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Recently I began having a problem with my "Y" axis slipping during printing. I have an ANET A8 printer and I am using Cura 5.6.0 slicer. I recently changed to a newer computer and the problem seems to have started about that time. The old computer was using Cura 5.3.0 and I found a discussion on...

I have a 1:12 scale lathe and drill press. I am thinking about making a diorama running these and possible others run from one of my steam engines. My question is what have folks used for the belting to run the machines and the line shafts? PM research offers belt per foot but I am wondering if...

I am trying to run a Corliss engine on compressed air using an airbrush compressor. My question is what am I missing in my calculations? The engine has 1.125 bore x 1.5 stroke. This calculates to 1.49 ci/stroke. Since it is powered both directions it should use 2.9 ci per revolution of the...

Has anyone used an aquarium pump to run a small steam engine? I am talking about something with 3/4" to 1" bore. My daughter teaches middle school and one of the sections that she teaches is the industrial revolution. She wants to show them a couple of examples of running engines and she would...

I have just completed the building of the Duclos Odds & Ends engine. I have it running making it pretty much per the original plan including the carburetor. I had trouble getting it to run unless I partially closed the carburetor intake. I ended up putting a restricting tube in the end of the...

Does anyone have experience with the import milling machine vises? There are pretty impressive looking 6" vises available in the $100 to $150 range. I realize that they do not compare favorably with the $600 Kurt vise but most of us home shop hobbyist have a hard time justifying the price...

After all the years that I have been doing this I should have figured out the proper way. Does anyone have a good method of setting the height of a boring bar? When setting tool height on OD the ruler method works well but that does not work on ID. I have made gages to set tool height relative...

I have a couple of boring bars which take a CCMT-21.51 Insert. I do not remember where I got them. Possibly Banggod. As near as I can figure out they are held in by a flat head torx screw which is 3-56 x 1/4" long. These screws are extremely easy to drop on the floor or into the chip tray. I...

I have an ignition timing mystery. I have built the Two Bit Twin as posted on Model Engine Maker. I have been having a problem getting it to run. I could get one cylinder to fire but not both at the same time. It would seem to fire on one cylinder and the other cylinder would misfire like the...

I have a question which I should know the answer to but I am not doing well. I am building a horizontal twin IC engine. My thinking is that the two cylinders should fire 180° apart. I have both cylinder set up for exhaust to open 40° BBDC and close 20° ATDC. Intake open 15° BTDC and close 45°...

I seem to have a problem with ring sealing. Usually after a lot of screwing around I finally get the rings to seal. I think that the problem is the finish on the side of the ring groove. The finish on the side of the groove has to be smooth, especially on the lower side of the groove. A good...

What are the specifications for using O rings for piston rings? In the past I have seen specifications for sizing the width and depth of the ring groove. If I remember correctly the groove was actually wider and deeper than the actual O ring and depended on compression to force the O ring...

What do others use for head gasket material. I have an engine which I am having a problem getting to seal. I have tried .015 fibre gasket material and .030 material and also .33mm PTFE. The regular gasket material does not seal at all and the PTFE seals sometimes but not consistently. It may...

This in not really a complaint or a criticism of others but I wonder about the "precision" implied on many of the plans posted here and other places. To me when you list a dimension as 27/64 it implies a level of precision required. I have frequently looked at dimensions like that and realized...

Just got this yesterday. 3/32 dia x 36" lg drillrod in an 8' long tube. I am sure that the shipping was more than the rod. Shipped FedEx.

How do folks design something in 3D? I am thinking something like a single cylinder engine. I am envisioning a sequence like perhaps drawing a piston, a crankshaft and a connecting rod kind of out in space and adding things like a cylinder and frame for mounting the crankshaft etc. all rather...

I have been using 2D cad for 25+ years and I have tried to use 3D programs (Fusion 360 and Freecad) and I just cannot get used to the data entry. With my 2D program I can enter X & Y values and it enters that value. For instance if I want to draw a rectangle I could enter 3,0 then 0,4 then -3,0...

Is there any place where I can find information on basic cam design? Base diameter, working angle and lift are somewhat determined by the basic engine design. What I am trying to determine is how is the flank radius calculated. On the cam drawings that I have looked at the radius and the center...

Some time ago I built an Upshur Horizontal Twin and was never able to get it to run. I just could not get compression. I blamed it on rings or poor bore and finally just set it aside for a while. Later I built a similar engine of my own design but larger with 1" bore c 1 1/4 stroke. I again have...

I have a lathe tool holder which came with TCMT32.51 yellow inserts. Amazon offers these as well as TCMT32.52 Brozen. Not sure what Brozen is but as I read it the 2 at then end is the tip radius. 1=1/64 radius and 2=1/32 radius. Would the larger radius give a smoother cut? My problem with...