Engine limiting factors

My "book" says max continuous RPM is 5500...

The Continuous RPM limit is 5500rpm NOT 5600prm.
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100 hp is not just pushing in WOT, it is a product of RPM and Torque which is a product of MAP.
The engine only makes 100hp at 5800rpm and 27.5"Hg MAP. (Standard Sea Level Conditions.)

At 5500rpm you can not make 100 Hp due to the lack of RPMs and are limited to 27"Hg MAP. (90Hp.)
If you are above ~1000MSL you will not be able to get 27" and WOT at 5500rpm will be fine all day long.

Ok so if I pitch my prop for 5500 rpm at WOT that will produce the maximium thrust possible and I can run at that if necessary all day long....not that I would I would still cruise around 5000 or 5200 rpm. To pitch your prop for 5800 rpm WOT is basically a waste of time then as you can only really use it fully at 5500 rpm so then you are not getting the best performance from your system. I take it this is the analogy to what you are saying

I believe you have it correct.....except...in theory having 5800 rpm on take off and climb can be very useful for short fields and you only need a few seconds at that power so the 5 min limitation is fine. I have done this for STOL work and you definitely get better performance.

Your "use case" is important is it STOL performance you want or cruise performance the settings are different..

Having said that this is not possible with a fixed pitch prop so if you search Bill has many times explained the best way to pitch a fixed prop take his advice...

You need to understand the difference in setting WOT rpm static on the ground and in the air at cruise

Hi Mark,

The better configuration to use all the possible output of your engine is to adjust your configuration to 5800 rpm WOT.

You will use this on takeoff for a maximum of 5 minutes and then adjust to 5500 rpm that is the maximum continuos power and you can fly all day whitough restrictions.