I've tried this combo several times without successful results.
I tried adjusting the valve timing to limited success. After
setting it aside for a while (in a corner in the kitchen) I took
another stab at the timing and hit the sweet spot! The video is
the proof! I'll try it again in a day or two to make sure it was
really running.
https://youtu.be/FoBLVTG1oMkHappy steamer,
Wayne
Great Job Wayne.
Nice lil steam plant ya got there. Cant wait to see how dialed in you get and how more refined you make it. Enjoyed this vid
Jason
A nice little runner there Wayne, well done on getting it going.
Wayne, very well you should be pleased with that performance!
That engine ticking over slowly is just simply SWEET!!!
Thanks for the kind words. It was verrry rewarding to see it run.
I've added a link of this combo driving a Jensen generator.
https://youtu.be/-CSbLRmWj50I must admit.....the engine is a bit clunky. Both flywheels are
a bit off center and that has caused one crank end to be a bit sloppy.
Well, it will probably never be run more than one boiler's worth of
water so it is no biggie. I wonder if an extremely thin skin of
lead could be set onto that bearing surface, kind of like old-timey
car engine bearings when you could pour your own. Probably a silly
idea.
Wayne
Not a silly idea Wayne, though I think shim brass would be a better way to go than using lead!
Stoker....thanks for the advice. I'm all in favor of shims
when proper machining is not an option. I will investigate
brass sheet sellers for the thinnest available and buy several
thicknesses. I only thought of lead because it would be soft
enough to be 'run in'. Do you think there is a danger that either
brass or lead would stick to the crank or bearing holders? I
do not like doing mods that run the risk of being un-reversible.
Anyway, the #3 and #5 engines run well.
Of course, other problems crop up. Whoever built the boiler fill
pipe arrangement did not use PM parts. Soldered copper pipes, a
couple of union joints and though it looks like hell, it all works.
The valve is another matter. the blow-down valve, nickel-plated,
has always been verrrry stiff to turn. Yesterday, the handle broke.
Thankfully, small pliers will still turn it. Because it is not PM
parts, and the maker used a couple of other off-brand parts in the
pipe setup, I won't be taking it apart as it does work.
For now I'm putting the #7 back on the base and work on making a
proper pipe arrangement. The #5 needs to take a breath and wait
its turn.
My wife just retired (I've been retired for a while) and it is a
whole new world. I'm chauffeuring her around today. Between that
and the changes in $$$$ income and health insurance arrangements,
I've been feeling like a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking
chairs. Worse than the four mortgages I've done, and they were tough.
Muddling thru,
Wayne
Metal supply houses typically offer a shim stock assortment pack that while not cheap can prove to be a bargain in the long run. I think K&S, the hobbyist's supplier for telescoping brass, aluminum and copper tubing, also offering various flat and angle stock, does offer an assortment of brass pieces of various thicknesses, though not as comprehensive nor inclusive as a regular machinist's set of shim stock, yet much cheaper. Think I'd look at what K&S has to offer first.
On another note, it may be possible to "clamp" the shim stock into the bearing by having part of it "pinched" into the joint so that it cannot move with the shaft's rotation.
https://ksmetals.com/https://ksmetals.com/products/brshim
Congratulations on getting it running Wayne.
You are becoming quite the accomplished Steam Mechanic.
Thanks for the KSMetals link. I checked out OnLine Metals earlier
but KSM is more up the hobbyist's alley.
If this option was not possible, I'd have tried the lead or lead
solder method. Get a good molten glob and let it drop on a smooth
surface. I'm sure the skin that forms would be pretty thin, especially
if the smooth surface was hot to begin with. Maybe I could get an
old bearing-insert half and melt that down. JK.
Thanks,
Wayne
K&S usually has a display in most any hobby shop, if such even exist anymore, but also typically have a display in most local hardware and lumber stores. Both True Value and Ace have them here in my little town, but they are often poorly stocked and may not have whatever you may be in need of!
Very nice, Wayne.
That PMR engine runs well. Nice to have a fully machined boiler on hand too.
I'll be ordering the KSMetals brass shim assortment today.
Hopefully, that will reduce the play in the crank bearing.
There is no way around this.
Of course there is a 500lb gorilla here... I can reduce the
play but the two flywheels are still off center and the off
center forces will wear the bearing walls and shim out of
round again. Bottom-end knocking is a bad sound in any engine.
I presume they need to be put in a lathe and a new slightly
larger CENTERED bore hole drilled in. Then fit in a bushing to
neck it back down to the crankshaft size. What do machinists
charge for such work where you live? How long would it take
for an experienced machinist to do this? I would like to get
this engine running smoothly. Anyone have a machinist friend
in Brooklyn or Nassau County?
If the machining is not possible I'll just shim it up and
run it occasionally.
Thanks,
Wayne