Author Topic: Elbow Engine  (Read 80886 times)

Offline NickG

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #125 on: February 26, 2010, 03:28:43 AM »
Very nice Stew, the bling is just the way I like it too. It's supposed to be an engineering artifact not a sculpture but each to his own.

If I get my 'poppin' engines finished to a similar standard 1 of those will hit ebay, or even better I thought would be to advertise it for sale at the Model Engineering Exhibition. That could do away with any ebay fiascos.

Nick
Location: County Durham (North East England)

Offline sbwhart

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #126 on: February 26, 2010, 05:19:13 AM »
Thanks Guys

I've decided to hang on to No 2 and sell No 1 after I've rebuilt it, one of the Chaps has got his name on it  :D

Have fun

Stew
A little bit of clearance never got in the road
 :wave:

Location:- Crewe Cheshire

Offline SAM in LA

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #127 on: February 26, 2010, 09:31:50 AM »
Great work.

Amazing how smoothly it runs.  :bow:

I appreciate you sharing your build and methods  :smart: you used to achieve the required precision for a good runner.

 :headbang:

Whats next?  :dremel:

SAM

Offline madjackghengis

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #128 on: February 26, 2010, 11:45:01 AM »
Well Stew,  you've done a great job on that engine, and since I just got sort of high speed internet this week, I got to see it run, and it seems to run great.  I think your indicating on the "elbow" did the trick for getting the alignment right on, and the engine running right off the bat.  I expect to do the same when I get around to building my own "elbow engine".  Great job, and great thread showing the whole of it. Cheers!!!! :beer:  Mad Jack

Offline sbwhart

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #129 on: February 28, 2010, 11:56:42 AM »
Thanks Chaps

Sam next project is to get No1 Elbow running as good as No2 its got a falt with the flu wheel it wobles due to the hub being cracked so thats going to be replaced, I've had a good think and a tinker and I think the reason no 2 runs better is that I made the cylinder using the method outlined in the plans attached.

Jack:- Just at little poke  :poke: to get you making an elbow I've attache the drawings as planned.

OK:- now for the dawings, I think that plans available over simplyfy the design requirement of engine I think this is  the reason people strugle to get a runner, in the drawing I've tried to capture my own and John's experiences in getting a successful engine built, I may have overcomplicated the plans the optimum design may be between the two, but I hope they stimulate some of you guys in having a go and successfully build an engine.

Cheers

Stew


A little bit of clearance never got in the road
 :wave:

Location:- Crewe Cheshire

Offline sbwhart

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #130 on: February 28, 2010, 11:59:00 AM »
Whoops  :doh:

downloaded the wrong ones

these are the correct ones

Stew
A little bit of clearance never got in the road
 :wave:

Location:- Crewe Cheshire

Offline Stilldrillin

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #131 on: February 28, 2010, 01:06:20 PM »
Thanks Stew!

Downloaded and printed em, to study during "Candle Rise to Larkford".  :thumbup:

David D
David.

Still drilling holes... Sometimes, in the right place!

Still modifying bits of metal... Occasionally, making an improvement!

Offline Divided he ad

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #132 on: February 28, 2010, 06:43:45 PM »
Stew..... Top job  :bow:  That looks awesome and runs like a dream  :thumbup:


Magic dust eh?? I'll have a chat about that next time I'm in town  :)


Got to say I do like the look of them both, I like the styling features on #2 a lot though....  "melted chocolate" never saw that in polished metals before?  :D  But to me sounds like pretty much all I'd ever need..... Engineering and melted chocolate, fantastic   :headbang:  (ask Bogs and Mal :) )



As said, top job  :beer:






Ralph.
I know what I know and need to know more!!!

Offline sbwhart

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #133 on: March 02, 2010, 11:56:07 AM »
Thanks Ralph

I know your a choco holic  :ddb:


First an appology to any one whose down loaded the drawing, some of the notes on sht 1 and 2 are very badly writen, I didn't proof read the drawing before I posted because I was tearing my hair out trying to save a good pdf copy of sht 5 on the cad system the drawing is fine but when I safv it to a PDF it misses great chunks out, I was messing arround trying to get it sorted for best part of a day even resorted to completly redoing the drawing, in the end I just posted what I'd got out of frustration, perhaps some of you computer Gorues know what hapening.

I've since sorted out sht 1 and 2 attached but sht 5 is beating me.

Any way as a bit of therapy I've made the new cylinders for the rebuild of No 1 and thought I'd share my method with you so her we go:-

Skim up a 2 1/4" length of brass enough for two cylinders and face and part off.



Grip in the chuck and get running true this is not to critical within a couple of thou will be fine.
Face up, Turn step for fly wheel, centre drill and drill right through with a letter D drill 0.246 dia.



You can do the next bit with a rotary table similar procedure, but I'm going to take advantage of the Pitch Circle Feature on my DRO so:-

Keeping the job in the chuck transfer over to the mill, centre the hole with the quill using a centre.



Clamp chuck to table.

Set up the PCD feature on DRO



Centre drill then drill letter D right through, the key to drilling long holes straight is having a machine with good bearings, a nice sharp drill, and not forcing the drill through take your time keep clearing the swarf, if you force it the drill will wonder.



Keeping the job still in the chuck transfer back to the lathe, face and part off:- dont forget to mark the cylinders so you can assemble them in the same orientation as they were drilled.



Face to length and chanfer the out side face.



Run a 1/4 hand reamer through to size the bores this will just take a whisper off.



Her they are done



And with the bling I've got no 1/4" balls for the shells.



Cheers

Stew
A little bit of clearance never got in the road
 :wave:

Location:- Crewe Cheshire

Offline Stilldrillin

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #134 on: March 02, 2010, 12:08:22 PM »
They`re just just beautiful Stew! You make it look so easy......  :thumbup:

Guess you`ll soon have a brace of elbows!  :D

David D
David.

Still drilling holes... Sometimes, in the right place!

Still modifying bits of metal... Occasionally, making an improvement!

Offline AdeV

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #135 on: March 02, 2010, 12:19:27 PM »
 :bow: :bow: :bow: :bow:

Somehow, I didn't see this one from the beginning, having recently played catch-up, I'm in awe. Really nice work Stew!

A question for you - in your 3rd pic, above, you're using a pointy edge finder to locate the centre of the circle. Do you use this just like a dead centre, i.e drop it all the way into the hole & when there's no lip showing, you're centered? I've never quite worked up the courage to use my pointy edge finder with the machine running....
Cheers!
Ade.
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Location: Wallasey, Merseyside. A long way from anywhere.
Occasionally: Zhengzhou, China. An even longer way from anywhere...

Offline sbwhart

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #136 on: March 02, 2010, 12:46:29 PM »
Ade

Its just a running centre the sort you use in the lathe, you just wind it down into the hole and let it pull the work on centre lock your quill in position to keep there while you clamp the chuck down, you've now got the work on centre with the quill, and it only takes a few seconds.

Edit:- you don't need to run the machine.

My machines takes M3 morse tapers and I've been gearing myself up slowly so that the tooling is interchangable it makes life a lot more simple that way.

Cheers

Stew

« Last Edit: March 02, 2010, 01:05:43 PM by sbwhart »
A little bit of clearance never got in the road
 :wave:

Location:- Crewe Cheshire

Offline rleete

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #137 on: March 02, 2010, 12:49:46 PM »
...I've got no...balls...


Lots of us married guys have that problem!
Creating scrap, one part at a time

Offline sbwhart

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #138 on: March 04, 2010, 12:30:49 PM »
Rebuilt No1 with new cylinders and fitted a new hub in the flywheel its now wobble free.

And its a nice runner as well, remaking the cylinders did the trick.

Here's the video:-   ball free  :D



I'm going to have to look arround for another project now.

Have fun

Stew

A little bit of clearance never got in the road
 :wave:

Location:- Crewe Cheshire

Offline Stilldrillin

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #139 on: March 04, 2010, 12:41:06 PM »
COR!!   :bugeye:

That one runs very nicely now......  :thumbup:

Blummin well done Stew!

David D
David.

Still drilling holes... Sometimes, in the right place!

Still modifying bits of metal... Occasionally, making an improvement!

Offline Divided he ad

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #140 on: March 04, 2010, 05:08:47 PM »
Very nice runner stew  :thumbup:


I think you have a natural talent for elbow building/repair  :dremel:



Quote
I'm going to have to look around for another project now.

I've got a couple you can look at  :lol:

How's the loco doing?






Ralph.
I know what I know and need to know more!!!

Offline sbwhart

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #141 on: March 04, 2010, 05:41:16 PM »
Hi Ralph

Yep thats what I'm going to pic up next.

Regulator and Hand pump for the tender.

I'd I've been talking to a man about building the boiler

Stew
A little bit of clearance never got in the road
 :wave:

Location:- Crewe Cheshire

Offline Divided he ad

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #142 on: March 06, 2010, 08:00:43 AM »
Good stuff  :thumbup: 



I'll be watching the loco post  :)




Boiler... From what I've heard it's a bit you have to absolutely get perfect!

Or you could do this....(very, very doubtful!!) 


Oh, the catalogue of errors!  :jaw: :bugeye:


Sorry, well  :offtopic:  so I'm gonna scoot....






Ralph.
I know what I know and need to know more!!!

Offline sbwhart

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #143 on: March 06, 2010, 08:18:11 AM »
Your really don't want that to happen every time I see that I wonder just how bad those bare arms were scalded.

The man I've been talking through is the boiler inspector for the model engineering club I go to, I was checking things out with him as way of preparation, if I needed a certificate of conformity for the material at what stages would he want to check the soldered joint out, some of them you can't see when the boiler is completed etc etc. The rules a regulation vary from country to country and seem to be in a constant revision in the UK, and also like a lot of things they are open to interpretation.

Thanks for the reminder.

Stew
A little bit of clearance never got in the road
 :wave:

Location:- Crewe Cheshire

Offline CrewCab

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #144 on: March 07, 2010, 12:49:37 PM »
Stew ............  :bow: .............  real craftsmanship, thanks for taking us along for the ride ...........  :thumbup:

As to boilers there is a wealth of information over on HMEM as you probably know, have you found the threads by Firebird (he's UK based), dam good imho

CC

Offline sbwhart

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #145 on: March 26, 2010, 12:14:21 PM »
Just a quick up date with some experiments I've been doing with lubrication

Its been noticed by quite a few builders that elbows are quite fussy as to type and grade of oil you use, they like it quite a thick oil and plenty of it, 3 in 1 oil is no good for them, I've tried quite a few different grades some they like some they don't, just to illustrate how fussy they can be I used a synthetic oil for diesel engines this stuff slowed it right down, one quick squirt of WD 40 and it speeds away, two squirts and it stopped dead.

Any way got hold of some Millway 68 slideway oil from RDG  http://www.rdgtools.co.uk/acatalog/Coolants_and_oils.html

I've just ran my engine on this stuff for over an hour none stop, (still going) as far as Elbows are concerned it's better than sliced bread.  :thumbup:

Cheers

Stew

A little bit of clearance never got in the road
 :wave:

Location:- Crewe Cheshire

Offline Stilldrillin

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #146 on: March 27, 2010, 04:25:01 AM »
got hold of some slideway oil........ as far as Elbows are concerned it's better than sliced bread.  :thumbup:

Cheers

Stew

Tried some....... 

By `ek! ......... He`s right, yer know!   :thumbup:     :clap:  :clap:

Nice one Stew!

David D

David.

Still drilling holes... Sometimes, in the right place!

Still modifying bits of metal... Occasionally, making an improvement!

Offline sbwhart

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #147 on: March 27, 2010, 05:31:41 AM »
Good one Dave  :thumbup:

I find elbow engine hypnotic, specially when running slow, I could watch the darn things for hours  :D :D :D

Have fun

Stew
A little bit of clearance never got in the road
 :wave:

Location:- Crewe Cheshire

Offline NickG

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #148 on: March 27, 2010, 07:52:26 PM »
I had the pleasure of meeting up with Stew on Thursday evening and he showed me his collection of engines, the elbow engine is mesmorising to watch and runs superbly. All of Stews engines aren't done justice in the photos - his craftsmanship is 2nd to none.

It was great to meet you properly Stew (we'd briefly met before but were both busy at work!) and of course your good lady. I was treated to a cracking indian takeaway  :thumbup: and then a visit to Bogs and his aladins cave too. Both fantastic guys I'm sure anybody that has met them would agree.

Thanks again for arranging that Stew,

Nick
Location: County Durham (North East England)

Offline sbwhart

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Re: Elbow Engine
« Reply #149 on: March 27, 2010, 08:27:41 PM »
My pleasure Nick

Must do it again

Stew
A little bit of clearance never got in the road
 :wave:

Location:- Crewe Cheshire