Could someone please explain Mechanical Advantage and Reciprocating Engine Theory to me, basically?
Mechanical advantage is just leverage of one sort or another. You can trade distance for force so that you (or your engine) can apply a puny force over a large distance to apply a big force over a short distance. If you wrap your lever into a circle you can construct a gear train, which is the same idea. I’m not even gonna try to explain the internal combustion engine in the space I’m allotted here, except to say that most are variations of a four-cycle engine – suck, squeeze, bang, blow – with power delivered by the bang, and diesel engines differing from spark ignition in that the fuel burns slowly but spontaneously without a spark to ignite it. Sounds like steady work. However, you’ve also got a lot of sand and rock there besides the bogs and ditches, so you might ask about typical assignments. If “positions all over Australia” means you’ll have your choice of location, great. If it means you could be posted anywhere, then cross your fingers and trust your luck.
