the most thrust where it counts — at altitude, on real backcountry ground? THE CONTENDERS 🟧 Steve (Cleared Direct) — RANS S-21 Outbound • Continental Titan XIO-340 • 180 hp • normally aspirated • Catto 78" 2-blade ground-adjustable (fixed pitch for the test) 🟦 Carson (Wairworthy) — Zenith Super Duty • Lycoming IO-390 • 215 hp • normally aspirated • Hartzell Trailblazer 80" 2-blade constant speed 🟩 Trent (Trent Palmer) — Legend Nomad • Rotax 916iS • 160 hp • turbocharged & flat-rated • Catto 82" 3-blade constant speed THE TEST Static thrust pull, full throttle, max RPM each airplane could reach, all on the same patch of ground at 7,100' density altitude. We did NOT factor in rolling resistance, so treat the absolute numbers as comparative. The propeller-efficiency analysis — pounds of thrust per horsepower — is the apples-to-apples takeaway. Airplanes are cool. CHAPTERS 0:00 Predictions on the spot 0:27 Meet the contenders 2:03 The math: horsepower at 7,100' density altitude 4:05 Pre-pull predictions — who's going to win? 5:35 Trent's pull (Rotax 916iS + Catto 82" 3-blade) 7:24 Carson's pull (Lycoming IO-390 + Hartzell Trailblazer) 8:14 Steve's pull (Titan XIO-340 + Catto 78" ground-adjustable) 10:22 The numbers, recapped 11:05 What if everyone had a constant-speed prop at sea level? 12:54 Why propeller efficiency really matters 13:25 Fixed-pitch vs constant-speed — explained 15:09 Wrap-up CHECK OUT THE OTHER GUYS ► Trent Palmer:    / trentonpalmer   ► Wairworthy:    / wairworthy   GEAR & ENGINES MENTIONED Continental Titan XIO-340: https://www.continental.aero Lycoming IO-390: https://www.lycoming.com Rotax 916iS: https://www.flyrotax.com Catto Propellers: https://www.cattopropellers.com Hartzell Trailblazer: https://hartzellprop.com FOLLOW CLEARED DIRECT 🛩 Subscribe:    / cleareddirect   📷 Instagram:   / cleared_direct_youtube   QUESTION FOR YOU Whose result surprised you most — and would you rather have raw horsepower, a turbo, or a great prop? Drop it in the comments. #BushPlane #ExperimentalAviation #ThrustPull #BackcountryFlying #Aviation