Lister Engines > Lister Based Generators
Making a frame for a generator
Clay:
Can I use wood for the frame on my generator?
I have the ST5 mounted on one of these:
Can I bolt the 6/1 and the ST5 mounted on that bracket to some 6x6 redwood? I think I have seen pictures of this done.
hotater:
Check out my 6x6 timber frame at..-- http://community.webshots.com/album/221767803TxfJoG
One warning about wood frames..... I used long lag bolts in several places to hold the frame-work to the wood. After about 3,000 hours of operation some of these lags are loosening due to oily wood failing. Plan on drilling all the way through and using big washers and nuts on the bottom. I like the galvanized square plates found in the concrete section of Home Depot for washers.
quinnf:
Hi Clay,
That's a good question. Wood makes a great bed for an engine. It's inexpensive, easy to work with, dampens vibration, looks traditional, is easy to modify and attach stuff to, and...and...and... That said, you gotta use the right stuff, which redwood ain't it because it's so soft, weak, and prone to fracture under stress. Because it's such a poor choice for structural applications, you'll commonly see redwood use restricted to exterior siding, decks, and fence posts. How come you're thinking redwood?. Is it because you need something that is rot resistant? There are better alternatives.
You need something you can bolt together firmly without the washers crushing the wood. Probably the cheapest and most common wood that is suitable is douglas fir. It's strong, resilient, holds fasteners well, doesn't crush easily and smells great when it's sawed. If you're in the southeast, yellow pine would (pun?) be a more common acceptable substitute, though I think it's a bit softer than fir. Oak and maple are much more suitable than any of the softwoods, and were commonly used for mounting heavy equipment in the last century..
Whatever you do, you have to make sure the considerable torque your 'roid generates with each compression and power stroke doesn't end up tearing apart your engine bed. For that reason, unless you use oak or maple it's a good idea to weld together a frame out of steel, and bolt or lag screw that to a wooden bed. That way, the various jitters and gyrations the engine performs as it does its thing will be distributed evenly over the surface of the wooden engine bed, and the mass and relative flexibiilty of the wood will largely absorb the high frequency mechanical vibrations the engine generates.
I made my engine bed from 3/8" x 3" welded steel angle, then lag screwed that to a 4x6" douglas fir frame made from a single 12' long 4x6. If you look carefully in the photo, you can see the steel angle frame protruding above the surface of the wooden frame. Oh yes, if you're going to mount your engine on casters, don't even think of getting casters with rubber tires. The thump-thump-thump of your 'roid will quickly pound rubber tires flat. Steel wheels are much more suitable and roll easier.
Clay, that's a nice mount for the ST-5 you showed in your post. Wish i had known those were available. Wouldnt have had to reinvent the wheel.
Quinn
Clay:
So, if I'm welding anyways, why use wood? For dampening of vibrations?
I didn't say Redwood for any particular reason, I realize it's soft. I live in CA, so Doug Fir is no problem ;)
One of the people that turned me on to Listers told me about the frame. It's from Grainger and supposedly will fit a 3, 5, and 7.5 kw ST head.
Clay:
--- Quote from: hotater on December 23, 2005, 03:51:24 AM ---Check out my 6x6 timber frame at..-- http://community.webshots.com/album/221767803TxfJoG
One warning about wood frames..... I used long lag bolts in several places to hold the frame-work to the wood. After about 3,000 hours of operation some of these lags are loosening due to oily wood failing. Plan on drilling all the way through and using big washers and nuts on the bottom. I like the galvanized square plates found in the concrete section of Home Depot for washers.
--- End quote ---
Thanks for the link. That was quite an experience.
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