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Author Topic: Empire Hot Air Engine  (Read 2494 times)

Woe is me

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #15 on: March 22, 2020, 07:47:10 am »
It's nice to see how this is working out. When people work together, ( even with great distances between them ) little Co-Op can go long way.
It's also nice to stand back and learn.
Tommy

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Empire man 202

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #16 on: March 29, 2020, 08:01:22 pm »
What kind of material is the ribbon raped around??
Thanks Boss

St Paul Steam

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #17 on: March 29, 2020, 08:25:45 pm »
Impressive work there Mike, As Tom said above, really nice that we can help each other out with the many talents that this forum possesses.
Bruce, St. Paul Indiana, USA
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Maxwell

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #18 on: March 30, 2020, 12:01:34 pm »
Mike, excellent work  :)

Junkologist

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #19 on: March 30, 2020, 06:22:19 pm »
Thanks, guys! It’s been a lot of fun experimenting with this project.
I did some actual calculations and my new heater falls right in line with the specs on the tag. I’ve got quite a few hours of run time racked up now at various voltages, so it seems to be durable. I’ve had it apart a few times and there is no change in the appearance of the materials, so everything seems to be holding up well.
My only concern is how hot the engine gets after some time running on full voltage. I can get nearly a 600 degree reading with an IR temp gun. That’s awful dang hot in my opinion. If any of you guys that have one of these could check the temp of yours after running for about 10 minutes or so, that would be great. I’m thinking it’s just the nature of the beast and it is what it is.
Mike

Check out my YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/Cletrac

Junkologist

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #20 on: March 30, 2020, 06:26:12 pm »
What kind of material is the ribbon raped around??
Thanks Boss
It’s wrapped around flexible mica insulation sheets. It’s much easier to work with instead of actual mica, like the original heaters. This stuff seems to be like a paper made from ground up mica.
Mike

Check out my YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/Cletrac

Nick

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #21 on: March 30, 2020, 09:53:37 pm »
What kind of material is the ribbon raped around??
Thanks Boss
It’s wrapped around flexible mica insulation sheets. It’s much easier to work with instead of actual mica, like the original heaters. This stuff seems to be like a paper made from ground up mica.

Interesting and good to know that the heaters can still be made  8)  It might also help that the new mica hasn't had 80-90 years of abuse  :D
Nick

Junkologist

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #22 on: March 31, 2020, 08:51:58 pm »
What kind of material is the ribbon raped around??
Thanks Boss
It’s wrapped around flexible mica insulation sheets. It’s much easier to work with instead of actual mica, like the original heaters. This stuff seems to be like a paper made from ground up mica.

Interesting and good to know that the heaters can still be made  8)  It might also help that the new mica hasn't had 80-90 years of abuse  :D

I’m no longer afraid to buy an Empire product with a bad heater. I’ve even designed in my head a replacement heater for the Jensen blanket heaters, should the day come that they are no longer available.
Mike

Check out my YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/Cletrac

crazydoug

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #23 on: April 04, 2020, 02:52:37 pm »
Mike,
sorry i didn't see this till joe PM,d me this afternoon. My heater measures 40 ohms on my Simpson 260. By my calculations, it should draw 360w at 120v. Hope that helps.
My temp. meter is at work. If you need a temp. reading, let me know and I will get it monday. The line voltage when this was built was 110-105 volts, so keep that in mind if the engine runs at a higher wattage than on the nameplate. I found years ago that 20v difference caused a lot of problems with my early 30's radios- I actually rewound a lot of power transformers for radios that I wanted to play for extended time periods. I'm not sure how much difference it makes on steam engines, but a variac set at 105v is a good idea for anything more than a short run. You probably already know all of this though!
doug

RedRyder

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #24 on: April 04, 2020, 03:17:56 pm »
Really great rescue, Mike...!!!

Gil

crazydoug

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #25 on: April 04, 2020, 03:32:58 pm »
What kind of material is the ribbon raped around??
Thanks Boss
It’s wrapped around flexible mica insulation sheets. It’s much easier to work with instead of actual mica, like the original heaters. This stuff seems to be like a paper made from ground up mica.
I'm curious what thickness mica you used.
crazydoug

Junkologist

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #26 on: April 06, 2020, 08:23:12 pm »
Really great rescue, Mike...!!!

Gil

Thanks, Gil!
Mike

Check out my YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/Cletrac

Junkologist

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #27 on: April 06, 2020, 08:33:12 pm »
Mike,
sorry i didn't see this till joe PM,d me this afternoon. My heater measures 40 ohms on my Simpson 260. By my calculations, it should draw 360w at 120v. Hope that helps.
My temp. meter is at work. If you need a temp. reading, let me know and I will get it monday. The line voltage when this was built was 110-105 volts, so keep that in mind if the engine runs at a higher wattage than on the nameplate. I found years ago that 20v difference caused a lot of problems with my early 30's radios- I actually rewound a lot of power transformers for radios that I wanted to play for extended time periods. I'm not sure how much difference it makes on steam engines, but a variac set at 105v is a good idea for anything more than a short run. You probably already know all of this though!
doug

I’ve since done all the calculations for my new heater and it falls right into spec for the engine. I do run all my old stuff on a variac set to the specified voltage. Even when run at 110 volts, it gets very hot, like 500+ degrees. At 80 volts it stays right around 350 degrees or so. I thought about making another heater to accommodate the higher voltage we have today, but it get just as hot because the wattage would be the same. Maybe this is just how these engines are, but I have nothing to compare to.
The mica insulation sheet I used is .15 mm thick. The element is wrapped around two strips.
Mike

Check out my YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/Cletrac

crazydoug

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #28 on: April 07, 2020, 06:49:35 am »
Mike,
you've aroused my curiosity now, and since I have extra time at home due to the virus, I will run my B38 tonight and check the temp.
crazydoug

Sprintcars11

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Re: Empire Hot Air Engine
« Reply #29 on: April 07, 2020, 07:17:07 am »
Thanks Doug!