Steam & Engine of Australia

 

Stationary Engine FAQ

This is the Stationary Engine Frequently Asked Questions
This FAQ is written and maintained by using both his own original work and parts of articles posted by members of the Stationary Engine Mailing List, and complete articles contributed by others - see the end of this page and within the individual articles for all acknowledgments. Do you wish to contribute? Pick a topic and go for it!

Section

Contents

Where do I start?

Beginners Advice
Information Sources
Buying an engine
Unmounted, On Skids, or on Trucks
Tips and Trix - by Ted Lee -
Building a Transporter/Cart for your engine
Building Rally Display Stands by Mark Kennedy
How to read old iron advertisments by Tim Claremont
Glossary of engine terms
Engine Classification Guide
Good Advice - Never Go To Far
Spark Under Compression

Showing your engine?

Showing your engine. Including Finding shows; Registering to attend; What you need to bring; and Dealing with the public.
Show Operation & Safety
Classic Comments Heard At Shows
On Carts Or Skids

What is it? What does it do?

The four main different types of engine you will encounter explained simply with diagrams
Diesel (Oil) 2 Stroke
Diesel (Oil) 4 Stroke
Petrol 2 Stroke
Petrol 4 Stroke
The Engine Governor Hit-and-Miss and Throttle
What were they used for?
Bore and Stroke Explained
Meissner Spark Intensifier - by Rob Skinner

Tools & Shop

Basic Tools
Tool wish list
Setting up a shop
Shop safety
Painting the Shop Floor
Static Electricity Dangers You Might Not Expect
Buying Poor Tools Is A Waste Of Time And Money
Anvil Mounting

Restoration

Materials required and Disassembly

Initial clean up
JB Weld and other epoxies
Repairing a pitted bore with JB Weld or other expoxies
KB Weld and Hidden Repair (at sale)
Removing Carbon (Decoking)
Cleaning and Refacing Valves
Removing Studs
Freeing Stuck Rings
Replacing Ignitor Points
Flywheel Gib Key Removal
Flywheel Removal
Pulley Removal
Penetrating Oils
Lifting Serial Numbers With Acid
Unsticking Valves & Pistons
Piston Removal
Annealing (softening) Copper eg. gaskets

Locating replacement parts

Iron casting for engines
Source of Stainless Steel Balls For Check Valves

Repair Methods

Knurl an undersize piston or build up to suit?
Repairing a failed key on a cam shaft
The nature of repairs and disclosure
Straightening a bent oiler (or other brass fitting)

Cleaning, De-rusting, and Painting

Stripping An Engine
Rust Removal/Conversion
Rust Removal using Electrolysis
Rust Removal with Mollasis
Surface Preparation - Icing, Bog, Primer
Flywheel Finishing

Assembly

The Engine Puzzle - How to put it together
Casting Babbit
Gaskets
Installing Piston
Magneto Overhaul
All about Buzzcoils
A cheap Buzzcoil alternative
Rewinding Coils
Making a soldered Fuel Tank
Fixed a Cracked Cylinder
Copper Tubing
Hot tube liner
Machining a carb jet
What to make a gib key out of
Fixing pits in the cylinder wall with JB-Weld
Timing the ignition and Valves
Importance of sealing gaskets on a Maytag

Maintenance & Operation

Cylinder Oiling- What type of oil, and how much
Winter Preparation
Cleaning
Operation Safety
Locating correct fuel
Draining Fuel Tanks and 1900's Octane
Power Kerosene
Timing the ignition and Valves
Starting an Engine
Starting a Stationary Engine - HOWTO directions for many engines types and styles
Fuel Types
Fueling
Fuel Can Safety
Fuel Sucks! Or doesn't as the case may be
Leather Belting
Belt Dressing (as a slip remedy)
Calculating Belt Tension
Crowns on pulleys
Cleaning up &Protecting Paint work
Orientation or Identifying the front or on side of an engine
Water Injection
How fast is my engine going? - RPM
Horsepower
Testing A Magneto Coil
Keeping Brass And Copper Shiny
Throwin' on a belt... a matter of safety
Cooling tank height, size, and piping
Why does my engine backfire?
Can I start on coil then switch to magneto for trouble shooting?
Batteries & Acid
Cleaning Brass (& copper)

Transport & Storage

Lifting
Trailers
Securing
Long Term Storage
  Got any other ideas - Use the Feedback Form

Paul Pavlinovich wishes to thank Erv Troyer who collated some of the source material for this FAQ from the Stationary Engine Mailing List.
More recently M H Kennedy of Bendigo Victoria has provided some safety guidelines for shows.


This article is part of the Stationary Internal Combustion Engine Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). This series is a combination of my views and knowledge and the views and knowledge of other people - most of them members of the Stationary Engine Mailing List (More info on ATIS). Those articles which were written by others are © Copyright to the author. Those articles written by myself are © Copyright to Paul Pavlinovich.

Got comments?

If you would like to comment on any part of the FAQ please do so by using the

Disclaimer:It should be noted that the information given in this document is considered to be good advice by the people who give it, however any legal liability lies strictly with the reader. The contributors are hobbiests not professionals.

 
Last modified Sunday, 06-Aug-2006 12:08:15 BST
 
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