Recent content by carlw

Pat: Thanks, you explained the subject very clearly. Carl

ajoeiam: That is not my understanding. I believe that I retain copyright ownership of the original material. MEB owns the new formatting if any. As the spreadsheets were not changed by MEB. I retain full copyright. I believe that the same logic applies to publication on HMEM: the forum made...

Nerd: I'm unsure how to proceed myself. My intent was to make it possible for a model engineer to generate his own spreadsheet and had not given any consideration to it being published. I sent this thread to MIke Rehmus, editor of Model Engine Builder Magazine. He has more experience in...

A few years ago, 'awake' posted his algebraic and CAD drawing solutions of the geometry of a three arc cam here: Cam Calculations SOLVED! (But is there an easier way??). He asked if there was a simpler method. Well, yes there is. I've attached the .pdf file below. The article concentrates on...

Valve Gear Design, Michael Turkish, 1946. A complete compendium of information on the design of the three arc cam and its variants, and the design of ring cams for radial engines. At this time cam designers were beginning to use algebraic equations to overcome the high jerk of three arc cams...

Thanks, Roy. This is my first IC engine and I did not know what the spark should look like. I'm used to the nice big blue sparks on full size automotive systems. I'll post progress reports - maybe that will inspire you to build you Mery. Does anyone know if propane is harder to ignite than...

Karl, yes indeed the one and same Carl. Been a long time and it is a pleasure to reconnect with you. Once again, thanks for handling the receiving and shipping of the display bits and pieces. The success of the seminar got me going and I wrote the articles on cam grinding in Model Engine...

Colin: Sorry to say I do not have a lot of photos of Mery. I finished machining and assembling some years ago and Mery has sat on a shelf while I got on with real life. Attached is a photo from when I put it away. I'll add photos and info on getting it running as I figure things out.

I've assembled my Mery engine and am working on the auxiliary systems. I have compression on both sides of the engine and will check for equal compression this week. It will be run on propane and I have a demand regulator built to Jerry Howell's design. What should the pressure at the tank...

I arrived at this thread a bit late and am bringing it back in case anyone is interested. I have two Excel spreadsheets on my website for designing a three arc cam. Yeah, I know, I am beating my own drum, but these spreadsheets should be quite useful. They include a page which generates the...

I'm building the 2008 commemorative engine from the Oregon Gears 2008 show. It is single cylinder double acting with a rotary valve. I've spent some time trying to understand the drawing for the slots in the valve that control the inlet and exhaust timing. I expected to see one pair of slots...

So I dropped a LED flashlight into the cylinder bore, put a ring in square, and saw the light. One gap was about 5/8" long - no easy way to put a number on the width but it was far bigger than I expected. Looks like I will be checking the bore for roundness again and making new rings. I will...

I'm a little rushed for time today and this will be short. This thread has turned into a regular compression troubleshooting guide and will be invaluable to me and to future readers. The idea of back illumination of the ring to bore interface is interesting and reminds me that I read someplace...

First, to clear up some things that I did not make clear: yes I attempted the seat the rings while running with an electric motor. The engine would not start at all and I was trying to sort things out. The intake and exhaust chambers are off the cylinder and the ports are blind flanged except...

I'm chasing various problems with my Mery Explosive Vapor Engine. It ran upon completion but poorly and I have been chasing various problems. The big one is the piston rings have not seated. I motored the engine for about 4 hours with lots of oil hoping that would do the job but a pressure test...