Ford Quadricycle

[vascon2196]

So the engine has been running great (off one cylinder only). I We took the piston out of the non-working cylinder today and discovered 2 scratches on the bore running lengthwise with the cylinder. This is where we are losing our compression. After further inspection we noticed the wrist pin was sticking out slightly on one end...the same side as where the cylinder bore scratches were! The left and right (0 and 180) edges of the wrist pin were dragging along the cylinder wall.

So, I bought new rings, re-honed with a flex-hone, ran in the engine with it belted to our lathe, and put it all back together. We are still losing compression but it may fix itself over time...I'm not sure.

I may have to take the entire engine apart and have that one "bad" cylinder bore professionally honed slightly larger. BUT, I may have to make a custom Piston to chase the difference.

Any tips and tricks to share with us will be greatly appreciated!

 

[stevehuckss396]

So the engine has been running great (off one cylinder only). I We took the piston out of the non-working cylinder today and discovered 2 scratches on the bore running lengthwise with the cylinder. This is where we are losing our compression. After further inspection we noticed the wrist pin was sticking out slightly on one end...the same side as where the cylinder bore scratches were! The left and right (0 and 180) edges of the wrist pin were dragging along the cylinder wall.

So, I bought new rings, re-honed with a flex-hone, ran in the engine with it belted to our lathe, and put it all back together. We are still losing compression but it may fix itself over time...I'm not sure.

I may have to take the entire engine apart and have that one "bad" cylinder bore professionally honed slightly larger. BUT, I may have to make a custom Piston to chase the difference.

Any tips and tricks to share with us will be greatly appreciated!

What's the bore size and cylinder length. I might be able to hone the cylinders if not to large or long.

 

[vascon2196]

Hi Steve...I'll double check in the AM. The pistons are from a Maytag Model-92 gas engine....length about 6 to 8 inches I'm guessing. Again, I'll double check...thank you!

 

[johwen]

Hi,
Just an Idea to find the compression leak Put the cylinder with the leak on top dead centre with both alves closed and prssurise the cylinder through the spark plughole and see where the leak is coming from. Some oil in the cylinder will show up the leak. Cheers and keep up the great work.
John Samphier

 

[vascon2196]

Hi,
Just an Idea to find the compression leak Put the cylinder with the leak on top dead centre with both alves closed and prssurise the cylinder through the spark plughole and see where the leak is coming from. Some oil in the cylinder will show up the leak. Cheers and keep up the great work.
John Samphier

Thanks John...but all the air leaks past the 3 piston rings due to those two horizontal scratches. I thought the flex-hone would work but it didn't...air still leaks. I have to have it professionally honed and may have to make a bigger piston now...not sure. Thanks though!

 

[Toolguy]

A friend has had good success with scored small engine cylinders by filling the grooves with J B Weld, then sanding to match the surrounding metal. Might be worth a try before doing something more involved.

 

[vascon2196]

What's the bore size and cylinder length. I might be able to hone the cylinders if not to large or long.

Hi Steve...sorry for the late response. The bore size is 2-1/2" with a length around 8 to 8-1/2". We are testing the engine on gasoline next week...if the other cylinder fires we might be good to go....but I'll keep you in mind.

Thanks again...this 5 year project was supposed to be done 2 years ago, lol

 

[stevehuckss396]

this 5 year project was supposed to be done 2 years ago, lol

So you are right on schedule. Hahaha!!

 

[vascon2196]

So the students ran the engine over the Thanksgiving break and both cylinders were firing! The only problem was that one of the Crank arms started to rotate and gall the key, which threw off the timing, and back fired. When the engine back fired it sheared both keys. So now we have to make 2 new crank arms and add new keys and probably key seats also...we'll see.

At least both cylinders are firing very strong!

 

[stevehuckss396]

progress!!

 

[vascon2196]

One crank arm complete along with one drive key. We also installed the muffler. We added grease fitting to the drive axle. Still fooling around with the ignition timer...I don't like where it is. The engine will back fire if it's not turned over hard enough to get over the initial compression. But we are chugging along like a snail.

 

[stevehuckss396]

Glad to hear you are still plugging away. Looking forward to the video of you taking the first spin around the campus.

 

[Charles Lamont]

Still fooling around with the ignition timer...I don't like where it is. The engine will back fire if it's not turned over hard enough to get over the initial compression.

Is it not adjustable? (I can't remember what you may have said about it, and don't have time right now to look back.) I would have expected you to retard the ignition for starting and to adjust it once running.

 

[vascon2196]

We had to take the flywheel off the engine to repair the cranks. While the flywheel was off I decided to finally switch the inside frame angle irons which was a big pain because everything had to come off!

Anyway, it's done, angle irons switched, re-assembled. Notches were milled into the angle irons for crank clearance.

 

[stevehuckss396]

Holy smokes thats alot of work. Where is the project at? By that I mean whats left?

 

[vascon2196]

Next steps:

Press crank arms onto ends of crankshaft and re-install flywheel ass'y

Re-design contact on flywheel for better ignition timer

Hinge the seat

Install gas and water tanks with all the plumbing

Add cotter pins/lock nuts to all fasteners

Test the engine outside, adjust carb, etc

Then see if it moves a person!

 

[JRD56]

Hello, I realize I'm rather late in joining this conversation, but I was wondering how to go about getting plans/drawings for the Quadricycle. I've been unable to figure out how to get the original George De Angelis plans or the plans developed for the New England Institute of Technology project. Perhaps someone could clarify the latest information on obtaining plans. Thanks
JRD56

 

[olympic]

Both the quadricycle and the Olds are terrific!

And I have a garage....

 

[vascon2196]

George DeAngelis plans can be purchased through Dave Dunlavy...his contact information is somewhere on this thread. Also, we are having major difficulties timing the engine...if anyone has timed the full size Quadricycle engine and have some tips and tricks please let us know. We decided to try the original electrical timer and can't figure it out.

 

[JRD56]

Thanks, I have sent a message to Dave Dunlavy, but have not received a reply, I'll keep trying. While I've not built my engine yet, I have studied the ignition timing some and I've built quite a few engines (automotive) over the years. I don't know what you are using for an ignition system but typically you fire the spark plug just before the piston reaches top dead center. On an automotive engine the harmonic balancer (which is on the crankshaft) is typically marked so you can use a timing light to check the timing. The timing light is triggered by the No.1 spark plug wire and you can twist the distributor to achieve the desired timing. I assume you are triggering the ignition from some sort of mechanism on the flywheel. You could put a mark on the flywheel and a reference point mark on the frame so that they line up when the piston is at top dead center. You could then use a timing light to check the timing and set it so it fires just before top dead center. There are several economical battery powered timing lights on the market. You need to make sure you are on the correct cylinder based on the rocker arm (distributor arm) position. You may also want to ensure the exhaust valve timing is correct as it will have an impact on combustion which may appear as a timing issue.