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Messages - Martin

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1
Listeroid Engines / Re: Aluminium Piston
« on: July 10, 2021, 01:03:32 PM »
Ok, assembling the piston/cylinder on the bench makes sense.

As my 8-1 has a COV, I guess I should set the head clearance at 45-50 thou rather than 75-80 thou for a true 8-1. What do you think?

2
Listeroid Engines / Re: Aluminium Piston
« on: July 10, 2021, 12:09:56 AM »
38ac, I'm just chewing over your recommended assembly method  - lowering the piston, con rod and cylinder onto the studs as an assembly. How do you stop the piston from falling out of the cylinder as you lower it. The lister book recommends lowering the cylinder onto the piston, while it rests on a couple of bars across the crank case. The Lister method sounds easier,  but maybe I'm missing something.

3
Listeroid Engines / Re: Aluminium Piston
« on: July 09, 2021, 11:22:53 PM »
Thanks for the info, both of you. If there's no clear advantage, then I'm tempted to stick with the original Lister spec and use the 4 ring piston. It's cheaper too, although that is not so important - I live in Grenada,  so by the time I paid shipping and import tax, the original cost price kind of becomes less significant.

Thanks for the tip on checking the head clearance.  I've just looked it up - for a 6-1 it should be 45-50 thou and for an 8-1 it's 75-80 thou. I must admit, I don't understand why the 8- runs at lower compression. Any ideas on that? My listeroid was sold as an 8-1, but interestingly it has the change over valve. I suspect they sell the same engine as a 6-1 or an 8-1, just changing the flywheels and governor spring.

I'm pretty good at general DIY mechanics, but I have to admit, I've never undone and reassembled a big end. Are there any obvious pitfalls for me to walk blindly into. Upon reassembly I guess just make sure it goes together as it came apart and tighten the bolts. Should I use a torque wrench or is f...ing tight good enough. I think the nuts are wired on.

Cheers,
Martin

4
Listeroid Engines / Aluminium Piston
« on: July 08, 2021, 04:46:58 PM »
Hi Everyone,

I have a Listeroid CS8-1, built in India. It is Powerline brand and I bought it from Power Anand in 2012. It has served me well at my off grid house where it is used several times per week for battery charging and/or powering tools that are too big to run off the house batteries. I'm currently doing a few upgrades - I suspect that it has a cast iron piston, so I'm planning to change it to aluminium. It appears that two different aluminium pistons are available - one with 4 rings and one with 5 - the 5th ring being below the gudgeon pin, so it's an oil ring. The question is, which should I use?

Here is the 4 ring piston: https://www.stationaryengineparts.com/Lister-CS-8-1-Aluminium-Piston-Assembly.html

And here is the 5 ring piston: https://www.stationaryengineparts.com/Listeroid-CS-8-1-Aluminium-Piston-Assembly.html

My next question is...whatis the best way to do the job? Should I undo the big end and lift the piston/conrod assembly out of the top of the cylinder, or should I leave the big end alone and lift the cylinder off the piston?

By the way, last weekend I had the flywheels off for balancing and I managed to get the balance pretty good. I've already put a bronze bushing in the governor linkage where the fork (for want of a better description) slides vertically in what was a pretty rough hole. And I've just received an air dashpot to add to the governor linkage which will hopefully prevent overshoot when the generator is under heavy load.

Cheers,
Martin

5
General Discussion / Re: Welding from a Listeroid/ST generator rig
« on: March 04, 2021, 12:21:16 AM »
Crank at BDC showing the counter weights at the top.

6
General Discussion / Re: Welding from a Listeroid/ST generator rig
« on: March 04, 2021, 12:16:12 AM »
This one shows the crank at TDC, but the picture is taken at an oblique angle to show the kidney shaped profile of the counter weights.

7
General Discussion / Re: Welding from a Listeroid/ST generator rig
« on: March 04, 2021, 12:12:03 AM »
This is a view through the crank case door with the crank at TDC, so we can see the sides of the two counter weights.

8
General Discussion / Re: Welding from a Listeroid/ST generator rig
« on: March 04, 2021, 12:07:24 AM »
In this picture the crank is at 9 o'clock when viewed from the front of the engine. So looking in through the crank case door gives a view of the bottom of the two kidney shaped counterweights.

9
General Discussion / Re: Welding from a Listeroid/ST generator rig
« on: March 03, 2021, 11:36:03 PM »
Bruce, my flywheels are 20" diameter. I've just had a look inside through the crank case door and the crank does indeed have counterweights. I took a few photos, which I'll share as soon as my wife has shrunk the pixels sufficiently to post them here...she's better at that sort of thing than I am!

I agree - it seems logical that I should remove the flywheels and balance them for zero counterweight and then put them on the engine and proceed as you and 38AC described.

From memory, I would say that my engine was a bit of a jumper when running at 850rpm.

Photos to follow.

Cheers.

10
General Discussion / Re: Welding from a Listeroid/ST generator rig
« on: March 03, 2021, 06:52:58 PM »
38AC....I just watched the video of your Metro 6/1. If I can get mine running half as smoothly as that, I'll be very happy...

Cheers

11
General Discussion / Re: Welding from a Listeroid/ST generator rig
« on: March 03, 2021, 06:47:26 PM »
Here's the photo of my flywheel:

12
General Discussion / Re: Welding from a Listeroid/ST generator rig
« on: March 03, 2021, 06:03:18 PM »
Thanks Bruce and 38AC for taking the time to explain this method. I think I get it and I will give it a try - not immediately mind you, as I'm in the middle of another project that needs to be finished first.

Bruce, looking at the picture of your flywheel, I can see the counterweight in line with the key slot...the larger of the three "spokes". My engine is from Powerline and the flywheel doesn't look like that at all - see attached photo.

At first glance it looks like there is no counterweight until I saw a hole in the back face of the flywheel rim roughly opposite the key slot. This hole is about 1/2" diameter and about 2 1/4" deep. It's cast, not drilled - it is not perfectly round like a drilled hole would be but rather rough. I always assumed that this hole was for balancing the flywheel, but could it be a lightening hole, to create the effect of a counterweight opposite? If so, it doesn't seem very much! Nothing like your friends 43oz counterweight. Is it possible that the counterweight on my engine is on the crank shaft, inside the engine casing, eliminating the need for a counterweight on the flywheel? I've got a vague memory of seeing something that looked like a counterweight on the crank last time I had the crank case door off...like you though...I can't quite remember! Nevertheless, whether the counterweight is built into the flywheels or on the crank, I would guess that this balancing method could be used. Any thoughts/comments?

Cheers.

Hmm...I'm having trouble posting my photo

13
General Discussion / Re: Welding from a Listeroid/ST generator rig
« on: March 02, 2021, 12:30:13 AM »
I did try the chalk method when I installed the engine about 6 years ago, but to be honest, I didn't have much success with it. I deduced, rightly or wrongly, that the flywheel balance was almost insignificant compared to the reciprocating weight of the piston, etc. Perhaps it's time to have another look at it. I'm looking for 38AC's method, but I can't find it. I did come across some posts where other members refer to him leaving the group and taking down his posts. Do you happen to know where I can find a description of his method?

Cheers

14
General Discussion / Re: Welding from a Listeroid/ST generator rig
« on: February 27, 2021, 09:53:39 PM »
Thanks for your reply Bruce. Am I understanding you correctly - when you say you use an electronic regulator on your ST-3, do you mean that you have an AVR on it? Is it one of these?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07V9HPKWT/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_4?smid=AYAQCA6J7ASI3&psc=1

I looked at them a while ago, but something about the low price didn't inspire me with confidence. Not really a sensible way to judge a product, I admit! Do you find it a worthwhile modification? Are you saying that you disable it when you weld?

I called my listeroid a 6/1 because I run it at 650rpm, but in fact I bought it as a 8/1 and it has the solid flywheels. When I first set it up I found the vibration a bit high, so I changed the governor spring and down rated it to a 6/1, running at the lower speed. It would be a simple task for me to up rate it back to an 8/1 if necessary.

Cheers

15
General Discussion / Welding from a Listeroid/ST generator rig
« on: February 26, 2021, 10:59:13 PM »
I live off grid and I've been using a Listeroid CS1 (6hp) coupled to a ST generator (7.5kw) for the last six years. Generally, I only run workshop tools from the ST generator. All domestic stuff such as lights, music, computers, etc are supplied from a small (1.8kw) inverter off a 24v battery bank. The battery bank is charged from a heavy duty 24v automotive alternator on the listeroid.

So I want to do a bit of welding and I'm interested to know what your collective thoughts are on running an inverter based TIG welder from the ST generator. I'm not too concerned about power - I accept that I'll have to keep the welding current down otherwise I could stall the engine. What concerns me is the quality of the electricity produced - by that I mean the voltage spikes, etc and whether this will damage the nice new welder that I've already ordered? Do any of you out there run a welder off your listeroid based rig? I'd be interested to hear your experiences and thoughts on the subject.

Cheers

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