ME Beam engine flywheel

Hi everyone,

first time posting so be gentle with me. I’ve recently aquired a part built ME Beam engine, among other things it was missing the flywheel which I’ve ordered from Reeves but it’ll be too big to turn in my lathe. Does anyone have any suggestions as to where I could find someone with a big enough lathe who would machine it up for me?

thanks

Hi David welcome to the forum. What lathe do you have and where do you live as with a bit of ingenuity you can machine larger things than you think or if local someone may help.

David

Welcome to the party, as David says it's not what you've got but how you use it. A myford S7 has a 9" face plate, though thought of a a 7" machine. How big is the flywheel and where are you ? Noel.

If you have a mill you could do what I did with some wheels. Mill and bore the boss, make a mandrel with a driving pin to drive against a spoke (you could just rely on friction if the boss diameter is big enough). Mount the assembly in the mill spindle and a turning tool in the vice then turn away.

Flyweel is 9 1/4" dia and being reasonably narrow (15/32) at the rim should just fit in a Myford Gap

Hi guys

thanks for the feedback so far in answer to your questions I’ve only got one of those small 7”x14” Chinese lathes and while after some fettling and adjustments it has so far been adequate there’s no way a 9” flywheel is going to fit. I have an Axminster tools SX1 milling machine so will look at HowardTs suggestion and see what I can come up with.

I live close to Romford in Essex btw

thanks once again for the ideas.

David

David

I assume you know no one with a larger lathe. Have a look at your local model engineering societies. At least one will have a good working workshop with a larger lathe. Join a model engineering society, even if they do not have a good lathe, and wait. Look at the membership and try to understand their interests. Sooner or later you will recognise someone who will turn the flywheel quicker than you will every do so and is willing to help. There is nothing wrong in getting someone to help you.

Remember, frequently people do not join clubs or societies for what they can put into them but for advise (I joined a one make motorcycle club almost 50 years ago to find out how to convert a 350cc single into a 500cc. I am still a member and never converted my single to a 500cc).

I wish you every success with the engine.

JA

Why does it need to be machined on the rim, the real ones weren't. You can machine the boss on your milling machine

But will the SX1 rev slowly enough for such a large job -- needs about 50 rpm -- and have enough torque to power the cut?

Maybe you could fit a hand crank to the top of the spindle and do it that way, slowly slowly. Taking the hard skin off the outside of the rim on the bench grinder first would speed things up. Then a very sharp HSS toolbit for the final turning.

Edited By Hopper on 08/01/2023 02:09:02

Maybe because mould shift does not scale very well, having the two halves 1mm out of line on a 10ft flywheel would be fine but not so good on a 9" one. If you file it away you end up with out of round and maybe a bit of cupping of the casting where it will notice on a small engine but not on something large and moving at less rpm.

I suppose one could put the hole in first and then set the flywheel up to rotate and spend your time filing off the machining allowances (no machining allowance on full size) and constantly checking for high spots or wobble and eventually end up with a true running wheel to size but I expect most don't want to go down that route. Certainly George Gentry and Exactus both opted for machined flywheels and Mr Gentry even farmed it out to a workshop with a larger lathe,

Edited By JasonB on 08/01/2023 08:05:17

If you can't get the boss centred under the the chuck of an SX1 to bore it then machining the rim is a little academic.

If it does mounting the flywheel for side milling the rim on either a rotary table if you have one or make a plate with a pivot to suit the boss and a large lever to control the feed. The last suggestion is last resort and a bit fraught with danger and possibly too far outside the box.

Don't climb mill by mistake, the flywheel will have lots of leverage to overload a small table.

Carbide cutter

Hi chaps,

thanks for all the valuable input so far. The flywheel arrived today and whilst centering it up to bore the hub wouldn’t be a problem the rim will definitely need turning as It’s got a couple of very high spots and there’s a casting number that sits proud on one edge.
I’m going to set it to one side for the time being as there’s a hundred and one other things to be getting on with. I’m going to see where my nearest club is and maybe go down that road.

thanks again

There is or was a club at Romford ! Noel.

You might also consider joining the SMEE.

Not in Romford but easy to get to by public transport (Elizabeth line to Farringdon

then Thameslink to Loughborough junction). You could easily machine your flywheel in the workshop there.