# Engine transportation and display box



## Brian Rupnow (Aug 18, 2013)

Now we are going to get into a subject in which I claim no expertise at all. Although I am a fair framing carpenter, having built a couple of houses and cottages over a lifetime, fine cabinetry is not my forte' in any way. However, I want the Rupnow engine to be portable for display purposes. It will have an upper and lower compartment and be made so that the engine is mounted and displayed in the "upper compartment" when the top of the box is removed, while the battery  pack and CDI unit will be hidden underneath in the "lower compartment".  The material for the box will be clear pine with some kind of mahogany stain on it and a few coats of Varathane for water and oil-proofing. I haven't totally sussed out the latch mechanisms yet, but they will probably be 4 threaded rods with knurled brass knobs that pass thru clearance holes in the removable top section of the box and screw into threaded inserts into the bottom section of the box. The removable top section will have a carry handle on the top of it. Since these engines have a tendency to get dirtier than Paddy's Pig after being ran for an hour, I would like to be able to spray it down with Varsol and then blow it off with compressed air while it is still bolted to the bottom of the display box in order to clean it. Of course this means that any seams in the bottom of the display box will have to be sealed so that varsol doesn't leach thru into the area where the battery pack and the cdi reside.---And yet I still have to be able to access the battery pack and cdi. to recharge the batteries. Its plain that there will be a few challenges along the way. I am not going to use biscuit joints or anything fancy, as I have neither the equipment nor the know how to do this. All joints will be square or mitered at 45 degrees and glued with Elmers wood glue. You are welcome to follow along and watch me bumble my way through this.---Brian


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## RonGinger (Aug 18, 2013)

I have built a few cases for my models. I strongly advise you to use the good plywood known as Baltic Birch. It is stronger than pine, it wont split or check and will be lighter. It comes in metric sizes (probably normal for Canadians) Id use the sheet about 1/2" thick for a box of this size. I give mine a couple coats of polyurethane varnish- the water base kind. 

Put you name on the outside of the case. We once had a case get separated from one of our club members at Cabin Fever. Fortunately Gary Schoenly recognized it and it got back to the owner. We noted then that almost none of the guys had ID on the outside of the case.


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 18, 2013)

Thank you for all the tips Ron---Much appreciated. I will use 3/4" pine, mainly because that thickness is much more readily available at my local lumber yard, and the 3/4" thickness will give better room for the threaded rods which have to pass through them. The 3/4" width also gives a better footprint for the glue. I will put my name on the outside of the case.


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 18, 2013)

Dang--It seems like there's almost enough wood there to build a small house!!! The two short pieces x 1 1/2" thick were freebees. I'm not blessed with much in the way of woodworking tools, at least none that will cut a good 45 degree bevel. I will have to ask around and find a friend here in town with one of those multi swivel radial arm saws.


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 19, 2013)

I phoned around town last night and found one of my wife's old co-workers who plays at woodwork, and does indeed have a saw that will lay over and cut on a 45 degree angle, so I'm off to his house at 10:00 this morning to saw all my boards.


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## Sshire (Aug 19, 2013)

Brian
Having done a fair amount of furniture building, one tip. If you are going to use any type of stain (versus just a clear poly), be aware that pine is quite "blotchy" at taking stain unevenly. A good sanding sealer (from the home center) will prevent this fairly well. Just saying.


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 19, 2013)

Thank you for the tip SShire.


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 19, 2013)

Okay Ron Ginger. Now I see why you said to use plywood. Plywood is flat. Pine boards are not--they all have a crown on one side and a dished area on the other. This exercise did not go well at all!!! I have the pine boards all cut out for the top section but---In an effort to hide all of the endgrain of the boards, I mitered everything at 45 degrees on a tablesaw. This works really well in theory.---In practice, not so much!! Due to the warped surface of the boards, they are not going to go together in a pleasing manner no matter how much belt sanding I do. This "make work" project is stalled for the moment. I think I can safely go ahead and finish up the base section, but for now I am rather disgusted with myself so may just let this project set for a while. *Ah---POOP*!!!


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## rhankey (Aug 19, 2013)

Brian,

The only pine I would even remotely consider for transportation/display cases might be southern (loblolly or long leaf) pine which is a hard wood.  Other types of pine are way too soft, and a result it is very difficult to get crisp/tight furniture grade corners or joints, and the wood is likely to dent very easily relative to the weight of the engines mounted to the case.  As pointed out by Stan, most pines need some sealing coat if stained, else look very blotchy.  Most softer pines aren't overly dimensionally stable, so you are could have joints opening up over time.

If using solid wood, I think you would find far greater joy with Poplar, some harder Maple, or Oak.  With sharp tools, it is easy to get very good crisp/sharp joints with these woods.

If you have not worked with wood before, you will need to consider how to join the mitered corners given the tools you have.  Glue does not work well on end grain.


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 19, 2013)

I have worked with wood before, but I'm not that good with it. I don't have the proper tools, and its not really where my talents lie. All of the points you make about hardwood are correct. One of the factors leading to my choosing pine is that it is a fairly light wood, compared to many of the hardwoods. I went back up to the building suppliers this afternoon where I bought the pine and looked at some of the alternative plywoods that are available. Then I priced out a saw that would do the things I would require it to do if I purchased it, and it cost about $700.--I'm thinking that perhaps this engine doesn't really need a transportation and display case, at this point.


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## Sshire (Aug 19, 2013)

Brian
Your experience with non-flat boards is akin to building an engine part without squaring up the stock. That's what jointers and planers are for with wood.  They flatten the stock. How about this.
Get a decent sheet of plywood (if you have a good independent lumber yard nearby, get it there rather than the home center.)
Option 1: get a 1/2 sheet of hardwood veneer plywood. It comes in cherry, walnut, oak, etc.
Option 2: build the box from pine plywood and get (many places on the Internet) some iron-on veneer. Your choice of wood. Goes right over the plywood with a household iron. Once it's on, burnishing the corners will make the joints virtually invisible. The underlying box does not need miter joints because the veneer will cover them.


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## stevehuckss396 (Aug 19, 2013)

Hey Brian!

If it helps I just use the plastic bins that are sold at Lowes. The V4 has it's own tote that the base of the display box fits snug into the bottom of the tote. When put in it cannot move at all. I could not find one for the V8 alone but I did find one that is twice as wide and perfect front to back. Both V8's fit into a single tote perfect. 

Take a tape measure down to the local tote seller and see if you can find one that fits your motor. Measure right at the bottom as they taper from top to bottom. The best part is that with the top on the tote you can stack them. Nice feature when loading in and out of a show.

http://www.rubbermaid.com/Category/...ubcatId=Roughneck&Prod_ID=RP091418&Redirect=1


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## old-and-broken (Aug 19, 2013)

I would encourage you to use an old fashioned wood 'conditioner' before applying the stain.

Some Boiled Linseed Oil thinned about 50/50 with VM&P Naptha and applied with a brush and wiped off after soaking for a few seconds will leave your wood ready for staining the next day, and will prevent dark splotches, and will  keep the stain from acting to fast.


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 20, 2013)

Sshire said:


> Brian
> Your experience with non-flat boards is akin to building an engine part without squaring up the stock. That's what jointers and planers are for with wood.  They flatten the stock. How about this.
> Get a decent sheet of plywood (if you have a good independent lumber yard nearby, get it there rather than the home center.)
> Option 1: get a 1/2 sheet of hardwood veneer plywood. It comes in cherry, walnut, oak, etc.
> Option 2: build the box from pine plywood and get (many places on the Internet) some iron-on veneer. Your choice of wood. Goes right over the plywood with a household iron. Once it's on, burnishing the corners will make the joints virtually invisible. The underlying box does not need miter joints because the veneer will cover them.


 Stan--Tell me a bit more about "burnishing the corners" with the iron on veneer please. I don't know what that means.---Brian


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 23, 2013)

The fat lady hasn't sang yet!! Backing up, and taking some advise from others, I sweet talked my local lumber supplier into selling me a 1/4 sheet of birch veneer plywood, x 3/4" thick. Then I ran down another woodworking friend (who happens to work at the local BusyBee Tools--Jeez, what an inbred little world.)-This fine gentleman has a state of the art table saw, and helped me for 2 hours this morning cutting out all of the pieces. I went to Canadian Tire and bought two "corner clamps", then hunted around until I found an assortment of bar and pipe clamps, and then glued and clamped the first stage of the box. --And yes, if my "workbench" happens to look a lot like an old door setting on a pair of aluminum sawhorses, that's because it is!!!--- The chap who kindly sawed these pieces for me refused to take any money, so was promised 2 hours worth of welding or machining work, if he ever needs it.Brian


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 23, 2013)

If you have ever heard about "Fred Flintstone-Tech" and wondered what it is----Well, this is it!!! This is a non-woodworkers answer to how to keep the four sides of a box aligned with the flat bottom while the glue dries, so it don't go all "Whoopsy"--(I'm sure there is a more educated word, but I can't think of it right now.) There is a piece of 2 x 12 setting underneath everything on top of that door, and I KNOW that its straight and flat. When I get up tomorrow morning, I expect the glue to be dry, and my semi-completed box bottom to be "straight and flat" to match it. I'm not sure if you can see it or not, but I stole my wife's "saran wrap" out of the kitchen and laid some over that 2 x 12 so it doesn't become glued to the box.


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## canadianhorsepower (Aug 23, 2013)

you should have ask me I have a 50 ton pressRof}Rof}Rof}Rof}


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 24, 2013)

Progress is being made---Slowly, but progress, none the less!!! I lay in bed last night thinking about how to make all of my "electronics" waterproof so I could wash the engine down without removing it from the base which it will be mounted on. I can mount everything electronic underneath the piece of board that the engine bolts to. I can drill a small hole, and run the sparkplug wire up thru it (the boot is removable) and silicone around the plug wire. That only leaves the switch vulnerable. So-----I thought, why not epoxy the switch in the end of a tube, and epoxy the tube into the board, and make a cover that fits over the switch and tube to protect it when I wash down the engine. Of course the tube ended up being machined from a solid chunk of 2" diameter aluminum.--Just call me a bear for punishment!!!


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 24, 2013)

And this is what it will look like with the engine and switch in tube mounted on the base.


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 25, 2013)

The two major pieces of the engine carry and display box are now finished in terms of cutting out and gluing together. The joints are what I would term 85%r's. That means that about 15% of the joints will need a bit of filler, but by and large, for a non cabinet making type, I am satisfied. My next challenge, of course, will be to remove the excess Elmer's wood glue from the outside of the box. The glue I will have to remove prior to staining is completely dry. A quick search through the internet suggests the following: A--Scrub it off with laquer thinners.--Apparently laquer thinners will soften and remove dried Elmer's wood glue.--I didn't know that, and will try it with some trepidation. Fortunately I have some laquer thinners here that I use to remove layout dye from metal. B--Sand it off, using a sanding block and start with a coarse paper, about 100 grit and work up to progressively finer grits. Apparently if you start out with fine sandpaper this will "burnish" the glue into the grain of the wood, making it nearly impossible to remove. I have learned thru bitter experience not to use power sanders while doing this type of work. They take off too much, too quick, and then your project is pooched!!! If I was smart instead of good looking, I would have glued all of the joints without "squeeze-out" but I find that damned near impossible. Internet also suggests "masking off" area you don't want glue on with masking tape, but its too late now to try that approach. Scraping the glue off with a sharp chisel or razor blade is mentioned.--I know what the result of that is--Gouged woodwork and cut fingers. If anybody knows some awesome secrets to excess glue removal, now is the time to enlighten me, thank you.---Brian


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## canadianhorsepower (Aug 25, 2013)

it looks good but I was under the impression that your cover was clear Acrylic or Lexan
I would use thinner only because it's very volatile and wont leave any 
color change to your wood


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## Sshire (Aug 25, 2013)

Brian
Your case looks great. Well done with the brown stuff.
Burnishing veneer at the corners with a piece of drill rod "rolls" the veneers into each other and virtually makes the joint disappear. Old cabinetmakers trick. The interesting thing is that a piece of drill rod with handles at each end is sold by some veneer suppliers as a "corner seam roller" for about $60. Something like "ground and polished steel burnisher with ergonomic handles"


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 25, 2013)

canadianhorsepower said:


> it looks good but I was under the impression that your cover was clear Acrylic or Lexan
> I would use thinner only because it's very volatile and wont leave any
> color change to your wood


The cost of heavy enough lexan to support the base and engine would be more than I would want to pay. This thing is going to end up with a handle on the top of it, to be carried like a suitcase. I tried the laquer thinner after I made my last post, and while it does indeed soften the wood glue a bit, it certainly doesn't remove it in what I consider a reasonable manner.


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 25, 2013)

Sshire said:


> Brian
> Your case looks great. Well done with the brown stuff.
> Burnishing veneer at the corners with a piece of drill rod "rolls" the veneers into each other and virtually makes the joint disappear. Old cabinetmakers trick. The interesting thing is that a piece of drill rod with handles at each end is sold by some veneer suppliers as a "corner seam roller" for about $60. Something like "ground and polished steel burnisher with ergonomic handles"


Thanks for the info Stan.---Brian


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## canadianhorsepower (Aug 25, 2013)

Brian Rupnow said:


> . I tried the laquer thinner after I made my last post, and while it does indeed soften the wood glue a bit, it certainly doesn't remove it in what I consider a reasonable manner.


 
Glue is a third agent if wont vanish, you soften it up and then remove
it in only one direction


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## old-and-broken (Aug 25, 2013)

Orbital sander.   Much better than hand, and not dangerous to the wood like a belt sander.

coarse, medium, then fine grit and the glue will be gone.   When that is finished dampen the wood with a sponge and when dry re-sand the wood with a fine grit, following the grain.  Do this sanding lightly by hand.  Using the orbital on that final sanding will leave marks going across the grain and that looks bad when finish is applied.

I'm a fan of veneer.  I've heard it takes practice before it becomes 'easy'.  I've tried it a few times and it ain't easy yet.


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 26, 2013)

Lord, I'd forgotten how much work hand sanding is. Especially enough hand sanding to remove all traces of wood glue. I have been using a piece of 2" square spruce about 8" long for a sanding block. First I sanded everything with 100 grit paper, sanding "with the grain". Then I went over it all again with 150 grit paper. Then one more time with 180 grit. I'm dirty, sweaty, and covered in sawdust. The box is looking good, but I may change my name to "Sandy", or better yet "Dusty".--Hah---Sounds like somebody off the old Roy Rogers TV show!!!


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 26, 2013)

This is a picture of the engine box base, setting upside down, propped on some bricks. The engine is on the far side, hanging upside down like a bat!!! You can see that I have cut away the underside of the box (An access door which fits flush with the underside of the base will fill that big hole). What I am attempting to show is my treatment of the 4 bolts which hold the engine to the base. The heads of the #10-24 x 2 1/4" long shcs are on the side you are looking at, and the threaded ends extend about 3/16" past the engine baseplate, enough for me to put domed stainless "acorn" nuts on them. To keep the bolts in place and prevent them form turning, I mig welded 1/8" square keystock between all of the bolt heads and then epoxied the keystock to the board. You can also see the 1 9/16 diameter hole (Yeah, I know--weird dimension) in the baseplate that my switch tube will extend up through.


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 26, 2013)

Well, I think that's about as good as I can get it. I'd like to rush ahead and stain everything tonight, but I just know that as soon as I do, I'll think of something that absolutely had to be done before the stain is put on. I will leave the staining for tomorrow. That way I can unwind a bit and think of what I may have missed. This "stain and varathane" procedure takes about 3 or 4 days, waiting between coats for 24 hours and sanding between coats of varathane. In the top of the base you can see the 4 bolts which hold the engine on, the hole for the on/off switch tube, the hole for the coil wire, and the hole for the hall effect wires to go down into the compartment underneath. There will be a carrying handle on top of the upper case, and I am still undecided on just exactly how I am going to attach the top of the case to the bottom of the case.--I will probably fabricate something from brass, that is "failsafe" and can't accidently come undone.



http://s307.photobucket.com/user/BrianRupnow/media/BrianRupnow004/enginebox6001_zpsc0c21d4e.jpg.html


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 27, 2013)

This is an "almost finished" view of the underside of the engine box base. As you can see, I have routed out a "ledge" around the hole cut in the base, which will be filled by a removable 3/8" plywood access door. the CDI box is located and attached with two woodscrews, as is the battery box. The boot has been removed from the sparkplug lead and the lead passes from the cdi box up through the base to the engine side. Likewise, at the other end the wires from the Hall effect switch have been routed down through the 1 1/2" thick engine support board and hooked up to the lead from the CDI. I still have to mig weld a #5 bolt to the engine bolt locating frame to serve as a ground lug for the cdi box. The switch tube and switch are in place, but not yet epoxied into place. I have one remaining lead (the one hanging out over the ledge) and I am torn about what to do with it. That lead is the one the battery charger hooks up to, and I'm very tempted to just leave it loose inside the box base. This would mean that whenever I go to charge the batteries, I would have to remove the access door to get at it and hook it up to the battery charger. This probably isn't a real big deal, as the only fluids in the engine are the cooling water and the fuel, which will both be drained anyways when the engine is stored, so there wouldn't be any chance of fluids leaking out when I flip the engine upside down to access the removable base. The other option is to bring that lead out through the side of the box, which looks rather ugly, is somewhat fragile, and kind of does away with the "wash down" capability which I am ultimately aiming for.


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## wagnmkr (Aug 27, 2013)

Looking Good Brian ... You appear to have thought of everything.

Cheers,

Tom


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 27, 2013)

Wagnmkr--I hope so. With something like this you never know until the whole thing is done--and then if you think of something, its generally too late!!! I'm concerned with what the final finish will look like. I have done the best I could to remove all of the excess glue, but I'm not sure how successful I was, and I won't know until the stain goes on.--Hope I don't end up having to paint everything,


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## Cliff (Aug 27, 2013)

Hey Brian box looking good looks like a pro built it. Why not put a jack in the side of your box to plug the charger in like you would your phone


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## canadianhorsepower (Aug 27, 2013)

Cliff said:


> Hey Brian box looking good looks like a pro built it. Why not put a jack in the side of your box to plug the charger in like you would your phone


 
Love your idea a simple Jack mono phone will do the job.
I've been using this on my 3 motorcycle with battery tender


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 27, 2013)

That's a great idea Cliff. I may do that. ---Brian


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 27, 2013)

At this point in the game, I can say with certainty that I am neither amazed nor impressed by my wood finishing ability!!! It may not be "disgustingly ugly", but its a long way from anything I would want in my living room. It seems that my fears of not removing every trace of excess glue were well founded. There is one coat of "pre stain wood conditioner" and three coats of stain on there (wiped between coats with a clean dry cloth, as recommended.). The areas where glue had soaked into the wood definitely don't take the stain like the raw wood does. Hopefully in the morning, when everything has dried, it will look better. Hopefully 3 or 4 coats of satin Varathane will make things look a great deal better. Failing all that, I may end up being the only kid in town with a painted engine box!!!


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 29, 2013)

So here we are about 5 minutes after the second coat of clear polyurethane.--I'm starting to feel better about it---It will get two more coats tomorrow, before I'm finished.


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## canadianhorsepower (Aug 29, 2013)

Hi Brian--- This looks good but,,,,
My 2cents what's s the use of building a nice motor and hide it
in a wooden box.
The box doesn't look that big I'm sure you can get Lexan or acrylic
very cheap even if it's to have small side windows on the side to look at it

I probably have some of that in stock
cut a nice square or oval shat use a router and install it
let me know


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 29, 2013)

Luc--The top half of the box is only for transporting the engine around from my place to shows and demonstrations. This is the only "transportation" box I have ever made, because all my other engines need a great big 12 volt battery that I can barely lift, so they are not readily portable. My God, Luc--You should see my office. I have 14 different steam engines and things to run with them, and either 5 or 6 i.c. engines. Every shelf, cupboard, and bookcase are covered with engines. I don't even know where I am going to put the "Rupnow Engine" when I get everything finished!!! The "Transportation and Display" box is a one time thing, because just about everybody I know wants me to bring an engine and demonstrate it for them, so I thought I would try and do it with a bit of style.---Brian


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## petertha (Aug 30, 2013)

Brian Rupnow said:


> Hopefully 3 or 4 coats of satin Varathane will make things look a great deal better.


 
Nice box. One thing I'd recommend is to replicate your finish topcoat to a scrap piece of plywood. Use that coupon to test how it withstands fuel & oil drips & avoid any unexpected, unhappy warts & blisters on your show piece box. 

I dont know if is a case of modern, earth friendly paint formulas (water based urethane?) but seems like woodworking finishes these days are fine for coffee tables, but are practically useless when it comes to chemical resistance like the old school solvent based paints. At least thats been my experience. I recently did a wood flight caddy for my RC stuff, after full cure the paint got sticky if methanol/oil residue got on it. Gasoline might be even more aggressive. 

Of course the best finish is probably catalysed 2-part paint like what's on your car.  But thats another level, odour, isocyanates, respirator... Some guys claim that 'outdoor' top coats are better or some recommend catalysed lacquer (also used in woodworking). My rule of thumb is: the nastier it smells out of the can, the tougher the finish!


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## Brian Rupnow (Aug 30, 2013)

Petertha--That is good advise, and well taken. I will probably do exactly what you said, to avoid messing up this box which has taken so much effort.---Brian


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## Brian Rupnow (Sep 2, 2013)

The "Engine Transportation and Display" box is finished. Woodworking has never been my strongpoint, and as I've gotten older, this is one area where I have definitely not gotten better.--at least in the "fine finish" department. The box is built mostly from 3/4" birch veneer plywood, with a bit of 1 1/2" thick pine for the engine base. All of the electronics are hidden in the false bottom of the engine base. It has 2 coats of Minwax oil based stain on it, "Red Mahogany", and 3 coats of Minwax fast dry polymer satin finish clearcoat which is also an oil based product 1877-570. Once dried for 24 hours, this combination of stain and clearcoat seems to be impervious to both Naptha fuel and to Varsol, and engine oils. The hardest part of the job, I found, was to get accurate 45* mitre cuts on all of the joints so that no endgrain was visible anywhere. All the joints were glued with "Elmers white wood glue" and clamped for 48 hours as the glue dried. Sanding sufficiently to remove all of the wood glue which had squeezed out of the joints was a horrible job. Even after much careful sanding, there were areas that showed up after the stain was applied where the glue had soaked so deeply into the wood that it couldn't be removed. This causes no structural problem, but screws up the finish because the stain won't color those areas the same as the raw wood. I made the 4 screw in latch mechanisms that attach the top of the box to the base from brass which I knurled on the o.d. and tapped for 1/4" all thread rod about 2 1/2" long.
   The engine fits well on the base, and the tube which I made to hold the on/off switch turned out really nice. Any wires leading from the engine side down into the electronics compartment were sealed with epoxy, as was the switch tube, so I can wash the engine down "in place" without having to remove it from the base.
----So---This was my big adventure into woodworking for this decade, and hopefully the last.----Brian


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## NEL957 (Sep 3, 2013)

Brian

gorgeous, first class nice build

Nelson Collar


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## Brian Rupnow (Sep 3, 2013)

Thank you Nelson. This is not the type of project I take on very often. Just knowing the "how" of building something, doesn't mean that one can necessarily do a "good" job of it.---Brian


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## Brian Rupnow (Sep 3, 2013)

Luc--Just for interests sake, I had sent drawings of the top section of the box out to two different shops who work with Lexan, and asked them to quote on building it from 1/2" Lexan. One shop refused to quote, the other shop quoted $250.---Brian


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## Paulsv (Sep 3, 2013)

Brian-  A couple of suggestions for your next woodworking project, and other builders making wood bases for model engines.

Don't use pine.  It doesn't stain well, and the grain is too large for a small project to look good.  Use a tighter grained wood.  Go to a hardwood dealer, and if possible, buy quarter-sawn wood, so it is straight and fine-grained.  For a small project, the extra cost of a good hardwood isn't much.  Resist the urge to stain it a dark color, or for that matter, any color at all.  Use a wood like quarter-sawn cherry, and just finish it with a clear finish.  It will darken by itself over time.  Use glue very sparingly, and figure out a way to clamp so that you have access to the joint, so that you can immediately wipe away any squeeze-out with a damp rag.  rotate the rag as you wipe, so that you are lifting the glue off of the wood.  Some people finish the surfaces before glue-up, so that the glue wipes off easier.  Do all of your sanding with a sanding block, so that you don't round over corners and edges.  Don't use a high gloss finish, as it shows off minor imperfections in the smoothness of the finish.  Sand lightly with 220 or higher grit between coats of finish.  After putting on the last coat, I use a hard felt block and fine rottenstone with parafin oil to smooth the last coat, take out any little bubbles or other imperfections, and give it a satin finish.

Not meaning to criticise your work.  This has just been on my mind for some time, based on lots of wood bases I have seen on this and other model sites, and I've been looking for an opportunity to make these suggestions in general.


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## petertha (Sep 3, 2013)

Brian Rupnow said:


> ... because all my other engines need a great big 12 volt battery that I can barely lift, so they are not readily portable.


 
Just out of interest, is this for cranking the engine to start, running the ignition, or both? What is a typical amp draw? Reason I ask is, maybe a typical RC lipo battery would meet the demand & be a lot less weight to pack around for a typical demo show? 

Example (just for discussion purposes, not sure if this would even work or I'm barking up the wrong tree).

4S, 4000maH capacity lipo, cost = $50, weight = 476g, just over 1 pound
14.8v nominal voltage (3.7v/cell * 4S)
160 amps continous capable = 40C * 4.0 
200 amps peak capable (10 sec) = 50C * 4.0  
59 watt-hr power duty = 14.8v * 4.0 Ahr

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__10303__Turnigy_4000mAh_4S_40C_Lipo_Pack.html


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## Brian Rupnow (Sep 3, 2013)

12 volt battery to supply the 12 volt automotive coil.


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## petertha (Sep 3, 2013)

Yes the voltage is a good match, should be no issues there. A typical 12v nominal car battery is probably closer to 13v unloaded & a typical RC lipo is probably closer to 14v semi -depleted. Not sureif coils are sensitive to slightly (+1v) higher voltages. The issue is how much amp draw for the coil to figure out how long it would last.

I'm not an auto electronics guy, maybe some of the smart guys here can chime in. But googling turned up ~4A. Now is that intermitent? or average?  or feeding accross multi cylinders? Easiest way is measure accross your wire while its running.

Anyway simple math: 4000maH pack like above depleting at 4A load = 1 hr of continous running. If actual load was 2A, you get 2 hrs etc.

Didnt mean to turn this into an electrical discussion, just trying to save your back lugging the big battery around


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## johnny1320 (Sep 4, 2013)

looks nice and neat Brian, two thumbs up


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