Model Engine Maker
Engines => From Plans => Topic started by: scc on September 17, 2020, 09:14:09 PM
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This is a brief intro to my new project. The 2" Clarkson vertical with reversing gear. I have bought the drawings and a flywheel casting, the rest will be fabricated. I've made a start by chain drilling, sawing and filing the uprights....welding next (Wot no laser cutting!) I have also bought a set of castings /drawings for the Clarkson Steeple engine, although I am waiting on some missing items before I start that one. The plan is to build them together to make for plenty of variety in my workshop. I have added a photo of the steeple castings although I hope a certain Su**us doesn't spot them ;) Progress is likely to be slow so don't wait up! Terry
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:popcorn:
Got my ticket & ready for the ride!
John
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How big is that flywheel?
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The second pic is for the 2" vert and is approx 6" dia. The third pic is the steeple and is about 10" dia. Hope that helps. Terry
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Off to a promising start, reminds me of when I made the Tidman organ engine.
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Next move on the uprights is to bend them. I have never had to bend cold rolled ms before only black hot rolled. Now then, do I need to use heat?
In the mean time started on the crank disc, found a nice piece of scrapbinium, straight forward turning job and a pleasant change from recent jobs,
Terry
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Next move on the uprights is to bend them. I have never had to bend cold rolled ms before only black hot rolled. Now then, do I need to use heat?
They look fairly thick so heating them will make them easier to bend. How did you bend the spokes on your traction engine?
Jo
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If you have a reasonably strong vice then they will bend fine cold and without annealing. If you use the 3 point method and work your way along making many small bends it's quite easy to do. I shaped the front tyres on my Fowler this way and they fitted with almost zero gap between them and the ring.
What thickness material are you using? 5 or 6mm I would do in the bench vice but if less then the mill vice will work Ok and not get strained, also makes it easier to jig things so your bending points are at right angled to the curve. Unless you have a press available which is even better
This is the Tidman (3mm material) that I mentioned, two points provided by the vee block and the brass bar is the third, it's really just like a press brake and no burnt fingers.
(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/v156/jasonballamy/Engineering/Tidman%20Organ%20Engine/.highres/DSC00094_zpsx3rnfkng.jpg)
(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/v156/jasonballamy/Engineering/Tidman%20Organ%20Engine/.highres/DSC00095_zpsmt7l3riw.jpg)
(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/v156/jasonballamy/Engineering/Tidman%20Organ%20Engine/.highres/DSC00097_zpslon2lt8m.jpg)
(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/v156/jasonballamy/Engineering/Tidman%20Organ%20Engine/.highres/DSC00124_zpso8qexv3r.jpg)
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Jo, On the Burrell they were standard bends, not gentle curves. I used to have a VERY heavy machine vice which sat on the floor as I could not lift it, one end of the spoke was held in the jaw and t'other end thumped with a big heavy hide hammer!.....sounds crude but it worked a treat.
Jason, I'm using 3/16" plate which has had 2hours in t'oven at 220 before I started. I "press" ahead with confidence :ShakeHead:
Thank you both for your interest. Terry
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Jason, Just noticed the locating tabs on the Tidman...Nice. Terry
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I'm using 3/16" plate which has had 2hours in t'oven at 220 before I started.
:thinking: I would have gone for red hot for bending. As there are only two pieces heating with a propane torch would seem ideal.
Personally I have a hydraulic press so don't have to abuse my bench vice for bending :paranoia:
Jo
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You should try it Jo only needs light pressure on my bench vicehandle to bend cold 5mm and the 3mm in the mill vice the weight of the handle is almost all that is needed as you are only making a series of very slight bends, it's not like trying to bend it 90deg.
Funny enough I first used this method as Malcom of MJ Eng suggests it in the Fowler building book and that was for the 3" engine which had 3/16" tyres same as being used here
It's not that hard to bend steel, there was a question on ME about bending some 3/4 x 1/8 at 20ishdeg and there were some most elaborate posts about heat treating, doing it red hot, making jigs, etc that would have taken ages to type let along do I just went down to the shed and let the video do the talking.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pfHDXtICg8
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It's not that hard to bend steel, there was a question on ME about bending some 3/4 x 1/8 at 20ishdeg
Terry is looking for a gentle controlled curve in a piece of mild steel that is 40mm to 75mm wide and 4.76mm thick.
I remain a fan of doing such things on my hydraulic press. You can also straighten things with it like Scaffold poles :)
Jo
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I know he is Jo and that is what most of my last couple of posts have been about, showing first hand experience of how I easily bent a double curve on what are very similar parts, no need for a heat proof former to bend it over and very easy to control the bends. I also said that if available a press would be the best way.
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Jason, Just noticed the locating tabs on the Tidman...Nice. Terry
Yes I added those to my drawings before sending off to be laser cut. But even just cutting parts myself I like to have some way to locate the parts together as it's easy when trial fitting but also a big help when clamping up to weld or solder as things stay where they should and in the case of soldering particularly less clamps needed so less metal to take away the heat.
Only needs to be a simple slot milled to locate the edge of a mating part, for example on those standards I would mill say a 1/16" deep slot down the middle of the foot, curved plate and top trunk guide plate so all three line up. may also drill and tap the inside edge of the foot so the curved part can be screwed to that.
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Thank you all. :ThumbsUp: :cheers: Terry
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Had some unexpected spare time today so a little more progress made. I milled a shallow locating slot in the back of the uprights to aid fabrication. Some may have noticed that I do not make workshop equipment to look good :hellno: and my home made press is no exception but it does the job! A quick cobbled up set up with a bit of scrap and the uprights are shaped. Thanks again for the advice......I don't know why I was apprehensive. Terry
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Looks cracking Terry: you have achieved a lovely smooth bend :ThumbsUp:
Jo
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Thanks Jo
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Set up this simple jig to assemble the uprights. Having put the press away I had to resort to the bench vice for a couple of little tweaks to ensure the upright's accuracy. run out of time so welding next time. A bit dissapointed to find so many glaring drawing errors on something that's been around some time. The upright's base fixing holes for a start. Nothing major as long as you work it out before touching metal.
Terry
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We have mig / tig, etc at work but true to form things need to be done in my shed if at all possible. ::) So I fetched out the old cheepo stick set and welded my uprights. They will look fine after the attentions of the Dremel and a bit of JB. Before that the locating slot for the trunk guide needed milling.
As a break from the uprights I have been turning the flywheel, the bores for this and the crank disc have been reamed to finished size. Next will be the crankshaft which will be turned to fit the bores....(better than doing it the other way round) Terry
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Well I have to say it's great to get back in the shed :) My wife's ribbon business got busy earlier than normal this year so no spare time at all. We have been flat out since mid September! I almost feel guilty when so many businesses are suffering, but we have grafted with 14hr days, 7 days / week. The Clarkson flywheel, crank disc and shaft are done, and the uprights just need a bit more tidying. I have decided to fabricate the base next. Jig-sawed from 3mm plate and edges cleaned up with files, I've angled the ends to look more casting-like. It will be screwed together with ally blocks and then welded. Blocks removed and holes welded up.
With bad weather outside the shed is quite congested and involves climbing over stuff to reach scrapbin stock, etc. I hope to be continuing this build now at my usual "steady" pace :old: Best Wishes to all. Terry
Nearly forgot.....also making a cover for the Charlesworth
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More progress on the base "casting" I will let photos explain as it is all standard fabrication. Used the old stick set again. Next job is to make/fix the wells for the crank disc and eccentrics followed by the pads for mounting thee works. Terry
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Base nearly complete, ran fly cutter over top pads to ensure all level. Just needs some tidying with files and then JB "fillets" adding.
I hope everyone is keeping safe. Best Wishes Terry
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Base is coming out nice! Someday I gotta go take a welding class or three...
:popcorn: :popcorn: :popcorn:
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I have to stick weld Chris, not enough torch capacity to silver solder or braze! Mann wagon coming on great. Terry
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That's about two of the main fabrications out of the way now with just the trunk guide to go which should not be too bad to do.
Are the 4 pads just screwed/rivited or have you bonded them on? Should not make a lot of difference as they are really just decorative spacers with teh threads in teh main top plate doing the work of holding things together.
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Just screwed Jason, as you say the lot gets held together when the "works" are through bolted. Terry
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Next up are the main bearings. Aluminium is not my favourite material but I had some the right size. I did most of the shaping with hacksaw and files which I find very satisfying. The 4jaw was set up on my little Clarke so made use of that.
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Hey I really like your shop press! Great work all round I say. Very interesting build.
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Those curves you bend are really nice. Only one question: on the picture 11 (close up of press setup) you have the 2 small tubes. Did you weld these to something? I tried something like this once and one tubes was suddenly launched into the shop. It rolled out when the press was under pressure. Scary moment for me then.... :thinking:
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Hi Pieterb, No the tubes were not fixed, I too have had things "move" under pressure....some of us never learn :zap:
Pleased you like the press Propforward, I needed one and had no spare money to buy one, function comes before appearance. It continues to be very useful.
I finished the main bearings on the little Clarke lathe today. The dial gauge is another "use what you have" quick fixes.
The brasses will be made on the Atlas simply because the 3jaw is already set up. Thanks for following Terry
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Apart from fillets, etc. the base is finished for now. I have followed the drawing for mounting the bearing housings, ie. the fixing bolts are tapped underneath. It seems odd as the drawing also shows protruding "feet" at both ends . At the moment I have no material for the cylinder or trunk guide so will look at the drawings and see what parts can be made from my existing stocks. Up to now the only spend has been the flywheel casting. :) Terry
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Looking good
I think I would be tempted to add a couple of screws from below into the bottom halves of the bearing blocks. That way you can line them up and leave them in position and just remove the caps if you want to get the crank out. The "feet" can be found on other engines, my Tidman is similar and copied from full size.
(https://hosting.photobucket.com/albums/v156/jasonballamy/Engineering/Tidman%20Organ%20Engine/.highres/Tid64_zpsffchujoy.jpg)
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Jason that is what I have done but obviously not explained it correctly. The lower halves are tapped with 2ba screws fitted up through the base.
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Following an extensive search in my scrapbinium mines some material has been located for my cylinder and trunk guide :whoohoo: Not the ideal choice but with careful choice of piston and crosshead material all will work well. Terry
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Extracted the metal for the cylinder and trunk guide :thinking: Trunk guide piece machined to nominal od. then shortened on the home made saw. A shoulder was machined to locate the flange which is being cut from some plate and will be welded on prior to final machining. I do not own a fixed steady hence the odd set up to face the other end. The bore will initially be drilled and then bored before a final hone. Before that happens I need to decide how to attach the side mountings. I suspect they will screwed on. Yes I know a casting would be easier but I'm not using them. Regards to all Terry
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The trunk guide bore has now been drilled, done in stages up to 23mm, the largest drill that fits the 2mt tailstock. I then milled a couple of flats on the sides to locate the mounting pads. These will be held with csk screws on the centre line. Next came boring out to 1 1/4 ins. This was done from both ends due to short boring tools, the plan was to final bore at work on the big lathe after lockdown. However I found an old tool at the back of the shed that would do the job. (just) While the lathe autofeed coped with lots of small cuts I made a start on the cylinder end cover.
made from some 1/4 in plate, this will also serve as the master jig for the cylinder and trunk guides' 16 fixing studs. The fun continues.......
Terry
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Drilled and tapped 4ba to locate the side pads then setup and drilled/ milled the side openings. Next I will weld the top flange then back in the chuck to tidy up and face. I was going to weld the side pads but have decided not to. Apart from possible distortion it is not needed , as there will be ten studs tapped into the trunk guide to fix to the uprights. JB weld will close the gaps on the side pad joints.
I have had a change of plan for the cylinder and have ordered some cast iron. This should make a better (and easier) job than the EN8 found in the scrap bin. Terry
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Looking good Terry!... :ThumbsUp:
:cheers:
Don
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Thank you Don, I have now welded the top flange and faced it off. Couldn't resist "resting" it in position :) I might leave this for a while now and get on with some other parts. Regards Terry
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Started on the eccentrics, all standard stuff. Set the offset on the mill using the dial readout. Lacking suitable tooling I had to remove from the mill and set the drilled centre in the 4 jaw and drill/ ream on the lathe. Drilled for grubscrews, just need tapping now. Terry
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Postie brought some cast iron today :) As a result I have made a start on the cylinder assembly. Plan is to make the bottom cover first, part off, make top cover, part off, make cylinder. I will continue to post on this build but I am aware that it is a simple engine and my set-ups are basic to say the least :embarassed: However I am having fun and still cannot believe how much time I am able to spend in the shed. What a great hobby we share, Terry
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Cock-up time :cussing: Parting off the bottom cover and broke my last parting tool. The solution was to turn the material around and machine it parallel on it's full length.....it then fitted in the saw vice. Only then did I notice that I had drilled the gland aperture full depth :facepalm:
I decided to thread right through and turn a small recess on the inside face. I will then make a short threaded bush with a small collar to fit the recess. loctite and careful peening should fix it and still allow the gland nut enough room on the outside. Back to the hacksaw next to cut off the top cover leaving a just overlength lump for the cylinder. That should provide some entertainment. :Lol: Regards Terry
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Quite prototypical to have a "neck bush" in the cover :)
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You are absolutely correct Jason, all our big engines at work have them. Silly of me to not think of that :old: One neck bush now made and fitted. The bore was machined with the bush in the cover to ensure it's concentric. Terry
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Time to start on the cylinder. Not wishing to waste material I decided to remove the core by drilling. I seem to remember Andrew doing something similar some time ago. Apart from scribing a guide line on each end it was all done freehand. Cylinder held in the 3 jaw from my long gone Colchester and using a 4mm drill carefully positioned by eye. Drilled half depth then repeated from the other end. A little work and I have my cylinder ready to bore plus a nice piece of iron for future use. Terry
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Bored the cylinder cautiously yesterday, I'm quite pleased with the result. Machined to final length and finished both ends. I tack welded a spare boss to the chain drilled top cover to enable it to be chucked and machine the top face. Removed the boss, turned it around and machined
the inside spigot. Both covers now fit nice on the cylinder.
I decided to finish machine the trunk guide at home rather than wait until I'm allowed to go to work and use the big lathe. The result was a nice finish but with a 2thou taper :( I got out the brake cylinder hone and gently tickled one end. It worked ::) Perhaps unconventional, but needs must! next bit is the crosshead.......or perhaps the port block....or perhaps the cylinder cover studs :thinking: While all this was quietly going on the hacksaw was cutting the material for the port block. The resulting loud bang when the offcut dropped unexpectantly raised the old heart rate for a moment :o Few comments but steady increase in the view count.....Thanks for looking in. Terry
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This forum has taught me a lot :happyreader: For instance when making a part I would cut a piece of material just a bit oversize and then start machining, etc, I now leave the part on parent metal to do most of the work, parting off at the end, holding problems greatly reduced. :ThumbsUp: Thank you Forum members.
The crosshead has been a good example....the pics explain. Not having got round to a Z axis readout on the mill I had to improvise. I have set up the bottom cover on the drill to sort the cylinder fixings ( not enough "feel" on the mill) Terry
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Still enjoying the surprising amount of shed time at the moment, I have been drilling for the cylinder studs. Did the bottom cover on the rotary table first...tapping size of course. Next I put it on the cylinder and drilled through. Same for the top cover and top end of the cylinder. Threads and clearance holes to come next. Lacking confidence to trust the rotary table consistency I chose to spot through the covers ..Drill a hole, pop in a snug screw, another hole, another screw, etc You get the picture. Always works well. Terry
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Looking good.
Just remember to mark the covers so they can go back on in the same position, with that many screws on the Clarkson there are a lot of combinations to try if it does not line up first time ;)
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Jason, I have a set of 3mm number stamps so ALL bits get marked for correct orientation....Been caught before :-[ Cheers Terry
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I have just been making the cylinder end covers for Agnes, one of them has 22 stud holes which is a bit weird for dividing on the Boley rotary table, I used a similar method and made the cover to use as a drilling jig for the tapped holes in the cylinder.
The difference is I used the DRO hole circle function on the Boley jig borer to produce the holes in the cover, and I was well impressed that the cover will actually fit in any orientation.
That DRO is something I would never have purchased a few years ago, but I would not be without it now.
Phil
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Phil I'm afraid the budget doesn't run to DRO although it would be nice :) my system of dial gauges covers basic needs (just). I have a perverse sense of satisfaction working with old minimal equipment ::) Good to hear that you are pressing on with Agnes.
Not being in the mood for tapping lots of 6ba threads I have started on the port block. Squared up a lump of cast iron then needed to machine a curved face to match the cylinder. Necessary because cylinder wall is too thin to accept a flat interface. The only way I could see to do this was to use an old fly cutter in the mill. The spigot for the mill collet is only 3/8in so it all seemed a bit risky :o Took small cuts and held my breath......all worked out ok. The visible line halfway down the block was due to me having a rest :old: up and down on the heavy knee handwheel took it's toll. Further cuts were non-stop. Fortunately the little Raglan mill is very rigid and handled the intermittent cuts well.
Just need to bring the block to size now. Terry
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A further visit to the scrapbinium mines produced a short piece of hot rolled mild steel of 2" x 1" section. I could see a valve chest inside it so milled surfaces to size. Outlines were marked out in the traditional manner and machining commenced. Terry
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Oops! Marking out pic shows the chest COVER , Apologies but you get the idea. Terry
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That makes more sense. The piece in the mark out pic didn't match your description at all - I couldn't see the valve chest inside of it at least! :Lol:
Looking good, Terry!
Kim
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Not much going on at present.....loads of drilling and tapping. Last bit today was tapping the threads for the port block onto the cylinder. It will be bonded as well. Terry
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Good weather this morning so caught up on some gardening jobs. Shed time spent on the cylinder and port block. Milled the two steam apertures and drilled through into the port block. Started to rough out the outer ports. I do not have a long enough end mill so will have to mill from both sides. Cylinder is fabricated not cast so steam passages will be milled into the mating face of the port block. I shall leave the honing of the cylinder bore until after all machining is completed. Terry
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The port block is now finished. Next step is to mount it on the cylinder. I have spent some time working the two together with grinding paste in the interface. Both faces are marking evenly, bluing seems to confirm this. I cannot decide what to use for a seal.... JB, Blue Hylomar, Steamseal, or even a thin gasket? Anyone with advice.......not having a suitable boiler it's unlikely to be steamed. Terry
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I tend towards a thin layer of JB Weld as you don't want the excess squeezing up and blocking anything
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Cylinder now assembled courtesy of screws and JB. Drilled through uprights into trunk guide, tapped threads then opened out uprights with clearance size drill. Assembled with a couple of temporary screws to see if all ok. Cylinder is now sat on our central heating boiler for a day or two to cure. I do not think that I am going to mill out the round body to expose the flanges :( and make it more "casting like". A bit of stud making is possibly the next job. Terry
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If you put a couple of dummy brass round head screws either side where curve meets edge of valve block you can tell people it has a cleading ssheet around the cylinder and the "void" is filled with insulation. ;)
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In spite of my previous post I decided that I would mill out the "waist" on the cylinder. The plan was to set it in the 3 jaw on the rotary table
with tailstock support and mill lots of converging flats. The table was bought many years ago along with it's matching tailstock which I have never used. On setting up the tailstock was NOT a matching unit :cussing: Change of plan required. Terry
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Today continued to highlight a lack of the right equipment. I simply needed to drill a 5/8" hole in the conrod stock. My pillar drill lacked a morse taper so the job was done on the Atlas (just) I drilled and faced the ends of the reversing shaft bracket on the little Clark.. intermittent cuts...very cruel on the little lathe. Some time spent yesterday applying JB fillets to the base and trunk guide. Terry
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Very nice work Terry. I would of silver soldered the port face to the cylinder. I have done successfully quite a few times by thinning the port face first then placing flat pieces of solder with flux on it and sweeting the two together in a jig to hold it so pressure can be applied to the port face after heating and the solder has melted.
Regards Don
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Thank you Don, I had considered soldering and it would have been a better job. Unfortunately I don't have a big enough torch at present. :(
Regards Terry
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Even with a decent torch it is not that easy to silver solder CI though it can be done
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Reversing shaft bracket finished and test fitted to the cylinder / valve chest. Fabricated the second bracket needed on the reversing mechanism. Terry
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With this engine I decided at the start to make "proper" studs. As it has turned out I resorted to commercial threaded rod because I failed to make proper ones to a good standard. Very annoying as it seems a simple task. Cut to length,......thread one end,......turn round and screw into a threaded mandrel in the chuck. For some reason they always failed to run concentric. Lack of patience........bought threaded rod. :embarassed: Cheered myself up buy getting a first coat of primer on and telling myself that the stud shanks will be hidden anyway. Terry
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Man! That would have been a “but-load” of studs to make. I can see why you opted for the threaded rod. It’s hard to justify making your own studs when threaded rod is so cheap and as you state... the shanks are hidden anyway.
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Looking very good!
I also use the threaded rod for cases like that - started when I did the Marion steam shovel, there were several hundred studs of different lengths just in the booms and frames.
:popcorn: :popcorn: :popcorn:
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More studs, this time for a repair to the boiler clack on a friend's 4" scale Fowler. One end threaded 3/16" bsw, then screwed into a tapped mandrel , then 2ba on the other end!! This time all worked well apart from blurry photos. :facepalm2: Terry
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Just on the off chance that someone thinks this build has ceased I have been sidetracked by some renovation work on a friend's 4"Fowler traction engine. In addition I've been converting one of my bicycles to electric.....hopefully to help my knees :old: Back on the Clarkson soon.
Terry
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That's the way life works - things come up and projects get put on hold for a while. Your current diversions sound like fun too though! :)
Kim
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Cheers Kim, Yes the bike project is fun and promises more fun :whoohoo: the Fowler less so.....Terry
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Back to the Clarkson. Still on the theme of using what I have (within reason!) I have made an aluminium piston. This engine is unlikely to be steamed so corrosion is not an issue. Also I have some nice 2" cast iron piston rings. Once again couldn't resist some loose assembly as an encouragement to further progress. Terry
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Nice to see an update on this, Terry.
Are some of the studs shorter than the others - on the part where the upright connects? Is that on purpose or just the way it is at the moment?
Kim
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Lovely work. I just had a bery pleasant read through of the whole thread.
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Thank you Kim and Stuart, Kim, some studs are longer as they hold some of the reversing gear. Terry
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Ah, I see! Thanks Terry,
Kim
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A little bit of spare time so made slight progress. I know a lot of you make con-rods from solid but my milling cutter stock is not up to it. Silver solder was also a no no due to lack of heat :facepalm2: The old stick welder was employed to join the two pieces on a jig. I did not make the process easy for myself as I put on too much weld, so lots of filing to do. Terry
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Con rod progress.
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It's coming along.
I can't help feeling that is an odd design of conrod for an engine of this size particularly given the way Clarkson went to the effort of lots of studs suggesting it is based on quite a large engine. If it had been intended just as a working engine then 4 cylinder studs and a simple big end would have done. But I would have expected some form of split bearing at the very least to allow for adjustment.
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I agree Jason, but......My Burrell and my Charlesworth engine both had proper split bigends, I wanted a change and the drawing allowed this. As it will not do much work it's more than adequate. The drawing does not even specify an oiler! Terry
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It's QUIZ time :) I seem to have made a bit of a bog of this engine........in the process of trial assembly to spot through the column fixings I noticed the piston sticking out of the cylinder top :o obviously there is an error in measurement somewhere. The second picture shows some of the bits that may be at fault. Assuming I find the error(s) I will post details next Sunday pm. In the meantime hazard a guess , naturally there are NO prizes :Lol: Terry
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My guess is the piston rod is too long, since if conrod was too long the crosshead likely would have hit the gland at top of the stroke. Measured something with 8ths instead of 32nds? Or your shop gnomes welded an extra piece on the end of your ruler. Do you hear snickering from the top shelf? :Lol:
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My guess is you followed the drawings :(
Although there are a couple of undimensioned parts it's not too hard to take a punt at those and adding things up I get 1/4" more for the moving parts than the static ones.
I'd slip the cylinder off and then check how far down the piston is going and hopefully you can just make a simple adjustment to piston rod length
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I'd slip the cylinder off and then check how far down the piston is going and hopefully you can just make a simple adjustment to piston rod length
I’ll ‘second’ Jason’s suggestion. Hopefully, a simple fix.
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Thank you all, Yes piston rod too long. I do not normally follow the drawing as close as I did this time. Measurements usually taken from assembled parts and worked out from spacing, etc. ..not had this problem before. The rod has been modified and all is well. Valve gear next, working from the model--not the drawing. Terry
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I was going to silver solder the little fork ends on the eccentric rods but I have left my flux at work following a pipe remake on the Fowler :cussing: Instead I started on the expansion link and fetched out the jig that I used for the Burrell. Some relocation of holes, etc needed. This size fits on the mill much easier. I drilled two starter holes in the slot and it all seems to be OK. Ran out of time so will have to complete next time. Terry
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Thats a very clever way of doing the expansion link arc with a long radius, never seen that before, looks like it supports it well. :ThumbsUp:
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Wow! That is pretty tricky! I'll have to file that away for future use.
How do you know how far to turn the RT to get the curve you want? Do you trig it all out? Or do you just turn till you get to the marks you've made? Or did you drill the endpoints and are just joining them with a curve?
Interesting setup for sure!
Kim
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Excellent, I’m definitely filing that one away.
-Bob
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Thanks for comments. Kim, I mark it all out and follow the marks. The start holes are to give the endmill access. The different radii are achieved by adjusting the x axis. I take no credit for the set up...it is detailed in Edward George's book "Model Traction Engines Design & Consruction"
Glad it's been helpful. Terry
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Very interesting setup! :ThumbsUp: :ThumbsUp:
Eric
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Thanks, Finished it off this evening, removed it from the mill and completed the job freehand with a selection of files. Whilst the expansion link will work ok I was in too much of a rush and it is "below standard". :embarassed: I would be unhappy to put it in your hand and say "I made that" :hellno: I shall use it to set-up the engine but intend to make better one soon. Terry
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Progressed the eccentric rods today. A screw and some spacers positioned the bits. The two parts were drilled and pinned before silver soldering and then filed to shape. I think I am going to put this build on hold for a while :shrug: We have three steam tests at work soon, I have just finished restoring my old mountain bike and converted it to electric, our caravan has just been replaced with a campervan and needs sorting for next weekend........ The Clarkson is not getting my full attention so is best left for a while :-\ Terry
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Most jobs sorted so back to the Clarkson.....made the valve and it's bits. Next job is to set-up the eccentric rods, then make the rest of the reversing gear. A few photos to show progress. Why was I thinking of sliced malt loaf when I cut the cast iron for the eccentric sheaves? Made the way they were because I'm using what materials I have. Terry
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Good to see you back on this one and straps are looking good.
Gil (Reddrryder) posted a video of a nice example recently.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iO9KdMkYpMY
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Sure is a nice engine Jason, I shall have to up my game and look again at parts of mine :thinking: Terry
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I have managed to make a bit more time in the shop. Been updating a few bits:- Modified the crank disc into "balance weight" type. Not keen on grub screws, I've cut the crankshaft and flywheel to fit a key. Made a new expansion link to a different pattern. Alongside this I have fettled the Charlesworth leak and progressed the boiler and it's fittings. :)
In this current heat my shed stays lovely and cool. (unlike me when serious filing and hacksawing needs to be done :old:)
Terry
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It has been a week or three since I last updated this thread.......Once the challenge of building with barstock rather than castings was overcome I have found it hard to be enthusiastic about this engine. :( I just wanted to complete it and move on. I suspect that the real reason is that is not a REAL engine that exist full size and has little historic interest. One day I may revisit it and paint / polish it properly. I have a picture or two. One of it being "run-in" on the lathe. My wife has taken a video of it running on air which it does quite well in forward and reverse. We will youtube that soon. Terry
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Apologies...... just noticed camera was on wrong setting for upload, so no pic of running in. I will take static pics tomorrow. Terry
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Looking forward to the pics and video.
I think it's a common problem, a lot of people seem to go at the castings (or fabrication) first and then start to loose interest once they get to the smaller fiddly bits then the engine gets put to one side and forgotten. If you look at the second hand casting s for sale this seems to be the case where many have had all the castings machined but very little else. I usually try and do a mix of castings, smaller parts and fixings as I go along rather than leave it all to the end.
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Hi Terry, just seen your half wooden press design first time.
Very interesting but sure functional also.
Waiting for the next pictures of your engine.
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Hi Achim, I needed a press for my keyway broach but could not afford one. I cobbled one together from what was lying around. Not pretty but works well.
Pics attd of the Clarkson, video soon, Terry
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pics
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[youtube1]https://youtu.be/3UNqCYDZ9cU[/youtube1] video as promised
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Beautiful work, love the sound
Mike
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This engine has now been put on the shelf until I can get keen enough to finish it. I still need to make and fit cylinder drains and a lube system at least. You can probably hear a knock which cannot be "felt" anywhere, but maybe the piston touching a cylinder cover? I'm working on the Charlesworth engine at the moment and will post about that soon. Thanks to all who have followed this build :cheers: Terry
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Got a nice powerful sound to it. :)
Have a look at the crank pin alignment as it looks like the flywheel and flange are moving in and out as the engine rotated which could be the pin being a bit off from shaft and causing the knock. Or it may simply be you have a bit too much end float on the crankshaft.
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Well spotted......there is a bit too much endfloat, didn't think that woul :thinking:d knock :thinking: Terry
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Nice runner :ThumbsUp: but almost too big to be a model .... I'm sure it could do real work if it had to :thinking:
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Congratulations Terry! Very nice looking engine :ThumbsUp:
Kim
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Revisited!!! I decided to progress completion of my Clarkson having lost interest some time ago. I have changed the con rod to one with a split big end. This entailed enlarging the crank pit. Modified the valve gear and eccentric link, etc. Started to change the paint and then lost heart again :ShakeHead: My problem is that it is "just" a model and not a minature of a REAL engine :shrug:
It will get finished one day...........Terry