Lister Substitute Belarus

[aqmxv]

It was actually originally used with 2 anvils, one sitting on top of the other one to signal that big news was coming during the civil war.  Much more fun than ringing a bell on the church steeple like most folks did in those days.  There are actually some idiots who do it the old way and have someone run up with a red hot poker and touch off the blackpowder by hand.  They must be deaf (or wear non-standard historical hearing protection) not to mention inelligable for life insurance.
Stan

I must admit I've never seen an anvil shoot.  I've seen something similar though - a gunpowder tester.  You Canadians can see one if you go to the Plains of Abraham above Quebec city - the arsenal there still has its gunpowder test cup.  The procedure is:

1) pour a standard measure of powder in the cup, and use about 15 seconds worth of slow match as a fuse.
2) Place a galloper cannonball on top of the cup (I think it was the 6 pounder)
3) light the fuse
4) run back to the sighting line (which is also the safety line)
5) when it goes off, make note of how far up the vertical scale on the wall the ball goes.  Didn't get the altitude you wanted?  might be too coarse-grained or damp.  Could also be adulterated.

[Stan]

All this black powder stuff sounds like it's very hard on the eardrums.  Time to make a plug for hearing protection whether you are grinding on metal for a generator mount, watching a Lister without a muffler or anything like that.  Once you get a ringing noise in your ear(s) you have had damage.  That damage NEVER goes away.  It's permanent!  Be aware!
Stan

[rbodell]

All this black powder stuff sounds like it's very hard on the eardrums.  Time to make a plug for hearing protection whether you are grinding on metal for a generator mount, watching a Lister without a muffler or anything like that.  Once you get a ringing noise in your ear(s) you have had damage.  That damage NEVER goes away.  It's permanent!  Be aware!
Stan

I can vouch for that.  When I was about 15, I was in the engine room helping to assemble and GM 12-71 we had replaced a piston in over night. We were just putting the heads on when the boat left the dock the next morning on the other engine. After about ah hour and a half with the other engine running at 2k RPM two feet from me, that was the end of my hearing. 40 plus years later, I still hear that engine. Sometimes it is so loud It drowns out the roid rite next to me. It never stops. It is there 24/7. .

[dpollo]

I can back Stan up on his warning about hearing loss,  it is preventable but it is probably too late by the time you notice it. Due to my own folly, I have endured ringing in the ears for many years. Sometimes it seems so loud, I am surprised people sitting next to me can't hear it.

Reminds me of the good old boy who was so pleased with his new hearing aid, he was boasting to all his friends. One of them asked, "What kind is it?" 

He replied , " About quarter to five."

[Doug]

I'm very hard of hearing now after years of working in heavy industry. This week I lost my voice and couldn't yell  " WHAT ".

The considerat young aprentices made a name tag that said " Hello My name is Doug and I am a deaf Mute ".....

I wrote a note myself for them, " I am an aprentice and getting a realy dirty job today "

[Stan]

I used to lecture the kids who like to go to the DJ dances at our school and stand about 5 feet in front of the big 6 foot high speakers blasting music out at a measured 103 decibels.  (the band teacher had the meter to measure it).  They stood there for the whole 4 hours of the dance and were measureably deafer (sp?) the next morning.  (we had to have our dj dances on thur night because they were much cheaper than the fri. night version).

I wonder where some of them are now and what kind of hearing aids they use?
Stan

[rmchambers]

I wrote a note myself for them, " I am an aprentice and getting a realy dirty job today "

I see punishment is dealt swiftly down in the mine.

[Doug]

No, when that sort of thing begins it the start of play time. Time to break out my dusty old bag of dirty tricks

[CD in BC]

The neat thing about your Belarus engine is the centrifugal oil cleaner.  Have you had a look inside it yet?