# Half Scale Ford Quadricycle Engine



## vascon2196 (Dec 24, 2013)

Well here goes...while in the midst of building a full-scale Ford Quadricycle I have decided to move forward with a half-scale version of just the engine. I'm not sure which project will be completed first but since I am in no rush...it doesn't matter! I'm not finished with the half-scale plans yet because I stopped at the intake and exhaust valves...I'm hoping those will evolve during the engine build and I will document the progress along the way.

I decided to start with the "main bearings". Originally Ford made them out of cast Bronze (he made the pattern for them also), but I am machining them both from rectangular aluminum bar stock as shown in the pictures.

I had to make a custom boring tool that did not give me the nicest internal surface finish but those surfaces will be facing the cylinders so nobody will ever see them. My next step is to saw cut the part in half and then mill to the final thickness...resulting in two parts.

Then I plan on adding the mounting holes.

Much, much, much, more to come...hope you enjoy!


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## stevehuckss396 (Dec 24, 2013)

Wow you sure have your plate full don't you. Looking forward to this build.


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## cam081 (Dec 24, 2013)

great work are you going to put your plans on the site with your other plans?


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## vascon2196 (Dec 25, 2013)

cam081 said:


> great work are you going to put your plans on the site with your other plans?



Not sure yet Cam...they will most likely be available to you folks on the forum for sure.


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## vascon2196 (Dec 26, 2013)

A little more progress today.


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## vascon2196 (Jan 12, 2014)

Flywheel Stock, flame cut to just over 9in in diameter. My lathe swing is 9-5/8"! This pushed the limits of what this little Grizzly lathe can do but I got her done.




Drilling and boring the center hole and mounting holes for the pulley.




Turned and Faced....barely made it! The flywheel dwarfed my faceplate!




Completed flywheel. I was bummed that I had to add three mounting holes to fasten it to the faceplate but I could see no other way. I suppose I could have used an arbor or something but at the time I chose this method...maybe I'll plug the holes or something later.




Drilling and tapping main bearing mounting holes.




Main bearing clearance holes for the top piece.




Some drilling and pinning to ensure the top pieces always mate perfectly.




The top and bottom pieces of the main bearings are fastened together and marked.




The main bearings were milled clean once fastened together and are ready to drill and ream for the bronze bushings.




Cylinder and water jacket stock.


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## cfellows (Jan 12, 2014)

This will be an interesting build, Chris.  I had once thought about building a smaller version of the Quadricycle engine.  What is your bore and stroke going to be? 

 Chuck


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## vascon2196 (Jan 12, 2014)

I'm hoping it works when its done! Just taking it piece by piece....like eating an elephant.

The bore is 1.25" and the stroke is 3".

Take care chuck.


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## cfellows (Jan 13, 2014)

vascon2196 said:


> I'm hoping it works when its done! Just taking it piece by piece....like eating an elephant.
> 
> The bore is 1.25" and the stroke is 3".
> 
> Take care chuck.


 
Ahh, that'll be a nice size.  You're definitely in for some challenges, but you're up for it!  Gonna be an interesting engine.  Hope you can post some fairly regular updates for it.  

Chuck


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## mnay (Jan 13, 2014)

Chris,
We are watching this build with great excitement.
I don't have room in my small yard to store a full size quadricycle, but I could find space for one of this size.
Keep us posted and thanks for sharing your work.
Mike


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## vascon2196 (Jan 14, 2014)

Thanks Chuck and Mike...I'm hoping to work on this as often as time permits. I'll post updates as often as I can.

Stay tuned!


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## vascon2196 (Jan 22, 2014)

Here is a picture of the finished Water Jackets and the almost finished Main Bearings. The water jackets are 2" O.D. x 1/8" wall x 2" Long with a 1-7/8" diameter bore x 1/16" deep on each end for caps.

The main bearings are waiting to be slit at the 5/8" diameter and of course the mounting holes. I plan on machining the Cylinders next.


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## vascon2196 (Jan 26, 2014)

The main bearings are almost finished!!!




Adding the mounting holes by tilting the head 30-degrees in each direction. They are clearance for #6-32 fasteners.




Main bearings waiting to be slit on the ends and then they are finished.




Here is the line up for the half-scale Quadricycle intake valves. I purchased (2) valves from PM Research to use as the intake valves. The threads are 1/8"-27 NPT. The only thing that needs to be modified is the valve stem. The threads have been turned off to leave a nice clean 1/8" diameter stem. The valve stem fits into the body and seats perfectly (thanks to PM Research), the spring on top, and then the top valve bonnet. This valve is going to work great.

When the pistons retract they will create a vacuum, sucking open the valve just enough to let the air/gas into the combustion chamber. That's the plan anyway....far away from that right now.


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## vascon2196 (Feb 20, 2014)

So I've had the week off because of February vacation and I have finally been able to make more than 1 part per week! Damn snow keeps falling though 
Plus my propane heater broke and it has been cold at night 

Anyway...here are some progress pictures of my half-scale Quadricycle engine!




My Bridgeport house!




Custom flywheel washer




Tapping 5/8"-11 into the flywheel washer




Second flywheel washer with a clearance hole for 5/8 thread




Made a custom arbor to hold both washers




Perfect fit for both of them




Lightly turned clean




Yaaaaay...they came apart easily!




Finished washers




Starting the crankshaft




Center drill




Turning




And more turning....




Thread pitch looking good...I had practice with the washer arbor!




Thread almost complete.




Yaaaay....it fits perfectly. Good thing too....cause the 5/8"-11 die did not fit over the first diameter!




Okay...now what?




Flip it and hold it in a 4-jaw (I don't have a collet chuck so I chose to use a 4-jaw to make sure it was centered the best I could).




Almost done....




Completed crankshaft...very pleased with how it came out. It fits nicely into the flywheel and the washers sandwich it all together. This little part was extremely satisfying to make and I finally threaded correctly the first time on the lathe!

Not bad for only using a Harbor Freight dial caliper, some common sense, and a little bit of practice!

Next will be the cylinders....if I'm lucky.


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## cam081 (Feb 21, 2014)

looks great well done thanks for posting. cam


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## stevehuckss396 (Feb 21, 2014)

Great job man!


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## vascon2196 (Feb 23, 2014)

Thanks guys...here is some more progress. Back to work tomorrow...back to machining on the weekends again!




Milling the keyways on the crankshaft




Don't worry...the threads are not being gripped!




Turned up some plugs so I could turn the cylinders clean.












Got a fairly nice surface finish...I'm happy with it.




Drilling and boring the cylinder brackets as a pair.




Got to use my new boring head!








The cylinder fits nicely.




The top plate was removed so I could add the mounting holes and distributor bar hole to the bottom plate. I used a make-shift stop to make things easier. The one important thing about these brackets is that the cylinder holes are in line...hopefully this works.




Adding the mounting holes for the exhaust heads....I'll tap the #5-40 holes later.




Completed brackets free of burrs and sharp edges.




Test fitting just for the hell of it....I plan on milling out the cylinders next.


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## stevehuckss396 (Feb 23, 2014)

Wow man, it's like you've done this before.


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## robcas631 (Feb 23, 2014)

Chris. sounds like a interesting build!


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## mnay (Feb 24, 2014)

I have to add my Wow too. Amazing progress. Can't wait to see more 
Mike


Sent from my iPhone using Model Engines


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## vascon2196 (Feb 25, 2014)

Thanks again folks...can't wait to continue working on this. I have been updating the drawings as I go. Hopefully I will have a nice clean set of prints when this is all over to share.

I ended up tapping the #5-40 mounting holes but skipped the pictures...it was not very exciting. If I broke a tap, then you would have got some pictures and a few curse words!


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## vascon2196 (Mar 9, 2014)

Finished milling the clearance slots on the Cylinders. I did change one thing against the original plans but it is very minor. I made the slot straight instead of slightly angled like the full size Quadricycle. Other than that everything looks and feels the same.

Hopefully tonight I can finish drilling and tapping the main bearing mounting holes so I can begin building the "engine". I want to fasten and clamp everything together so the Crankshaft spins freely...then I plan on soldering everything together.








The Bridgeport had no problem with these cuts. I burned through and end mill though...
























Here are the brackets clamped to 3.25in spacing.


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## cfellows (Mar 10, 2014)

Very nice, Chris.  Lot's of nice craftsmanship going into this build.  Gonna be a lovely engine!

 Chuck


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## vascon2196 (Mar 11, 2014)

Thanks Chuck...I hope it runs. I think all the fuss I went through with the Ford plumbing engine will pay off here.


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## vascon2196 (Mar 22, 2014)

Trying to get the water jackets soldered this weekend. I soldered the front mounting bracket to the cylinders. I fastened the main bearings and crankshaft to the cylinders making sure the crankshaft spun freely.

I mounted 4 water jacket blanks together on an aluminum fixture. I drilled and bored to size and test fitted over each cylinder.

Next I'm gonna try to mount all 4 pieces to an arbor, then turn the o.d. until they fit snug in the water jacket c'bore.


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## cam081 (Mar 23, 2014)

looking great I cant wait to see it come together. cam


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## stevehuckss396 (Mar 23, 2014)

Very nice!  Are you going to tig weld or silver solder?


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## vascon2196 (Mar 23, 2014)

Thanks Cam & Steve.

I plan on silver solder...at least that is how I fastened the front bracket already and it came out great. I'm going to use scotch brite to blend it all in later.

I hope the engine does not get hot enough to melt the solder. The water jackets are supposed to cool things down but you know...stuff happens.


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## vascon2196 (Mar 29, 2014)

I ended up making an arbor out of aluminum rod that I had. I turned the end fixed in the 3-jaw to grip 2 water jacket pieces and the end cap wide enough to hold 2 as well. The end cap has a small boss that sticks out and everything is held together with a lockwasher, flat washer, and 1/4-20 SHCS.

I sawcut the 4 corners off each piece to make it a little easier to turn all 4 pieces together. It worked great...never did anything like that before. The rest is solder, solder, and more solder. The last picture shows the front and rear brackets soldered with the water jackets soldered in place. The main crankshaft spins freely by hand.

Next I plan to mount the frame on something so I can get the Flywheel on.


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## vascon2196 (Apr 11, 2014)

I got the main front engine bracket machined and mounted on some angle iron. The angle iron represents how the actual Quadricycle frame would mount the engine. Almost done with the Main Bearing supports. I soldered the #10-32 SHCS's to the cap screw cap. I also purchased a couple of small aluminum clamp collars to fix the main bearing to the mount.

No machining this weekend...visiting the Cabin Fever Expo!


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## vascon2196 (Apr 26, 2014)

Some more progress towards the timing gears. Next will be the eccentric and eccentric strap.

Here is a video of the gears in mesh.


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## stevehuckss396 (Apr 26, 2014)

She's coming along. Nice job!


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## vascon2196 (Apr 28, 2014)

Thank you Steve!


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## vascon2196 (May 17, 2014)

Finished the eccentric strap using the Bridgeport, rotary table, and lathe/faceplate. It's a little snug but I'm going to work it together with a little fine grit lapping compound.


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## vascon2196 (May 31, 2014)

So I goofed on the eccentric strap and had to make a new one. I forgot about the stem and made a new one. The second one came out much nicer. I milled a small flat one the side that faces the gear for clearance. Now I am working on assembly of the flywheel to the crankshaft and making minor adjustments along the way. I'm taking my time with this build...doing a little at a time.




Eccentric strap milled on rotary table and Bridgeport, split in half.




Drilling mounting holes.




Getting ready to tap.




Using custom tapping block.




Assembled together.




Tapping for eccentric timing rod.




Timing rod fits nicely.




Mounted to faceplate ready for drilling and boring.












Adding internal groove.




eccentric and Eccentric strap mounted to gear showing clearance.








Almost there!


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## cam081 (Jun 1, 2014)

great work your engine is really starting to come together.


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## vascon2196 (Jun 15, 2014)

So I painted the Flywheel...then took it on and off a half dozen times for tweaking. There was some clearance issues that I missed on the CAD drawings. The Flywheel got scratched a little but before I paint it again I'm going to wait until the engine is finished.

Here are some progress pics!


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## cam081 (Jun 15, 2014)

hi your engine looks great. top work cam


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## vascon2196 (Jun 16, 2014)

Thanks Cam! The piston's are next on the agenda.


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## radial1951 (Jun 16, 2014)

Hi Chris

Great job so far, just as I expected after following your full size build.

A question(or 2): What material did you use for the cylinders and did you machine the bores? That's a very long hole. Also, what happened to the photos in posts #1 & #5?

A comment if I may. The crankpins look like they are machined from brass, which has some good properties, but strength and use as a bearing surface are not on the list. If it is brass, it honestly won't last long. Could you fit a thin bronze sleeve on the crankpin and open the big end up? Just a thought...

Your flywheel colour reminds me of film days when sometimes red or green would jump right out at you, and some digital cameras using the flash get a similar result. Ironic that it has more than a hint of Chevy Orange 

Regards, RossG.
radial1951
_____________


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## vascon2196 (Jun 16, 2014)

Thanks Ross.

I did not machine the bore...just honed. It was seamless tubing from McMaster Carr, not sure the exact material.

Yes the crank pins are brass...I normally use a shoulder bolt for crank pins but I thought making them from brass would look nice. Do you think they will get too hot? I can add an oiler.


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## robcas631 (Jun 16, 2014)

All I can is WOW! Great job! I can't wait untill it's completed!


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## vascon2196 (Jun 17, 2014)

Thanks Rob...it's going a bit slower than I thought but each time parts fit together as they are supposed to makes it all worth it.


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## vascon2196 (Jul 15, 2014)

Alright then...I have a bunch of pictures and have made a ton of progress. It helps that I have the summer off (best perk of being a shop teacher). I also took pictures of my new DRO for my Bridgeport...the original Trak DRO started flaking out on me (it was 30+ years old).

Both pistons fit great and slide nicely...once I finish the exhaust valves I will add the piston rings and continue working them in to the cylinder bores.

Then I still have to make all the ignition/timing components.


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## johnmcc69 (Jul 15, 2014)

That's really coming along nicely Chris! Nice work!

  John


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## mnay (Jul 15, 2014)

Great Job.  I have been following the whole process.  Can't wait to hear it run!!!!
Mike


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## mnay (Jul 15, 2014)

Thanks for going to the trouble of sharing the process with us!!!!!!!
Mike


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## vascon2196 (Jul 15, 2014)

Thank you folks for all the kind words...I am trying to get this finished by October for the Yankee Steam-Up in Rhode Island.


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## radial1951 (Jul 16, 2014)

vascon2196 said:


> Thanks Ross.
> 
> I did not machine the bore...just honed. It was seamless tubing from McMaster Carr, not sure the exact material.
> 
> Yes the crank pins are brass...I normally use a shoulder bolt for crank pins but I thought making them from brass would look nice. Do you think they will get too hot? I can add an oiler.



Hi Chris, sorry for this very late reply to your question a few weeks ago. 

Yes, lubrication will certainly help, but I suspect the oil flying off will look like murky gold paint after a while! I was also thinking about the low strength of brass and the highly stressed area at the corner where the thread meets the shoulder. That might be a test for the brass...

Probably the best setup in this case is a polished steel crank pin running in a thin wall bronze bushing in the conrod, but there may not be enough room to fit a bush. If the crank pins do wear quickly, then bronze pins could be a solution.

Please take the above as just my suggestions, not meant to be critical of the nice job you are doing on this engine and also the full size one.

It will certainly be great to see and hear it/them running.

Regards, RossG.
radial1951
_____________


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## vascon2196 (Jul 16, 2014)

Thanks Ross...I will most likely swap out the brass crank pins with hardened steel in the future. For now I have to find some drill rod for the exhaust valves!


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## vascon2196 (Jul 22, 2014)

Almost finished!

I'm having difficulty with compression and sealing the exhaust valves. My biggest problem is that I am using piston rings that when installed leave a small gap. I did however turn 2 grooves just in case! That means once the 2 extra piston rings arrive each piston will have 2 rings each. This should eliminate any air passing by the pistons in that direction.

Then I'm going to add gaskets behind the exhaust mainfolds...and maybe add JB weld around all the fittings.

I have been trying to get the timing right all morning and have gotten frustrated. So I decided to upload the pictures I have so far...also a video at the very end.

I ordered 2 buzz boxes but I'm not sure if I really need two buzz boxes?

Enjoy.


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## vascon2196 (Jul 23, 2014)

So it's been kind of a rough day. One of the connecting rods broke while I was trying to install the piston with 2 rings. The solder joint failed...not once but twice it failed. After throwing a fit, I launched the broken connecting rod into the woods.

Now I'm going to thread the rod ends and loc-tite them. I've never tried this approach but I think it will work just fine. The solder just wasn't holding up. Hopefully the rods won't bend either because I am not using heat.

By the way...I had to take EVERYTHING apart to get the pistons out...one of the crank keys flew somewhere in my shop lost forever so I had to make a new one.

I also had a 5 year old outside the shop shouting "dad", "dad", "dad", "dad", "dad", "dad", and so on.

Not a very productive day, BUT the new piston rings came in, and I'm making a better more robust connecting rod. I also think I have the timing right.

Whew....;D


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## vascon2196 (Aug 4, 2014)

Sooooooo...I got the timing as best as I could...wired it up as best as I could...and it kicked over about 3 times! Very exciting.

BUT, I saw some air bubbles leaking out of the exhaust manifold on Piston-1 so I decided to make a gasket for it. When I took the manifold off I placed it on the table to do other things. Well, I knocked it off the table and it hit the concrete floor with the valve stem facing down. I did not notice any dents or major problems right away and proceeded to make the gasket.

After putting it all back together the valve hold no air...no compression at all. The piston just pushed all the air out of the cylinder when it is supposed to be compressing.

I'm going to take out the gasket I made because I think it is preventing the valve from seating properly. If that does not work then I must have bent the valve just enough to make things fail.

Huge bummer.


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## vascon2196 (Sep 7, 2014)

More and more problems for the Half-Scale Quadricycle engine. 

I ended up making a new piston...repaired the connecting rods...made new crankshaft keys...drilled and tapped the cranks in place...scrapped the electrical distributor and went with a simple make and break contact on the flywheel....made new gaskets.

The damn thing was still leaking air.

But wait!....it gets better....when I was testing it yet again today with starter fluid it kicked over a couple of times which was nice to see.

THEN...it blew up in my face. I was deaf in my left ear for a minute or so and the noise scared the heck out of me. My silver solder joint around the front manifold failed! So I took the entire engine apart again and I am bring the frame to the welding students to see if they can remove my solder and replace it with weld.

How Henry Ford built his full size Quad back in 1896 is incredible. Well...there was only one Henry Ford.


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## vascon2196 (Dec 2, 2014)

I finally got around to fixing the half-scale Quad engine! I made a new valve and repaired the valve seat, and lapped it in.

I welded the manifold to the frame so that won't come loose again!

Starting with the right cylinder manifold, I used a gasket and Permatex Gasket to create an air tight seal for compression.

I put it all together, spun the Flywheel, and the piston bounced back at me!!!

Next is the second cylinder and pictures to follow.

I may have this this thing running this year!


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## radial1951 (Dec 3, 2014)

vascon2196 said:


> Alright then...I have a bunch of pictures and have made a ton of progress. It helps that I have the summer off (best perk of being a shop teacher). I also took pictures of my new DRO for my Bridgeport...the original Trak DRO started flaking out on me (it was 30+ years old).



Hi Chris

Good to see some real progress. It will run just great.

Back in your post #44 you showed your new DRO PRO. Curious, where did you buy it, and are you happy with it? I'm thinking of getting one for my mill.

Regards, RossG
radial1951
_____________


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## vascon2196 (Dec 3, 2014)

Hi Ross,

Thank you...I am looking forward to running this so I can focus on the full-size Quadricycle!

The DRO works great. Of course there is a bit of work involved with mounting the scales but it went quite smoothly. Lots of "how to" information and there is a ton of videos on YouTube regarding the unit.

The machine shop instructor here has a dozen of them mounted to their Bridgeport's and swears by them. He convinced me it was the DRO to buy.

So far it has worked great...very accurate.


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## vascon2196 (Dec 24, 2014)

Funny...but I just noticed I started this thread on 12-24-2013 and about 5 minutes ago I was able to get the engine to turn over about 5 times on starter fluid! Today is 12-24-2014!

That is just a weird coincidence!

I have had to take the engine apart at least 10 times, repaired a valve, rebuilt a new valve, rebuilt both exhaust manifolds, welded the frame, new ignition, new piston rings, new connecting rods (one is still broken but hanging on), and I still need to replace the crank pins with shoulder bolts.

BUT, the damn thing is finally running.

Now it can only get better.

Pics to follow.


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## stevehuckss396 (Dec 24, 2014)

Awesome! I am eagerly awaiting the video.


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## radial1951 (Dec 24, 2014)

vascon2196 said:


> Funny...but I just noticed I started this thread on 12-24-2013 and about 5 minutes ago I was able to get the engine to turn over about 5 times on starter fluid! Today is 12-24-2014!
> Pics to follow.



Well done Chris! A great achievement, but it never happened unless we see the video proof of it running!

Merry Christmas to all engine builders. It's already the 25th here...

Regards, RossG
radial1951
_____________


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## vascon2196 (Dec 24, 2014)

Thank you Steve and Ross!

Well, it's not running longer than a couple of seconds because I am only testing it with starter fluid. Hopefully this weekend I can get it running longer with some gasoline!

I'm wearing gloves because I'm not sure if I have the wiring 100%, I have been shocked too many times during this engine build so I'm just being cautious.

Here is the video...not much but I consider it a success. Merry Xmas!

http://youtu.be/mMAKBYX1LLE


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## vascon2196 (Jan 4, 2015)

Attached are a few pictures of the Maple box I made to hide the Coils and Battery. The engine base nests inside the box and rests on four wood blocks. The wire colors were chosen because I thought they looked cool.

After several test runs on starter fluid and Coleman fuel I noticed several mechanical issues that need to be fixed before I mount the gas tank and water cooling tank.

I need to make 2 new connecting rods and 2 new crank pins. The solder joints on the connecting rods are breaking again and the brass crank pins are getting destroyed. Yes, someone early on mentioned they were get ruined and they did. I should have made them from steel long ago. I cannot use shoulder bolts because I have a 5/16-24 thread in the cranks and shoulder bolts only come in 5/15-18...unless someone knows who makes fine thread shoulder bolts.

I am going to ditch the soldered connecting rod all together and make them out of a solid piece of flat stock. I now have Oxy/Acetylene capability but I'm through with fussing with solder until I get more practice.

I also need to make a carb for the engine and will probably use the original Quadricycle carb details just scaled in half like the rest of the engine. I will be using the same drip oiler for fuel like the Henry Ford plumbing engine.

Almost there...


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## stevehuckss396 (Jan 4, 2015)

Cool deal! Can't wait to see her finished.


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## vascon2196 (Jan 4, 2015)

Thank you Steve!

Attached is the finished Steel Crank Pin...I'll make the other one tonight when the kids go to sleep.

I'll have to make the Connecting Rods next weekend when I have time.


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## vascon2196 (Jan 11, 2015)

I machined both pieces of the Carb and soldered them together last night. I added a small 1/4-inch radius using an end mill so the smaller brass piece could nest in place. I held them together with a small 1-inch C-clamp.

Today I plan on cross drilling for the fuel intake. Ford made this piece a casting on his Quadricycle & George DeAngelis made it from brass stock.

My oiler will be feeding fuel to the carb, and then fuel and air will be mixed accordingly before it gets sucked into the engine.


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## stevehuckss396 (Jan 11, 2015)

Looks familiar. 

Took a ride by the ford Mack ave plant site. Nothing but a empty field but the light pole behind the RR crossing arm is still standing after 100+ years.


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## vascon2196 (Jan 25, 2015)

Almost there!

I finished both new Crank Pins, machined, soldered, and mounting my fuel tank, and am almost done making new Connecting Rods. I have decided to make the Connecting Rods from a solid piece of flat stock instead of soldering. I finished the Muffler too. I saw a piece of Chrome plated tubing in the plumbing section and thought it may look nice as a Muffler.

I am also testing different O-rings for the pistons.


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## stevehuckss396 (Jan 25, 2015)

Can't wait!


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## vascon2196 (Feb 17, 2015)

Still fussing with the Carb. Too much snow and not enough patience! I'll keep at it while I'm on February vacation!


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## vascon2196 (Feb 19, 2015)

Since the beginning, my timing rod has been un-threading loose and I have had to stop and tighten it every so often. It would have been ideal to have made it with a left-hand thread. I ended up adding a #8-32 set screw to keep it from backing out.

While I had the engine apart (again) I decided to check how well it spun without the connecting rods attached. It spins great without the pistons connected.

Next, I connected just 1 piston to see how it spins and check compression. It spins great and has a ton of compression. I disconnected the right piston and hooked up the left hand piston and that spun great and had great compression.

When I connect both pistons there seems to be a ton of drag, even with the exhaust valves wide open.

Not sure where the problem is coming from but I was hoping to get all the bugs out before I fastened it together for the 12th time.

Oh, I cracked the damn wood block that holds my ignition timer...that sucked.


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## vascon2196 (Mar 7, 2015)

I put it all back together this morning...its not running. It feels like the exhaust timing is a bit off. More fussing around with it later...we have been getting snow dumped on us every other day and the temp won't go above 25-30F.


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## vascon2196 (Mar 8, 2015)

I double checked the timing and everything appears to be timed correctly. Testing with Starter Fluid works great...the engine wants to shake itself apart it runs so strong.

I soaked a small piece of paper towel in Coleman fuel and stuffed it into the intake opening and the engine ran great.

When I hook up the fuel line from the tank it sucks in too much fuel and floods the whole thing.

I'm also noticing puffs of smoke sneaking past fasteners and a few other places which means I'm loosing compression.

If I have patience later I will add a video.

I may end up using a vapor fuel system and see if that works.


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## stevehuckss396 (Mar 8, 2015)

Waiting patiently. Hope all goes well with the new fuel system.


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## barnesrickw (Mar 8, 2015)

Is it getting fuel?


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## radial1951 (Mar 8, 2015)

vascon2196 said:


> I double checked the timing and everything appears to be timed correctly. Testing with Starter Fluid works great...the engine wants to shake itself apart it runs so strong.
> 
> I soaked a small piece of paper towel in Coleman fuel and stuffed it into the intake opening and the engine ran great.
> 
> When I hook up the fuel line from the tank it sucks in too much fuel and floods the whole thing....



Hi Chris

Could the fuel flooding be caused by the "oiler" fuel tank needle valve being open too much? I assume as soon as you open the valve it dumps a load of fuel (gravity) down to the carby and floods it. 

Maybe adjusting it to get a drop very few seconds or whatever might provide a steady flow. Just letting a few drops out while starting might give a clue if the engine does fire.

I have that type of oiler on my old lathe and they can be adjusted to give a drop of oil every couple of minutes. Perhaps petrol (gas) lacks the viscosity for fine flow control with that type of valve?

How does the full size quad engine regulate fuel flow from a gravity feeding tank?

Regards, RossG
radial1951
____________


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## vascon2196 (Mar 8, 2015)

Thanks for the feedback guys. There is a couple of small screws on the Carb that can be used to limit the amount of fuel going into the intake. Yes, I also have the needle valve on the oiler. I cracked the oiler valve just enough until I saw fuel being sucked down the clear tube I'm using. It would turn over once or twice but never stay running.

I did have some success using the oiler as a vapor fuel tank though! I stuffed one end of the tubing in the top of the oiler and the other end of the tube to the Carb. The engine kicked over several times and there was a lot of movement happening in the fuel tank.

I'm very close but just have not found the correct mixture yet.

Today was the closest I have come...thanks again and keep the suggestions coming. I try them all!


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## vascon2196 (Mar 8, 2015)

http://youtu.be/qk6FcBor71s

Here is the engine running on a squirt of starter fluid.


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## vascon2196 (Mar 11, 2015)

The engine runs strong without the carb installed. With a wide open hole I squirt starter fluid directly into the intake and it runs great. If I stuff a gasoline soaked paper towel into the intake the engine runs strong.

Once I install the carb and add starter fluid/gas it does not run. I'm thinking it needs more air. When I cut all the original numbers in half to make my half-scale version perhaps the air hole was not supposed to be cut that much.

A co-worker of mine has built several Red Wing engines and said his 1.25" bore has a 3/16" hole in the carb where I have about 1/32".

I'm not just sharing this information to vent my frustration (maybe a little), but also for others who are having issues with their small gas engines.

He also said the Flywheel should have a counter-weight.


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## Steve J (Mar 11, 2015)

I built a gas engine and doubled the size bigger. I also had trouble with carb and found that it was too big. It would run with my finger partially covering the intake of carb but not without the restriction. I found that when you double the diameter of a pipe the volume increases something like 8 times. I believe if you look up the formula for volume in a pipe or a cylinder you may gain insight into what is going on. I found the formula in my machinerys handbook.


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## vascon2196 (Mar 11, 2015)

Thank you Steve...I'll take a peek into my Machinery's Handbook.


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## cfellows (Mar 12, 2015)

Chris, 1/32" venturi seems way too small for an engine that size.  I would think a 5/32" or even 3/16" bore would be more to its liking.

Chuck


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## vascon2196 (Mar 12, 2015)

Thank you Chuck...I sent you a PM several weeks back...I must have done it wrong. I was going to ask you about your vapor fuel tank.

I tried to make my own but it did not work...probably because the intake hole was too small.


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## radial1951 (Mar 12, 2015)

vascon2196 said:


> The engine runs strong without the carb installed. With a wide open hole I squirt starter fluid directly into the intake and it runs great. If I stuff a gasoline soaked paper towel into the intake the engine runs strong.
> 
> Once I install the carb and add starter fluid/gas it does not run. I'm thinking it needs more air. When I cut all the original numbers in half to make my half-scale version perhaps the air hole was not supposed to be cut that much.
> 
> ...



Hi Chris

I couldn't agree more with Chuck, needs a much bigger bore in the carby.

How did you end up with a 1/32" diameter venturi? There must be an error, surely the full size engine doesn't have just a 1/16" bore in the carby, more like 3/8"-1/2"dia I would think. I wonder what George DeAngelis' drawings show for the carby?

Terminology is important here, I assume we are talking about the main air intake into the engine? If so, your clue is that the engine seems to get enough air when you take the carby off. The Walbro type carbs on power garden tools (and model aircraft engines) have around a 1/4"-5/16" dia venturi, and a built-in fuel pump, maybe you could disguise one in a polished brass housing... 

Yes, if Henry was building his engine now, he would have a balance weight on the flywheel. But it _was_ 1896... In fact he probably wouldn't have both pistons going to TDC together, but he thought having even power pulses was important, hence the massive flywheel to try and smooth things out. BMW got the same result by going to a flat twin. Harley Davidson still don't worry about even firing, thank goodness, that's why they sound so great!

Regards, RossG.
radial1951
_____________


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## vascon2196 (Mar 13, 2015)

Hi Chris

I couldn't agree more with Chuck, needs a much bigger bore in the carby.

How did you end up with a 1/32" diameter venturi? There must be an error, surely the full size engine doesn't have just a 1/16" bore in the carby, more like 3/8"-1/2"dia I would think. I wonder what George DeAngelis' drawings show for the carby?

Terminology is important here, I assume we are talking about the main air intake into the engine? If so, your clue is that the engine seems to get enough air when you take the carby off. The Walbro type carbs on power garden tools (and model aircraft engines) have around a 1/4"-5/16" dia venturi, and a built-in fuel pump, maybe you could disguise one in a polished brass housing... 

Yes, if Henry was building his engine now, he would have a balance weight on the flywheel. But it _was_ 1896... In fact he probably wouldn't have both pistons going to TDC together, but he thought having even power pulses was important, hence the massive flywheel to try and smooth things out. BMW got the same result by going to a flat twin. Harley Davidson still don't worry about even firing, thank goodness, that's why they sound so great!

Regards, RossG.
radial1951
_____________[/QUOTE]

Hi Ross,

Attached is the original full-size carb drawn is Solid Works. It is slightly different than the original hand drawings done by George DeAngelis. The carb sits in the intake with a .010" gap all around to allow air to enter the intake with gas. This is what Henry Ford did 120 years ago so when I cut the numbers in half I thought it would work.

Henry Ford did have a counterweight on his Flywheel and I do have the details on it. I did not make one for the half scale but now I am going to.

I took the entire engine apart the other night and cleaned out the cylinder bores, cleaned the spark plugs, inspected the pistons and rings, checked the timing, and took care of air leaks. The engine has a ton of compression and again worked great with a squirt of starter fluid.

This weekend I will try to run it on a constant fuel drip.


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## cfellows (Mar 13, 2015)

Chris, I don't see the attachment...


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## vascon2196 (Mar 13, 2015)

cfellows said:


> Chris, I don't see the attachment...



Here is a PDF of the carb.

Oops! 

View attachment CARBURETOR.PDF


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## vascon2196 (Mar 13, 2015)

Attached is a sketch I made of the intake/carb.

If I soak a small piece of paper towel and stuff it into the intake (5/16" opening), the engine runs until all the gas has been sucked from the paper towel.

If I allow small drops of gas to fall directly into the intake the engine will not run.

If I squirt starter fluid into the intake the engine will run.

I'm wondering if I need to add a screen mesh to not only spread out/distribute the gas but also restrict it a little bit?


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## johnmcc69 (Mar 13, 2015)

Hi Chris,

It sounds like the fuel is not atomzing correctly & will only run on vapor as you've seen. Maybe a silly idea, but it seems like the carb needs some sort of a "wick" in it, like a pipe cleaner or a very fine fuel filter material to prevent liquid fuel from entering the intake.

I dunno, just a thought....

Great build though!! I'm sure you'll get it sorted out.

John


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## vascon2196 (Mar 14, 2015)

Thanks John...I was going to try a wick from those Tiki Torches from summertime.

I'm heating my shop up now and hope to get this thing running today.


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## vascon2196 (Mar 14, 2015)

Still not running...now even with starter fluid it runs poorly. I need to take a break from this damn engine before it gets the best of me. I feel like scrapping the whole damn thing and starting from scratch.


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## stevehuckss396 (Mar 14, 2015)

vascon2196 said:


> Still not running...now even with starter fluid it runs poorly. I need to take a break from this damn engine before it gets the best of me. I feel like scrapping the whole damn thing and starting from scratch.



Way too close for that!

How about putting it away for a week or 2 and then trying again. Sometimes a break can help clear the head and give you a fresh look at things.


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## Barnbikes (Mar 14, 2015)

On my dads Ford Pipe fitting engine it would not run with out the micro mesh screen. 

Does the drip oilier screw directly into the pipe T?  If so you are sucking gas only and no air.


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## radial1951 (Mar 14, 2015)

vascon2196 said:


> Still not running...now even with starter fluid it runs poorly. I need to take a break from this damn engine before it gets the best of me. I feel like scrapping the whole damn thing and starting from scratch.



Hi Chris,

Stay calm and don't throw anything, you might miss the engine and hit something important! 

I have photos and video clips of quite a few Quad replicas and _*every*_ one of them has what looks like various types of carburettors, no doubt because the one made by H.Ford and drawn by George DeAngelis was probably a touchy gadget.

Have a look here http://www.quadricycle1896.com/en/Videos.html at the Spanish replica Quad site. The second video clearly shows their caby at 3:45. The lever operated by the driver's linkage is on a vertical shaft with an arm underneath. That arm must have a pin going up into a slot in the moving spindle which goes through to the other side of the main air intake venturi to a fuel flow needle.

You can clearly see the upper operating arm moves the lower arm and that in turn moves the fuel metering spindle in and out to adjust fuel flow. I had to watch it a few times to get the idea. We can't see in the venturi to know if the spindle also has a shaped relief machined on it to alter the air flow at the same time as the fuel flow is adjusted. It should have, to ensure correct fuel/air mixture across the rev range.

Not sure what Dave Dunlavy used, but he is certainly happy to share info. Check his site at  http://quadricycle.info or email him [email protected]

I was quite serious when I suggested trying a weedeater type carby to get your engine going. A rough idea of the required air flow might help with the choice, but it probably won't matter much, or just stick an old one on and see what happens! See your local mower repair man, I bet he throws them out! Or study how a model aircraft glow plug type nitro carby actually works. They are quite clever these days, and give excellent idle and throttle response and are fully adjustable with both low speed and high speed needles. They are cheap and come in a huge range of sizes as spare parts for various engines, and don't need or want gravity feed either.

I reckon either type of carby could get your engine going with only a little fiddling. I personally think a Walbro type carby would be the best and easiest to adapt. Have a look here: http://www.mymowerparts.com/partslist/25880/26492.php  from $30 up. I would still just try an old one to see if it will run. You can run a fuel to oil mix anywhere from 20:1 to 50:1 like most of the 2 strokes these days. Always use Tygon Fuel Tubing for petrol (gas), not silicon as needed for methanol (alcohol).

If the air-fuel ratio isn't around 15:1 no amount of spark or compression will make it run. Well, not very well, nor for very long.

Regards, RossG.
radial1951
_____________
Sorry, a long post...

Edit: I also like Steve's idea, a fresh look in a week might bring on a revelation!


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## vascon2196 (Mar 15, 2015)

Thanks guys...a good nights sleep helped. I will absolutely review all the suggestions before going back to the engine. I appreciate the positive support and feedback.


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## cfellows (Mar 15, 2015)

Chris, I know it's important for some folks to stay faithful to original designs on these kinds of projects, but if it were me, I would consider switching to a more conventional carburetor design.  You have a lot of work into this sweet looking engine.  At this point, I would do what ever is necessary to make it a sweet runner as well.

Chuck


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## vascon2196 (Mar 15, 2015)

Thanks Chuck...and everyone. I quickly designed a carb in SolidWorks and built it this afternoon. I hooked it up to a crude vapor tank almost like yours Chuck. The engine started running longer than 5 seconds! I almost had the damn thing running long enough to record a video but it kept stalling.

After a short while I noticed that I was losing compression in one of the cylinders...I cannot figure it out.

Sooooooo...I've got the entire engine taken apart. I am going to begin making decisions on what to keep and what to remake.

The frustrating part is I won;t be able to mess with the engine for a couple of weeks. I guess that is just enough time to calm down. Today was the closest to getting it running and then another problem that I can't seem to solve (at the moment).


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## vascon2196 (Mar 24, 2015)

Here are a couple of videos of me testing the spark and compression. My left cylinder will no longer hold compression and I can't find where it is leaking from.


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## cfellows (Mar 24, 2015)

I'm wondering if you don't have some metal particles stuck in the intake valve?  I find that repairing or replacing a carburetor, no matter how carefully I try to clean it, frequently results in wayward particles of metal getting sucked into the intake valve causing it to stick open a tiny bit.  Sometimes holding the exhaust valve open and blowing several short blasts of air through the carburetor intake will clear it.  Also, rapping the intake valve stem with my finger will sometimes shake it loose.

Chuck


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## vascon2196 (Mar 24, 2015)

Thanks Chuck...Weird...it had compression in both cylinders a few weeks ago and then something happened. It may be small metal chips like you said...I'll try to clean out the intake valves with some compressed air.


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## radial1951 (Mar 24, 2015)

vascon2196 said:


> Thanks Chuck...Weird...it had compression in both cylinders a few weeks ago and then something happened. It may be small metal chips like you said...I'll try to clean out the intake valves with some compressed air.



Hi Chris

If everything is clean and it still looses compression inconsistently, then the problem could be a valve not seating correctly.

Any errors in the concentricity of the valve stem to the head of the valve, the fit of the valve stem in its guide, the concentricity of the valve seat in the cylinder head to the guide and the angles and width of the valve seating area can all be culprits affecting the sealing of valves.

A valve can momentarily get hung up if it is cocked over for some reason, especially atmospheric intake valves which have a very light spring unable to pull it on to its seat.

Regards, RossG.
radial1951
_____________


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## vascon2196 (Mar 25, 2015)

Looks like I have to make a new valve.

I just spiked the leaky valve on the concrete like a football.

I almost threw the manifold out into the woods but I'll hang onto it until I make yet another valve.

Amazing...this must be my 12th valve I've made and I don't think a single one has worked properly. I either really suck or these f-ing valves are harder to make than I thought!!!


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## cfellows (Mar 26, 2015)

Gotta agree.  For something that is seemingly so simple, poppet valves seem to be the trickiest part.  On my very first gas engine, the valves worked perfect, first time, right out of the chute.  Every engine since then has been a challenge.  Keep after it Chris, don't let the little bugger get you down, you'll win eventually.  The good news is, once you get it working, it'll probably never give you any problems again.

Chuck


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## vascon2196 (Mar 26, 2015)

Thanks Chuck. I can hear air leaking from somewhere. I'm not sure if I scored the cylinder wall by accident and it needs to be re-honed. I'm not sure if it is the valve or the intake valve.

I brought my engine in to work today so the Machine shop instructors can figure out where the air leak is coming from. One of the instructors has built many model gas engines so I'm hoping it will be more obvious to him.

The damn thing was running last month and then something happened I can't seem to find.


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## vascon2196 (Mar 26, 2015)

So...........machined a new valve...still leaking air but have not lapped it yet. Took the piston out and the piston ring was pinched in the groove and not springing open. So we used some fine grit sandpaper on both faces of the ring to make it a little thinner which seemed to help.

I'll fire it up tomorrow...my brain hurts.


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## cfellows (Mar 27, 2015)

Have you thought about replacing the piston rings with o-rings?  I know some people think that's cheating, but boy it sure works well.

Chuck


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## vascon2196 (Mar 27, 2015)

Yes Chuck...each Piston has one piston ring and one O-ring.

I originally used 2 piston rings but it leaked too much air...the O-ring puts the compression through the roof.


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## barnesrickw (Mar 27, 2015)

What type of O-rings do you use for I.C. Engines.  Cheating or not, it sounds much easier.


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## vascon2196 (Mar 27, 2015)

Currently I am using regular rubber (Buna-N) O-rings but once I fix all the little bugs in the engine I will replace them with Viton. The Viton seems to handle the heat much better however I've had a rubber o-ring in my Ford plumbing engine for 3 years now and no problems.


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## barnesrickw (Mar 27, 2015)

Since I'm getting some great free information, do you change the piston fit any when using o-rings instead of steel rings?


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## cfellows (Mar 28, 2015)

barnesrickw said:


> Since I'm getting some great free information, do you change the piston fit any when using o-rings instead of steel rings?



Not sure what others do, but I fit my pistons pretty loose, up to .003" clearance on a bore of 1" or bigger.  I generally use an o-ring with 1/16" cross section.  The depth of the groove is around .060" and the width of the groove is around .075".

Chuck


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## barnesrickw (Mar 28, 2015)

Great information, thank you.


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## vascon2196 (Apr 11, 2015)

After several attempts to get this engine running I have decided to re-make the manifolds. The current exhaust manifolds are in 2-pieces and between the air leaks and valve misalignment issues I will make the new ones out of 1-piece.

This will eliminate 2 extra potential air leaks and allow me to make the valve seat correctly. There is no store within 100 miles of me that sells 90-degree C'sinks or the flipping V-Belt I need for my lathe so I have to wait yet another week before I can do all of this.

Anyway...I think new exhaust manifolds, new valve seats, new valve guides, and new valves will finally get me the compression I am looking for.


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## stevehuckss396 (Apr 11, 2015)

Ok!  I guess we wait. Keep us posted.


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## vascon2196 (Apr 18, 2015)

Attached are pictures of the new one-piece exhaust manifolds. I bought a set of 90-degree C'sinks to cut the valve seat. I cross drilled for the exhaust hole making sure the new manifolds look like the two-piece versions that Ford made.

The plan today is to make a new gasket, fasten in place, and hope I have compression!


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## vascon2196 (Apr 18, 2015)

More pics.


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## vascon2196 (Apr 19, 2015)

Oh boy....all that work and no compression. 

Air was leaking past the spark plug so I added some Permatex liquid gasket. I also put one of the manifolds in the 4-jaw and turned an O-ring groove to try and seal the air in internally. I have to make yet another gasket and continue to look for leaks.

Funny...the smallest leak will prevent compression...I mean there is no compression at all...very strange. Oh well, I'm on vacation this week so hopefully I will have time to fuss with it.


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## bobsymack (Apr 19, 2015)

This might sound like a stupid question but is your valve timing correct,it is very strange to have no compression even with bad valves etc. Hope you find the solution soon as I know it must be frustrating.
 Vince.


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## vascon2196 (Apr 20, 2015)

bobsymack said:


> This might sound like a stupid question but is your valve timing correct,it is very strange to have no compression even with bad valves etc. Hope you find the solution soon as I know it must be frustrating.
> Vince.



I hope it is correct! I'll double check this...thanks Vince.

The air leaking past the spark plug is due to the tapped hole being on a conical surface. I should have given it a small spotface first to give the spark plug a flat surface to seat against. I added Permatex liquid gasket and it no longer leaks. As of this morning it has a little compression but not enough. It must be leaking elsewhere. I feel like a detective searching for clues.


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## vascon2196 (Apr 25, 2015)

I have really good compression in one cylinder and absolutely none in the other. Another problem is that one of the cranks is coming loose...again. Since I did not use hardened crankshaft material the keys are galling. Even after drilling and tapping through the crankshaft and crank it is still spinning and throwing the timing off.

I'm going to weld the crank directly to the crankshaft and be done with it.


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## stevehuckss396 (Apr 25, 2015)

How tough would it be to hog a one piece crankshaft. I know they are a pain but you just cant beat them for strength.


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## vascon2196 (Apr 27, 2015)

stevehuckss396 said:


> How tough would it be to hog a one piece crankshaft. I know they are a pain but you just cant beat them for strength.



Wow Steve...I never thought of making the Crankshaft one solid piece. I'm not sure I can do that. I suppose if I start with a rough rectangular piece the width and length of the Crank arms and mill out the center portion...then put in a 4-jaw or turn between centers? Wow...that would be a challenge for me but I guess not impossible.

I ended up drilling and tapping through everything and stuffed a bolt with Loc-tite to keep them together....so far so good.

I ended up re-cutting the valve that was not holding compression, made a new longer valve guide bushing...we'll see later today. I did have it running on one cylinder but not well.


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## stevehuckss396 (Apr 27, 2015)

vascon2196 said:


> Wow Steve...I never thought of making the Crankshaft one solid piece. I'm not sure I can do that. I suppose if I start with a rough rectangular piece the width and length of the Crank arms and mill out the center portion...then put in a 4-jaw or turn between centers? Wow...that would be a challenge for me but I guess not impossible.




Not knowing what your crankshaft looks like It's impossible for me to know if it can be done. Just thought I would throw it out there. I have not had good luck with multi piece crankshafts.


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## vascon2196 (Apr 27, 2015)

Well it is running on a fuel drip, but for about 5 to 10 seconds and then stops. Longest run has been tonight with still almost no compression in one cylinder. I tried vapor fuel and it did not work.


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## vascon2196 (Apr 29, 2015)

Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!

I found last night that one of my intake valves was not working! I took the spark plug out of the cylinder I know has compression so I could focus on the cylinder that does not work.

I noticed on the return stroke it was not sucking my thumb in the intake as the other side. I switched the intake valve with the one I know works and it held compression! The problem was the length of the intake valve spring! The damn spring was 1/8" longer which was not allowing it to open enough to suck in fuel. I snipped it off and now I have good compression in both cylinders!!!

I ran it for about 10 seconds, it sucked it too much fuel, and flooded.

Damn it.


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## stevehuckss396 (Apr 29, 2015)

SWEET!  Finally found it. Sounds like you just need to find a carb that works well. Are you going to go back to the carb that came in the drawing set.


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## vascon2196 (Apr 29, 2015)

I'm going to try to keep it like the original but I've heard a lot of good things about the vapor carbs...I'll keep messing with it. I don't want to post a video until it is running better. Thanks for your patience!


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## bobsymack (Apr 29, 2015)

Glad to hear you discovered your problem ,looking forward to seeing it running.
Vince


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## cfellows (Apr 30, 2015)

Ahh, sweet success.  Feels good when it finally works, huh.

I'm not too impressed with vapor carbs.  I've experimented around with them a lot and found them to have some problems.  Throttling them is difficult and they are very sensitive to ambient temperature as well as fuel level in the tank.  Also, if you have any air leaks in your intake system, around valve stems/guides, etc., it's very difficult to get the mixture rich enough.  Some people might have better luck, but I've converted all my engines back to standard carburetors.

Chuck


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## vascon2196 (Apr 30, 2015)

That is good to know Chuck. It was actually your pimento jar vapor fuel tank that gave me the idea. I have been trying to copy your vapor fuel tank design for a few weeks now. I'll keep trying it but for this engine a fuel drip regular carb may be best.


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## vascon2196 (May 4, 2015)

Forgot to mention that my new valves and seats were never lapped. They held compression perfectly right away. It did take about 6 valves and 4 manifolds to finally get it right...but I'm finally getting the hang of it!

The engine runs on a fuel soaked paper towel but not directly from a fuel drip...just like in a previous post. I'll post a video of it running tomorrow and hopefully someone can "hear" the sound it makes and maybe know if it needs more air/fuel?


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## vascon2196 (May 5, 2015)

https://youtu.be/D5nwmsPSeU0


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## vascon2196 (May 7, 2015)

https://youtu.be/ZdF9W_HAsIE

I think that I finally have it!

Just for kicks I hooked it up to an oiler filled with Coleman fuel and it started running and would not stop!

Some fussing with the carb, timing, and cooling should give me a good runner!


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## vascon2196 (May 21, 2015)

Now that it is running I decided to remove the connecting rods and run an end mill along the outer face. I painted the interior of the groove the same color as the flywheel. The flywheel already has plenty of battle scars but I'll leave them alone for now. The carb can still be improved but mu shop needs some much needed attention.

Here are some pictures.

Now maybe I can focus on the full scale Quadricycle!


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## stevehuckss396 (May 21, 2015)

Congrats!  I knew if you stayed at it you would have it running.


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## vascon2196 (May 21, 2015)

Thanks Steve...sometimes you and everyone else gives me the motivation to stick with it and not lose my temper.

I'm looking forward to bringing it to the next show!


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## grapegro (May 22, 2015)

Hello Chris, Congratulations on your achievement, perseverance wins out. Are you looking at building the full scale engine or the complete vehicle. I am in South East Australia where we are getting cold days and nights, currently building a heater for my workshop to continue my projects. Good luck for the new venture. Norm


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## vascon2196 (May 22, 2015)

grapegro said:


> Hello Chris, Congratulations on your achievement, perseverance wins out. Are you looking at building the full scale engine or the complete vehicle. I am in South East Australia where we are getting cold days and nights, currently building a heater for my workshop to continue my projects. Good luck for the new venture. Norm



Thank you Norm!

I am currently building the entire vehicle...or trying to! I have a build somewhere on HMEM...stay warm down under! It's almost summer for us.


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## vascon2196 (May 31, 2015)

So I've been fussing with the cooling system for this engine and it has been quite frustrating. I'm trying to do what Henry Ford did about 120 years ago and it is not easy! I first had the tubing connected wrong and all the coolant spilled out and over the engine...that was a lot of fun. I finally have it right now but I have a small leak around one of the water jackets.

Also, I can't get the engine to run! I started messing with the vapor fuel tank and fittings and it won't stay running.

I tried a couple of things that all failed but one time I hooked up the hose wrong and all the gas was sucked into the engine! I had to take the manifolds off and drain the gas. Now the pistons are "sticky"...probably the gas eating away the O-rings that I was supposed to replace with Viton!

I'll keep at it but this weekend has been one failure after another. :wall:


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## vascon2196 (May 31, 2015)

Of course shortly after my rant I worked on the carb and noticed the main contact was bent. It is a thin piece of copper that after repeated hits from the flywheel bolt it is starting to break off. I will have to replace this was a piece of spring stock. Anyway, I adjusted the copper contact to fire about 15-degrees before TDC, adjusted my new carb, and off it went!

The engine ran for about 5 minutes with the new cooling system.

Videos and pictures to come.


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## radial1951 (May 31, 2015)

vascon2196 said:


> Of course shortly after my rant I worked on the carb and noticed the main contact was bent. It is a thin piece of copper that after repeated hits from the flywheel bolt it is starting to break off. I will have to replace this was a piece of spring stock. Anyway, I adjusted the copper contact to fire about 15-degrees before TDC, adjusted my new carb, and off it went!
> 
> The engine ran for about 5 minutes with the new cooling system.
> 
> Videos and pictures to come.



Chris, that's great news. Really look forward to seeing it running like it should.

BTW, I still can't believe that o-rings actually work for more than a minute or two in an IC engine. Goes against all my instincts, I must admit.

Your efforts prove that perseverance and problem solving is everything when it come to engine development. Well done!

Regards, RossG
radial1951
____________


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## vascon2196 (Jun 1, 2015)

Thank you Ross!

I think the O-rings are breaking down but they do a fantastic job holding compression. Once I switch to Viton O-rings they should last a lot longer. My Ford plumbing engine has had the same Buna-N rubber O-ring for 3 years without a problem. This engine will get a lot hotter so I think Viton should help.


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## vascon2196 (Jun 1, 2015)

Here are a few pictures from today. Very strange but the engine will only run off fresh gas. I had gas in the tank that was a day old and the engine did not run. I replaced the old gas with new gas and the engine almost jumped off the table. Shortly after running for a minute or so it stopped and has not kicked over once.

Anyone know what this means?


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## vascon2196 (Jun 1, 2015)

Latest video.

https://youtu.be/mDgP5MllTqM


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## vascon2196 (Jul 19, 2015)

After a couple of shows I decided to add a counterweight to the flywheel. Ford originally had a counterweight on his Quadricycle so I decided to do the same. The engine would begin to shake itself apart.

It runs much, much smoother now.


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