Brian, another good tutorial series on Youtube is by Paul McWhorter. He takes you through several simple projects, covering the basics.

Chuck

I too, got seriously interested in flying Gliders while stationed at RAF Upper Heyford with the USAF in 1975-1977. I Often went to Brize-Norton and worked towing the winch cable to earn my instruction flight time. I believe I was the only yank there at the time. Enjoyed the social time at the Club Bar at the end of the day.

Edited By Chuck Pickering on 19/01/2019 18:27:11

Has anyone needing these gears tried 3d printed ones? I

I used Fusion 360 and it's spur gear add in to design and print every gear in my 7x lathe.

My 7x is almost 20 years old, and I haven't broken any of the headstock gears, so haven't tried 3d printed ones there. But, I have printed various change gears, including a 90/20 combo gear for extra fine feed and a custom banjo to accommodate it, and a replacement motor pulley that work fine.

I agree with Dave. I also just loaded the sketch to an Uno and uploaded with no errors. But, I have the TimerOne-R11 library installed...

Google gives me this link as to what Dragon's Blood is, **LINK**

Google also lists it on Amazon. It is also used in cosmetics. You might try a chemist(Drug Store to us colonials) such as Boots, if they are still around.

I recently discovered the book “Every Boy His Own Manufacturer”, published in 1872, thanks to an old thread being woken up on another forum.

The thread contained the link to get the book:

**LINK**

I downloaded the book and started drawing up plans to the locomotive “Lightning” described in it. So far I have 9 parts drawn in Fusion 360.

Has anyone else downloaded this book and drawn or built this loco?

I’m ready to make the end plate formers for my small horizontal pot boiler. The body tube is 1.625” od, and 1.512” id, thus a wall thickness of .056”. I have both aluminum, and oak available for the formers. Are there any hard/fast rules or formulas for making the formers? With either material, I plan to have a center hole for a mandrel to turn them on. I’m leaning toward turning the former out of aluminum, as I have enough copper tube for a couple more.

I’m also making the end plates from pieces of the tube, so the end plates will be .056” thick. What would be the minimum radius for the flange? How wide should the flange be?

I’m following Stan Bray’s design Boiler # 1, in chapter 14 of the book “Making Simple Model Steam Engines”, but I couldn’t find 2” or 50mm tube. I assume the former diameter would be tube id – (wall thickness x2) and the blank disk should be a diameter of tube id + (flange width x2), with some allowance for the radius of the flange bend.

Last question, which is the best orientation for the end plate in the body tube, flange pointing in or out? Why?

I believe the ball is stainless, it came from a ball bearing...

Brian, I am re-reading the Harris boiler book and taking notes... I found what you referenced. Thanks for the re-direction. I knew I'd seen it before, just couldn't remember where.

Ian, thanks for the input. I've learned so much here...

I will continue my studies of model boilers and their function, and hopefully will build one soon.

This may not be the place to ask, and please point me to the correct forum if not... Obviously, I'm researching info to build my first boiler.

I have a few books on boilers and have learned a lot from them and from asking questions here. What I haven't yet found, is how to determine the steam requirements of a specific engine. Or, stated another way, how to make sure I build a boiler big enough to run my engine?

As I can't, or haven't yet, found a source of copper tube of decent size to build a large enough boiler to run all the engines I've built, I will probably build Stan Bray's double tube boiler.

Being a very curious fellow, and wanting to understand the why, as well as the how, where can I find the calculations necessary to determine how big a boiler I need for a specific engine?

Per the drawing in Bray's book, there is a 1/16" hole through the knurled screw.

I have been drawing up a set of boiler fittings for my first build. As I'm a yank, I am designing/drawing in imperial and using UNF threads.

I have Stan Bray's book, Making Simple Steam Engines, and will probably build my first boiler from the plans in that book.

This afternoon, I made an attempt at making the safety valve from that book. Below is a picture of my attempt. I've decided on 1/4"-28 thread for my various fittings. I used the spring from a 'clicker' ball point pen, and a 4.75 mm ball from a cut up ball bearing. I did not make the guide rod as in the book. Do I really need it?

The adjustment screw is long to make sure I can adjust the valve to the working pressure that is yet to be determined. What do you think of my attempt?

I have, what I believe to be a domestic steam heat radiator relief valve. I found it in my Dad's tool box. I fugure it's got to be 75-100 years old. The coin in the picture is an American Quarter for scale. I would like to make one like it but a bit smaller to use on a model boiler. Think it would work? I intend to make the valve and body long enough to give a good range of adjustment.

Thank you, Duncan. Interesting read, and it answered my question.

I was researching info and designs for a small boiler safety valve when I came across an old post in this forum by Stub Mandrel. He was describing a problem with a sticking valve he was testing.

He wrote:

"I gingerly prodded the top pin of the safety valve to see if it was stuck and 'wham' a huge jet of wet steam hit the ceiling of my workshop, presumably as it primed. I lost 1/4" of water in the glass but it stopped wjhen I turned the gas off. A repeat outside saw the same., except teh geyser was about 12 feet high and created a localised shower downwind, much to the cat's alarm. It didn't close again until the pressure was nearly zero."

What does he mean by "... presumably as it primed..." ?

My thoughts exactly...

Here's a link to download a pdf of the book referenced by Bob B.:

**LINK**

I know this is an old thread, but please bear with me. I have the original article on the Peterson slotting tool. I also found a set of Solid Works models of the slotter, but I can't remember where I got them. I am trying to modify the models to fit my 7x lathe. I successfully imported the SolidWorks drawings into Fusion 360. Has anyone modified this slotter for a 7x and be willing to share the drawings? I have printed the original body pieces via Fusion, to use as a pattern and will cast it in aluminum (I'm a yank, hence the yank spelling). I could machine the original to modify it but would rather modify the model.

Great analogy, Neal. Had to copy and save that definition. Also shared it, with credit to you, on a couple Facebook groups I follow.

Chuck