Gents,
I've seen a large petrol genny set (big enough to run the house) and I'm tempted to purchase it. I have a couple of questions... Can I run the beast on something other than petrol (I'm presuming that its going to burn rather alot (its driving a 5kva alternator))? Either LPG (out of bottles) or parraffin? Its a wartime set so would it run on something else already? Also I'm wondering if its got damp, will the electrical machines dry out easily. Anyone had experience with this?
Andy G
LPG would probably be your best bet. Compression ratio will most likely be too high for paraffin even if it was designed to run on low octane 'pool' petrol. Don't ask me how to rig a proper LPG conversion though, my experience is limited to crude hand adjusted mixers!
Electrical gear should dry out fine as long as insulation hasn't rotted or any fine wires corroded through.
"Roland Craven" wrote
Hadn't thought of that one Roland. BTW What is the set/engine Andy?
IMHO If the armature laminations have expanded with rust its probably scrap though. hth Roland
Nick,
The engine is a large Cov climax (the next size up from the one on my
1.5kW set, and the one which I mistakenly bought a head gasket for!), attached to an alternator and an exciter. It's single phase, but not sure what the voltage is yet (hopefully its 240V otherwise it's no use!).The engine runs (which is a start) but the bloke selling isn't sure about the electrical side.
Not sure what to offer him for it (presuming it is a 240v one), but I could offer him the scrap price, which will be about 70 quid.
Not sure what SWMBO would make of it turning up. Maybe if the electrical side could be rebuilt at a friends place so that the thing turns up complete and ready to run she wouldn't object so much??
andy G
I was hoping for a Ford V8, but I suppose they were all doing duty hauling military vehicles about and waiting to be liberated by Sidney Allard!
Nick,
The engine is a large Cov climax (the next size up from the one on my
1.5kW set, and the one which I mistakenly bought a head gasket for!), attached to an alternator and an exciter. It's single phase, but not sure what the voltage is yet (hopefully its 240V otherwise it's no use!).The engine runs (which is a start) but the bloke selling isn't sure about the electrical side.
Not sure what to offer him for it (presuming it is a 240v one), but I could offer him the scrap price, which will be about 70 quid.
Not sure what SWMBO would make of it turning up. Maybe if the electrical side could be rebuilt at a friends place so that the thing turns up complete and ready to run she wouldn't object so much??
andy G
I've restored WW2 period dynamos and rotary converters & it is really a bit of a lottery whether the insulation is up to the job any more. I've had a couple of devices running fine & producing output, but after about fifteen minutes, smoke starts to emerge from field or armature & that is the end of that. Others run fine on load all day long & I'm convinced it's to do with the conditions in which the devices have been stored.
Lucas & Miller were still using shellac to insulate wires in the 1950's to my certain knowledge & as it is made from a curious wax dissolved off the wing cases of the Shellac Beetle, it is organic & susceptible to damp and bacteriological and fungous attack.
That said, I have an open frame dynamo that was taken out of service in 1917 as being too old fashioned that is just fine. It was very, very dusty when I got it, but I am confident it has been - as the vendor told me - under his bench and his father's bench before him!
If it's cheap, suck it and see ;o))
Kim Siddorn
Non magister mundi sum
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