Steam engne 001

[mklotz]

Ralph,

The only cure for what you describe as "math dyslexia" is to begin to actually study simple equations until you can tweak out the meaning.

Math is a lot like metalworking. One learns simple skills by repetition until they become ingrained. Then one begins to combine those skills into ever more complex constructs until one can replace a whole paragraph of words with a single line of math.

Is it worth expending the effort to do this? Well, if one designs flower arrangements for a living or hobby probably no. If one is involved in any quasi-technical hobby the answer is a resounding yes.

The "copper clapper caper" is almost as funny as Abbott and Costello's "Who's on first"...

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sShMA85pv8M[/ame]

although Brits unfamiliar with our national pasttime may not appreciate the subtleties of the rapid patter.

I have one concern with a spherical piston. It will be line rather than surface contact in the cylinder and so probably subject to more rapid wear that would be the case with a conventional cylindrical piston. Run your engine a lot and you may need to make more copper clappers.

 

[Divided He ad]

We Brits may not understand the complexities of sitting down eating hot dogs and watching grown men play rounders... but we can find the humour in that sketch :big:

I know what you are saying is right Marv and I am trying to understand the things you write.... I'll get there eventually!
I'm a little more like this..... :big:
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WMi5TUJDso[/ame]

Now the important bit... the brass 'copper clapper' is to the design I chose to follow, You are most certainly right about the wear issue .... I have the technology I can rebuild him!... ;D I also retained the plan for another engine which is the same except for a cylindrical piston and a wrist pin. This would be a retro fittable part if need be.

I'll start a light math understanding program, Your flywheel program will be a focus for a few hours... It can't be that hard to understand ???


Ralph.

 

[Bogstandard]

Ralph,

Marv's flywheel program is great, you can ignore a lot of the complicated bits of the printout, you just follow the relevent bits, like machining by numbers, and you end up with a flywheel the size and shape you want.

I explained to you last time you were down, about drilling ball bearings. If this one doesn't work too well, I am sure a precision ball bearing could be utilised for the piston.

John

 

[Divided He ad]

I'm going to dedicate an evening to it this week John/Marv.

I remember about the ball bearing drilling John, I just wanted to make the whole thing... except I'm cheating on the screws! ;D
(at 3p each for stainless M2 screws it didn't seem like it was worth the hours !)


Ralph.

 

[CrewCab]

Now you can carry on with the threading issue ;D

All looking good Ralph .............. as for the threading ......... I'll not hijack your thread, I'll start mi' own ;D

CC

 

[mklotz]

Ralph,

If you have questions about the flywheel program, I'll be happy to try to answer them. Let me suggest that the best venue for that would be a new thread on the subject. That way the answers will be available for others who might elect to use the program.

If you have questions about math notation, you're welcome to email me directly. (My email addy is in my profile.) We could start a thread on math notation and using equations but I fear that such would bore some of the other members.

 

[Divided He ad]

I'll look over it and then I'll do so again and again etc until I either understand it or am lost.... Then I'll call on your math skills Marv ;D

It would be nice not to look like a rabbit in headlights when faced with number puzzles, throw letters in with those numbers and I soon look more like the one that got run over!! We'll see how I progress.

The way I see it Marv, a thread on math notation would be probably confusing for a while but not boring. Admittedly I would have to read it only a sensible times of the day and not my usual posting times 23.00 - 01.00!

CC, Hijack... I hadn't noticed Part of the fun on this site is the way things get side tracked, look at the above reply... This started about my engine building efforts and now it might develop into a thread about equations etc...!

It's all good ;D


Ralph.

 

[CrewCab]

CC, Hijack... I hadn't noticed

;D ........ got the ball turner up and running ...... added a bit of bling but I'm not in your league yet :

CC

 

[rake60]

We Brits may not understand the complexities of sitting down eating hot dogs and watching grown men play rounders... but we can find the humour in that sketch :big:

I know what you are saying is right Marv and I am trying to understand the things you write.... I'll get there eventually!
I'm a little more like this..... :big:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WMi5TUJDso

Now the important bit... the brass 'copper clapper' is to the design I chose to follow, You are most certainly right about the wear issue .... I have the technology I can rebuild him!... ;D I also retained the plan for another engine which is the same except for a cylindrical piston and a wrist pin. This would be a retro fittable part if need be.

I'll start a light math understanding program, Your flywheel program will be a focus for a few hours... It can't be that hard to understand ???


Ralph.

OK Ralph
Lou Costello's math reasoning makes perfect sense to ME!
Are you making fun of MY math skills?

Rick

 

[Divided He ad]

The more you watch it the more it makes sense! ;D ??? ;D

If only more people thought that way.... where would the human race be now? ??? :

The hat at the end slays me! :big: :big:



Ralph.

 

[Divided He ad]

Right back on with the engine!

I got a few hours in earlier in the week and made the most of the crank shaft...

Then it had to wait until today to do a little more ;D

I had a bit of fun with the incremental method to make a suitably domed centre for the flywheel.

The new crackshaft (incomplete)and flywheel centre.

Then a slight problem of which I have been aware since I made the flywheel.... it's slightly too big!

Soon solved.....

I spent the rest of my evening remaking the cylinder...

Just a few more parts and I may have a runner?



Ralph.

 

[Powder keg]

Looking good Ralph! I can't wait to see another of your videos)

Wes

 

[CrewCab]

Ralph ............... another 48 hours polishing the flywheel would have resolved the problem without resorting to butchering the base

;D


Nice work mate ............. hope to see it up and running soon 8)

CC

 

[Divided He ad]

Thank you Wes, I'll need it to be a good runner first though! Can't show off a poor runner.... ;D

CC, I concider the base re-styled! Once it is polished it will look much neater, that is why I used the same contoured cutter as I did for the rest of the edge.... There will be a few bits of polishing to do before the end though!


Work all week now.... Sucks!



Ralph.

 

[JohnS]

Ralph

The level of care you are taking in the build of your first steamer is soooo impressive, though I do think at some stage you are going to have to reveal to us all where you are buying your bottles of bling - I could sure use some on my engine.

Its the sharing of techniques and methods that adds to the huge attraction of this site - I like the way you pencil in your metric conversions onto your plan. I can see that an evening spent doing that before metal is cut is time well spent -I shall follow suit !

Can't wait for your next installment !!!

John S

 

[Bogstandard]

What a heathen!!!!

You are definitely picking up bad Celtic hatchetman habits. You're not chopping down trees to make a log cabin, you are creating a thing of lasting beauty.

Fancy doing that to a poor unsuspecting baseplate. It's now going to feel ugly for the rest of its life. All it was asking for, was to take the swipe all the way along the edge and it would have been in bling heaven. Now it has to hide its face every time someone looks at its poor disfigured body.

Shame on you!!!

Aesthetic Bogs


BTW, don't change the size of the base, just cut the profile bit to match the chunk of flesh you have gouged out with an axe. That way it will look like it was meant to be there.

Definitely one less karma for you my lad.

 

[JohnS]

Its not like you to pull your punches Bogs

John S

 

[Circlip]

Don't take any notice of them Ralph, It's YOUR prerogative if you want your engine to look like c4ap. :big: :big: :big:

Regardless Ian.

 

[chuck foster]

bugger them all ralph ...............as usual you are doing an outstanding job :bow:

i thing i want to know is how do you get such a shine on the material. i have polished brass and aluminum, but it never looked anything like the finish you have. you make the brass look like gold

again excellent job and definitely one MORE karma for you (sorry bogs just couldn't let that go : )

chuck

 

[Bogstandard]

Oh! Chuck, what a spoilsport.

Just when we were starting to have a bit of fun with him.

These bling kings need a bit of pushing, otherwise they tend to get a bit too cocky.

You only have to look at myself, I thought I had created a masterpiece of bling, when young Lugnut Mel called it a 'bowling trophy', brought me down to earth a bit with that comment, and I started to think a lot more about what I put into a creation.

Bogs

Thought I had forgotten about that, didn't you Mel.