Member postings for Paul Lousick

For anyone interested, there is a 3D CAD model of a 1" Minnie traction engine for free downloading on grabcad. Modelled in Solidworks but also available in STEP and IGES format which can be imported into other CAD systems.

Paul

**LINK**

Hi Bob,

I have not tried any, but there are photo editing apps for downloading to an iphone. Some free.

Paul

In Australia a ball point pen was originaly made by "Biro" and their trade name was what we called a pen. The new generation just calls it a pen.

The common expression that I see in a lot of GB posts is "Hoovering" the floor. Not vacuum that is used here. How many people actually use a Hoover made vacuum cleaner?

Bah humbug, I say !

Edited By Paul Lousick on 11/10/2020 01:08:59

Try a paint spray gun supplier.  Advertised air pressure regulators state an output pressure range from zero psi

Paul

Edited By Paul Lousick on 11/10/2020 00:53:10

If your dream is to build a traction engine you should start one. You have made a Stuart 10V and already have some of the skills needed. A traction engine just has more parts. Start with the simple ones and tackle the more complex ones as you gain experience.

When I started to build my engine, I had many years of experience in engineering design as a mechanical draftsman but very little actually using a mill or lathe. With practice and advice from others, I was able to build everything. Only took 7 years. My engine is a big model and weighs 700kg but I found that building very small parts can sometimes be much harder.

Paul.

Edited By Paul Lousick on 10/10/2020 13:12:30

Joe Pieczynski on Youtube is a good site for learning milling and turning techniques for amateur machinists. This is a link to some of his videos for machining a cylinder casting for a model steam engine.

**LINK**

Joe is not an expert on steam engine operation but has a good knowledge of machining, work holding and set-up applications. I may not do the same as him but always learn something new. Such as using a tooling ball to set up the job for driling inclined holes. (Not heard of them before).

Paul.

Making a punch and die for a 1- off rectangular hole 3.7mm long by 2mm wide is a lot of work. Why not just drill a hole and use a small file to make the rectangle ?

Paul.

Hi Bob, I use a few methods to seal parts depending on application. Depending if its oil, water, steam, etc.

For the pump flanges I would use a paper or neoprene type gasket. Gasket sealant is also available in tubes which is good for machined surfaces. (available from car and hardware parts stores) Check the temperature rating if you are sealing a steam connection. The traditional sealant for steam engines is a graphite paste which is good for flanges and screwed parts.

For the gland packing use graphite or teflon. Available as square or round section to suit the width of your gland and cut to length. For the pump piston rod, I cut rings of packing that go around the rod. Then a second (or more) rings of packing, installed with the gap at 180 degrees to the first (ptfe tape, could be used but not as good as proper gland packing)

Paul.

Edited By Paul Lousick on 09/10/2020 02:44:41

Hi Bob,

I have a similar problem when taking photos with an iphone in portrait position. The smart viewing software in the iphone automaticaly rotates the photo when in a landscape (horizontal) position. As does some PC viewing software.

The problem arises when the photo viewer does not have a feature that detects that the photo was taken in portrait mode and displays it in landscape. By using a PC to rotate and save the photo, the default is now landscape.

Paul

Hi Bob,

Not sure how you rotated the photo but I saved it to my computer, used my editing software to rotate the image and uploaded to my album in ME. ( It should appear on your PC folder (using view / icons) in the correct orientation prior to uploading)

Paul.

Portrait photos are OK Bob, but you have to rotate them before you upload to your album. You can also grab a corner and drag to a smaller picture if they look too big in your post.

Where did you get the pump drawings from ?

Paul.

Edited By Paul Lousick on 07/10/2020 04:17:37

I run my blades at slow speed (probably 100 rpm or so) with lots of coolant and don't have problems.

Edited By Paul Lousick on 01/10/2020 08:38:52

A lovely piece of furniture but I don't think it was originally made for storing metal tools.. Buying second hand and not intended for a tool box, it is buyer beware and you cannot expect a refund.

Best option is to seal the drawers or line with a suitable material and coat the tools with an anti rust product. Lots on the market. Lanelin (from sheep wool) used to be what the old timers used. Now availavle in spray cans. Good on your hand also.

Paul.

Great show, especially admire the guy who fixes clocks and the lady who repairs paintngs and porcelain.

Moisture in the wood ??

The link above is to a bigger, more detailed engine with a 190mm diameter flywheel. The one in MEW / ME has a 115mm diameter flywheel. Your choice as to what size you want to build.

Paul.

Drawings and construction articles for the Muncaster Entablature engine were published in Model Engineer August to October 2019 editions.

Available in the digital archive of MEW if you are a subscriber.

Paul.

Edited By Paul Lousick on 30/09/2020 02:14:19

Sash weights may be a cheap source of CI but they are normally made from cheap material and contain lots of cavities and impurities. The outer surface is often very hard and difficult to machine.

Paul.

The latest edition of Model Engineer No 4648 has an article with a steam raising blower.

Paul

One of my favourite tools for finishing odd shaped parts is a power file. Mine is a Black and Decker which I have had for years but lots of others available at the local hardware store.

Paul

Edited By Paul Lousick on 27/09/2020 01:46:13