Sparking Ideas for an Ignition System: 3D Printed Gas Engine (Part 3)

[@dismaldan1502]

Glad to see you're still at it! I just started using an automotive coil for ignition myself and it works great. I'm running it as a buzzcoil with a simple homemade buzzer and the arcs can jump a 15mm gap no problem, let alone the 2mm gap in my little spark plugs. One thing I noticed is that the sparks weren't shit without wiring an automotive condenser between the contact breaker points. If the set up you're trying now keeps giving you trouble, I recommend looking into going the buzz route; Super cheap and simple upgrade. Looking forward to seeing you get one running; good luck!

[@CamdenBowen]

Thank you! I hadn't ever heard of a buzz coil until reading this, I will look into it. The system I have now seems to work good enough but certainly could use an upgrade lol

[@ProjectLMZ]

Hey, I know this is 11 months late, but would you mind just posting a real quick video of the engine you made? I’m trying to gather as much information as possible about others attempts. My engine is coming along nicely, in fact, I just got it to fire today.

[@boattclub]

this projects really turning you into a chad and i'm here for it

[@CamdenBowen]

Big drip

[@Earth_Elemental]

LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOO youtube procrastination

[@christophercain7343]

I love these videos and the way you edit them. It’s so funny, and still educational. The part where you cut from the hose to the battery to the bucket to the capacitor to the nozzle to the coil was hilarious for some reason. You might also consider using an actual spark plug from a lawnmower or something, maybe even using a brass heat insert that the spark plug screws into. Possibly also look into a magneto firing system (?), however it looks like the current system has has the kinks ironed out somewhat. And yknow, if it ain’t broke, I’m not getting off my ass to fix it

[@CamdenBowen]

"if it ain’t broke, I’m not getting off my ass to fix it" well said lol. I like your suggestions but I think until I get a running engine I can build off from I will probably just roll with what I've got going on

[@AtrumOculis]

The dwell of the coil is important. Too much dwell leads to hot battery, too little gives no spark. The coil does have to charge up, once charged it is like a short.

[@CamdenBowen]

I never heard about coil dwell until reading this but it makes sense. As the magnetic field is being created from the battery connecting the battery is under load, once it's fully created it will short out. Thank you for sharing!

[@AchkichCODM]

This guy deserves the same amount of subs as much as other ytbers, my guy explained the concepts with simple examples and made science stuff fun... bro i love the content bro, keep this up

[@CamdenBowen]

Thank you so much!

[@DaveDoesAnimation]

Bro this project is amazing, you’ve inspired me to design and 3d print a compressed air engine. Keep up the great work!!!

[@CamdenBowen]

Thank you! It means so much hearing that I've inspired you to want to create engines!

[@mattlawton4715]

@@CamdenBowen the plastic is far to weak can you use carbon fibre 🤔

[@mattlawton4715]

@@CamdenBowen there are 3d printed guns I don't know what there using but they are saying in some cases they are stronger than the real thing. They call them ghost guns have you hered of those now if its strong enough to make a gun and a very good gun it might be good for an engine 🤔 what are your thoughts. I love your project 👍

[@hayden3928]

Duddeee! Congrats man. It was sooo satisfying seeing it spin that crank!

[@CamdenBowen]

Thank you! Maybe the next one won't snap the crankshaft lol

[@hayden3928]

@@CamdenBowen yeah! Hopefully! You may have to make the crank thicker with those kind of forces...

[@dandzsemz9874]

Yesss new part

[@PyroFactor101]

Great work man, happy to see it coming together!

[@CamdenBowen]

Thank you! Glad you could be here for the ride!

[@blingblingdog6958]

Calculate the compression ratio to figure out which fuel to use. Automotive gasoline and alcohol has a high octane rating, but propane has an even higher on. If it is lower compression, you can use kerosine, lighter fluid, or Coleman gas. Coleman gas is just gasoline without any additives, so it has like 50 octane. I think a carburetor would be simpler, and has less variables. Fuel injection would be more complicated, but has more control. For future upgrades, I think a water jacket would keep it cool. If you add a generator, it could move under its own power, or you can make a magneto.

[@CamdenBowen]

I had designed the engine initially do have a compression ratio similar to that of a typical lawnmower engine might have (like 9:1 I think?) and then dialed it back since it had a little too much compression. I like the idea of Coleman gas however!

[@CamdenBowen]

@ULTRA CHAD DOGE I don't think it generates even enough to use corn oil, and if it did it would melt almost immediately unfortunately

[@martinrr_999]

Nice job, you've made a lot of progress! As I saw, you put up a poll on whether to make an exhaust for the engine, I think you should do it, but only if the whole thing is already working. It was a stupid idea not to completely fill the crankshaft because it has a large load compared to its size. At least print it with full infill, and if it still breaks, make it thicker. Also, pay attention to the pre-ignition and the compression, but as I can see, your pre-ignition was good, but I don't know how many bars your compression can be.

[@CamdenBowen]

Pre-ignition isn't a problem. Butane has high enough octane that pre ignition isn't an issue, nor does my engine have enough compression to even start dieseling. The crank shaft wasn't printed with 100% infill because I forgot to set it to that lmao

[@martinrr_999]

@@CamdenBowen I mean the spark before the top point and not dieseling

[@trufortune6771]

Nice to see someone putting 3D printed plastic to good use

[@CamdenBowen]

I mean what else would you do with a 3d printer? Lol

[@trufortune6771]

@@CamdenBowen idk some people use 3D printers for art 🤮. I make pneumatic engines, and turbojet engine molds. Not nearly as cool as combustion engines.

[@CamdenBowen]

@@trufortune6771 In other words, cool shit lmao

[@notyushi4874]

There are few channels that I’m as excited to see post as yours

[@CamdenBowen]

Thank you so much!

[@terencebriffa2492]

Try to insert a metal rod inside the 3d printed crank shaft to strengthen it, keep it up i really want to see this engine run. is it ok for you of you send me the files of the engines (2 stroke and 4 stroke), if yes appreciate it. Good luck.

[@AxelDayton]

Snapping a crank always sucks! But hey, it works and it sounds like your timing is pretty good. Also, are you planning on using propane or gasoline for you fuel? I know PETG is really resilient to gasoline in comparison to PLA, but is the propane/butane option better because it's a more simple fuel system?

[@CamdenBowen]

Thanks! I want to keep experimenting with butane for a few reasons. The butane has a low boiling point so it's much less likely to flood the engine. Also, if it enters as a gas it won't wash away the oil from the cylinder walls if the ratio is poor. It may also be easier to make an injection system that relies on the natural pressure butane has when it returns to a gas inside of a container. I don't think I would try gasoline, but rather some kind of alcohol possibly

[@AxelDayton]

@@CamdenBowen That makes sense, but with gasoline you can mix lubricating oil in the fuel to keep lubrication. I know most 2 stroke engine do this, but it is a bit dirtier, especially in the carburetor. Alcohol might be a good idea if you can get a high enough proof of it.

[@cenreaper9127]

@@AxelDayton What did you do about improving your engine till now?

[@AxelDayton]

@@cenreaper9127 Dang bro, you got me there 😂. In all seriousness, I've been experimenting with an exhaust valve idea but i don't really know. I'm kind of trying to develop a whole different engine that isn't a rotary or piston but idk

[@Ihappyboy1234]

@@AxelDayton why don’t you try this one day oh yeah im waiting for your next video too

[@spika5887]

Great work! Waiting for part 4

[@CamdenBowen]

Thank you!

[@whiteink1924]

The first part got me. Am I even watching the same video lol because it suddenly turned into a car washing tutorial.

[@nitroboom1282]

To increase chance of ignition try to make the gap wider and use a higher inductance maybe even try to implement a capacitor like ceramic to make a resonance to make it ark longer and wider

[@CamdenBowen]

I may need to modify the head further to accommodate optimal spark gap

[@matthewlewington2470]

This is exactly what i was looking for. soo cool, cant wait for more

[@Mark4star1]

Love the flywheel idea

[@deltacx1059]

2:44 kinda, the coils still do need time to charge and many small engines also use capacitive discharge ignition just fine even at 12k rpm. Also you have a battery ignition system there, where is the condenser?

[@LukieHZX]

Are you going to use propane/butane as the fuel or would you switch to gasoline. I think, if the coil can ignite gasoline, it would be a better option, because it is easier to get, transport and use, because you dont have like high pressure, because its a fluid, also it would be really cool. Great series, I was so happy, when this new part came out 👏

[@CamdenBowen]

Thank you! I'm going to keep trying butane only because its very low boiling point could prevent flooding/dissolving the parts. I also don't want to have the gasoline wash the oil from the cylinder walls either, but maybe I could try alcohols instead

[@LukieHZX]

@@CamdenBowen Ok, I never thought about alcohols, but may be a good option. But first you need to get it running 🤣

[@ForzaMata]

this is really nice its going forward !😁

[@kaiyofox]

I can't wait to see the next part! Is there like a Patreon I could maybe join to get early access to videos? I suppose you don't upload alot so it wouldn't be worth paying to much but . Idk

[@CamdenBowen]

Thank you! I'm very glad that you enjoy my content and wish to see more! It helps keeping me going and pursuing more ideas! I think I will wait a little bit longer before Introducing anything like patreon, maybe at 10k subscribers I will, I try to post updates on progress on the community tab but I also don't want to give too much away. But I understand what you mean, for right now it takes me a while to make videos so as soon as they're finished I try to get them posted but as I refine my techniques I hope to post more frequently!

[@lucaelectronic]

Hi, I following this project since the beginning I think it's really interesting. The ignition problem is comes from the 9V battery the ignition coils draws way to much current and the voltage of the battery collapse so no more spark. If you are interested I can write some software for a ECU for the little engine even with controllable ignition timing... The problem with the fuel source I would use a gas cylinder for mini camping stoves and use the regulator that you can buy for them the mixing of air and gas I would do direct at the intake.

[@Dazdigo]

Capacitors resist changes in voltage, coils/inductors resist changes in flow. Capacitors store power as static electricity, inductors store power in a magnetic field.

[@ChrisDeRoseTech]

Keep doing it!

[@BirdbrainEngineer]

Use polycarbonate (if your printer can handle it) for some of the highest heat resistance out of 3d printing filaments (~140C)... not sure whether it's mechanically suitably strong for your application though.

[@CamdenBowen]

My printer has a 260c limiter on it, otherwise all of the fittings would disintegrate lol, but not a bad idea for parts like the piston or head

[@SouthernLife]

You win, I subscribe!

[@CamdenBowen]

Thank you!

[@mavsgarage5245]

Why don’t you try using a actual spark plug? I’d get the smallest one you can find and try that, Im really loving seeing the progress on this.

[@CamdenBowen]

Thanks! The challenge with an actual spark plug is that it would be very difficult to seal it. The screws are long and have a wide sharp thread pattern while small spark plugs have fine threads and a shorter length so it may leak much more

[@Isjix4410]

i would make the crank shaft/journals a type of light metal rod, aluminum or something thin/lightweight. I never had luck with 3d printed shafts especially small ones.. just a suggestion. and you could soak a cotton ball in some ether or gas and put it near the intake port. do this outside lol

[@CamdenBowen]

I have 8mm steel rods that I could use if need be, definitely better than plastic lol. The problem with using a fuel method like that is it wouldn't have enough fuel evaporate fast enough, as well as it would oversaturate the surrounding air with too much fuel. I've already tried something similar lol

[@cenreaper9127]

Maybe your battery simply don't have enough power to light up compressed fuel or you are not getting enough air.

[@CamdenBowen]

The coil is only rated for 6v so I assume the battery is fine, but the air fuel will need to be adjusted

[@cenreaper9127]

@@CamdenBowen You can try petroleum (gas lamp fuel). That doesn't seem to be to hard for your spark to ignite, especially not in a high pressure cylinder where fuel is just about to self-ignite.

[@esahg5421]

small supercapacitor bank in parallel with battery. no dwell needed, always have maximum spark

[@rag3parsley_420]

7:00 that scared the living life out of me

[@larryjeffryes6168]

Can low temperature file be used? Don’t know what those would be though.

[@Aeros-tech]

What are you using to get spark? And I’m gunna make a diesel version bc it burns at 85 c only so I can use pla

[@CamdenBowen]

I am using a 12v ignition coil, they don't cost a whole lot

[@kwinngeer9070]

love the video

[@CamdenBowen]

Thanks!

[@Jkauppa]

why would you need a coil to generate high current spark, when you can just use piezo crystal squeeze mechanically in the cylinder, also timed perfectly always at the top

[@Jkauppa]

piezo crystal spark at top of the piston crush

[@Jkauppa]

3d printed complete car with metal-air fuel cell with electric motor, completely diy 3d printed

[@Jkauppa]

better not include a electric circuit complexity at all

[@Jkauppa]

piezo crystal is a purely mechanical spark

[@frenchperformer5401]

make a head gasket made of paper or rubber sheets

[@bowieinc]

Maybe consider RC Car Nitro gas. Be careful! Have fun!

[@GoingtoHecq]

The coil is not just a capacitor. It's a transformer and it's not a capacitor. It's an inductor.

[@laabarnaceur2134]

when next video

[@blingblingdog6958]

Can you share the files so I can improve on it?

[@CamdenBowen]

Sorry, I want to wait until I finish the project first before releasing the files that way everyone can make one and modify it to how they'd like

[@blingblingdog6958]

Ok, I just thought of coating the top of the piston with job weld or ceramic

[@CamdenBowen]

@@blingblingdog6958 I was thinking something similar as well, if I decide to do that I will include your comment in the video :)

[@Ihappyboy1234]

Just imagine adding nitro methane as the fuel it going to be like brrrrr *blows up*

[@gargert1433]

You should use rocket grade kerosene

[@CamdenBowen]

If I could get my hands on some lol, I was more looking into something cheap and ubiquitous however

[@akzaagaming1717]

2 stroke

[@MayumiTheKimura]

FUCKING FINALLY!

[@Todaysdarksheep]

Mason just use propane