Author Topic: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...  (Read 11926 times)

Roark

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Well, three years of lurking and I finally took the plunge. :)  Just for the record, when my wife got done screaming at me, I did the manly thing and liberally blamed this group. (She didn't buy it. Much. heheheh).

The object of my forthcoming divorce is a basket-case watercooled Vidhata VH4, 1-cylinder, 8 hp.  It was moving water at a fish-farm until it ran out of water (the water jacket on the engine is plumbed-in to the discharge of the pump. No thermostat. No screen. And the big pump isn't self-priming. Who DESIGNS this stuff?).  The engine isn't siezed, but it's clearly going to need a set of rings and related pieces. It's clearly been used hard. But I was looking for a project, and the price was right (free!), so it followed me home. The 6-inch centrifugal pump is going straight into the bin.  The base will need to be reworked. It'll need an intake, exhaust, and radiator.  But the basic engine seems very salvageable. All the major bits are still there. Unfortunately the crankcase looks like someone filled it with a mixture of grease and beer. So it's gonna have to come apart completely.

To my questions... and ANY comments/feedback/assistance will be appreciated:

Q1).  Anyone have a manual for this creature?
Q2).  Where are you guys getting parts in the USA? All I can find is Basant in India. Lots of lLister stuff, but nothing Vidhata!
Q3).  It appears the only difference between this motor and the 10 or 12 HP units is the bore. The stroke is the same. Anyone ever up/downsized one of these?

Thanks in advance for any pointers you can give.

Roark
What?!? No engine parts at the dinner table?  C'mon, Hon...

billswan

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #1 on: March 13, 2011, 01:42:07 AM »
Well if the engine was free how could your wife be mad.

The thing for scrap would be worth the hauling for sure.

Billswan
16/1 Metro  in the harness choking on WMO ash!!

10/1 OMEGA failed that nasty WMO ash ate it

By the way what is your cylinder index?

Tom

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #2 on: March 13, 2011, 02:35:45 AM »
I think the problem is that wife's like to be the first love in a mans life.  ;)
Tom
2004 Ashwamegh 6/1 #217 - ST5 just over 3k hours.

Roark

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #3 on: March 13, 2011, 03:02:05 AM »
Tom:  Too late.  I also have a draft horse.  SWMBO'd (She Who Must Be Obeyed) KNOWS she's Number Two. LMAO!!!

Roark
What?!? No engine parts at the dinner table?  C'mon, Hon...

Roark

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #4 on: March 21, 2011, 09:38:31 PM »
Today I found-out the injection pump is toast. Ooops.  ::)

Silly question: This critter sure looks like a standard-issue Bosch/Mico to me, but there isn't anything visible to identify it one way or the other. Does anyone know if the standard Mico would swap-in?

I'm trying to avoid ordering one "just to see". :)

Roark
What?!? No engine parts at the dinner table?  C'mon, Hon...

Roark

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #5 on: April 18, 2011, 12:30:44 PM »
Ha!  It runs!  Amazing what you can do with copious amounts of carb cleaner, mineral spirits, and a six-pack (or two) of beer.  And patience. LOTS of patience.

The stuff in the crankcase was home-brew grease.  "Home brew" because it was what was left after the rest of the oil had been consumed. No oil changes for this baby in the last several thousand hours.... just "top offs" using whatever happened to be laying around (confirmed by owner).  I used a long-handled teaspoon to scoop it out as it had the viscosity of cold pudding.  Once I got the worst of it out, mineral spirits got the remainder flowing again.

The space in the thorax of this critter (where the pushrods pass through the jug on their way to the rocker arms) was also completely gooped. Again, patience, mineral spirits, and much cussing with a toothbrush got the job done.

The overhead bits were actually in quite good shape. Again, turps, beer and elbow grease were constructively applied.

Happily, my earlier belief that the injection pump was munged wasn't true. The injection system wasn't shot... just completely gunked. Turns-out a 50/50 mix of ULSD diesel and Marvel Mystery Oil is a soverign purge for an injector pump. Once the (old, unfiltered, fresh-from-the-crankcase) waste motor oil was flushed-out of the injection system, it got to feeling much better.

After fabricating a hose-fed cooling system and filling it up with oil, it caught fire on the second try. It was NOT happy, but it ran. I spent Sunday tinkering with the various bits and feeding it clean diesel laced with various OTC cleaners. By sunday night, it was starting and running happily. There is smoke in the exhaust, and the injection pump leaks, but it runs nicely and isn't bad for vibration once it's up to speed.

Now comes the actual tear-down and rebuild. 

Question: I've looked using all the search terms I can think of but can't find Vidhata parts anywhere in the USA. Anybody got a source? I really don't want to buy directly from india if I can avoid it.

Roark
What?!? No engine parts at the dinner table?  C'mon, Hon...

bschwartz

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #6 on: April 18, 2011, 07:44:59 PM »
If your engine is a basic CS style, I'd check here
http://diesel-electric.us
-Brett

1982 300SD, 1995 Suburban 6.5, 1994 F250, R170, Metro 6/ sold :( , Witte CD-12 ..... What else can I run on WVO?

buickanddeere

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #7 on: April 18, 2011, 09:52:02 PM »
  You know, if the engine runs. Just re-work the external bits and leave as such. An as found running engine with some character often has more charisma than a perfectly built, balanced and blueprinted show motor.
  A fresh injection pump and injector then a good hard run to loosen up the stuck rings and gunk. She will outlast both you and myself.

Roark

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #8 on: April 19, 2011, 01:35:46 PM »
BSchwartz: Thanks for the link!  I'll try 'em.  My Vidhata is a VH4, which seems to be materially different from the basic Lister(oid) setup. More of a Petter-style if my Noob-eyes and Googlings don't deceive me. My critter is a 1500 rpm engine, single flywheel, and the head looks completely different... but ya never know!  Maybe I should post a picture in my next rant, just for grins.

BuickAndDeere: You are a brave man indeed! :)  Honestly, I was thinking the same thing, but really didn't want to voice that sort of hedonistic opinion here.  :laugh:  It's true this will never be a show queen.  I'm eyeing it as a deep-fallback option for hurricanes, floods, fallout (or insert your favorite End-Of-The-World scenario here). 

In the end I have a sneaking suspicion that my inner Old Engineer will eventually get the better of me and this creature will simply HAVE to come apart due to defects, either real or imagined.  Confession: My realization now, after getting some good, greasy hands, a couple of busted knuckles, some take-out fried chicken and a fair quantity of beer is this: It's an 800 lb tinker-toy and the real reason I drug it home was to play with it.

I see I'm in darned good company. :)

Roark
What?!? No engine parts at the dinner table?  C'mon, Hon...

bschwartz

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #9 on: April 19, 2011, 03:52:51 PM »
found this....
I don't know if it is a CS, but worth a call if it is near enough to you.

http://olympic.craigslist.org/atq/2327446971.html
Lister 2 cylinder diesel engine & generator - $1000 (Grapeview )
-Brett

1982 300SD, 1995 Suburban 6.5, 1994 F250, R170, Metro 6/ sold :( , Witte CD-12 ..... What else can I run on WVO?

Roark

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #10 on: April 19, 2011, 07:53:37 PM »
Since SWMBO'd is unlikely to forgive me over the last Tub Thumper I dragged home, this does sound interesting. After all, if there isn't any chance of forgiveness, then I won't feel bad about doing it again!

But oops. That ad is for the Seattle(ish) area.  I'm south of Houston, TX, and I'm betting that shipping in this day of >$4/gal diesel will cost me nearly as much as the engine itself.

And I'm not really THAT interested in being suddenly divorced. :) Unless of course the Swedish Bikini Team suddenly takes an insane liking towards slightly pudgy, balding, greasy-knuckled, over-the-hill, Nerdian wunderkins like me. 

Roark
What?!? No engine parts at the dinner table?  C'mon, Hon...

Roark

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #11 on: April 19, 2011, 09:46:10 PM »
Per BSchwartz's suggestion, I emailed Gary at Diesel Electric Supply (http://diesel-electric.us) a bit after 3:00 PM today.  Just a few minutes later, I got a reply back, essentially saying "I've likely got it here somewhere if it's remotely Lister-esque. Please send me pictures and I'll do my best!". 

What a sincerely nice guy!

Roark
What?!? No engine parts at the dinner table?  C'mon, Hon...

buickanddeere

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #12 on: April 20, 2011, 04:21:12 AM »


 I'm betting that shipping in this day of >$4/gal diesel will cost me nearly as much as the engine itself.


Roark


 Any natural gas in the area? Rumour has it maybe 3-5 yrs for around here. Run the engine on natural gas as it sips idle quantities of diesel for pilot injection?

Roark

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Re: Thoughts on a Vidhata VH4, delurking, and my pending divorce...
« Reply #13 on: May 01, 2011, 01:27:11 AM »
It took me a while to twig to what you were thinking, and now that I've dine the research, I'm itching to try it.

Yep, we have natural gas, and it's CHEAP. A therm here is about a buck... so on a Btu basis, NG costs about one third compared to over the road diesel. In a hurricane, it would be nice to have a way to stretch the liquid fuel reserve without resorting to fuels of last resort.

The gas meter is right around the corner of the garage and it has this tempting little 1/4 inch plug on the regulated side. :)

Will post any results of my goofings tomorrow. Caterpillar says 80% NG to 20% diesel is good, so I will start there and see where this leads.

Roark
What?!? No engine parts at the dinner table?  C'mon, Hon...