Model Engine running just off a naked flame

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

It looks like it has a bit of both. The ones that run from gas tend to have the tank at the flywheel end as can be seen in the photo, this is how the kit from Polly Eng is configured. I have seen others with various spirit burners with the tank and wick burner at the head end which can also be seen in that photo.

[Martin Kyte]

On Martin Kyte Said:

Flame gulpers have been around for a very long time. Here is a model from 1904

 

Love to see a video of that running, thanks for the photo.

[Blue HeelerParticipant @blueheeler]

The square brass part with the large hole, that’s a water reservoir/radiator?

[DiogenesParticipant @diogenes]

Yes, that’s right, was common full-size practice on so many ‘utility’ engines of that period as I’m sure you know.

[Howard LewisParticipant @howardlewis46836]

Being of modest power, and speed, many engines of that era, and type, relied on evaporative cooling, just needing an occasional top up to replace what had either evaporated or boiled off.

Some times referred to as “Hopper Cooled”  No fun being poked at our esteemed antipodean friend!

The preserved examples, now seen at shows, will probably run all day without much attention, since they are, in most cases, unloaded.

Howard

[duncan webster 1Participant @duncanwebster1]

I’m possibly one of the few who has driven a Fordson TVO tractor and been paid for it. Farmers in the Yorkshire dales needed one tractor most of the year, but several at hay time, so all sorts of old crocks were hidden away in barns. The Fordson had a radiator, but it didn’t start to pull well until it was boiling. The radiator cap was a big oval affair, and a bucket of water was positioned in a convenient place so it could be regularly topped up. You didn’t stop the engine as it had no self starter.

[Howard LewisParticipant @howardlewis46836]

The best that you could hope for was that the trip magneto provided a good spark as you swung it over on the starting handle.

Cooling was just thermosyphon, adequate for a low compression engine of limited output.

As Duncan says, once started on petrol and warmed up and changed onto TVO, you didn’t stop, or you had to drain the carb, restart on petrol and warm up again before returning to TVO.

The N type, (Standard), and the Major which succeeded it were decidedly basic machines.

The parking brake for the N type was a chain and hook which held the clutch pedal down against the clutch brake!

[Howard Lewis]

On Howard Lewis Said:

The best that you could hope for was that the trip magneto provided a good spark as you swung it over on the starting handle.

Cooling was just thermosyphon, adequate for a low compression engine of limited output.

As Duncan says, once started on petrol and warmed up and changed onto TVO, you didn’t stop, or you had to drain the carb, restart on petrol and warm up again before returning to TVO.

The N type, (Standard), and the Major which succeeded it were decidedly basic machines.

The parking brake for the N type was a chain and hook which held the clutch pedal down against the clutch brake!

Now there’s something I haven’t thought of in many years – Magnetos.

This was one of our old clinker built fishing boats in front of our house, a very simple single cylinder ‘Put Put’ engine and Lucas Magneto.

 

 

[Diogenes]

On Diogenes Said:

Yes, that’s right, was common full-size practice on so many ‘utility’ engines of that period as I’m sure you know.

yes very common on Hit & Miss engines, nice to see on a model flame gulper. Shame its not instituted on the commercially available models.

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

The old Scott shown is still available as a kit so available of somebody wants one.

Another watercooled one that I’ve gathered quite a bit of reference material on and may get round to building a model of.

[DiogenesParticipant @diogenes]

That’s an interesting engine – some nice bits to fabricate and an interesting mechanism (- is the piston hollow?), seems to have the sound and er, feel of a ‘mass-ier’ engine than it looks, if you know what I mean..

[Author]

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