Author Topic: Brian does Ridders flame eater  (Read 17881 times)

Offline b.lindsey

  • Global Moderator
  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 13860
  • Dallas, NC, USA
    • Workbench-Miniatures
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #45 on: February 25, 2018, 01:36:28 AM »
That was a fast build Brian but it looks great. I don't know if Jan recommends using oil in the cylinder or not. Some Poppin builders do when using a metal piston. You might also want to try some graphite powder used for sticky locks and such. Looking forward to seeing it run.

Bill

Offline Brian Rupnow

  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 7573
  • Barrie, Ontario Canada
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #46 on: February 25, 2018, 01:45:18 AM »
Bill--I oiled everything up because turning this thing over by hand you could feel the "roughness" of bare metal scraping on bare metal. I am sure that the oil will add some "stiction" and perhaps prevent the engine from running. I have half a mind to hook an external drive to the flywheel and let it run with oil on everything for a couple of hours just to wear down any "high spots", then flush all the oil away with laquer thinners.

Offline Doc

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 868
  • USA ND
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #47 on: February 25, 2018, 02:14:02 AM »
If you run it with external motor put some graphite powder in it not oil and it should wear in. Oil seems to gum these things up. When I built this motor I think that is what I did. I do know she was real fussy to get running.
  Good Luck!

Offline NickG

  • Global Moderator
  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 1430
Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #48 on: February 25, 2018, 03:14:58 PM »
Everyone has different experiences with these things. My Jan ridders engine does need oil to help it run, it does a couple of things, helps the seal a little and helps prevent build up of combustion products. I use engine oil as it can handle some heat, these engines also have another strange character - they need to warm up before they will run, which seems counter intuitive. There is a theory behind it that when cold the hot air is quenched too fast hence puts the timing out. I do know they run better with graphite pistons though and no oil.

Re the high spots, it simply won’t work if there’s any roughness so running in with an external power source would help. It may be though that you have to keep lapping or take 1/4 thou off the piston and valve. Mine wasn’t lapped by the way, I turned it with slowest feed and a hss tool which gave an excellent finish. The bore was reamed with an adjustable reamer and oil.

I had to make 3 sets of piston / valve before it would work - one was aluminium and it just seized solid, the aluminium expanding faster than the cast iron!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
« Last Edit: February 25, 2018, 03:23:07 PM by NickG »

Offline Brian Rupnow

  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 7573
  • Barrie, Ontario Canada
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #49 on: February 25, 2018, 03:32:56 PM »
And here we have a video of "running in" the engine. Even though the crankshaft and big end of the con-rod are riding on ball bearings, there is more "drag" than I like caused by the piston sliding in the cylinder (a lapped fit) and the valve rod sliding in it's drilled hole. I have coated everything with oil and will let it run for an hour, then put the entire engine in a solvent bath to wash out any oil and/or metallic residue. It is running very slowly in the video, I doubled the speed after it had ran for a few minutes.
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NeaicL1dQc" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NeaicL1dQc</a>

Offline Brian Rupnow

  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 7573
  • Barrie, Ontario Canada
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #50 on: February 25, 2018, 04:32:48 PM »
Okay--the hour is up, and I just pulled the set-up apart. The engine turns amazingly free now compared to what it did before running it in. Won't have much to report now until I get the alcohol burner built.

Offline Brian Rupnow

  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 7573
  • Barrie, Ontario Canada
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #51 on: February 25, 2018, 10:04:09 PM »
Before I build the alcohol burner, I have to source a wick. The diameter of the metal barrel that comes out of the top of the burner depends on what wick you use. On Jan Ridders plans the inside diameter of this pipe is 7 mm which is just a bit larger than 1/4". The only wick I can buy in Barrie is for Tiki torches and is 1/2" diameter.  I just ordered a ten foot length of 1/4" wick from Ebay, and I think its coming from China---they give mid March as a delivery date. This doesn't make me overly happy, but  I don't seem to have a lot of options. I may just go ahead and make the alcohol burner and leave the pipe solid, then drill it out to size when I have the wick here in my hands.

Offline Bertie_Bassett

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 152
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #52 on: February 25, 2018, 10:17:28 PM »
have you got any pipe cleaners? iv seen them used as wicks on here somewhere :noidea:
one day ill finish a project before starting another!
suffolk - uk

Offline Brian Rupnow

  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 7573
  • Barrie, Ontario Canada
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #53 on: February 25, 2018, 10:22:38 PM »
Jan Ridders plans show a very nice little alcohol burner fabricated by soldering a number of pieces of 1 mm and 2 mm thick brass together. I happen to have a short piece of 1 1/2" square mild steel here that is just long enough to form the tank body and bottom plate from, and I can solder a separate piece of brass to the top to make a burner that will do for me. Since the tank body will then be made of steel, I can put a magnet size counterbore in the top of the engines aluminum baseplate and epoxy a strong magnet in place. That will prevent the tank from hopping around while the engine is running. (I'm an optimist.)


Offline Brian Rupnow

  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 7573
  • Barrie, Ontario Canada
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #54 on: February 25, 2018, 10:24:41 PM »
No, Bertie, I don't have any pipe cleaners. I'm delving into the unknown with this whole alcohol burner thing, and hoping in my heart of hearts that once I've built the damned thing it doesn't explode!!!

Offline Doc

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 868
  • USA ND
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #55 on: February 25, 2018, 10:36:12 PM »
I use just plain cotton close line rope seems to work just fine and it's about a 1/4 inch (the stuff I use).

Offline Ian S C

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 1080
  • Stirling Engine Maker Darfield Canterbury N Z
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #56 on: February 26, 2018, 02:09:34 AM »
Brian, if you have some fairly fine iron wire, cut that into lengths that will go to the bottom of the fuel tank, and stick out about 1/4", pack them in firmly, and the resulting wick will last for ever, well near enough.
Ian S C

Offline Jasonb

  • Full Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 9464
  • Surrey, UK
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #57 on: February 26, 2018, 07:30:27 AM »
You can use a small gas flame or even a lighter while you are waiting for the wick. Gas flame works for my Chuky.

Offline 10KPete

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 1606
  • Nordland, WA, USA
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #58 on: February 26, 2018, 07:35:03 AM »
Brian, if you have some fairly fine iron wire, cut that into lengths that will go to the bottom of the fuel tank, and stick out about 1/4", pack them in firmly, and the resulting wick will last for ever, well near enough.
Ian S C

And copper wire, which is easy to find in fine strandings, last longer than iron/steel. Nice and soft so you can mold it any way you want.

I discovered this decades ago when the 'Tiki Torch' was the fad. Used cut-off ends of welding cable for idiot proof wicks.

Pete
Craftsman, Tinkerer, Curious Person.
Retired, finally!
SB 10K lathe, Benchmaster mill. And stuff.

Offline Ian S C

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 1080
  • Stirling Engine Maker Darfield Canterbury N Z
Re: Brian does Ridders flame eater
« Reply #59 on: February 26, 2018, 09:43:13 AM »
I tend to keep away from copper wire, I know it works, but it conducts more heat back down into the meths, and that gets hot enough any way. Fiber glass fibers are also good. I have in the past used asbestos string.
Ian S C

 

SimplePortal 2.3.5 © 2008-2012, SimplePortal