What’s the strangest project you’ve ever seen in an old ME or MEW?

[Philip RoweParticipant @philiprowe13116]

Posted by not done it yet on 19/12/2017 07:29:49:

more like an overgrown shotgun cartridge.

Apologies for wandering off topic but I found this when moving into my current house and have always puzzled over it's origin. I'm not sure if you can read the markings on the base but it reads CART. ELEC. ENG. START. No10 Mk3 RLB. 77/7 and there is the broad arrow mark of the military. It measures 80mm dia by approx 185mm in length. Anybody here have any ideas?

Phil

[Jim NicParticipant @jimnic]

It's a gas turbine engine starter cartridge. When initiated the contents burnt relatively slowly and the resulting gases were directed into a small geared turbine which engaged with the main engine, spinning it up to self sustaining speed. Certainly used on some marks of Canberra aircraft and I seem to recall also on some Hunters.

Jim

[RobboParticipant @robbo]

Whilst it wasn't a project, I recall a half page in an old ME devoted to methods of cleaning your pipe. Tobacco smoking pipe that is.

Included the old method of filling the bowl with salt and soaking the salt in Polish Spirit, then leaving it until the spirit had evaporated and emptying out the salt. Sort of 'de-tox your pipe bowl'.

[Mark P.Participant @markp]

Not MEW or ME, I have a set of The Amateur Mechanic dating from around 1920/1930 which has a build your own Xray machine! Harmless fun it says amaze your freinds and relatives!

Mark P.

[Cornish JackParticipant @cornishjack]

Philip – much favoured for early gas turbine (NOT B…..Y JET!!!) powered aircraft – and viewed with keen 'interest'!! Wessex Mk1 with starter crew poised with berets 'at the ready' to damp out the residual fires. On the Belvedere, the process was considered somewhat hazardous, such that, eventually, the starter button was depressed by the pilot standing on the step and reaching inboard so that a smart retreat could be made. The 'self-igniting Belvedere' caused much merriment at Seletar when the inevitable happened on the AOC's annual inspection – the Fire crew weren't allowed to cross the runway to attend and the parading chaps were treated to a fine display of combustible Dural!! The Big Cheese was not amused

rgds

Bill

[RobboParticipant @robbo]

Found the item I was thinking of in my 16:36 post above. See below. But it doesn't include the salt and Polish Spirit treatment – that was obviously elsewhere.

There was a follow-up letter in "Postbag" where the writer recommended filling the bowl with Methylated spirit, drain after soaking and leave to dry for a sweet smoke.

[Ian S CParticipant @iansc]

Our Air Force used two aircraft that had Coffman cartridge starters, the borrowed DH Venoms that were used by 14 Squadron in Malaya. And in the Canberras, quite a spectacular sight with all the black smoke, specially if there is a whole squadron starting together.

I think there was something in a war time ME on lapping the crankshaft bearings for RR Merlin engines, I can't remember if it was my 3rd form metal work teacher, or someone he knew(maybe his father) did this during the war.

Ian S C

Edited By Ian S C on 20/12/2017 13:30:35

[Mike PooleParticipant @mikepoole82104]

If there was any pipe smoking in my workshop I would think the dustbin was on fire.

Mike

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

Posted by Ian S C on 20/12/2017 13:25:28:

I think there was something in a war time ME on lapping the crankshaft bearings for RR Merlin engines, I can't remember if it was my 3rd form metal work teacher, or someone he knew(maybe his father) did this during the war.

This link may interest folks, its about the Packard/Rolls Royce culture clash:

http://www.tested.com/art/makers/492418-packard-merlin-how-detroit-mass-produced-britains-hand-built-powerhouse/

Neil

[Steve WithnellParticipant @stevewithnell34426]

Posted by not done it yet on 19/12/2017 07:29:49:

more like an overgrown shotgun cartridge.

Not 'overgrown' at all. A normal gauge cartridge. Admittedly rather bigger than a .410, but they just used the size for the job. It was an 8 gauge. Some wildfowling shotguns used a 4 gauge cartridge. I suppose most out there only think of the most common shotgun size – the 12 bore.

You can work out the diameter using the standard density for lead and 4/3 Pi r^3. Without checking, a 12 gauge is about 0.718". More like a cannon shell case than a bullet, I suppose.

Edited By not done it yet on 19/12/2017 07:33:51

Pretty sure the old Field Marshall was a 12 bore sized cartridge…Dad had one for a short time, think it went for scrap!

Steve

Steve

[SamsarandaParticipant @samsaranda]

When I worked on Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneers, back in the 60's, they had a cartridge starter which as I recall was 12 bore size, sometimes the Alvis Leonides engines were a pig to start and consumed a number of cartridges before sluggishly coming to life.

Dave W

[terry simpson 1Participant @terrysimpson1]

I seem to remember in the early fifties seeing and reading an article in Model Engineer issued during the war years for the repair of leaking aluminium pans. Remember that aluminium was not available for domestic purposes, all materials were diverted for aircraft production. The article was printed to explain how to fit repair washers to the worn out part of the pan and covered repair of small holes only. Repair washers were, if my memory is correct, available from many hardware and provision stores and hung up to be torn from a cardboard sheet as required. The repair principal was for two steel washers with a small hole in the middle, each washer was dimpled, placed one inside, one outside and the steel screw provided tightened through each washer making the dimples deform the aluminium to form a seal. I assume the article was included into the ME of the time to instruct those modellers away on duty to instruct their wives, assuming that the magazine was still delivered, how to overcome a difficult domestic problem. This article has stayed with me all these years as to why ME printed the article as it seemed to me to be outside the scope of the magazine.

[doubletopParticipant @doubletop]

The Canberra aircraft was cartridge start

https://youtu.be/oPOCl1ufjlE

and the Venom

https://youtu.be/KePs8Rd7DN8

 

(as others have pointed out)

Edited By Doubletop on 21/12/2017 08:53:20

Edited By Doubletop on 21/12/2017 09:15:01

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