Has anyone burned EDM oil in a Listeroid or other engine?

I have a chance to get about 80 gallons of unused EDM oil for free.  Company switched brands and does not want to mix them and seems to think it will cost them to get rid of it.

http://www.noco.com/NOCO-MSDS/EDM_990.htm

Just what can a 6Hp Lister type engine do that a 6Hp Honda can't?

A few years ago I bought a Hobart 200 amp DC welder at an auction for $20.  It has a massive 15Hp 3 phase motor, a large cooling fan, the DC welding generator, and a smaller exciter generator all on one long shaft.  I had intended on finding a way of belting it to an engine and to using it, but the only possible place for a pulley is in the center where the fan is which would be a major project.  Second possible use would be as a single to three phase converter for which it would work well, could even connect 24 volts of batteries to the welder section to spin it up to get it started and then use it to charge the batteries.

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i208/andre_b/Auxiliary%20Equipment/HobartWelder.jpg
http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i208/andre_b/Auxiliary%20Equipment/HobartWeldertag.jpg

The tag says 15Hp but it also says 220 volts and 36 amps which is a bit over 10Hp they can not both be right.

But now that I have a 3 phase generator for the listeroids the converter is not needed.  So after doing some spring cleaning I found it possible to walk up to the Hobart and I figured why not see what happens.

With the grease in the Hobarts bearings nice and stiff at 32°F I push the button, DOL to the 25Kw gen head being turned by the 6/1 thru a single 4L1000 belt.  Engine speed drops right now, belt begs for mercy, black puffs of smoke with every power stroke and they are coming slow enough I can count them, contactor in the Hobart is chattering with the low voltage but it is turning and after about 1 1/2 minutes the governor on the 6/1 backs off and things settle down.  With everything spinning again the 6/1 does not seem to be working much harder then before.

The welder seems to be working, makes arcs an sparks, will have to do some more testing.   
If the current controls work it looks like I have a very nice 100% duty cycle DC power supply for my Lincoln Weld Pac 100 flux core wire, which on its own transformer is only good for about 10% at some small max power.  May be worth getting the mig conversion now.

Going to have to do something about that contactor, maybe connect a rod to it thru a hole in the side so I can hold it in by hand until it gets up to speed.

When the 25Kw generator is setup to be turned by the 12/2 and/or the 6/1 the Hobart should be able to burn some good size electrodes.

Thinking I may have to replace the 4L belt with something better for that.

http://www1.eere.energy.gov/vehiclesandfuels/pdfs/deer_2005/session6/2005_deer_vuk.pdf

Check out page 18 and tell me if it would be fun to have that setup with a Lister.

I just picked up the remains of a New-Way two cylinder horizontal opposed engine.  The flywheels are 26" in diameter and the crank throw makes for a 6" stroke.




At the auction I was thinking I could get some listeroid cylinder and piston sets and make a nice smooth running engine.  But after looking at it more I think the crank is a bit weak for such use and the 6" stroke may be more then the listeroid cylinders could handle.

A bit of research shows that the engine should look like this.
https://www.gasenginemagazine.com/complete-archive/3922/
http://old-engine.com/coolsprg.htm

And some info on the company.
http://www.cadl.org/localhistory/auto/newway.htm

As you can see it was converted for use as a wood splitter.  With that type of use I was a little concerned that the crank may be bent.  At the auction it was sitting with the flywheels on the ground so it was not possible to turn it over to see if anything had an unwanted wiggle.  I have since disconnected the connecting rod to the splitter and loosened and lubed the main bearings (they look like they were repoured not very long before they stopped using it.  So now the crank would spin easily and when this is done both flywheels run very true, better then I have seen on listeroid engines.

This engine was throttle governed but only the exhaust valve was activated by the cam the intake valve was just a check valve.  Also I believe the ignition was a low tension make and break so overall not much removed from a hit and miss engine.

If I can not find original parts I may fit a set of air cooled cylinders from a more modern engine.  Need to find some with a 4.5 to 5" bore.
Since the original cylinders were mostly covered with tin and the rest of the parts could be fabricated to look much like the original I should fool most people.

The other option would be just a free style one off engine.  I think a two cylinder gearless hit and miss with pendulum type governor would be fun.
Note the star wheel and ratchet used to get the four stroke cycle.
http://books.google.com/books?as_brr=1&id=qevPmex5pAgC&vid=LCCN13024493&dq=Gas+Engine+Facts+copyright+1913&jtp=51
   Gas Engine Facts
   Copyright, 1913
   Page 51


I have found that one of the flywheels has a broken spoke and I will need to look for another wheel.  The wheel with the groves machined for the fan belts looks to be in good shape so the engine can be built and run without the second flywheel or with something else in its place until a wheel can be found.
Should I mention possibly repairing the broken wheel.

Yet one more project.

http://ls1tech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=420925

What follows are some long term goals and like all such things are subject changes as imposed by reality.

My only real plan for increasing the efficiency of my listeroid engines comes out of how I will be using the engine.  Rather then running for long periods of time the engine will likely only be run for an hour or three at a time meaning a significant percent of the run time will be at less then full operating temperature.  So when practical I can preheat the engine coolant, sump oil, and fuel if needed (vegetable or thicker used motor oils).



This is a wood/coal burning water heater sold by Sears a while back and will be plumbed into the engine coolant loop as shown by the drawing at the link below.
http://listerengine.com/coppermine/albums/userpics/10034/Engine%20preheat.jpg

It could also be used to supplement the heat from the engine if needed for co-generation, but you would need to sit there and feed it about every five minutes.  But a wood gasifying system could be used with the gas being burnt in the water heater.


The other day someone stated that the most efficient way of running a mechanical load from an engine is by direct or belt drive rather then thru a generator and a motor.  In that vein I have collected the following equipment to be driven directly by the engine.



An air compressor which has many uses in a wood or metal shop.  It will need a rebuild before it can be used.



Also a compressor but it is from a refrigeration system.  This link shows something like (very simplified) how it will be setup.
http://home.earthlink.net/~lenyr/refrig.htm
The condenser coil will be in a tank of water a small pump will be used to create a spray to increase the evaporative cooling if needed.
I also have a 600 gallon milk tank which will be cooled by the other end of the system.  The chilled water can then be pumped thru a radiator in the house when A/C is needed, this pump and a fan are low powered enough that they can be run off the house batteries and PV system without the engine running.  That way the engine and compressor does not need to run all the time while I can still get some amount of cooling.  This milk tank has some insulation but when the install is completed it will be better insulated.  In colder weather it will be used for storing the engine heat.




The pump in the picture is mainly intended to be manually operated by screwing in a pipe as a handle.  But it can also be powered by a connecting rod to the cross hole just below, the other end would be connected to a crank on a suitable gearbox, got one from some junked out farm equipment.  I will likely run it with a low voltage DC motor direct off the battery bank but if needed any motor or even a belt to an engine could be used and there is also the manual option.
I currently have a conventional submersible pump down the well, which of course can only be run by electricity and a good deal of it when running even if the average energy use is small.
If I were to drop a jet pump down the well it could be operated by the above piston pump making it possible to get water regardless of what kind of power was available.
This piston pump is also in need of a complete rebuild, even the teeth on the sector and rack gears are worn down to sharp points.

This looks interesting for getting used oil ready for use as fuel.  If it works as well a TP rolls it would be a lot less mess to deal with.
http://www.albion.com.gr/glacier.htm
And a review.
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3165/is_n7_v31/ai_17370618

Looking at this picture it would not be impossible to make one.  I have not seen a price so it may be less expensive to just buy one.
http://www.albion.com.gr/how%20works.jpg

Given some of the questions lately about engine mounts I thought I would put up some pictures of a temporary base I setup for my 6/1 so that I could use it to run the air conditioner while we still have some heat.  The engine shed I am building keeps growing and is taking longer then I had hoped.









The engine is bolted to some 4 foot 4x4s which are bolted to some 8 foot 4x6 skids all hardwood.  The weights on the ends consist of a solid concrete block two flywheels from John Deere hay bailers and four weights from the old style Bobcat skid steer loaders.  Without the weights it wanted to move around some but is solid with them in place.

If I were to build a more permanent wood base I would make something more like this.  It would be all made from white oak or substitute any locally available rot resistant hardwood.  For weight on the ends just set a 55 gallon barrel on each end and fill with water.