# Something a little different....



## tom-1979 (Jun 4, 2015)

Hi Guys,

I have designed and built a little steam / air engine that uses electric solenoid valves instead of mechanically actuated valves so I thought I'd share the plans. 

I know it's not a beautiful engine but I built it as a funtional experiment. It's also my first design and build engine.

The machine I used to make it is a Clarke CL500M. This mill / lathe was bought as an MRO machine but it is capable for small projects if you take your time.

See the links for the build..

http://www.instructables.com/id/Electromechanical-Steam-Engine/

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jF-BylxRDvw[/ame]

My next engine will be a gasoline electric solenoid engine, probably a hit and miss. 

View attachment ICENI ELECTROMECH ENGINE - SHEET 1 OF 2.pdf


View attachment ICENI ELECTROMECH ENGINE - SHEET 2 OF 2.pdf


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## jimjam66 (Jun 4, 2015)

Cool idea! I'm guessing you used a Hall effect sensor to trigger the solenoids?


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## tom-1979 (Jun 4, 2015)

jimjam66 said:


> Cool idea! I'm guessing you used a Hall effect sensor to trigger the solenoids?


Hi David, I thought about using a Hall sensor but I went for a micro-switch due to the extreme simplicity. I was really suprised that I could get away with one micro switch, but it did take alot of pondering to get it all set-up right.


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## jimjam66 (Jun 4, 2015)

Well it worked out great.  Sometimes I forget the simple options like microswitches ...&#128563;


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## chrisinestes (Jun 4, 2015)

Neat idea. Thanks for posting it. 

Keep up the good work!
Chris


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## vederstein (Jun 6, 2015)

No shame in a "functional experiment".  I like it when something is built strictly to see if it can be done.  It's a learning experience.

Hell, I've got about a 1/2 dozen failed/partially successful experiments sitting on my shelf of shame.  (Ok, the Webster I haven't yet given up on, but I've got other projects to complete first).


...Ved.


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## Metal_slicer (Jun 9, 2015)

vederstein said:


> No shame in a "functional experiment".  I like it when something is built strictly to see if it can be done.  It's a learning experience.
> 
> Hell, I've got about a 1/2 dozen failed/partially successful experiments sitting on my shelf of shame.  (Ok, the Webster I haven't yet given up on, but I've got other projects to complete first).
> 
> ...


Seeing that photo makes me feel less bummed out about my experiment. I have learned a lot so far. I'm going to finish this project failure or not. Thanks for sharing. It's good to know that failure is just a part of the process.


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