Model Steam Engine Valve Timing

[@keithappleton]

Thanks for the shout Quinn, I enjoy watching your channel. High Quality video, high quality engineering and clearly explained }:-)))

[@rhavrane]

Bonjour Keith, happy to see you there, Quinn and you are great steam people, Amicalement Raphaël

[@tnekkc]

My 6 year old granddaughter loved this video, and told me not to talk when Blondihacks is talking.

[@BeeGeeTheImp]

I look forward to seeing your steam engine governor design and build. Cheers!

[@jimsvideos7201]

Oh boy! I don't watch Saturday morning cartoons anymore, but your videos on a Saturday afternoon are a similar treat!

[@rpavlik1]

Amazing, I learned that they make tire pressure gauges specifically for lawn tractors! Will have to get one... Oh yeah, I also learned more than I'll ever need, probably, about steam engines. Wonderful as always!

[@DialMforDavid]

Watched a This Old Tony video I had been saving and the new Blondihacks steam engine video back to back......good day.

[@ewjorgy]

Hi Quinn, I learned a neat gasket making trick while stranded in the middle of nowhere on my sailboat that had a leaking thermostat housing. Take said housing cover and fix it gasket side up. Take gasket material (paper) lay it on top. With a small ball peen hammer peen along all edges gently. The housing edges will cut out a perfect gasket. Quick, easy, accurate and oddly satisfying! :) Stay safe, be well and all the best from California 💛 P.S. Fuzzy and Coco send heartfelt meows to sprocket!

[@kyfho47]

Thank you for my Blondihacks "fix" for the day. Would love to see you make a steam chest cover and cylinder head out of plexy or lexan. Nice to watch the dance of the valve and piston together.

[@poppafiveone]

Thank you for the lesson. Of all the videos on building these engines, you are the only one who explained the tuning operation. Thanks again.

[@leerogers6423]

Why is it that the different sounds that different engines make provoke different emotions? Definitely got a smile on my face right now.

[@danbreyfogle8486]

Another very interesting video. Can't wait for the governor project for this.

[@VoidedWarranty]

Another method is using audio recordings and something like audacity, you can use the wave form and make quite accurate measurements of the evenness of the beat. I've done it for a watch

[@oldfarthacks]

Quinn has a very good multi channel O-scope. Put a mike on the engine. Run the engine while watching that. You can even mount up switches on key components ( I myself would use prox ones) and for real fun you could mount an encoder to the crank. Then just tune by the numbers. I am contemplating building a dual overhead valve digitally controlled steam engine, something along the likes of what would exist if the world had not gone to an ICE design.

[@Breadmason]

Dear Quinn, Love your channel..i’m not a machinist, just an old printer, but have always admired people who have made machines to such fine tolerances. Hope your safe and well. ❤️ from Melbourne, Australia

[@TheKnacklersWorkshop]

The engine runs very well Quinn, you must be very proud of what you've made...

[@notabagel]

Wow, was really looking forward to this one, so I'm thrilled I saw it so quickly!

[@sd4594]

Nice job of explaining how to set up an engine to run properly. Traction engines need to properly in both directions. The original owners of my Keck had it adjusted to provide a little more power in the "belt" motion for threshing. I have it adjusted more equally since I use it to thresh & sawmill.

[@anthonyhasler5397]

Mind blown.. What a brilliant video, super informative, great camera footage and audio, makes me wish all KZbinurs videos were of this quality 👌

[@Jeroendorrestein]

Once more, an excellent tutorial. Looking forward to see that governor!

[@WyrGuy2]

Started watching for the machining info... mesmerized by your instruction and information about the hows & whys of steam engine timing and operation! Keep going!

[@AndersonPrototypes]

WOW--that was super helpful. Wish you were closer, would love to have a coffee and talk about steam engines and machining.

[@keepsteamalivecom]

Thank you for being so thorough in your details. I learned a lot from you, more than I have watching experienced Live Steamer's.

[@divingeveryday]

I love this project so much! And we're getting a governor too!

[@ricksorensen9480]

Love your work, I've been learning about steam power for many years now and I have built a few engines,,from a tiny model stationary power plant for my Boss in 2000,, I learned a lot from from that experience & I promised myself to never again attempt to make another one that small,,1/2 inch bore & 3/4 stroke,,steam whistle had a 1/8 inch ,ball end valve seat,,very hard to make...at present I am building a 20 + HP engine for a 20 ft. Catamaran boat I have,,I mostly love my sailboats as I am a sailing NUT. / I LOVE your KZbin videos & you have my respect for you are doing ❤️,,/ Keep up the good work.

[@prsearls]

Excellent explanation of a rather complex subject (at least on large engines). I love watching your channel and projects. I'm not a machinist but appreciate your precision and problem-solving abilities. Your humor is wonderful, too. Your videos are very educational and entertaining, a good combination!

[@warrenwise8127]

I love that flywheel, watched the video on that, see so many flywheels that look like they do not run true, nice engine!

[@artnickel7624]

Keith would love this instruction. Great job!

[@SethKotta]

It makes the chugga-chugga sound, so my simple brain is satisfied.

[@orcasea59]

Love that you chose to do a tune-up follow up on this project. Been watching Keith Appleton for years - he's awesome! He's a musician, so the timing by ear is his jam, for sure.

[@vinicius9670]

Very nice playlist! Watched it all at once until now.

[@ricksorensen9480]

Your presentation is great,,you are a very good teacher in my humble opinion,,Alabama loves you.

[@spock59]

Quinn, you are now a steam engine professor! Thank you for the in-depth explanation.

[@LCOOTS]

what a wonderful explanation, i'm still trying to figure 2 stroke engines. thanks Quin!!!!

[@phildcrow]

Blondie! I've missed you! I spent a good hour yesterday catching up on the VJOs I missed. Good to see you again.

[@marcmckenzie5110]

So satisfying to see your engine get to this point. The biggest thing I’ve learned from the series is that building a steam engine is much more time consuming and challenging than I imagined. I can’t wait to see the governor project; I’ve always thought they were the coolest part! 👍🏼

[@ch34pskate16]

Great stuff. Really liked this series. It would be great if you built a boiler and got this engine rolling old school

[@mattmanyam]

Pretty sure she already has a boiler.

[@mariellecb1]

The sound of the tuned engine is so calming! Thanks for a great tutorial.

[@OnlyTheEd]

I love watching Keith Appelton's videos......I do not add comments on his channel.....I don't wish to feel like an armchair machinist.....so I just sit back and watch.........and listen to him commenting on some of the replies.... :-/

[@alanmuddypaws3865]

Excellent! I was really looking forward to the valve timing video, very informative! Thanks.

[@richardgregory6653]

Good "timing" video Quinn. A small tip on that packing install is to slightly flatten the packing with your tappy tap tool(aka hammer) so you can get it in the stuffing box. The gland will swage it to the shaft and stuffing box.

[@natesteiner5460]

An ink pad, like those used for rubber stamps is great for making gaskets. Ink up the metal surface and press onto the gasket paper. Uncle Bob.

[@jeffreylehn8803]

great job , can't wait for the governor project.

[@mkegadgets4380]

Beautiful project it really turned out nice. Someday I’ll have to make one. And I use your videos as a reference.

[@earlledoux9824]

That engine sounds great. Happy Valentines Day ❤ !

[@justinstrik7125]

I’m currently reading “the perfectionists” by simon winchester which is very interesting as it talks about how precision engineering basically made the steam engine more and more powerful to the point it became the engine that powered the industrial revolution. Very interesting read, especially for a woodworker who normally measures things in 1/10000 of a soccer field.

[@b.w5566]

THANK YOU!! Awesome video and very very informative. Just the right information and amount of it it. I have been looking for how to do the timing on a twin cylinder horizontal mill engine and the only one I found was mr Appleton’s . I love his videos but it was not the help I needed. I almost gave up due to watching numerous Videos made by Wingnuts where I actually felt dumber After watching. I thought I would never get my engine running. So it was refreshing to come across yours. It was exactly what I was looking for. THANK YOU!

[@paulp96275]

I wish I had a teacher like you at school, I would have listened more ,you are far more interesting and the way you tell the facts is great Thanks for great viewing stay safe 👍👨🏻‍🏭🇬🇧

[@toolbox-gua]

I’m catching up on my class and this is indeed perfect and on time! Great.

[@AmateurRedneckWorkshop]

Great tips, a very timely video.

[@ke9tv]

Cheers for the governor project! I wanna see that engine running balls-out!

[@haramanggapuja]

This is so cool. Got me thinking of all the old print shops that ran multiple presses off overhead belt drive systems. Which got me thinking about the 1874 treadle jobber I have. I know that, at age 75, I can run that press for quite some time, five pumps of the treadle for each impression (print) without getting the least bit winded. (Yeah, I feel good about that.) And that got me thinking of how much energy it takes to run the press that way versus how much steam engine energy it takes or would have taken "back in the day" when my father was doing this stuff. I guess that's the fun part of all this: aside from the artsy part of building the engine or setting the type & inking up the press (and picking out the paper & other graphic design considerations), both of 'em require a sensitivity to the machine itself (or the type). Which may be why I find your videos on this so fascinating. . . . Another informative, science-ish video for the other tool use to enjoy. Thanks! Stay safe & stay healthy!

[@haramanggapuja]

"the other tool user" ;-)

[@nerd1000ify]

For reference, human muscle is about 25% efficient at turning chemical energy into mechanical work. A steam locomotive is at best 10% efficient, so assuming the performance of the old stationary engine was similar the amount of energy per print would have been quite a bit higher in the old days of steam. Of course from this we can also infer that running your press on power generated by a modern electric plant (e.g. supercritical steam or gas turbine, ~40% thermal efficiency) may actually emit less CO2 per print than pedaling it with your legs, depending on the efficiency of the local power grid!

[@haramanggapuja]

@@nerd1000ify Or, as my father used to bark when the car windows steamed up "Goddammit! Stop breathing so much!" At my age, by the way, an hour or so of pumping the treadle gives me a certain satisfaction. I'm 75 and I can do this and not get winded. And the end result is usually something that I can appreciate from a graphic arts point of view. . . . So I consider it a win.

[@nerd1000ify]

@@haramanggapuja there's a lot to be said for that satisfaction of doing it yourself.

[@mikebaldwin9972]

Mr.Appleton would be PROUD of YOU ❤️!!!!

[@HistoricSteamTV]

For glands I use small strips of Nomex fabric soaked in steam oil or high heat grease.

[@billy19461]

I am really enjoying this series!

[@user-pk2fg8im4u]

I have been watching your build and really am enjoying the process. You are very gifted with machining talent and entertaining commentary! I do have one suggestion/question. I may have missed it, but have you checked the balance of the flywheel! It may be that with a small engine like you have built, that it isn't too critical, but every flywheel I have ever seen on different types of machines will show evidence of balancing. Putting the wheel on a straight axle between two level parallels, the heavy side will balance to the bottom, and small holes drilled along the outer rim will remove weight until the wheel will stop and stay at any position. If I missed you doing something like that, forgive me, but it might just make the tuning even better.

[@robertpartsmade5832]

Full blown steam engine engineer now 😎👍 Regards Partsmade 🇬🇧

[@aaronale5]

Your videos are so zen.... Love it.. Cant wait for steam and the Guvna' (cockney accent implied)

[@EmmaRitson]

thats excelent! great video Quinn! love you long time, and congratulations!

[@elsdp-4560]

THANK YOU...for sharing. The steam engine sounds really good.

[@tom_tom_go]

Nice to see this running as steam engines are one of my interests, great job. When you get fed up with the packing switch to o-rings (I use them on my 5" gauge engine, videos on my channel if interested) and well done for mentioning steam engines run differently on air compared to steam!

[@diamondcar2842]

T bag string soaked in oil and graphite powder lubricates and very little friction

[@davidstreeter9426]

Quinn, I have a couple of 100 y.o. books that describe the timing of steam engines which are functionally identical to your model. It is interesting that a mechanical device which has been around for a couple hundred years is still structurally identical and functional. Yes, I am aware of the reasons why steam has been replaced by much newer energy sources but it still has its uses and place and it is very interesting technology.

[@3rdaxis649]

Great series love your work here. Keith is great too.

[@robmacdonald7004]

When do you drill the holes for the mounting bolts? There are bosses for them cast into the base.

[@kurthanson4106]

Nicely done, I was looking forward to this part.

[@gregsmachineshop]

Thanks Quinn, great detail, I just set mine on 90 degree timing not knowing any better--I still have a little work to do. I liked the advice on the low pressure gauge as well. I am looking forward to the governor project, hopefuly you give enough info that I can build one too. :-)

[@marknerren402]

I look forward to the governor and also I will love to see how you make the base. Mine sits on a wooden base (that woodworking stuff again) but it would look more appropriate on a brick or concrete base. I might try my hand at casting something in aluminum in the future. An engine similar to this is seen in "There Will Be Blood" when the drilling is begun. I like this series. Thanks!

[@tonywilson4713]

Nicely done and its great to see the engine working so well. This is actually a deceptively tough little project with some serious challenges in it and to see it run so smooth is _"ab fab"_ It probably hasn't hurt PM's sales in the least, I know I am looking at several of their projects but I'm planning to start with the #2 wobler then the #3, before I try this one. Maybe a #5 or Stuart in the middle.

[@noisyboi87]

A good trick for gland packing is to roll or tap it flatter to fit then let the follower reform it when you install

[@chevyfahrer]

nice tutorial,waiting for the governor project to build one for my own steam engine

[@richardphillips8652]

Great, very well explained. Thank you.

[@jasonhanson6563]

Have you considered making one of those mini V-8s? I ask this question, knowing nothing about them, or how hard they are to make.

[@hefy2jefy]

Love this, a great job! The inboard volume of the cylinder is always going to be less than outboard volume due to the connecting rod, should this be allowed for?

[@davidtaylor6124]

For our toy engines we're more interested in having the distance from the cylinder end cap to that face of the piston be about the same at both ends. Worrying about the volume is a bit beyond our needs.

[@JustFun-iz9rf]

thank you for this I needed to to know. Very well explained.

[@candyop391]

When metric threading to set compound slide in 30° is important

[@stephenrowley4171]

Loving the video, I've seen Keith Appleton videos but this at bit more scientific than his more artistic approach(both are valid) On a side note those screws really want replacing with a studs and nuts it would look so much better

[@Blondihacks]

Yah, that’s on the list. I don’t like those screws

[@Steviegtr52]

Will you be building a steam power source for it.

[@SaitekFreak999]

One thing I noticed about the piston rod lengh adjustment: If the distances to the cylinderheads at top and bottom dead center is the same, then the cylinder volume will be different because the piston rod takes up some space between the bottom head and the piston. Does this affect anything? I am assuming it won't for this particular engine because of the skinny rod, but an engine that I am recreating right now has a piston rod that is roughly a quarter of the piston diameter and can take up a signicant part of the volume due the shape of the underside of the piston.

[@rhavrane]

Bonjour Quinn, What a pleasure to watch your vidéos. You build perfectly and understand what you do, so you can explain things simply for people like me. I am the lucky owner of a fleet with 0.5 to 20 cc steam machines, often bought second hand and adjusting their timiing is always a great difficulty for me, especially for the smaller ones. Will you also build a boiler, I do not remember if you already evoked that point? Amicalement Raphaël PS : Funny to see Keith following your work :+)

[@henrysohbatian6405]

since these engines run on such low pressure, could you try running it from a balloon or two?

[@Skaldewolf]

Could you tell us perhaps the title of this book at 4:05 ? That sounds like a nice theoretical work on the subject.

[@scottbaldridge1092]

what is the correct rotation of this engine? at 13:40 the rotation is CCW, at 13:47 it is now rotating CW and at 14:22 we are back to CCW.

[@Blondihacks]

There is no “correct” rotation for steam engines. You can run them either way you want, as I said in the video.

[@camoogoo]

11:44 What is that soft surfece under the gasket? Looks like some exotic lignin based material.

[@Blondihacks]

Some sort of cellulose matrix, I think. Not sure.

[@randywl8925]

Now I'm wondering if you're going to build something so the engine has something to do. Being mechanical, I'm thinking along the lines of an IBM punch card to turn this into CNC milling machine. "Welcome to episode 12,823" 😁 It's got to be quite satisfying getting to this point.

[@dbldblu]

How about a steam powered sewing machine? Has that ever been done?

[@robmacdonald7004]

@@dbldblu Probably was, back in the heyday of steam, except the sewing machines would have been driven off a line shaft from a monster steam engine that was driving hundreds of them.

[@routercnc9517]

Chuffing marvellous!

[@candyop391]

Your video is so useful

[@steveshindeldecker42]

When you were talking about the governor it made me think about a little tidbit of my grandpa told me when I was a teenager about the saying balls out, apparently it's referring to the ball weights on the governor, not quite what my teenage mind was thinking. Lol

[@paulcopeland9035]

Also, "balls to the wall" was common. Means the same.

[@steveshindeldecker42]

Also true.

[@mauserkk98]

Very nice , have you picked a painting colour ?.

[@ssboot5663]

Love the engine!

[@normppjr4429]

Very cool project

[@larryshaw6517]

So what's the plan a belt riven cat toothbrush?

[@Blondihacks]

How did you know? 😬

[@danjan5721]

Hi Quinn, very nice video. I am having problems to seal my marine steam engine with a graphite cord especially the valve rods. What kind of teflon string are you using?

[@lioncurlew]

Quinn, any tips on timing a twin Cylinder LBSC "Molly" with Stephenson Link motion. Can I time one Cylinder and then the other, based on the method you show in this video? I assume that the non adjusted side would just be driven by the "Timed side, until both are adjusted?

[@nicholasogden7187]

What is the book you showed in the video?

[@jakeshaw2477]

I’ve just started building a Stuart Victoria. I’m a Marine Engineer with lathe experience but do you have any advice for a beginner to model engineering?

[@jakeshaw2477]

@@bwyseymail Thanks. I have been watching Keith Appleton for years now. He’s pretty much the reason I’m getting into the hobby. I try to do everything as an engineer but sometimes Keith’s ways are so much easier. Thanks for the help.

[@jakeshaw2477]

My biggest struggle so far are the imperial measurements. I understand the system but it’s very unnatural to me after years of working in metric. And all my tools and measuring devices are in metric. I’ve been working around this using a Zeus book and a good quality calculator

[@vintagemotorsalways1676]

3:38 What is the title of the book? EDIT: found it by searching an excerpt on google books "The Model Engineer and Amateur Electrician: A Journal of Mechanics ..., Volume 2"

[@LabGoblin]

@blondihacks do you by chance know what that packing cord is called?

[@jczeigler]

Did you put the title of the old book into the video description?

[@sperotsindos]

I really enjoyed this video series. The governor will be really interesting. I noticed when you applied the load the engine was in reverse. Was that the engine going in reverse or the video? Love your work.

[@LelandRJohnson]

I was just watching the Machinist Relay playlist and was wondering what happened to the thingamajigger?

[@jimrichey5919]

custom prony brake time?

[@johncoxhead8706]

Are you going to make a water pump afterwards to run on this engine and a wooden frame to mount them on? Love to see you do it but I have enjoyed watching you all the way through

[@Blondihacks]

All of the above!