Potty Popcorn Engine

[NickG]

Nice idea with the rotary table, gives you a lot more control, finer feed 

[sbwhart]

Cheers Guys

My lathe has quite a big throw, so I could get the rotary table under the chuck, it probably won't work with most lathes.

Stew

[sbwhart]

Things slowed down on this over the last week what with visiting our son up in Glasgow, and i wasn't too happy how it was running far to sluggish, so I've spent a few days tinkering with it, the engine that is. Slowly chased the stickiness out of it final part was to make a new front cover, for some reason or other it was nipping the piston rod and slowing things up, so made a new one making sure, everything was correct, that did the trick its running great:- like one of Dave Stilldrilling orphans.

Also spent a bit of time drawing up the governor



Your probably thinking how the hell is he going to make that, well I've no bloody idea also 



But you don't know what you can do until you try.

First part the swiveling bit.

Rough out a chunk of brass bar.

Then form the domes, things were a bit tight so I had to finish off the back dome with a file and Mk 1 eye ball.



Looks ok

Tomorrow I'll start to mill it out.

Stew

[saw]

I like your'e drawing, what program are you using?

[sbwhart]

Hi Bennie

I'm using autocad 2008

Stew

[Stilldrillin]

Not had much orphanage time recently, Stew...... 

Many thanks for your efforts! 

David D

[sbwhart]

Good mornings work in the shed, finishing off

Keeping the job in the chuck transfer over to the spin-indexer and fly cut the flats.



Then find the centre of things and zero the DRO.

Drill



Then off set and drill the 1mm holes fly the fly ball arms.

Turn it through 90 and mill the 2mm slots for the fly ball arms with a slot drill.



For those of you who don't know what a spin-indexer is here's a pic of the set up.



Then still keeping the job in the chuck put it back in the lathe and finish off the diameters so that everything is nice and concentric just in case anything moved under the mill.



OK again keeping it in the chuck back onto the spin-indexer and mill the 3mm dia groove for the drive belt I just turned the indexer by hand to cut the groove.



Back onto the lathe to part off.



The reason I left the big bit sticking out at the front is to give me something to chuck onto to finish the back end.

So holding onto the chucking piece, clock up true.



Drill through for the spindle then open out to 12mm with a boring bar for the bearing.



Then protecting the finished dia, turn it round in the chuck and skim the chucking piece down and dome the end.



Job done, needs a bit of tidying up with a file and the shape is a bit off but it will do the job fine.





Need to buy a new tank of propane for the next bit.

Stew

[Stilldrillin]

Hey Stew! 
Yer gettin' a bit too good for this place....... 






Superb! 

David D

[saw]

Yes, you are still the Man 

[NickG]

Stew ... amazing design and execution!  

[DaveH]

Stew,

Very nicely made

Very nicely shown

 
DaveH

[doubleboost]

Hi
Stew
Very nicely done & well shown

[sbwhart]

Thanks  John/Dave/Nick/Benni and Dave

Got on with the fixed part of the governor, this is the bit that has the packing gland in the real job its sit in the little loop so you can replace the packing without having to strip everything down, well thats what I think it does, I'm going to cheat with this as I cant think of a way to get in and tap the hole and at the same time screw it onto the steam chest, so I'll just fiddle it and make it look like the real thing.

Fist job rough it out.



Then with the ball turner form the rads it was a bit awkward get the back rad done because of hitting the chuck, so I had to eye ball some of it.

Looks ok



I scratched my head on how to do the next bit, doing the out rigger for the belt jockey wheel. In the end I just filed a lump of brass to match the radius and screwed it to the body with a 6ba brass screw.



Then silver soldered it.



I left plenty of meat on so it was over to the indexer for milling.



And locating and drilling the holes.



So this is how it came off the mill



Then I turned up a filing button and using this as a guide whittle the unwanted stuff off.



Then back onto the lathe and parted it off the bar.



Then it was a matter of using the chucking pieces to finish off each end.



Time for a hows it looking shot



Not bad

Stew

[Stilldrillin]

Not bad?? 

Artistry....... 

David D

[doubleboost]

 
I think you are the GOVONER
John

[saw]

 

[modeldozer]

  

[sparky961]

In order to make the body for the governor I need a ball turning attachment, being a bit of a tight wad I didn't want to go out and buy one and I wanted something that would be quick and cheep to build, and I tough of my RT, I hunted around my stash and came up with this lot.

A couple of mornings work and I had got myself a ball turner.

What is it you Brits say when something is just .... "smashing", "brilliant"?  It's one of those "now why didn't I think of that" moments... 

I have a similar setup on my lathe/mill with plenty of clearance under the chuck and I'll be giving this "a go" myself!  Thanks for the great idea.

-Sparky

[Bernd]

Stew,

I have to hand it to you, that is one bit of fine machining there in making the govoner. I'm impressed.    And it's done manually, no CNC involved. 

Bernd

[sbwhart]

Cheers guys for all your support.

Didn't get anything done today.

But thought I would ask a ? of you guys, I may have asked it before but no harm in asking again.

I've been trying to get my head round the plumbing you see on popcorn engines, no two seem the same, some look like Russian spy trawlers they've got things sticking out every ware.

I'm going to keep it simple along the lines of this.




but without the twirly whirly bit which i've worked out is for a pressure gauge.

But the lubricators the sticky up thing in front of the steam chest looks all wrong to me, its bottom looks to feed into the the steam pipe, but for a displacement lubricator this is wrong.

Has any one got any knowledge of this or access to an engine with a lubricator on they can check out.

Even though I will be running my engine on air and displacement lubricators don't run on air I like the idea of fitting one.

Cheers

Stew

[Rob.Wilson]

Hi Stew

  looking great ,,,,,,, very nicely done 


The displacement lubricator could look like this ,,,quick doodle ,,,,,, lid missing 


Rob

[saw]

Hi and good work as usual.
Yes the lubricator could be better, if you look how I have done it http://madmodder.net/index.php?topic=6151.0, I believe that you can get a better idea.
However you're engine is a fine peace of art, a Mona-Lisa in engine, a well done Mad Modder project. 

[PatJ]

A few photos I have.

[Brass_Machine]

Just catching up with this thread. Amazing work on the governor so far 

Eric

[sbwhart]

Thanks for your input and comments guys.

Rob got it correct with the lubricator, Jim over on HMEN posted a drawing so thats one ? answered.

The next ? is their anything worse than a good dose of man flue, its hit me with a vengeance, so I've cozied up all day in front of the computer, drawing up the supply manifold.



Stew